Effects of 5 years of corn residue grazing and baling on nitrogen cycling, soil compaction, and wind erosion potential

Abstract

Corn residue grazing can provide a valuable and cost effective means of feeding cattle and is a common practice in most corn producing states. Mechanical means of residue removal (baling) is also often practiced as a means of harvesting cattle feed. However, there are concerns about the effects of management practices that remove crop residue on soil processes such as compaction, aggregation, and N cycling. To study these concerns, an experiment with four treatments including control, light grazing, heavy grazing, and baling was carried out for 5 years at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Water Resources Field Laboratory near Brule, NE. Soil penetration resistance was measured after 3, 4, and 5 years of residue removal. Wind erodible fraction, mean weight diameter of dry aggregates, and soil total N were measured after 5 years. Corn yields were determined throughout the study. Results indicate that light grazing showed little or no difference from the no residue removal treatment, but heavy grazing and baled treatments often had higher penetration resistance, indicating that high rates of residue removal may increase risks of soil compaction. However, compaction did not appear to be cumulative over time. No significant differences were observed in wind erodible fraction and dry aggregate mean weight diameter. However, there were trends that suggest heavy grazing and baling may, in the long term, reduce dry aggregate stability, increasing wind erosion potential. Results also show that in the surface 0–2.5 cm grazing animals may increase soil total N and that baling residue may decrease soil N content. There was no impact on corn yields throughout the study. Overall, corn residue grazing and baling appear to have little or no adverse effects on soil compaction, aggregation, or nitrogen cycling after 5 years.