Abstract
SUMMARYThe effects of direct drilling and ploughing on the structure and macroporosity of a clay soil at Compton Beauchamp, Oxfordshire, growing winter wheat, were studied using large thin sections (10 * 5 * 3.5 cm) and image analysis of photographs of fluorescent resin impregnated soil blocks.Composite coarse angular to subangular blocky and medium to fine granular aggregates were present in the top 3 cm of the direct drilled soil and in the top 10 cm of the ploughed soil. Settling of the soil and coalescing of these aggregates took place throughout the year under both treatments, but was most marked in the ploughed soil. In the subsoil (20 to 30 cm) most of the structural changes could be attributed to changes in the soil water content. Swelling in the winter led to the closure of the most macropores and shrinking in the spring and summer led initially to the development of vertical planar macropores and then to large cracks. Freezing and thawing in the winter created many very small subcuboidial aggregates at the soil surface which later coalesced as a result of raindrop impact.
Published Version
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