Abstract
Problems arising from conventional tillage (CT) systems (such as soil erosion, decrease of organic matter, environmental damage etc.) have led many farmers to the adoption of no-till (NT) systems that are more effective in improving soil physical, chemical and microbial properties. Results from this study clearly indicated that NT, mulch tillage (MT), and winter rye cover cropping systems increased the activity of phosphatase, β-glucosidase and arylsulfatase at a 0–10 cm soil depth but decreased the activity of these enzymes at 10–20 cm. The increase in enzyme activity was a good indicator of intensive soil microbial activity in different soil management practices. Poultry litter (PL) application under NT, MT, and rye cropping system could be considered as effective management practices due to the improvement in carbon (C) content and the biochemical quality at the soil surface. The activities of the studied enzymes were highly correlated with soil total nitrogen (STN) soil organic carbon (SOC) at the 0–10 cm soil depth, except for acid phosphatase where no correlation was observed. This study revealed that agricultural practices such as tillage, PL, and cover crop cropping system have a noticeable positive effect on soil biochemical activities under cotton production.
Highlights
Deterioration of soil quality in southeastern USA has been attributed to soil erosion associated with an increase of conventional monoculture practices
Phosphatases are adaptive enzymes and the intensity of secretion by microorganisms or plant roots depend on their need for phosphates [32]
The application of Poultry litter (PL) based on N concentration may have increased soil to the point that it reduced the activity of microorganisms responsible for phosphatase production
Summary
Deterioration of soil quality in southeastern USA (the most productive area in agriculture) has been attributed to soil erosion associated with an increase of conventional monoculture practices. In. Alabama, eroded soils under conventional cotton production average about 25 t ha−1 yr−1 [1]. Farmers continue to use intensive conventional tillage (CT) for continuous cotton production in these areas. Conventional tillage has the potential to cause loss of soil organic matter (SOM) and soil nutrients content leading to a decrease in biological activity. NT practices are known to have advantages over CT with respect to soil chemical, physical and biological properties mainly in the surface layer [2]. [3,4] stated that conventional agricultural practices inhibit the activity and function of soil microbes with insecticide or/and fungicide application. Studies found that soil microbial populations and enzyme activities involved in carbon (C), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and sulfur (S)
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