Soil losses due to carrot harvesting in south central Turkey

Abstract

Harvest of root crops such as carrots (Daucus carota L.), sugar beets (Beta vulgaris L.), potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.), and turnips (Brassica rapa) may cause significant losses of soil from croplands. The soil loss due to crop harvesting (SLCH) may be as severe as that by water, wind, and tillage erosion, but experimental data on SLCH, particularly due to carrot harvesting, are limited. Thus, we quantified soil losses due to carrot harvesting in the Konya Basin, south central Turkey, and discussed its implications for the sustainable management and conservation of croplands in the region. About 60% of carrot in Turkey is produced in the Konya Basin. During the harvest season in November 2013, carrot was harvested manually and mechanically at four representative locations and soil removed with the carrot roots was determined. Results showed that the mean annual soil loss was 22.4Mg−1ha−1 for manual and 14.0Mg−1ha−1 for machine harvesting. It is important to note that these large losses of soil due to carrot harvest occur every four years because carrot is grown in a four year rotation with other crops in the study region. Under manual harvesting, clay and soil organic matter content explained 76% of the variability in SLCH. Under machine harvesting, crop yield and the liquid limit of the soil explained 50% of the variability of SLCH. Overall, manual and machine harvests of carrot roots cause significant losses of soil, and can be an important contributor to the total soil erosion in the study region.