Abstract
The diversification and intensification of crop rotations (DICR) in no-till systems is a novel approach that aims to increase crop production, together with decreasing environmental impact. Our objective was to analyze the effect of different levels of DICR on the abundance, biomass, and species composition of earthworm communities in Argentinean Pampas. We studied three levels of DICR—typical rotation (TY), high intensification with grass (HG), and with legume (HL); along with three references—natural grassland (NG), pasture (PA), and an agricultural external reference (ER). The NG had the highest earthworm abundance. Among the DICR treatments, abundance and biomass were higher in HL than in HG and, in both, these were higher than in TY. The NG and PA had a distinctive taxonomic composition and higher species richness. Instead, the DICR treatments had a similar richness and species composition. Earthworm abundance and biomass were positively related to rotation intensity and legume proportion indices, carbon input, and particulate organic matter content. The application of DICR for four years, mainly with legumes, favors the development of earthworm populations. This means that a subtle change in management, as DICR, can have a positive impact on earthworms, and thus on earthworm-mediated ecosystem services, which are important for crop production.
Highlights
IntroductionThe current agricultural system that prevails in our country is based on simplified practices, with very low crop diversity, and it generates soils impoverished in structure and nutrients
In the early 1990s in Argentina, genetically modified soybean cropping was approved
In a previous study in the Pampas region, we demonstrated that in no-till systems with good agricultural practices” (GAP), earthworms significantly contributed to C incorporation, via differential consumption of soils enriched in organic matter and the consequent enrichment of earthworm aggregates
Summary
The current agricultural system that prevails in our country is based on simplified practices, with very low crop diversity, and it generates soils impoverished in structure and nutrients. Through means of intensifying the rotation sequences by including a greater number of crops per unit of time, a more efficient and intensive use of environmental resources, such as water and solar radiation is achieved. This higher efficiency allows us to maintain or increase crop production per unit of time and area, in a less harmful way, and contributes to a higher C return to the soil [9,10,11]
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