The structural improvement of damaged clay subsoils

Abstract

SummaryA manually damaged, smeared layer (pan) was created at plough depth in two clay soils. Soil physical properties, soil water regimes and plant responses were measured in panned and non‐panned soil from 1972 to 1975. Continuity of the pan was readily lost on drying by formation of shrinkage cracks which did not fully close unless the soil had been wet for a long time; thus the occurrence of perched water tables above the pan was rare. The pans had no effect on crop yields. Leaf water potential, effective rooting depth and subsoil water deficits all showed that the pans affected water uptake by roots, but these effects were transient. The results indicate that natural amelioration of pans in these clay soils occurs even after slight drying and that the degree but not duration of drying is important.