Soil labile C and N fractions can change rapidly in response to management practices compared to non-labile fractions. High variability in soil properties in the field, however, results in nonresponse to management practices on these parameters. We evaluated the effects of residue placement (surface application [or simulated no-tillage] and incorporation into the soil [or simulated conventional...

In general, Armadillidium vulgare (Latreille) are considered nonpests of soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrill], but changes in soil conservation practices have shifted the pest status of this organism from an opportunistic to a perennial, early-season pest in parts of central Kansas. As a result, soybean producers that rotate with corn (Zea mays L.) under conservation tillage practices have resort...

-hlodeling of crop residue decomposition for nutrient cycling and effectiveness of residues to control soil erosion requires information on crop-specific decomposition coefficients (k). Respiration of decomposing residues reflects the activity of the microbial community and should give an indication of the residue decomposition rate. A method for estimating k using substrate-induced respiration...

Overland flow from cropland areas often contains nutrients and residue materials can either contribute to runoff nutrient load through leaching or remove nutrients by sorption. Measurements were made of leaching and sorption of nitrogen and phosphorus from corn (Zea mays L.), soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) and winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv. Pastiche) residues placed in solutions conta...

wind erosion. Soil microenvironments are different in fields that have surface-crop residues than in tilled fields Conservation tillage fields provide different environments for biowith incorporated residues. Natural-resource simulation logical and chemical processes than tilled fields. Our understanding of decomposition does not adequately account for post-harvest residue models that address s...

We propose the sequestering of crop residues to capture a significant fraction (26%) of the present US atmospheric carbon emission. With adequate fractions of farm waste left in and on the soil to supply nutrients and retard erosion, the bulk of the waste could be shipped at low cost, using the existing crop transport network, at a cost of $22.5 billion per year. Disposal in river deltas may en...

Field burning of residue is a traditional management tool for irrigated wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production in the Inland Pacific Northwest of the United States (PNW) that can result in reduced air quality. A 6-year no-till field experiment to evaluate two complete cycles of a 3-year irrigated crop rotation of winter wheat–spring barley (Hordeum vulgare L.)–winter canola (Brassica napus L.)...

Unlike traditional ground-based methodology, remote sensing allows for the rapid estimation of crop residue cover (fR). While the Cellulose Absorption Index (CAI) is ideal for fR estimation, a new index, the Shortwave Infrared Normalized Difference Residue Index (SINDRI), utilizing ASTER bands 6 and 7, is proposed for future multispectral sensors and would be less costly to implement. SINDRI pe...