In arable cropping systems, reduced or conservation tillage practices are linked with improved soil quality, C retention and higher microbial biomass, but most long-term studies rarely focus on depths greater than 15 cm nor allow comparison of microbial community responses to agricultural practices. We investigated microbial community structure in a long-term field trial (12-years, Lincoln, New...

Few experiments in the coastal plain region of the southeastern United States have reported the effect of long-term tillage and tillage intensity on chemical soil quality indicators. The purpose of this study was to determine the 17-year influence of four tillage systems on chemical soil quality indicators in a Benndale fine sandy loam (coarse-loamy, siliceous, semiactive, thermic, Typic Paleud...

Interest in tillage impacts on sequestration of soil organic carbon (SOC) has increased greatly during recent years. The use of reduced and no-tillage (NT) practices generally increases the SOC concentration in surface few centimeters when compared to conventionally tilled soils. However, use of conservation tillage does not always result in increased SOC storage overall. The effects of sample ...

Intensive agricultural practices in farming systems in eastern Australia have been identified as a contributor to the poor runoff water quality entering the Great Barrier Reef (GBR). A field investigation was carried out to measure the off-farm water quality and productivity in a coastal farming system in northeastern Australia. Two vegetable crops (capsicum and zucchini) were grown in summer 2...

Introduction Direct energy expenses (diesel, gasoline, propane, electricity) total more than $1 billion annually for Iowa farmers. Farm management techniques such as adjusting tractor gear and throttle settings or reducing tillage depths can reduce diesel fuel consumption for row crop production. This study is being conducted over multiple years to measure the effects of energy management techn...

Soil nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N) data arranged on a three-dimensional grid were analyzed to compare tillage effect on the spatial distribution of residual NO3-N in the soil profile of agricultural plots drained by subsurface tiles. A three-dimensional median-based resistant (to outlier(s)) approach was developed to polish the spatially located data on soil NO3-N affected by directional trends (non...

The Denitrification-Decompostion (DNDC) model was used to estimate the impact of change in management practices on N2O emissions in seven major soil regions in Canada, for the period 1970 to 2029. Conversion of cultivated land to permanent grassland would result in the greatest reduction in N2O emissions, particularly in eastern Canada where the model estimated about 60% less N2O emissions for ...

Despite the importance of sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) in the world, this crop has received least research attention in Pakistan. Therefore, a field experiment was carried out to evaluate the performance of tillage system under various irrigation intervals and phosphorus levels on oil contents, yield and yield attributes of Sesame. The experiment was conducted at New Developmental Farm of the Un...

tillage usually has been found to increase b compared with moldboard and chisel plow (Kitur et al., 1993; Lal, Tillage impacts on soil properties differ among soils. This study 1999). Bulk density usually is lowest immediately after investigated tillage, cropping, and wheel traffic (WT) effects of 13-yr of no-tillage (NT), chisel plow (CP), and moldboard plow (MP) under tillage and increases wi...