2020
1st International Conference of Soil and Agriculture:
TOWARDS SOIL SUSTAINABILITY
11–13 June 2024 • Lublin–Nałęczów, Poland
https://doi.org/10.24326/ICSA1.1.01
Published online: 4 October 2024
Soil mobile organic carbon as affected by winter wheat strip tillage and forage legume intercropping
Jurgita Cesevičienė1*, Viktorija Gecaitė2, Aušra Arlauskienė2, Alvyra Šlepetienė1
1 Institute of Agriculture, Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry (LAMM), Instituto av. 1, Kėdainiai distr., 58344 Akademija, Lithuania
2 Joniškėlis Experimental Station, Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry, Pasvalys distr., 39301 Joniškėlis, Lithuania
* Corresponding author:
Abstract
Crop rotation diversification using legumes has been advocated as one of the solutions to improve the resilience of the crop system to various environmental stresses and the use of nitrogen resources. However, when forage legumes or grass-legumes are ploughed, there is a high risk of nitrate leaching, especially in sandy soils (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2017.12.009). Skipping autumn tillage can reduce the decomposition of plant residues and promote soil humification processes. We hypothesized that winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) – forage legume strip intercropping technologies could optimize crop residue mineralization and increase soil organic carbon. The aim of the study was to determine the effect of winter wheat – black medick (Medicago lupulina L.) WW+BM, winter wheat – white clover (Trifolium repens L.) WW+WC, and winter wheat – Egyptian clover (T. alexandrinum L.) WW+EC strip tillage intercropping management on soil mobile organic carbon content compared to forage legume monocropping with conventional tillage. The study was carried out at the LAMMC Joniškėlis Experimental Station on Endocalcari-Endohypogleyic Cambisol (siltic, drainic) in 2018–2019 (Experiment I) and 2019–2020 (Experiment II). In 2018 and 2019, legumes were grown with oats (Avena sativa L.) or in monocrops. After harvesting the oats, the straw was chopped and spread, the legume grass was mulched, and winter wheat was sown using the strip tillage system involving one-pass tillage. The legume monocrops in autumn were ploughed and winter wheat was sown. After harvesting winter wheat, soil was taken and water-extractable organic carbon (WEOC), mobile humic substances (MHS) and mobile humic acids (MHA) were determined. The results showed, that in winter wheat – forage legumes intercropping, WW grain yield decreased (especially in Experiment I), compared to the same grasses monocultures that were ploughed before WW sowing. The highest amount of WEOC was in intercropping soil WW+WC (Experiment I) or in all fields (except WW+EC) after applying strip tillage. During the research period, the amounts of MHS and MHA changed analogously (especially in Experiment I). Their content increased substantially in fields with BD and EC, regardless of whether the grasses were ploughed or grown with WW. In experiment II, these differences were smaller, and the variation in MHA content was slight. Studies have shown an inverse correlation between WW grain yield and soil mobile forms of organic carbon.
Keywords: black medick, white clover, Egyptian clover, mobile humic substances, water-extractable organic carbon
How to cite
Cesevičienė J., Gecaitė V., Arlauskienė A., Šlepetienė A., 2024. Soil mobile organic carbon as affected by winter wheat strip tillage and forage legume intercropping. 1st International Conference of Soil and Agriculture: Towards Soil Sustainability. https://doi.org/10.24326/ICSA1.1.01
