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Conservation Tillage for Sustainable Agriculture
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Conservation Tillage for Sustainable Agriculture

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant–Soil Interactions".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 December 2022) | Viewed by 23935

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Paolo Mulè

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Guest Editor
Agris Sardegna, Viale Trieste 111, 09123 Cagliari, Italy
Interests: conservative agriculture; pedology; soil chemistry; carbon sequestration; sustainability; soil resilience
Dr. Gianluca Carboni

E-Mail
Guest Editor
Agris Sardegna, Viale Trieste 111, 09123 Cagliari, Italy
Interests: crop management; conservation agriculture; soil fertility; climate change mitigation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Conservation tillage (CT) could be considered as an umbrella or generic term used to describe tillage systems that have the potential to conserve soil and water by reducing their loss in comparison to some form of conventional tillage. Precise definitions of conservation tillage are only possible within the context of known crop species, soil types and conditions, and climates. A well-accepted operational definition of CT is management that combines tillage with minimal soil disturbance and retains at least 30% of crop residues on the soil surface. Generally, there are several types of CT: mulch tillage, ridge tillage, zone tillage, reduced tillage, and no-tillage. A main variant of the latter is direct drilling or sod seeding (sometimes termed zero-tillage), while other variants of CT are reduced tillage and minimum tillage. Conservation tillage can provide several benefits for agricultural systems such as soil conservation, reduction in soil sheet erosion and nonpoint pollution, and enhanced storage or retention of soil organic matter and water. In general terms, CT improves the soil quality (increase in soil structural stability, nutrients, and biological abundance) especially at the soil surface, in addition to economic advantages associated with the reductions in crop establishment time and energy use.

In the last few decades, conservation tillage practices have shown to reduce SOM decomposition, thereby increasing near-surface SOC and N and promote soil aggregation and sustainable crop production systems.

Despite the great amount of information, there are still open questions and challenges in this field. For example: How much of the C sequestered under no-tillage is likely to be lost if the soil is tilled? What are the longer-term impacts of continued infrequent no-tillage? If producers could be compensated for sequestering C in soil following the adoption of conservation tillage practices, the impacts need to be quantified. These are some of the open research topics. Therefore, in this Special Issue, articles (original research papers, perspectives, hypotheses, opinions, reviews, modelling approaches and methods) that focus on conservation tillage are most welcome.

Dr. Paolo Mulè
Dr. Gianluca Carboni
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Conservation tillage
  • Soil organic matter
  • Sustainable crop yield management
  • Crop residue
  • Soil loss
  • Soil erosion
  • Weed control
  • Greenhouse gases

Published Papers (9 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 1545 KiB  
Article
Soil–Plant Relationships in Soybean Cultivated under Crop Rotation after 17 Years of No-Tillage and Occasional Chiseling
by Gustavo Ferreira da Silva, Ana Paula Oliveira Matusevicius, Juliano Carlos Calonego, Larissa Chamma, Bruno Cesar Ottoboni Luperini, Michely da Silva Alves, Hugo Mota Ferreira Leite, Elizabete de Jesus Pinto, Marcelo de Almeida Silva and Fernando Ferrari Putti
Plants 2022, 11(19), 2657; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11192657 - 10 Oct 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1610
Abstract
No-tillage cover crops contribute to better soil quality, being able to replace mechanized tillage management. This observation can only be made after several years of adopting conservationist practices and through research on soil–plant relationships. The objective of the research was to verify the [...] Read more.
No-tillage cover crops contribute to better soil quality, being able to replace mechanized tillage management. This observation can only be made after several years of adopting conservationist practices and through research on soil–plant relationships. The objective of the research was to verify the relationship between the production components, physiological, root development, and physical-hydric properties of the soil in the yield of soybean grown in succession to different cover crops or with soil chiseling. The experiment was carried out in a randomized block design with four replications, comparing the cultivation of sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea) and millet (Penninsetum glaucum L.) as cover crops and a treatment with soil chiseling. The evaluations were carried out during soybean (Glycine max L.) cultivation in the 2019/20 summer crop, that is, after 17 years of experimenting started in 2003. Rotation with sunn hemp increased soybean yield by 6% and 10%, compared with millet rotation and soil chiseling. The species used in crop rotation in a long-term no-tillage system interfere with the physical and water characteristics of the soil, affecting the physiological responses and soybean yield. The rotation with sunn hemp offers greater water stability to the plants and provides greater soybean yield in succession. Future research that better addresses year-to-year variation, architecture, and continuity of pores provided by crop rotation, and evaluations of gas exchange, fluorescence, and activities of stress enzymes in soybean plants may contribute to a better understanding of soil–plant relationships in long-term no-till. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Tillage for Sustainable Agriculture)
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12 pages, 797 KiB  
Article
The Effects of Conservation Tillage on Chemical and Microbial Soil Parameters at Four Sites across Europe
by Ilka Engell, Deborah Linsler, Mignon Sandor, Rainer Georg Joergensen, Catharina Meinen and Martin Potthoff
Plants 2022, 11(13), 1747; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11131747 - 30 Jun 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1696
Abstract
Conservation tillage is often discussed as an effective tool to improve the soil quality in agriculture. Four sites across Europe (in Germany, Romania, Spain, and Sweden) were investigated as case studies for country-specific reductions in tillage intensity. Conventional tillage (CT) by mouldboard ploughing [...] Read more.
Conservation tillage is often discussed as an effective tool to improve the soil quality in agriculture. Four sites across Europe (in Germany, Romania, Spain, and Sweden) were investigated as case studies for country-specific reductions in tillage intensity. Conventional tillage (CT) by mouldboard ploughing was compared with shallow and deep non-inversion minimum tillage (MT) and/or no-tillage (NT). In Sweden, NT and MT had positive effects on the concentrations of soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (N), and microbial biomass carbon (MBC) in the upper 20 cm compared with CT. At the German site, MT increased SOC, N, and MBC concentrations in the top 10 cm. In contrast, CT increased MBC contents and bulk density between 20 and 30 cm soil depth. At the Romanian site, soil parameters showed no differences between inverse tillage (CT) and non-inverse tillage (MT), both with a working depth of 25 to 30 cm. At the Spanish site, the use of NT significantly increased the concentrations as well as the stocks of C, N, and MBC compared to CT. In conclusion, reduced tillage improved soil microbial properties in most cases. However, the effectiveness of reduced tillage appears to be highly dependent on site conditions such as pH, soil texture, and climatic conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Tillage for Sustainable Agriculture)
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15 pages, 5091 KiB  
Article
Can Dairy Slurry Application to Stubble, without Incorporation into the Soil, Be Sustainable?
by Arejacy A. Silva, Mario Carvalho, João Coutinho, Ernesto Vasconcelos and David Fangueiro
Plants 2022, 11(11), 1473; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11111473 - 31 May 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1818
Abstract
In many countries, livestock slurry must be injected or incorporated into the soil to reduce nitrogen losses. However, when the injection is not feasible, farmers adopting conservation practices discard the use of slurry as fertilizer. New approaches related to slurry treatment or application [...] Read more.
In many countries, livestock slurry must be injected or incorporated into the soil to reduce nitrogen losses. However, when the injection is not feasible, farmers adopting conservation practices discard the use of slurry as fertilizer. New approaches related to slurry treatment or application management can stimulate the use of slurry in conservation agriculture (CA). This study aimed to evaluate the agronomic effects of some new management strategies to use dairy slurry for fertilization of ryegrass grown on stubble-covered soil, using as reference standard practices (slurry injection and mineral fertilizer application). The following treatments were considered: (i) bare soil: control (CB), mineral fertilizer (MB), injection (IN); (ii) stubble: control (CS), acidified dairy slurry (ADS), raw dairy slurry (RDS), irrigation following RDS (IR), mineral fertilizer (MS), RDS placed under the stubble (US), raw slurry applied 16 days after sowing (RDS T16). Effects on ryegrass yield, apparent nutrient recovery (ANR) and soil chemical properties were assessed. ADS reached 94% equivalence to MS and performed similarly to IN for productivity, ANR and soil parameters showing to be a sustainable alternative to replace mineral nitrogen and a potential solution to enable dairy slurry application in CA without injection or incorporation into the soil. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Tillage for Sustainable Agriculture)
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17 pages, 2399 KiB  
Article
Residual Effects of 50-Year-Term Different Rotations and Continued Bare Fallow on Soil CO2 Emission, Earthworms, and Fertility for Wheat Crops
by Lina Skinulienė, Aušra Marcinkevičienė, Lina Marija Butkevičienė, Vaida Steponavičienė, Ernestas Petrauskas and Vaclovas Bogužas
Plants 2022, 11(10), 1279; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11101279 - 10 May 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1495
Abstract
In this study, our investigated hypothesis was that different pre-crops would have different effects on earthworm activity and soil CO2 emissions. We also hypothesized that a pre-crop clover–timothy mixture would perform best in terms of increasing the share of organic carbon in [...] Read more.
In this study, our investigated hypothesis was that different pre-crops would have different effects on earthworm activity and soil CO2 emissions. We also hypothesized that a pre-crop clover–timothy mixture would perform best in terms of increasing the share of organic carbon in soil and, in this way, contribute to improving the sustainability of agroecosystems. The aim of this study was to explore the residual effects of using a 50-year-term of three different crop rotations and a continuous bare fallow period on soil CO2 emissions by investigating the soil earthworm populations, soil agrochemical properties, and winter wheat yields. A field experiment was carried out from 2016 to 2017 at Vytautas Magnus University in Lithuania (54°53′ N, 23°50′ E). The experiment was conducted in crop stands of winter wheat cv. ‘Skagen’, which were sown in three crop rotations with different pre-crops and a continuous bare fallow period. The pre-crop used for winter wheat in the cereal crop rotation (CE) was a vetch and oat mixture for green forage, LEG-CER; the pre-crop used for winter wheat in the field with row crops (FWR) crop rotation was black fallow, FAL-CER; the pre-crop used for winter wheat in the Norfolk (NOR) crop rotation was a clover–timothy mixture, GRS-CER; and finally, continuous bare fallow, FAL-CONTROL, was used as well. The highest soil CO2 emission intensity was determined after the pre-crops that left a large amount of plant residues (clover and timothy mixture) in the soil. Plant residues remaining after the pre-crop had the greatest effect on the number of earthworms in the soil after the harvesting of winter wheat. Winter wheat had the best yield when grown in grass and legume sequences. Crop rotation sequences that included perennial grasses accumulated higher contents of total nitrogen and organic carbon. The best values for the productivity indicators of wheat were obtained when it was grown after a fallow crop fertilized with cattle manure. An appropriate crop rotation that promotes the steady long-term contribution of organic matter and increases the content of organic carbon in the soil will have a positive effect on the agrochemical, biological, and physical properties of soil and agroecosystem sustainability; moreover, these effects cannot be achieved by technological means alone. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Tillage for Sustainable Agriculture)
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14 pages, 12102 KiB  
Article
Soil Water Capacity, Pore Size Distribution, and CO2 Emission in Different Soil Tillage Systems and Straw Retention
by Vaida Steponavičienė, Vaclovas Bogužas, Aušra Sinkevičienė, Lina Skinulienė, Rimantas Vaisvalavičius and Alfredas Sinkevičius
Plants 2022, 11(5), 614; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11050614 - 24 Feb 2022
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2176
Abstract
The long-term implementation of crop rotation and tillage has an impact on the soil environment through inputs and soil disturbance, which in turn has an impact on soil quality. Tillage has a long-term impact on the agroecosystems. Since 1999, a long-term field experiment [...] Read more.
The long-term implementation of crop rotation and tillage has an impact on the soil environment through inputs and soil disturbance, which in turn has an impact on soil quality. Tillage has a long-term impact on the agroecosystems. Since 1999, a long-term field experiment has been carried out at the Experimental Station of Vytautas Magnus University. The aim of this experiment is to investigate the effects of long-term various-intensity tillage and straw retention systems on soil physical properties. The results were obtained in 2013 and 2019 (spring rape was growing). According to the latest edition of the International Soil Classification System, the soil in the experimental field was classified as Endocalcaric Stagnosol (Aric, Drainic, Ruptic, and Amphisiltic). The treatments were arranged using a split-plot design. In a two-factor field experiment, the straw was removed from one part of the experimental field, and the entire straw yield was chopped and spread at harvest in the other part of the field (Factor A). There were three different tillage systems as a subplot (conventional deep ploughing, cover cropping with following shallow termination, and no-tillage) (Factor B). There were four replications. The long-term application of reduced tillage significantly increased soil water retention and improved the pore structure and CO2 emissions. Irrespective of the incorporation of straw, it was found that as the amount of water available to plants increases, CO2 emissions from the soil increase to some extent and then start to decrease. Simplified tillage and no-tillage in uncultivated soil reduce CO2 emissions by increasing the amount of water available to plants from 0.151 to 0.233 m3·m−3. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Tillage for Sustainable Agriculture)
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13 pages, 4596 KiB  
Article
The Effect of Monoculture, Crop Rotation Combinations, and Continuous Bare Fallow on Soil CO2 Emissions, Earthworms, and Productivity of Winter Rye after a 50-Year Period
by Vaclovas Bogužas, Lina Skinulienė, Lina Marija Butkevičienė, Vaida Steponavičienė, Ernestas Petrauskas and Nijolė Maršalkienė
Plants 2022, 11(3), 431; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11030431 - 04 Feb 2022
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 3603
Abstract
One of the main goals of the 21st century’s developing society is to produce the necessary amount of food while protecting the environment. Globally, particularly in Lithuania and other northern regions with similar climatic and soil conditions, there is a lack of data [...] Read more.
One of the main goals of the 21st century’s developing society is to produce the necessary amount of food while protecting the environment. Globally, particularly in Lithuania and other northern regions with similar climatic and soil conditions, there is a lack of data on the long-term effects of crop rotation under the current conditions of intensive farming and climate change. It has long been recognized that monocultures cause soil degradation compared to crop rotation. Research hypothesis: the long-term implementation of crop rotation makes a positive influence on the soil environment. The aim of our investigation was to compare the effects of a 50-year-long application of different crop rotations and monocultures on soil CO2 emissions, earthworms, and productivity of winter rye. Long-term stationary field experiments were established in 1966 at Vytautas Magnus University Experimental Station (54°53′ N, 23°50′ E). The study was conducted using intensive field rotation with row crops, green manure crop rotations, three-course rotation, and rye monoculture. Pre-crop had the largest impact on soil CO2 emissions, and more intensive soil CO2 emissions occurred at the beginning of winter rye growing season. Rye appeared not to be demanding in terms of pre-crops. However, its productivity decreased when grown in monoculture, and the optimal mineral fertilization remained lower than with crop rotation, but productivity remained stable. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Tillage for Sustainable Agriculture)
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15 pages, 4090 KiB  
Article
The Importance of Liming with an Appropriate Liming Material: Long-Term Experience with a Typic Palexerult
by Miguel Ángel Olego, Miguel Javier Quiroga, Roberto López and Enrique Garzón-Jimeno
Plants 2021, 10(12), 2605; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10122605 - 27 Nov 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1975
Abstract
Aluminium phytotoxicity is considered the main limiting factor for crop productivity in agricultural acid soils. Liming is a common practice used to improve acidic soil properties, but an appropriate liming material is essential for both agricultural productivity and environmental sustainability. A long-term field [...] Read more.
Aluminium phytotoxicity is considered the main limiting factor for crop productivity in agricultural acid soils. Liming is a common practice used to improve acidic soil properties, but an appropriate liming material is essential for both agricultural productivity and environmental sustainability. A long-term field experiment with two liming amendments (dolomitic limestone and limestone) was developed during 10 years to determine the changes in soil acidity and assess the effects on crop (rye) yields. Although the adverse effects of the soil acidity conditions were alleviated with both amendments tested, dolomitic limestone was the most effective in the short- and long-term period. In terms of the saturation of exchange complex, dolomitic limestone had a better efficiency, likely based on its rate of dissolution. No significant changes in soil organic matter and exchangeable potassium levels between the treatments tested were found. Both liming materials significantly increased the rye total biomass, but interestingly, significant correlations were showed between tissue levels of magnesium and biomass production, but not between the latter and calcium. The increases in rye biomass production compared with control soils at the end of the research were the following: dolomitic limestone, 47%, and limestone, 32%. A link between an increase in magnesium bioavailability and biomass production was found, as well as between magnesium rye content and total, spike and stem biomass. Hence, it could conceivably be hypothesized that since magnesium is crucial for the transport of assimilates from source leaves to sink organs, alleviating its deficiency leads to avoiding the reducing growth rate of sink organs. Although further investigations are needed to gain a better understanding of liming on the biological, chemical and physical soil properties in the long term, our research provides support for the conceptual premise that an appropriate selection of liming material is crucial for the productivity of acid soils. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Tillage for Sustainable Agriculture)
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17 pages, 758 KiB  
Article
Carbon and Nitrogen Mineralization in Dark Grey Calcareous Floodplain Soil Is Influenced by Tillage Practices and Residue Retention
by Nazmus Salahin, Md. Khairul Alam, Sharif Ahmed, Mohammad Jahiruddin, Ahmed Gaber, Walaa F. Alsanie, Akbar Hossain and Richard W. Bell
Plants 2021, 10(8), 1650; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10081650 - 11 Aug 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2055
Abstract
Very little is known about the changes that occur in soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN) under an intensive rice-based cropping system following the change to minimal tillage and increased crop residue retention in the Gangetic Plains of South Asia. The [...] Read more.
Very little is known about the changes that occur in soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN) under an intensive rice-based cropping system following the change to minimal tillage and increased crop residue retention in the Gangetic Plains of South Asia. The field experiment was conducted for 3 years at Rajbari, Bangladesh to examine the impact of tillage practices and crop residue retention on carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycling. The experiment comprised four tillage practices—conventional tillage (CT), zero tillage (ZT), strip-tillage (ST), and bed planting (BP) in combination with two residue retention levels—increased residue (R50%) and low residue (R20%—the current practice). The TN, SOC, and mineral N (NH4+-N and NO3−-N) were measured in the soil at different crop growth stages. After 3 years, ZT, ST, and BP sequestered 12, 11, and 6% more SOC, and 18, 13, and 10% more TN, respectively than the conventional crop establishment practice at 0–5 cm soil depth. The accumulation of SOC and TN was also higher compared to the initial SOC and TN in soil. Among the tillage practices, the maximum SOC and TN sequestration were recorded with ST and with R50% that might be attributed to reduced mineralization of C and N in soil particularly with increased residue retention, since decay rates of potentially mineralizable C was lower in the ST with both the residue retention practices. Increased residue retention and minimum tillage practices after nine consecutive crops has altered the C and N cycling by slowing the in-season turnover of C and N, reducing the level of nitrate-N available to plants in the growing season and increasing retained soil levels of SOC and TN. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Tillage for Sustainable Agriculture)
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Review

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16 pages, 617 KiB  
Review
Carbon Sequestration to Avoid Soil Degradation: A Review on the Role of Conservation Tillage
by Sadam Hussain, Saddam Hussain, Ru Guo, Muhammad Sarwar, Xiaolong Ren, Djordje Krstic, Zubair Aslam, Usman Zulifqar, Abdur Rauf, Christophe Hano and Mohamed A. El-Esawi
Plants 2021, 10(10), 2001; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10102001 - 24 Sep 2021
Cited by 33 | Viewed by 6150
Abstract
Human efforts to produce more food for increasing populations leave marks on the environment. The use of conventional agricultural practices, including intensive tillage based on the removal of crop residue, has magnified soil erosion and soil degradation. In recent years, the progressive increase [...] Read more.
Human efforts to produce more food for increasing populations leave marks on the environment. The use of conventional agricultural practices, including intensive tillage based on the removal of crop residue, has magnified soil erosion and soil degradation. In recent years, the progressive increase in the concentration of greenhouse gases (GHGs) has created global interest in identifying different sustainable strategies in order to reduce their concentration in the atmosphere. Carbon stored in soil is 2–4 times higher than that stored in the atmosphere and four times more when compared to carbon stored in the vegetation. The process of carbon sequestration (CS) involves transferring CO2 from the atmosphere into the soil or storage of other forms of carbon to either defer or mitigate global warming and avoid dangerous climate change. The present review discusses the potential of soils in sequestering carbon and mitigating the accelerated greenhouse effects by adopting different agricultural management practices. A significant amount of soil organic carbon (SOC) could be sequestered by conversion of conventional tillage to conservation tillage. The most important aspect of conservation agriculture is thought to improve plant growth and soil health without damaging the environment. In the processes of climate change mitigation and adaptation, zero tillage has been found to be the most eco-friendly method among different tillage techniques. No-till practice is considered to enable sustainable cropping intensification to meet future agricultural demands. Although no-tillage suggests merely the absence of tillage, in reality, several components need to be applied to a conservation agriculture system to guarantee higher or equal yields and better environmental performance than conventional tillage systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation Tillage for Sustainable Agriculture)
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