Cover Crops, compost, and no-till. A formula for good soil health
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My mother in law had a garden in the same place for over 50 years. However, she always said that her first garden was her best. Why? This presentation answers that question by focusing on what happened to her soil over those 50 years and what could have prevented the degradation.
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Cover Crops, compost, and no-till. A formula for good soil health
- 1. Tim Reinbott Bradford Research Center College of Food and Natural Resources
- 6. Loss of Organic Matter • Soil structure • Soil microbial biomass Release of CO2 Soil Erosion Why Till? • Weed Control
- 7. This is what separates us (Missouri) from Central Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, Indiana, etc In these areas climatic conditions favor the accumulation of Organic Matter • Slower breakdown, long history of deep rooted native perennial plants
- 8. SOM is derived from • Plant residue (both litter and roots) • Animal remains and excreta • Living soil microbes (microbial biomass) Over time fresh organic material is transformed into soil organic matter Crop Residues Bacteria Fungi Actinobacteria SOM 8
- 10. 20 – 40% of SOM is lost on cultivation Management effects on SOM • Tillage (disturbance) • Chemical Fertilization • Manure • Residue Retention • Crop • Crop Rotation • Cover Crop 10 Decline in SOC from Sanborn Field Plots showing increase following the return of residues beginning in 1950
- 12. Soil Life (macro) Help create soil structure and break down larger plant residues • Earthworms • Nematodes • Beetles • Ants • Termites • Springtails
- 13. One tablespoon of soil has approximately 1 billion soil microbes: • Bacteria: 3,000,000 to 500,000,000 • Actinobacteria: 1,000,000 to 20,000,000 • Fungi: 5,000 to 1,000,000 • Yeast: 1,000 to 1,000,000 • Protozoa: 1,000 to 500,000 • Algae: 1,000 to 500,000 • Nematodes: 10 to 5,000
- 14. The soil microbes in the plow layer has the mass equivalent of two cows (2400 lbs) per acre that need to be fed Soil organisms are much like cows, they need inputs of plant residues for food and energy Specifically, they need the carbon that is contained in plant residue and soil organic matter
- 16. ManuresCompost
- 22. Aerobic • Earthy Smell -much of the nutrients are kept in the compost and not released Anaerobic • Acidic smell -release of methane and Nitrous Oxide
- 26. 26
- 30. Early May Late May
- 40. LONG TERM PASTURE TILLED IN A CORN/SOYBEAN/WHEAT ROTATION
- 41. Scientists describe 3 pools of soil organic matter **really is a continuum of decomposition 41 Passive SOM 500 – 5000 yrs C/N ratio 7 – 10 Active SOM 1 – 2 yrs C/N ratio 15 – 30 Slow SOM 15 – 100 yrs C/N ratio 10 – 25 • Recently deposited organic material • Rapid decomposition • 10 – 20% of SOM • Intermediate age organic material • Slow decomposition • 10 – 20% of SOM • Very stable organic material • Extremely slow decomposition • 60 – 80% of SOM
- 42. Results are read in a spectrometer in lab or field or from a color card Potassium Permanganate Test KMnO4 oxidizes active carbon. The purple color of the chemical changes to pink the more active carbon there is in a soil sample.
- 46. No-Till With Cover Crops No-Till In A Corn/Soybean Rotation Tilled Each Year in a Corn/Soybean Rotation
- 47. Fencerow Native Warm Season Grass Cool Season Grass Mix Restored Native Prairie
- 49. Tilled No-Till No-Till w/ Cover Crops