Responses of Soil Profile Hydrology, Structure and Microbial Respiration to Organic Amendments Under Different Tillage Systems on the Loess Plateau
The combined effects of tillage and organic amendments on microbial respiration and its contribution to soil hydraulic conductivity are still uncertain in the 0–40 cm layer of a loess soil. We conducted a two-year field experiment to explore the effects of organic amendments, tillage and their inter...
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2025-01-01
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| Series: | Agronomy |
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| author | Lili Zhao Lusheng Li Xiangjie Chen Yanbin Li Jiankun Ge Xiaowen Wang |
| author_facet | Lili Zhao Lusheng Li Xiangjie Chen Yanbin Li Jiankun Ge Xiaowen Wang |
| author_sort | Lili Zhao |
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| description | The combined effects of tillage and organic amendments on microbial respiration and its contribution to soil hydraulic conductivity are still uncertain in the 0–40 cm layer of a loess soil. We conducted a two-year field experiment to explore the effects of organic amendments, tillage and their interaction on soil microbial respiration, aggregate stability, pore parameters, and hydraulic conductivity on the Loess Plateau. Three tillage methods (conventional tillage (CT), deep tillage (DT) and no tillage (NT)) plus five fertilizer treatments (mineral fertilizer (control) alone and along with 20 t ha<sup>−1</sup> wheat straw (MWS), wheat husk (MWH), farmyard soil (MFS) and bioorganic fertilizer (MBF)) were set up as experimental treatments. The findings demonstrated that the organic amendments significantly increased the soil microbial respiration and saturated hydraulic conductivity compared to the control in the 0–10 cm and 10–20 cm layers. Soil microbial respiration had indirect effects on hydraulic conductivity by improving the water aggregate stability and macroporosity. Additionally, the interaction effects of tillage and organic amendments on the pore and hydrological parameters were significant in the 20–40 cm layer. NT-MBF resulted in the greatest saturated hydraulic conductivity, which was directly correlated with the soil’s strong pore organization. Given the issue of subsurface soil compaction in our study area, it is recommended that local farmers adopt NT-MBF to enhance the soil’s microbial, structural and hydrological properties. |
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| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2073-4395 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
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| series | Agronomy |
| spelling | doaj-art-4f2a6bb880a04fd3b4e2bcd0308d15a42025-01-24T13:17:20ZengMDPI AGAgronomy2073-43952025-01-0115125010.3390/agronomy15010250Responses of Soil Profile Hydrology, Structure and Microbial Respiration to Organic Amendments Under Different Tillage Systems on the Loess PlateauLili Zhao0Lusheng Li1Xiangjie Chen2Yanbin Li3Jiankun Ge4Xiaowen Wang5School of Water Conservancy, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, ChinaSchool of Water Conservancy, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, ChinaSchool of Water Conservancy, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, ChinaSchool of Water Conservancy, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, ChinaSchool of Water Conservancy, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, ChinaHigh-Tech Key Laboratory of Agricultural Equipment and Intelligence of Jiangsu Province, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, ChinaThe combined effects of tillage and organic amendments on microbial respiration and its contribution to soil hydraulic conductivity are still uncertain in the 0–40 cm layer of a loess soil. We conducted a two-year field experiment to explore the effects of organic amendments, tillage and their interaction on soil microbial respiration, aggregate stability, pore parameters, and hydraulic conductivity on the Loess Plateau. Three tillage methods (conventional tillage (CT), deep tillage (DT) and no tillage (NT)) plus five fertilizer treatments (mineral fertilizer (control) alone and along with 20 t ha<sup>−1</sup> wheat straw (MWS), wheat husk (MWH), farmyard soil (MFS) and bioorganic fertilizer (MBF)) were set up as experimental treatments. The findings demonstrated that the organic amendments significantly increased the soil microbial respiration and saturated hydraulic conductivity compared to the control in the 0–10 cm and 10–20 cm layers. Soil microbial respiration had indirect effects on hydraulic conductivity by improving the water aggregate stability and macroporosity. Additionally, the interaction effects of tillage and organic amendments on the pore and hydrological parameters were significant in the 20–40 cm layer. NT-MBF resulted in the greatest saturated hydraulic conductivity, which was directly correlated with the soil’s strong pore organization. Given the issue of subsurface soil compaction in our study area, it is recommended that local farmers adopt NT-MBF to enhance the soil’s microbial, structural and hydrological properties.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/15/1/250hydraulic conductivitymicrobial respirationaggregate stabilitypore connectivitysustainable practices |
| spellingShingle | Lili Zhao Lusheng Li Xiangjie Chen Yanbin Li Jiankun Ge Xiaowen Wang Responses of Soil Profile Hydrology, Structure and Microbial Respiration to Organic Amendments Under Different Tillage Systems on the Loess Plateau Agronomy hydraulic conductivity microbial respiration aggregate stability pore connectivity sustainable practices |
| title | Responses of Soil Profile Hydrology, Structure and Microbial Respiration to Organic Amendments Under Different Tillage Systems on the Loess Plateau |
| title_full | Responses of Soil Profile Hydrology, Structure and Microbial Respiration to Organic Amendments Under Different Tillage Systems on the Loess Plateau |
| title_fullStr | Responses of Soil Profile Hydrology, Structure and Microbial Respiration to Organic Amendments Under Different Tillage Systems on the Loess Plateau |
| title_full_unstemmed | Responses of Soil Profile Hydrology, Structure and Microbial Respiration to Organic Amendments Under Different Tillage Systems on the Loess Plateau |
| title_short | Responses of Soil Profile Hydrology, Structure and Microbial Respiration to Organic Amendments Under Different Tillage Systems on the Loess Plateau |
| title_sort | responses of soil profile hydrology structure and microbial respiration to organic amendments under different tillage systems on the loess plateau |
| topic | hydraulic conductivity microbial respiration aggregate stability pore connectivity sustainable practices |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/15/1/250 |
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