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Effects of no-tillage management on soil biochemical characteristics in northern China

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 November 2009

E. K. LIU ,
B. Q. ZHAO ,
X. R. MEI ,
H. B. SO ,
J. LI  and
X. Y. LI
E. K. LIU
Affiliation:
Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture, The Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, P.R. China Key Laboratory of Dryland Farming and Water-Saving Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture of the People's Republic of China (MOA), Beijing 100081, P.R. China
B. Q. ZHAO
Affiliation:
Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, The Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, P.R. China
X. R. MEI*
Affiliation:
Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture, The Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, P.R. China Key Laboratory of Dryland Farming and Water-Saving Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture of the People's Republic of China (MOA), Beijing 100081, P.R. China
H. B. SO
Affiliation:
Griffith School of Engineering, Griffith University, Nathan, Q 4111, Australia
J. LI
Affiliation:
Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, The Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, P.R. China
X. Y. LI
Affiliation:
Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, The Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, P.R. China
*
*To whom all correspondence should be addressed. Email: meixr@ieda.org.cn
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Summary

Field experiments (15 years) were carried out to study the effects of no-tillage (NT) and conventional tillage (CT) management practices on the soil chemical properties, microbial biomass, soil enzymatic activities and winter wheat yield on a cinnamon soil in Shanxi, on the Chinese Loess Plateau. Compared to CT, NT increased soil organic carbon, soil total nitrogen and soil total phosphorus in the 0–100 mm layer by 25, 18 and 7%, respectively. Microbial biomass C and N contents under NT were 41 and 57% greater than under CT on the same layer. In general, higher enzymatic activities were found in the more superficial layers of soil under NT than under CT in the same layer. Winter wheat yield was c. 20% higher under NT than under CT. These findings have implications for understanding how conservation tillage practices improve soil quality and sustainability in the rainfed dryland farming areas of northern China.

Type
Crops and Soils
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 148 , Issue 2 , April 2010 , pp. 217 - 223
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

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