Article
Agronomy
Qi Zhang, Yuanhong Zhang, Xumin Wang, Haoyu Li, Pengzhao Liu, Xiaoli Wang, Rui Wang, Jun Li
Summary: This study investigated the effects of four tillage practices on soil aggregates, soil carbon pools, soil carbon sequestration, and emissions through a long-term tillage experiment. The results showed that conservation tillage practices improved soil organic carbon stock and reduced carbon emissions. This was achieved by increasing soil aggregates and improving carbon pool management. However, no-tillage and subsoiling practices increased the stratification ratios of soil organic carbon, which hindered its vertical distribution. Additionally, conservation tillage practices also increased crop yield and had positive effects on environmental protection and soil physicochemical properties. Based on a comprehensive index assessment, NCS was recommended as a sustainable tillage practice.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF AGRONOMY
(2022)
Article
Agronomy
Somasundaram Jayaraman, Meenakshi Sahu, Nishant K. Sinha, Monoranjan Mohanty, Ranjeet S. Chaudhary, Brijesh Yadav, Lalit K. Srivastava, Kuntal M. Hati, Ashok K. Patra, Ram C. Dalal
Summary: Conservation agriculture is a sustainable farming practice that improves soil health. This study found that implementing conservation agriculture on vertisols can increase soil aggregation and SOC, while reducing CO2 emissions.
Article
Soil Science
M. Krauss, M. Wiesmeier, A. Don, F. Cuperus, A. Gattinger, S. Gruber, W. K. Haagsma, J. Peigne, M. Chiodelli Palazzoli, F. Schulz, M. G. A. van der Heijden, L. Vincent-Caboud, R. A. Wittwer, S. Zikeli, M. Steffens
Summary: Reduced tillage in organic farming can increase SOC stocks in surface layers, decrease them in intermediate layers, and increase them in deeper soil layers. The cumulative SOC stocks increased by 1.7% or 1.5 Mg ha-1 (0-50 cm, n = 9) and 3.6% or 4.0 Mg ha-1 (0-100 cm, n = 7) compared with ploughing. The estimated mean C sequestration rates were 0.09 and 0.27 Mg ha-1 yr-1, respectively.
SOIL & TILLAGE RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Xiaotong Liu, Xueping Wu, Guopeng Liang, Fengjun Zheng, Mengni Zhang, Shengping Li
Summary: No-tillage has been shown to have positive impacts on soil aggregation and soil organic carbon, improving soil structure and promoting carbon sequestration. However, the specific responses vary depending on environmental and agronomic factors.
LAND DEGRADATION & DEVELOPMENT
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Maria Zumkeller, Runze Yu, Nazareth Torres, Lauren E. E. Marigliano, Daniele Zaccaria, Sahap Kaan Kurtural
Summary: Sustainable soil management practices in vineyards can contribute to carbon storage, but site characteristics such as soil texture and climate are the key determinants of carbon storage potential.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2022)
Review
Plant Sciences
Sadam Hussain, Saddam Hussain, Ru Guo, Muhammad Sarwar, Xiaolong Ren, Djordje Krstic, Zubair Aslam, Usman Zulifqar, Abdur Rauf, Christophe Hano, Mohamed A. El-Esawi
Summary: This article discusses the impact of human efforts to produce more food for increasing populations on the environment and the strategies for mitigating greenhouse effects and climate change through adopting different agricultural management practices. It emphasizes the potential of soils in sequestering carbon and highlights the importance of conservation agriculture for improving plant growth and soil health without damaging the environment.
Article
Agronomy
Josue de los Rios, Arne Poyda, Friedhelm Taube, Christof Kluss, Ralf Loges, Thorsten Reinsch
Summary: The results of this study suggest that the use of no-till (NT) can effectively mitigate soil organic carbon (SOC) losses during the conversion of grassland to arable land. However, the tillage method does not affect the SOC content in the subsoil layer.
Article
Soil Science
Nicolas L. Breil, Thierry Lamaze, Vincent Bustillo, Claire-Emmanuelle Marcato-Romain, Benoit Coudert, Solen Queguiner, Nathalie Jarosz-Pelle
Summary: The aim of this study was to understand the impact of the combination of no-till and cover cropping on soil organic carbon (SOC) and soil respiration. The results showed that for soils with high initial SOC contents, there was no significant difference in SOC and respiration between the conservation practices and conventional practices. However, for soils with low initial SOC contents, the conservation practices significantly increased SOC and respiration.
SOIL & TILLAGE RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Agronomy
Suying Chen, Peipei Yang, Yuming Zhang, Wenxu Dong, Chunsheng Hu, Oene Oenema
Summary: This study investigated the effects of different tillage practices on crop yield and soil quality. The results showed that moldboard ploughing with maize straw return resulted in higher wheat yields and soil organic carbon content compared to other treatments.
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Tatiana Minnikova, Gregory Mokrikov, Kamil Kazeev, Anna Medvedeva, Olga Biryukova, Chetan Keswani, Tatiana Minkina, Svetlana Sushkova, Hadeer Elgendy, Sergey Kolesnikov
Summary: Soil organic carbon content in Southern Russia has declined due to traditional plowing, but the use of no-tillage technology can increase carbon storage. Transitioning to no-tillage over a large area in the Rostov region of Russia can significantly reduce carbon emissions and bring economic benefits.
Article
Soil Science
Yuan Li, Zhou Li, Song Cui, Guopeng Liang, Qingping Zhang
Summary: The study found that no-tillage (NT) and reduced tillage (RT) practices significantly increased soil organic carbon (SOC) fractions, especially those related to soil biological activities. Soil depth and mean annual temperature were identified as the dominant factors affecting the changes in SOC fractions under NT practices.
SOIL & TILLAGE RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Agronomy
Hongxuan Duan, Jia Cheng, Mengqi Han, Hailin Zhang
Summary: The effects of different tillage and residue-returning modes on soil organic carbon (SOC) accumulation were assessed in this study. The results showed that no-tillage significantly increased SOC concentration, and the combination of no-tillage and wheat straw returning helped increase SOC concentration and decrease mineralizability.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Alexandra Sandhage-Hofmann, Anja Linstaedter, Liana Kindermann, Simon Angombe, Wulf Amelung
Summary: Increasing elephant populations result in a loss of tree carbon storage, but contrary to the second hypothesis, soil organic carbon stocks actually increase with higher elephant densities. This increase in SOC is mainly found in the topsoil and is due to the formation of SOC from woody biomass.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Liangang Xiao, Nikolaus J. Kuhn, Rongqin Zhao, Lianhai Cao
Summary: Despite strong recommendations from scientists, many farmers worldwide are still unsure about whether to till or not due to concerns about crop yield decline and negative impacts on soils and the environment. A review of 49 recent meta-analyses found that no-tillage led to a significant decrease in crop yield, while residue retention was key for improving crop production. In conservation agriculture, residue retention may play a more critical role than no-tillage in achieving sustainable land use.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Zheli Ding, Ahmed M. S. Kheir, Osama A. M. Ali, Emad M. Hafez, Essam A. ElShamey, Zhaoxi Zhou, Bizun Wang, Xing'e Lin, Yu Ge, Ahmed E. Fahmy, Mahmoud F. Seleiman
Summary: Deep tillage combined with vermicompost application significantly improved soil properties, reduced soil salinity and sodicity, and increased wheat productivity.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2021)
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Jennifer A. Wood, Edmund J. Knights, Grant M. Campbell, Steven Harden, Mingan Choct
Summary: The dehulling and splitting processes are crucial in producing dhal from pulses. Difficult-to-mill grains with tightly adhered seed coats or cotyledons that resist separation can result in reduced milling yields and poorer quality dhal. Pre-treatment with enzymes showed varying effects on milling performance and dhal quality, with some improvements in dehulling efficiency and splitting yield.
JOURNAL OF THE SCIENCE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE
(2022)
Article
Agronomy
Sean R. Murphy, Suzanne P. Boschma, Steven Harden
Summary: This study compared the soil water dynamics and rainwater productivity of different perennial grasses and legumes in eastern Australia. It found that a mixed sward of lucerne and digit grass was equally productive as fertilized digit grass, with lucerne dominating the herbage mass. Desmanthus and leucaena provided useful contributions in specific seasons and conditions, but underperformed overall compared to lucerne.
AGRICULTURAL WATER MANAGEMENT
(2022)
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Jun Qiao, Jing Wang, Dong Zhao, Wei Zhou, Graeme Schwenke, Tingmei Yan, De Li Liu
Summary: Reactive N from paddy fields contributes significantly to the deterioration of river and lake water quality in China. Decreasing N fertilizer rates can reduce N losses and benefit society, economy, and environment.
AGRICULTURE ECOSYSTEMS & ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Soil Science
G. D. Schwenke, A. McPherson
Summary: This study evaluated the impact of different nitrogen fertilizer application methods and timings on N2O emissions from Vertisols in northeast Australia. The results showed that split-N application significantly reduced total N2O emissions.
NUTRIENT CYCLING IN AGROECOSYSTEMS
(2022)
Article
Soil Science
Ben C. T. Macdonald, Graeme D. Schwenke, Annabelle McPherson, Clarence Mercer, Jonathan Baird, Gunasekhar Nachimuthu
Summary: The study found that soil water deficit had a significant impact on the inorganic nitrogen derived from soil organic matter mineralization, with inorganic nitrogen primarily accumulating in the plant line. Through sampling and measurement, it was observed that the nitrogen accumulation in plants was significantly greater than the inorganic nitrogen in the soil.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Bin Wang, Allan C. Spessa, Puyu Feng, Xin Hou, Chao Yue, Jing-Jia Luo, Philippe Ciais, Cathy Waters, Annette Cowie, Rachael H. Nolan, Tadas Nikonovas, Huidong Jin, Henry Walshaw, Jinghua Wei, Xiaowei Guo, De Li Liu, Qiang Yu
Summary: Forest fires in southeast Australian temperate forests have significant impacts on socio-economic factors, human health, greenhouse gas emissions, and biodiversity. By developing a machine-learning diagnostic model, this study identified the driving factors of forest fires and provided useful guidance for decision-makers to prepare for upcoming fire seasons.
Article
Agronomy
Sean L. Bithell, David Backhouse, Steve Harden, Andre Drenth, Kevin Moore, Richard J. Flavel, Kristy Hobson
Summary: This study evaluated pathogenic variation in P. medicaginis populations and found differences in aggressiveness of isolates using different phenotyping methods. The study also showed that phenotyping methods interact with both isolate and host genotype reactions. The cup-based root inoculation method showed promise as a non-field-based phenotyping method, with significant correlations with genotype-isolate rankings in the field experiment for several disease parameters.
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Ivan Vera, Birka Wicke, Patrick Lamers, Annette Cowie, Anna Repo, Bas Heukels, Colleen Zumpf, David Styles, Esther Parish, Francesco Cherubini, Goran Berndes, Henriette Jager, Luis Schiesari, Martin Junginger, Miguel Brandao, Niclas Scott Bentsen, Vassilis Daioglou, Zoe Harris, Floor van der Hilst
Summary: Bioenergy aims to reduce GHG emissions and contribute to climate change mitigation, but it raises sustainability concerns related to land use for dedicated energy crops. This study identified the main synergies and trade-offs associated with land use for energy crop production using the SDG framework, considering context-specific conditions such as biomass feedstock, previous land use, climate, soil type, and agricultural management. The results highlight the importance of considering these conditions in evaluating synergies and trade-offs for developing effective bioenergy policies and practices.
RENEWABLE & SUSTAINABLE ENERGY REVIEWS
(2022)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Nicole Allenden, Donald W. Hine, Belinda M. Craig, Annette L. Cowie, Paul D. McGreevy, Amy D. Lykins
Summary: This study evaluates the sustainability of five common plant-rich diets, considering their environmental, human health, and animal welfare impacts, as well as the likelihood of adoption among Australian adults. The Mediterranean diet and vegetarian diet are found to have the greatest projected positive impact on the three dimensions.
SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Sean L. Bithell, Andre Drenth, David Backhouse, Steve Harden, Kristy Hobson
Summary: Phytophthora medicaginis is causing root rot disease in chickpeas in Australia and breeding for genetic resistance is a crucial approach due to limited management options. Crosses between chickpea and Cicer echinospermum provide partial resistance with genetic basis from C. echinospermum and disease tolerance from C. arietinum germplasm. The concentration of P. medicaginis DNA in soil can be used as an indicator of pathogen proliferation, and genotypes with consistently low levels of foliage symptoms have lower levels of soil inoculum.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2023)
Correction
Food Science & Technology
Annette L. Cowie
Article
Food Science & Technology
Annette L. L. Cowie
Summary: The current capacity of carbon dioxide removal falls short of the requirement to achieve the temperature target set by the Paris Agreement. Biochar derived from crop residues could assist China in reaching its 2060 net zero goal, while also providing health and environmental benefits.
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Suzanne P. Boschma, Mark A. Brennan, Steven Harden
Summary: Temperate annual legumes can be effective companion species in tropical perennial grass pastures. Autumn is the optimal time to sow these legumes, and their establishment success is influenced by seasonal conditions.
NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Soil Science
L. O. Hearn, L. Barton, G. D. Schwenke, D. V. Murphy
Summary: This study investigated the volatilisation of urea and the soil properties that contribute to nitrogen loss in acidic soils. It found that the volatilisation of urea was strongly related to soil pH buffering capacity. The existing prediction model for urea volatilisation had poor accuracy.
Review
Plant Sciences
Gunasekhar Nachimuthu, Graeme Schwenke, Clarence Mercer, Callum Bischof, Pat Hulme, Michael Bell
Summary: Australian cotton production has high yields but suffers from increased phosphorus depletion, requiring better replenishment of phosphorus nutrients to sustain high yields.
JOURNAL OF COTTON RESEARCH
(2022)