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Background: Tillage practices can substantially affect soil properties depending on crop stage. The interaction between tillage and crop growth on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) communities remains unclear. We investigated the interactions between four tillage treatments (CT: conventional tillage, RT: reduced tillage, NT: no tillage with mulch, and SS: subsoiling with mulch), maintained for 25 years, and two wheat growth stages (elongation stage and grain filling stage) on AMF diversity and community composition. Results: The AMF community composition strongly changed during wheat growth, mainly because of changes in the relative abundance of dominant genera Claroideoglomus, Funneliformi, Rhizophagu, Entrophospora, and Glomus. Co-occurrence network analysis revealed that the grain filling stage had a more complex network than the elongation stage. Redundancy analysis results showed that keystone genera respond mainly to changes in soil organic carbon during elongation stage, whereas the total nitrogen content affected the keystone genera during grain filling. Compared with CT, the treatments with mulch, i.e., NT and SS, significantly changed the AMF community composition. The change of AMF communities under different tillage practices depended on wheat biomass and soil nutrients. NT significantly increased the relative abundances of Glomus and Septoglomus, while RT significantly increased the relative abundance of Claroideoglomus. Conclusion: Our findings indicate that the relative abundance of dominant genera changed during wheat growth stages. Proper tillage practices (e.g., NT and SS) benefit the long-term sustainable development of the Loess Plateau cropping systems.

Soils play a major role in the global carbon cycle and are crucial to the management of climate change. Changes in plant cover derived from different agricultural practices induce variations in the quality of plant residue inputs and in the soil microbial community structure and activity, which may enhance the storage and protection of organic carbon (OC) and nitrogen (N) within aggregates. The aim of this study was to assess how differences in the chemical composition of plant residues in combination with tillage management practices affect the local microbial community activity and structure, and subsequent soil aggregation and OC and N dynamics in an organic, rainfed almond (Prunus dulcis Mill.) orchard. In the laboratory, three types of plant residue (shoots, roots, and the combination of both) coming from different species belonging to each agricultural practice (reduced tillage, reduced tillage plus green manure, reduced tillage plus organic manure, and no-tillage) were mixed with their respective soils and the CO2 released was measured over 243 days at 60% WHC and 28 °C. Water-stable aggregates (including microaggregates within macroaggregates), enzymatic activities related to carbon (dehydrogenase and ß-glucosidase) and N (urease) cycling, and the microbial biomass and community structure through phospholipid fatty acid analysis, were measured at the end of the incubation period. Our results indicate that the chemical composition of plant residues controls the microbial community response, mediating decomposition and the incorporation of OC and N in stable aggregates. Therefore, the incorporation of labile and N-rich plant residues into the soil by reduced tillage is recommended since mixing roots and shoots from green manure increased the formation of free micro-aggregates and improved OC and N stabilization in our semiarid agroecosystem. © 2021 Elsevier Ltd

Soils play a major role in the global carbon cycle and are crucial to the management of climate change. Changes in plant cover derived from different agricultural practices induce variations in the quality of plant residue inputs and in the soil microbial community structure and activity, which may enhance the storage and protection of organic carbon (OC) and nitrogen (N) within aggregates. The aim of this study was to assess how differences in the chemical composition of plant residues in combination with tillage management practices affect the local microbial community activity and structure, and subsequent soil aggregation and OC and N dynamics in an organic, rainfed almond (Prunus dulcis Mill.) orchard. In the laboratory, three types of plant residue (shoots, roots, and the combination of both) coming from different species belonging to each agricultural practice (reduced tillage, reduced tillage plus green manure, reduced tillage plus organic manure, and no-tillage) were mixed with their respective soils and the CO2 released was measured over 243 days at 60% WHC and 28 °C. Water-stable aggregates (including microaggregates within macroaggregates), enzymatic activities related to carbon (dehydrogenase and ß-glucosidase) and N (urease) cycling, and the microbial biomass and community structure through phospholipid fatty acid analysis, were measured at the end of the incubation period. Our results indicate that the chemical composition of plant residues controls the microbial community response, mediating decomposition and the incorporation of OC and N in stable aggregates. Therefore, the incorporation of labile and N-rich plant residues into the soil by reduced tillage is recommended since mixing roots and shoots from green manure increased the formation of free micro-aggregates and improved OC and N stabilization in our semiarid agroecosystem. © 2021 Elsevier Ltd

Soils play a major role in the global carbon cycle and are crucial to the management of climate change. Changes in plant cover derived from different agricultural practices induce variations in the quality of plant residue inputs and in the soil microbial community structure and activity, which may enhance the storage and protection of organic carbon (OC) and nitrogen (N) within aggregates. The aim of this study was to assess how differences in the chemical composition of plant residues in combination with tillage management practices affect the local microbial community activity and structure, and subsequent soil aggregation and OC and N dynamics in an organic, rainfed almond (Prunus dulcis Mill.) orchard. In the laboratory, three types of plant residue (shoots, roots, and the combination of both) coming from different species belonging to each agricultural practice (reduced tillage, reduced tillage plus green manure, reduced tillage plus organic manure, and no-tillage) were mixed with their respective soils and the CO2 released was measured over 243 days at 60% WHC and 28 °C. Water-stable aggregates (including microaggregates within macroaggregates), enzymatic activities related to carbon (dehydrogenase and ß-glucosidase) and N (urease) cycling, and the microbial biomass and community structure through phospholipid fatty acid analysis, were measured at the end of the incubation period. Our results indicate that the chemical composition of plant residues controls the microbial community response, mediating decomposition and the incorporation of OC and N in stable aggregates. Therefore, the incorporation of labile and N-rich plant residues into the soil by reduced tillage is recommended since mixing roots and shoots from green manure increased the formation of free micro-aggregates and improved OC and N stabilization in our semiarid agroecosystem. © 2021 Elsevier Ltd

Tillage practices influence physical, chemical, and biological sou properties, which also affect soil quality and consequently plant growth. In this study, the main objective was to evaluate the effect of different tillage systems on soil physical properties by using geophysical methods, namely, ground-penetrating radar (far-field and near-ficld GPR), capacitance probes (ThetaProbe and 5TE), electromagnetic induction (EMI) (Profiler and EM38), soil sampling, and by soil penetrometer. Since 2005, three contrasting tillage systems were applied on different plots of an agricultural field: i) conventional tillage (CT) with mouldboard ploughing to 27 cn depth, ii) deep loosening tillage (DL) with a heavy tine cultivator to 30 cm depth, and iii) reduced tillage (RT) with a spring tine cultivator to 10 cm depth. The geophysical and soil strength measurements were performed in April 2010. We observed that tillage influences the soil resistance (deeper tillage decreases soil resistance), which could be partly seen in the radar data. Soil water content reference measurenents (capacitance probes and soil sampling) were in a relatively good agreement with the water content estimates from far-field GPR. We also observed that the tillage influences surface water content. Mean surface water content was significantly lower for CT than for DL and RT, which was partly explained by lower macropore connectivity between the topsoil and the deeper layers after conventional tillage. This study confirms the potential of GPR and EMI sensors for soil physical properties determination at the field scale and for the characterization of agricultural management practices.

In South Kivu (RD-Congo), Rwanda and Burundi, bananas (AAA-EA, Musa spp.) are frequently intercropped with annual crops, of which common bush beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) are the most common. At the onset of each rainy season, the soil in between the bananas is tilled manually using a hand hoe or a fork up to 10-15cm depth to prepare the seedbed. Farmers believe that tillage favors the bean performance, but it may also seriously damage the superficial banana root system. This may negatively affect banana productivity and nematode and fungal disease pressure on banana roots. The aim of the research was to assess the impact of tillage on the banana root systems and growth 12 months after the application of no-till. We monitored characteristics of primary roots (biomass, length, nematode infection rate) in the topsoil (0-20 cm) on a monthly basis for a 6 months period in three on-farm trials. Mature banana plantations were subjected to no-till, tillage using a hoe, and tillage using a forked hoe. The latter was to test whether the fork would cause less damage to the root systems than conventional tillage. Immediately after tillage, hand hoe tillage reduced the root biomass by 85 % on average in the top 10 cm compared to no-till plots, with no significant differences between tillage methods. There was no effect of tillage below this depth. Both in terms of length and biomass, roots recovered within 2 to 3 months to levels similar to no-till plots in a radius of 45 cm around the tree. Nematode infection rates were similar across treatments. Pseudo-stem volume of the banana trees did not differ significantly between tilled and no-till plots during the trial period. Hand hoe and fork affected at the same level the banana root system in the top 10 cm. We conclude that tillage strongly, but temporarily, damages the banana root system in the top 10 cm, which represents 24-50 % of the total root biomass between 0 and 20 cm depth. The decrease in root length and biomass in the to

Grand Kru County in Southeast Liberia is one of the most isolated areas of Liberia due to infrastructure problems, especially after periodic civil wars during the periods from 1989 to 2003. As a result, a number of external agents have been operating in the area in order to assist the affected communities. Under its Food Security and Rehabilitation Program (FSRP), Danish Refugee Council (DRC) together with its local partner the Southeast Liberian Women Development Association (SEWODA) supports communities in Grand Kru County through agricultural projects implemented by farmer groups. Project activities include implementation of introduced tillage practices (use of mounds and raised beds for growing crops) aimed to increase food production. Despite the deteriorated economic situation, and increased food insecurity, Liberia is among the few countries still remaining with abundant land for farming. This fact together with Liberian history, land use, and socioeconomic conditions specifically in the rural areas, are among the factors that attracted my attention to the area for my field research. An examination of the traditional tillage practices used by the communities provided as a starting point, basis for investigating the hindrances for the communities to adopt the tillage practices introduced by DRC.

Grand Kru County in Southeast Liberia is one of the most isolated areas of Liberia due to infrastructure problems, especially after periodic civil wars during the periods from 1989 to 2003. As a result, a number of external agents have been operating in the area in order to assist the affected communities. Under its Food Security and Rehabilitation Program (FSRP), Danish Refugee Council (DRC) together with its local partner the Southeast Liberian Women Development Association (SEWODA) supports communities in Grand Kru County through agricultural projects implemented by farmer groups. Project activities include implementation of introduced tillage practices (use of mounds and raised beds for growing crops) aimed to increase food production. Despite the deteriorated economic situation, and increased food insecurity, Liberia is among the few countries still remaining with abundant land for farming. This fact together with Liberian history, land use, and socioeconomic conditions specifically in the rural areas, are among the factors that attracted my attention to the area for my field research. An examination of the traditional tillage practices used by the communities provided as a starting point, basis for investigating the hindrances for the communities to adopt the tillage practices introduced by DRC.

Grand Kru County in Southeast Liberia is one of the most isolated areas of Liberia due to infrastructure problems, especially after periodic civil wars during the periods from 1989 to 2003. As a result, a number of external agents have been operating in the area in order to assist the affected communities. Under its Food Security and Rehabilitation Program (FSRP), Danish Refugee Council (DRC) together with its local partner the Southeast Liberian Women Development Association (SEWODA) supports communities in Grand Kru County through agricultural projects implemented by farmer groups. Project activities include implementation of introduced tillage practices (use of mounds and raised beds for growing crops) aimed to increase food production. Despite the deteriorated economic situation, and increased food insecurity, Liberia is among the few countries still remaining with abundant land for farming. This fact together with Liberian history, land use, and socioeconomic conditions specifically in the rural areas, are among the factors that attracted my attention to the area for my field research. An examination of the traditional tillage practices used by the communities provided as a starting point, basis for investigating the hindrances for the communities to adopt the tillage practices introduced by DRC.

Grand Kru County in Southeast Liberia is one of the most isolated areas of Liberia due to infrastructure problems, especially after periodic civil wars during the periods from 1989 to 2003. As a result, a number of external agents have been operating in the area in order to assist the affected communities. Under its Food Security and Rehabilitation Program (FSRP), Danish Refugee Council (DRC) together with its local partner the Southeast Liberian Women Development Association (SEWODA) supports communities in Grand Kru County through agricultural projects implemented by farmer groups. Project activities include implementation of introduced tillage practices (use of mounds and raised beds for growing crops) aimed to increase food production. Despite the deteriorated economic situation, and increased food insecurity, Liberia is among the few countries still remaining with abundant land for farming. This fact together with Liberian history, land use, and socioeconomic conditions specifically in the rural areas, are among the factors that attracted my attention to the area for my field research. An examination of the traditional tillage practices used by the communities provided as a starting point, basis for investigating the hindrances for the communities to adopt the tillage practices introduced by DRC.

English:Land degradation, due to soil erosion, is a serious problem in many parts of the world. Productivity of large areas of cultivated land is decreasing due to severe soil degradation. A major factor responsible for the degradation of this natural resource is accelerated soil erosion. Water erosion is responsible for the biggest share of this degradation, contributing about 50-60%. This shows that soil erosion by water is the most important form of human induced land degradation. Every year, erosion undermines the sustainable use of land and land resource and threatens the livelihood of those depending on agriculture and beyond. Choosing the most appropriate tillage practices for a particular soil often decreases soil erosion and increases available water for crops. A conservation tillage practice such as no-tillage is generally credited with reducing soil losses when compared with conventional tillage. Field experiments were conducted on two land units. The first experiment was conducted at the University of the Free Sate (UFS) experimental site (South Africa) on a sandy soil with 8.4% clay in the topsoil under simulated rainfall conditions. The second field study was conducted at the Alemaya University (AU) experimental site (Ethiopia) on a clay soil with 45.1% clay in the topsoil. At both sites, the experiment consisted of three tillage practices, namely no-tillage, stubble mulch (traditional tillage for the experiment at AU) and conventional tillage with mouldboard ploughing, combined with four rates of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) residue, namely 0, 2, 4 and 8t/ha. The experiment at AU was conducted for two consecutive main rainfall seasons. The results of the experiment at the UFS showed that the type of tillage had a significant effect on the initial infiltration rate of soil whereas the final infiltration rate was affected by the residue amount. Runoff and soil loss were also affected by the residue rate. Both runoff and soil loss decreased significantly, Afrikaans:Land agteruitgang, as gevolg van gronderosie, is 'n ernstige probleem in baie dele van die wêreld. Dit lei tot 'n verlaging in die produktiwiteit van bewerkte gronde. Watererosie dra 50-60% by tot hierdie mensgeïnduseerde degradasie. Die keuse van die mees geskikte bewerkingspraktyk vir 'n spesifieke grond kan tot 'n verlaging in erosie en verhoging In die beskikbaarheid van water VIr gewasse bydrae. Bewaringsbewerkingspraktyke soos geenbewerking het gewoonlik 'n vermindering In grondverliese, in vergelyking met konvensionele bewerking, tot gevolg. Veldproewe is op twee landeenhede uitgevoer. Die eerste is op die navorsingsterrein van die Universiteit van die Vrystaat (UV) in Suid-Afrika, op 'n sanderige grond met 8.4% klei in die bogrond, met gesimuleerde reën uitgevoer. Die tweede is op die kampus van die Alemaya Universiteit (AU) in Ethiopië op 'n kleigrond met 45.1% klei in die bogrond, uitgevoer. By beide lokaliteite is drie bewerkingspraktyke, nl. geenbewerking, deklaagbewerking (tradisionele bewerking In Ethiopië) en konvensionele skaarploegbewerking, elk gekombineer met vier deklaagpeile van koringstrooi (Triticum aestivum L.) nl. 0, 2, 4 en 8 t/ha. By konvensionele bewerking is die strooideklae op die oppervlak uitgestrooi nadat die grond geploeg is. Die proewe by AU is vir twee opeenvolgende reënseisoene uitgevoer.Die resultate van die eksperimente by die UV het getoon dat die tipe bewerking 'n beduidende effek op die aanvanklike infiltrasietempo gehad het terwyl die finale infiltrasievermoë 'n funksie van die hoeveelheid deklaag was. Afloop en grondverlies het betekenisvol met 'n verhoging in die hoeveelheid deklaag afgeneem. Wanneer die gemiddelde afloopwaardes van die deklaagpeile vergelyk word, het geenbewerking die hoogste en konvensionele bewerking die laagste afloop en grondverlies gehad, met deklaagbewerking tussenin. Dit was duidelik dat diepbewerking van hierdie sanderige grond 'n tydelike struktuur skep wat die infiltrasietempo verhoog

This NebGuide illustrates the influence of soil texture, topography and irrigation system characteristics on potential runoff. When water is applied to a field through a sprinkler irrigation system, it should soak into the soil where it lands rather than drain to a low spot or off the field altogether. Runoff causes non-uniformity of water application, poor irrigation efficiency and possible leaching of chemicals to the groundwater. Some systems like LEPA (Low Energy Precision Application) are designed so water does not immediately soak into the soil. However, proper LEPA designs also call for tillage practices that hold the water on the soil surface where it lands until it has time to infiltrate into the soil. Sprinkler systems should be designed for zero runoff so no water leaves the point of application.