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Purpose Agricultural management as tillage systems and manure application can contribute effectively to controlling physical surface crusts (SCs), improving the soil’s technical characteristics and germination rates. While agronomic practices are generally applied to winter wheat fields in southern Iraq, no previous study has explored their impact in combination with SCs and soil physical attributes on wheat productivity (WP) under different soil textures. Materials and methods The impact of different agronomic management practices on the formation of soil physical surface crusts (SCs), soil compaction (measured by soil penetration resistance, SPR), soil volumetric water content (VWC), soil bulk density (ρb), mean weight diameter of aggregates (MWD), and WP was examined in two soil textures (clay loam, clay) during 2020 and 2022. Experimental data were subjected to an identical and randomized complete block design (RCBD) under a nested-factorial experimental design, where nine treatments with three replicates each were selected. This included three tillage practices (conventional tillage system (CT), till-plant (TP), and rotational tillage (NTCT)), alongside a sub-treatment with organic fertilizers (cattle manure (CF), and wheat straw (WR)), or without added fertilizer (WT). Results and discussion Results showed that CT treatment increased SCs during wheat growth stages by significantly increasing aggregate stability. A significant difference in ρb and SPR and a higher distribution of VWC were seen under CT treatment when compared to TP and NTCT treatments. TP treatment showed a significantly increased in SPR and ρb, particularly in clay loam. The MWD under TP and NTCT was significantly different to CT treatment, which may be explained by an increase in soil stability due to their management practices. Additionally, both organic fertilizers (CF and WR) significantly enhanced SCs, SPR, VWC, ρb, MWD, and WP. Conclusions These data showed a strong relationship between SCs and ρb and between VWC and SPR, which are directly affected by the soil’s water content.

Supplemental material, sj-docx-1-asw-10.1177_11786221221128789 for Soil Nitrous Oxide Emissions Following Crop Residues Management in Corn-Wheat Rotation Under Conventional and No-Tillage Systems by Morad Mirzaei, Manouchehr Gorji Anari, Arezoo Taghizadeh-Toosi, Mohammad Zaman, Nermina Saronjic, Safwan Mohammed, Szilard Szabo and Andrés Caballero-Calvo in Air, Soil and Water Research

A Guillermo García-Méndez-Villamil, por su apoyo en campo y conocimientos relacionados con los cultivos subtropicales; a José María González-Moreno como tutor de las prácticas de máster de AUTOR1 en IFAPA, Churriana y los datos facilitados del análisis de suelos. El manejo del suelo es un tema clave para la correcta conservación del territorio, que permite contribuir al cuidado del medioambiente y garantizar la seguridad alimentaria. Su gestión poco sostenible, debido al uso de herbicidas, el laboreo o la intensificación de las plantaciones, dificulta la compleción de dichas metas. En la costa meridional de la Península Ibérica, en las provincias de Málaga, Granada y Almería, la sustitución de especies tradicionales (olivar, vid y almendro) por cultivos subtropicales está generando una desestabilización del suelo poco estudiada. El objetivo de esta investigación es el estudio exhaustivo de las condiciones del suelo utilizando perfiles y descripciones edáficas junto con análisis de suelo. El área de estudio es una parcela experimental en el Valle del Guadalhorce (Málaga) con cultivos de aguacate, mango y mandarinos. Los resultados muestran la degradación del perfil del suelo en todos sus horizontes y la pérdida de propiedades como consecuencia de un modelo de gestión poco sostenible. Esto repercute en la calidad de la producción y en la productividad. Son necesarias medidas de control de la degradación, no solo a nivel parcelario, si no a nivel regional para que dicho problema no se traslade a una mayor escala en el territorio. Soil management is a key issue for the correct conservation of the land, which allows us to guarantee the care of the environment and guarantee the food security of the population. However, unsustainable management due to the use of herbicides, tillage and intensification of plantations are difficulting this task. On the southern coast of the Iberian Peninsula, in the provinces of Malaga, Granada and Almería, the introduction of subtropical crops as a replacement for other traditional species (olive groves, grapevines and almonds) is generating a destabilization of the soil, to date little studied. Therefore, the main goal of this research is to carry out an exhaustive study of soil conditions using soil profiles and descriptions together with soil analysis, considering an experimental plot in the Guadalhorce Valley (Malaga) as the study area with avocado, mango and mandarin crops. The results show how the degradation of the soil profile in all its horizons and properties after unsustainable management is intense. This will affect the quality of production and productivity. Therefore, degradation control measures are necessary, not only at the parcel level, but also at the regional level so that this problem does not spread to a larger scale in the territory.