Short-term effects of tillage practices and crop residue exportation on soil organic matter and earthworm communities in silt loam arable soil

In the present study, soil samples and earthworms were collected from wheat-cultivated fields under four agricultural practices: (1) conventional tillage with crop residues incorporated into the soil (CT/IN), (2) conventional tillage with crop residues exported from the field (CT/OUT), (3) reduced tillage with crop residues incorporated into the soil (RT/IN), and (4) reduced tillage with crop residues exported from the field (RT/OUT). Agricultural practices were applied on Luvisol soil for four consecutive years. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of agricultural practices on soil organic matter and earthworm communities and their interactions with soil properties and crop residues. Results indicated that crop residue exportation affected soil properties and earthworm communities. The penetration resistance (PR) measured to a depth of 50 cm rose with increasing soil depth in all treatments. For each depth, measures of soil physicochemical properties showed significant differences among treatments. A major difference was observed between IN and OUT treatments, suggesting the exportation of crop residues will limit earthworm abundance and biomass. Findings indicate endogeic and epi-anecic groups appears to be highly affected by tillage and crop residues exportation. Results emphasize the influence of crop residue exportation on the earthworm community, as well as the influence of earthworm activity on PR, P and K nutrients change; these processes are closely linked.