influence of organic, chemical, and integrated management practices on soil organic carbon and soil...

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Influence of Organic, Chemical, andIntegrated Management Practices on SoilOrganic Carbon and Soil Nutrient Statusunder Semi-arid Tropical Conditions inCentral IndiaNav Raten Panwar a , Pedaprolu Ramesh a , Amar Bahadur Singh b &Sivakoti Ramana aa Indian Institute of Soil Science, Division of Environmental SoilScience , Bhopal, Indiab Indian Institute of Soil Science, Division of Soil Biology , Bhopal,IndiaPublished online: 04 May 2010.

To cite this article: Nav Raten Panwar , Pedaprolu Ramesh , Amar Bahadur Singh & Sivakoti Ramana(2010) Influence of Organic, Chemical, and Integrated Management Practices on Soil Organic Carbonand Soil Nutrient Status under Semi-arid Tropical Conditions in Central India, Communications in SoilScience and Plant Analysis, 41:9, 1073-1083, DOI: 10.1080/00103621003687166

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Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis, 41:1073–1083, 2010Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLCISSN: 0010-3624 print / 1532-2416 onlineDOI: 10.1080/00103621003687166

Influence of Organic, Chemical, and IntegratedManagement Practices on Soil Organic Carbon

and Soil Nutrient Status under Semi-arid TropicalConditions in Central India

NAV RATEN PANWAR,1 PEDAPROLU RAMESH,1 AMARBAHADUR SINGH,2 AND SIVAKOTI RAMANA1

1Indian Institute of Soil Science, Division of Environmental Soil Science,Bhopal, India2Indian Institute of Soil Science, Division of Soil Biology, Bhopal, India

Soil organic carbon (SOC), macro- and micronutrient status, and nitrogen (N) miner-alization were studied in a soil profile managed with organic (OMP), chemical (CMP),and integrated (IMP) management practices for 3 years (2004–7) under a soybean—durum wheat cropping sequence. The most significant buildup of SOC and nutrientswas in OMP, followed by IMP and then CMP. The OMP had 15.8 and 7.3% more SOCcontent than the CMP and IMP, respectively. The concentration of nitrate N was signif-icantly greater in the OMP and IMP than in the CMP. The amount of ammonium N wasless than nitrate N in OMP and IMP, indicating the high nitrification ability of the soil.A buildup of the micronutrient cation content was also noticed in the surface layer inthe OMP and IMP plots. The OMP and IMP had a significantly greater mineralizationrate of N than did CMP, and it was greatest in the top 0- to 15-cm soil layer.

Keywords Durum wheat, macronutrients, micronutrients, nitrogen mineralization,soybean, Vertisol

Introduction

Vertisols and associated soils occupy about 35% of the area under cultivation in India, andmost of the area is located in semi-arid tropics (SAT) where crops are grown under rainfedconditions. The predominant cropping system in deep Vertisols of central India is soybean(Glycine max) in the rainy season (July–October) and bread wheat (Triticum aestivum)in the winter season (November–March). Recently macaroni or durum wheat (Triticumdurum), which can be grown successfully with limited irrigation, is being recommended inthese soils under the prevailing climatic conditions. Of late, there is a growing trend amongthe farmers to cultivate crops under an organic farming system because of the escalatingcost of chemical fertilizers; decreased soil fertility in respect to organic matter, secondarynutrients, and micronutrients; environmental and health concerns about pesticide usage;

Received 26 July 2008; accepted 26 August 2009.Address correspondence to Nav Raten Panwar, Indian Institute of Soil Science, Division of

Environmental Soil Science, Nabibagh, Berasia Road, Bhopal 462038, India. E-mail: [email protected]

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1074 N. R. Panwar et al.

and expected premium prices for the organically produced crops (Ramesh, Singh, andSubba Rao 2005).

Organic manures can be a good alternative to chemical fertilizers. Soil organic matteris considered to be the key attribute of soil quality (Friedal 2000). The organic-matter con-tent of cultivated soils of the subtropics is comparatively low because of high temperatureand intense microbial activity. Therefore, soil organic matter has to be replenished throughperiodic addition of organic manure to maintain soil productivity. Apart from nutritionaleffects, application of organic manure occasionally influences plant growth physiologi-cally, provides growth-regulating substances, and modifies soil physical behavior (Larsonand Clapp 1984). The use and management of crop residues, farmyard manure (FYM),and green manure (GM) are increasingly important aspects of environmentally sound sus-tainable agriculture. Organic materials such as crop residues, FYM, composts, and poultrymanure are available in abundance but are not fully exploited for various reasons. Again,microbial biomass is one of the essential living components of all terrestrial ecosystems. Itregulates many critical ecosystem processes, including decomposition of organic material,nutrient transformations and cycling, and biophysical integration of organic matter withsoil solid (Franzluebbers 1999). The future sustainability of crop production will greatlydepend upon improvements in the soil resource base through its effective management inan environmentally benign manner. Biological nitrogen (N) fixation by leguminous plantsoffers potential to reduce, and sometimes eliminate, the need for N fertilizers for the fol-lowing crop. Recycling of GM and FYM in organic systems results in surplus N and aconsequent risk of leaching. In contrast, Kristensen et al. (1994) reported similar nitrateconcentrations in farms receiving organic and fertilizer inputs. Because N mineralizationcontrols much of the nitrate (NO3

−) losses by leaching (Jarvis et al. 1996), there is a needto assess the impact of management practices on N mineralization and provide informa-tion on the risk of nitrate loss. Most of the earlier studies were conducted in the temperateregions, and most often only the topsoil was analyzed. The present experiment was initi-ated to study the effect of organic, chemical, and integrated management systems on theSOC and nutrient status in the soil profile, cultivated with soybean–durum wheat croppingsystem in the semi-arid tropics.

Materials and Methods

Site

The experimental site is situated at 23◦ 18′ N, 77◦ 24′ E, with an altitude of 485 mabove the mean sea level. The soil of the experimental site is clayey in texture (TypicHaplustert), medium in organic C, slightly alkaline, and nonsaline with low availableN, medium phosphorus (P), and high potassium (K) contents. The diethylenetriamine-pentaacetic acid (DTPA)–extractable micronutrient cations [iron (Fe), manganese (Mn),zinc (Zn), and copper (Cu)] decreased with depth (Table 1).

Experimental Detail

Field experiments were conducted during (June–October) and after (November–March)the rainy season for three consecutive years (2004–5, 2005–6, and 2006–7) at the researchfarm of the Indian Institute of Soil Science, Bhopal, on deep Vertisols. The treatmentstested include three management practices [organic, chemical, and integrated (50:50)]with soybean–durum wheat cropping systems in randomized block design, replicated three

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Effects of Management Practices on Soil Nutrient Status 1075

Table 1Basic characteristics of experimental soil

Soil depth (cm)

Soil characteristics 0–15 15–30 30–45 45–60 60–90

Sand (%) 25.2 22.1 21.6 18.9 18.1Silt (%) 18.0 19.3 19.1 20.4 19.6Clay (%) 56.8 58.6 59.3 60.7 62.3Bulk density (Mg m−3) 1.42 1.49 1.57 1.69 1.73pH 7.86 7.81 7.93 8.01 8.16EC (dS m−1) 0.52 0.43 0.46 0.39 0.34Organic C (g kg−1) 5.31 3.68 2.93 2.27 2.18CEC (cmol kg−1) 44.5 45.3 43.9 46.4 —Mineral N (mg kg−1) 10.85 8.60 7.35 6.65 —Ave. P (mg kg−1) 12.77 3.81 2.13 1.79 —Ave. K (mg kg−1) 265.1 225.6 132.7 109.6 —Fe (mg kg−1) 5.62 4.54 4.29 4.21 3.49Mn (mg kg−1) 9.56 6.64 5.42 4.62 3.96Zn (mg kg−1) 0.74 0.54 0.27 0.23 0.18Cu (mg kg−1) 1.32 1.18 1.14 1.02 0.92

times. The crop cultivars JS-335 (soybean) and HI-8498 (durum wheat) were grown with30:26.2:16.6 and 80:17.5:33.2 kg ha−1 (NPK) recommended dose of fertilizers, respec-tively. In organic management practice (OMP), nutrients were applied as cattle dungmanure to the soybean crop during the rainy season (July– October) and a combinationof cattle dung manure + vermicompost + poultry manure (one third each) to wheat duringthe winter season (November–March). These manures were applied based on the N equiv-alent basis and nutrient requirement of each crop. Phosphorus requirement of soybean cropwas supplemented through rock phosphate (containing 13.9% P) addition after adjustingthe amount of P supplied through manures. The nutrient composition of organic manuresapplied in the experiment is shown in Table 2. To control weeds, two hand weedings were

Table 2Nutrient composition of organic manures applied in the experiment (mean over 3 years)

Nutrient Cattle dung manure Vermicompost Poultry manure

Organic C (g kg−1) 200.7 201.3 253.6N (g kg−1) 8.9 11.6 18.6P (g kg−1) 5.6 7.6 15.8K (g kg−1) 14.1 7.9 14.1Fe (g kg−1) 1.08 1.13 1.47Mn (mg kg−1) 358 409 554Zn (mg kg−1) 52 54 83Cu (mg kg−1) 37 42 71

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carried out at 30 and 60 days after sowing of soybean. Neam oil (Azardiractin 0.03%) wassprayed at 30, 45, and 60 days after sowing of soybean for control of leaf-eating caterpil-lars. Dhaincha (Sesbania aculeate), a GM crop grown as a border crop around the soybeanfield, controlled the soybean girdle beetle by acting as a trap crop. In chemical manage-ment practice (CMP), nutrients were supplied through the chemical fertilizers (viz., urea,single superphosphate, and muriate of potash) and plant protection was through the recom-mended pesticides as and when required. In integrated management practice (IMP), 50%of nutrients were supplied through organic manures and the other 50% through chemi-cal fertilizers. Plants were protection by adopting the integrated pest management (IPM)practices.

Soil Analysis

Soil samples were collected at harvest (April 2007) from soil 0–15, 15–30, 30–45, 45–60,and 60–90 cm deep from three spots in each plot. Soil was composited for each replicate,air dried, and ground to pass a 2-mm sieve prior to analyses. Organic C was deter-mined by the Walkley and Black (1934) procedure outlined in Prasad (1998). MineralN [ammonium (NH4

+), nitrate (NO3−)] was extracted with 2 M potassium chloride (KCl)

with a soil/solution of 1:5 and shaking for 1 h (Bremner and Keeney 1965). Ammonium(NH4

+) and nitrate (NO3−) N were determined by steam distillation of ammonia using

heavy magnesium oxide (MgO) for NH4+ and Devarda’s alloy for NO3

−. Available P wasdetermined colorimetrically after extraction of 1 g soil with 20 mL 0.5 M sodium bicarbon-ate (NaHCO3) for a half hour (Olsen et al. 1954). Exchangeable K was determined usinga flame photometer following soil extraction with 1 N ammonium acetate (COOCH3NH4)(Hanway and Heidal 1952). Micronutrients zinc (Zn), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), andcopper (Cu) were determined using ammonium bicarbonate–DTPA extracts (Lindsay andNorvell 1978) on an atomic absorption spectrometer.

Nitrogen Mineralization Rate

Nitrogen mineralization rate was determined adopting the procedure of Beck (1983).Briefly, 10 g soil were incubated for 15 days at 35 ◦C. The soil was extracted with 50 mL2 M KCl by shaking for 1 h. Ammonium (NH4

+) and nitrate (NO3−) N are determined by

steam distillation of ammonia. Mineralization rate was calculated as the difference betweenmineral N at the start of the incubation and end of incubation divided by 15.

Statistical Analyses

The experiment is aimed at comparing three nutrient management practices for varioussoil parameters. To carry out these comparisons, the usual way is to analyze data with theanalysis of variance (ANOVA) technique using factorials in Randomized Block Design(RBD) to test significance of treatments and then to compute the least significant differ-ences (LSDs) for making group comparisons. Our statistical analysis of data was carriedout as described by Gomez and Gomez (1984). In the present experimental setup, signifi-cance for all soil depth levels of organic, inorganic, and integrated treatments were tested,and appropriate LSD values for main and interactions effects were calculated. Analysisrevealed a significant difference in various management practices, and interesting findingsfrom the analysis are discussed in the next section.

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Results and Discussion

Soil Organic Carbon (SOC)

Soil organic carbon was significantly greater in the OMP than in the CMP and IMP plots(Table 3). Averaged over depths, the OMP plots had 16.2 and 8.0% greater SOC contentsthan the CMP and IMP plots, respectively. The amount of SOC was greatest in the surfacesoil layer (0–15 cm) and declined with depth. Regular organic additions (manures androot biomass) have the largest effect in soil organic matter (Khaleel, Reddy, and Overcash1981). Kaur, Kapoor, and Gupta (2005) also reported increased SOC content in organicand/or integrated management systems compared to chemical management practice. TheSOC was greater in organic and integrated management practices, which is attributed tomore C going to soil via organic manure addition (Table 1).

Mineral Nitrogen

The OMP recorded significantly greater ammonium N than the CMP was on par with IMP(Table 4). Averaged over depth, the OMP had 23.7 and 9.2% greater NH4

+-N content thanthe CMP and IMP, respectively. The depth effect was significant, and values followed theorder 0–15 > 60–90 > 15–30 > 30–45 > 45–60 cm.

The depth effect was significant for nitrate content; the greater value was in the surfacesoil layer (0–15 cm), declined with depth up to 45 cm, and thereafter increased with depth(90 cm). Averaged over depths, the OMP had 39.3 and 16.0% greater nitrate N content thanthe CMP and IMP, respectively, and the differences were significant. This was probably dueto the mineralization of N from the cattle dung manure (in both seasons), poultry manure,and vermicompost added to the OMP and IMP plots.

The total mineral N content followed a trend similar to that noticed for nitrate N(Table 4). The amount of ammonium N was less than nitrate N, indicating the high nitrifi-cation ability of the soil. A greater amount of total mineral N in the OMP than the CMP andIMP was also reported by Kaur, Kapoor, and Gupta (2005). The decrease in mineral N withdepth could be attributed to the crop removal of N from these layers (up to 60 cm) and cor-responding decrease in organic C (Table 4). In the 60- to 90-cm soil depth, the proportionof ammonium and nitrate ranged from 41.1 (OMP) to 59.9 (OMP). The greater ammoniumconcentration at the deeper layers should be due to three major reasons. First, subsurfacemicroorganisms may utilize nitrate as a final electron acceptor and reduce it to ammo-nium (Tiedje 1994). Second, ammonification continues while nitrification is inhibited bypoor aeration; therefore, ammonium accumulates (Grant 1994). Third, enriched surface

Table 3Soil organic C (g kg−1) distribution in the soil profile (0–90 cm) of the plots under

different management practices

System 0–15 cm 15–30 cm 30–45 cm 45–60 cm 60–90 cm Mean

Organic 7.10 5.26 4.36 3.79 2.71 4.65Inorganic 5.56 4.95 4.03 3.22 2.21 4.00Integrated 6.42 5.09 4.11 3.51 2.48 4.32Mean 6.36 5.10 4.17 3.51 2.47

Notes. LSD (P < 0.05): management, 0.21; soil depth, 0.25; management × depth, 0.43.

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Table 4Mineral N (mg kg−1) distribution in the soil profile (0–90 cm) of the plots under different

management practices


NH4+-N


NO3−-N


Total Mineral N (NH4+ + NO3

−)Organic 38.4 22.8 18.1 17.0 22.3 23.7Inorganic 29.1 16.7 14.1 11.8 17.6 17.8Integrated 33.3 20.0 15.9 15.5 20.1 20.9Mean 33.6 19.8 16.0 14.8 20.0

Notes. LSD (P < 0.05) for NH4+-N: management, 0.89; soil depth, 1.14; management × depth,

NS. LSD (P < 0.05) for NO3−-N: management, 1.32; soil depth, 1.71; management × depth, NS.

LSD (P < 0.05) for total mineral N: management, 1.68; soil depth, 2.17; management × depth, NS.

soil may fall into the cracks during cultivation; these were 10–12 cm wide and are typicalof Vertisols. The organic manures and other organic substrates are important sources ofplant nutrients, especially N, and the supply of N from manures/organic substrates makesan important contribution to the N demand of growing crops (Abbasi et al. 2007). In low-input and organic systems, such substrates are crucial in supplying plant nutrients in theabsence of inorganic fertilizer supplies, and even in conventional farming systems there issubstantial release of N from manures, offsetting the need to provide chemical fertilizers(Goulding et al. 2001).

Available Phosphorous

The OMP had significantly greater NaHCO3-extractable P than the CMP and IMP forevery given soil depth (Table 5). Topsoil (0–15 cm) of the OMP and IMP plots had73.7 and 46.3% greater NaHCO3-extractable P than the CMP, respectively. Rajendran,Venugopalan, and Tarhalkar (2000) reported that the organic system improved the soil fer-tility in terms of both organic C content and available P content of the soil. The increase inavailable P might be due to the organic acids, which were released during microbial decom-position of organic matter; these helped in the solubility of native phosphates, which as aresult increased available P content. A buildup of P above the critical limit (5 mg kg−1)was observed in the OMP and IMP up to 30 cm, whereas in the CMP buildup was restrictedto the 15-cm soil layer. The P content in the CMP was hardly 1.9 to 2.7 mg kg−1 in the30- to 60-cm soil layer. Phosphorous is less mobile and concentrates in the surface layer.However, the greater P content in the subsoil of the OMP and IMP compared to the CMPcould be due to two possible reasons. First, with cultivation, some of the surface soil may

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Table 5NaHCO3-extractable P (mg kg−1) distribution in the soil profile (0–90 cm) of the plots

under different management practices




fall through the cracks, enriching the deeper layers of the OMP plots (Blaise, Rupa, andBonde 2004). Second, it may be due to the enhanced P solubility of the topsoil. Johnstonand Poulton (1997) observed P enrichment of subsoil of the plots receiving organic manure.Besides maintaining high P status, the OMP plots may support greater bioavailable P con-centrations in the runoff compared to plots receiving mineral fertilizers and consequentlymay pollute surface waters and create eutrophication (Sharpley and Rekolainen 1997).

Available Potassium

Significantly greater COOCH3NH4-extractable (exchangeable) K was observed in theOMP and IMP plots than in the CMP plot (Table 6). Greater exchangeable K in organicfarming systems has been reported earlier by Reganold (1988) compared to systems receiv-ing mineral fertilizers alone. Bulluck et al. (2002) also observed that K concentration in soilamended with organic wastes increased compared to soils fertilized with chemical fertiliz-ers. The beneficial effect of FYM on available K is because, besides acting as a source ofK, it also releases organic colloids with greater cation exchange sites that attract K from thenonexchangeable pool and applied K, which ultimately favored the available K (Majumdaret al. 2005). The K availability decreases with increasing soil depth, and the lowest valueof K was noticed in 60- to 90-cm soil depth.

Available Micronutrients

The distribution of micronutrients Fe, Mn, Zn, and Cu in the soil profile is presentedin Table 7. The OMP treatment had significantly greater Fe, Mn, Zn, and Cu contentthan CMP but at par with IMP. In general, micronutrient content declined with depth.It is well documented that there is a significant positive correlation between organic

Table 6Effect of different management practices on COOCH3NH4-extractable

K (mg kg−1) content in the soil profile (0–90 cm)


Organic 277 205 176 165 121 188.7Inorganic 256 170 145 151 113 167.1Integrated 267 188 173 154 115 179.3Mean 267.0 187.7 164.6 156.7 116.1

Notes. LSD (P < 0.05): management, 4.13; soil depth, 5.33; management × depth, NS.

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Table 7Micronutrient distribution in soil profile (0–90 cm) under

different management practices


Fe (mg kg−1)Organic 7.34 5.58 4.94 4.61 3.89 5.27Inorganic 5.49 4.43 4.08 3.96 3.42 4.48Integrated 6.73 5.19 4.76 4.44 3.73 4.97Mean 6.52 5.07 4.60 4.34 3.68

Mn (mg kg−1)Organic 11.15 8.25 6.23 5.10 4.54 7.05Inorganic 9.47 6.56 5.30 4.54 3.98 5.97Integrated 10.64 7.87 6.05 4.98 4.21 6.75Mean 10.42 7.56 5.86 4.88 4.24

Zn (mg kg−1)Organic 0.83 0.62 0.38 0.30 0.24 0.47Inorganic 0.63 0.47 0.25 0.21 0.19 0.35Integrated 0.77 0.56 0.34 0.27 0.22 0.43Mean 0.74 0.55 0.33 0.27 0.22

Cu (mg kg−1)Organic 1.43 1.28 1.12 1.09 0.96 1.17Inorganic 1.28 1.09 0.98 0.98 0.86 1.04Integrated 1.38 1.20 1.09 1.04 0.92 1.13Mean 1.37 1.19 1.06 1.04 0.91

Notes. LSD (P < 0.05) for Fe (mg kg−1): management, 0.37; soil depth, 0.49; manage-ment × depth, NS. LSD (P < 0.05) for Mn (mg kg−1): management, 0.34; soil depth, 0.47;management × depth, NS. LSD (P < 0.05) for Zn (mg kg−1): management, 0.04; soil depth,0.06; management × depth, NS. LSD (P < 0.05) for Cu (mg kg−1): management, 0.08; soildepth, 0.10; management × depth, NS.

matter and micronutrient cation availability (Heredia et al. 2002). Consequently, greaterlevel of available micronutrients would be expected where the organic-matter content wasgreater (topsoil). A decline in SOC content with depth (Table 3) causes less complexationof micronutrients and thus maintains a lower amount of exchangeable forms (Hodgson,Lindsay, and Trierweiler 1966). The available Zn content in the CMP plots was less thanthe critical level of 0.6 mg kg−1 (Nayyar and Chhiba 1995) in the entire profile, except forsurface soil (0.62 mg kg−1). Rattan, Neelam, and Datta (1999) reported a decline in themicronutrient status in plots receiving mineral fertilizer at the recommended levels. On theother hand, the OMP plot had Zn content greater than the critical limits in the 0- to 15-and 15- to 30-cm soil depths. The critical limits of DTPA-extractable Cu (0.2 mg kg−1),Fe (4.5 mg kg−1), and Mn (3.5 mg kg−1) were reported by Nayyar and Chhiba (1995),and Cu, Fe, and Mn status were above the critical limit for all management practices.However, in the OMP and IMP plots, a buildup of the micronutrient content was noticed.Such buildup of micronutrient was also reported by Mathur (1997) with the addition oforganic manure in sandy loam soils of northwest India.

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Table 8N mineralization rate (mg kg−1 soil d−1) in the soil profile of plots under under different

management practices




Nitrogen Mineralization Rate

The data related to N mineralization rate are presented in Table 8. Averaged over depth,the OMP and IMP treatments had significantly greater mineralization rates than the CMP.Between depths, mineralization rate was greatest in the topsoil (0–15 cm). It decreaseswith depth up to 60 cm followed by an increase in the 60- to 90-cm soil depth. The dif-ferences between the depths of 30–45, 45–60, and 60–90 cm were not significant but weresignificantly less than at the 0- to 15- and 15- to 30-cm soil layers. Differences betweenthe 30- to 45- and 60- to 90-cm soil depths were not significant. In laboratory incubationsof soils from different depths, Hadas et al. (1986) reported that the majority of the miner-alization occurred in the top 0–20 cm of the soil profile. However, 20–30% of the total Nreleased was mineralized below 60 cm. Mineralization in the subsoil, therefore, contributessubstantially to the N mineralized, which has implications for leaching losses (Jarvis et al.1996). Organic and integrated management had significantly greater mineralization ratesthan the CMP in the depths of 0–15, 15–30, and 30–45 cm. Greater amounts of N are min-eralized from soils with readily decomposable organic sources. Although soils of the OMPtreatment had greater N mineralization rate than those of the IMP and CMP treatments,difference were not significant in the deeper layers. The organic manures and other organicsubstrates are important sources of plant nutrients, especially N, and the supply of N frommanures/organic substrates makes an important contribution to the N demand of growingcrops.

Conclusions

Continuous addition of organic manures to the organic and integrated plots over a 3-yearperiod resulted in a buildup of SOC. The mineral N, available P and K, and micronutrientcations (Fe, Mn, Zn, and Cu) concentrations were greater in OMP, followed by IMP andCMP. The SOC and macro- and micronutrients showed decreasing trends with depth. Thestudy clearly indicates the importance of application of organic manures either alone orintegrated with chemical fertilizers for maintenance of soil organic matter in the semi-aridtropics where soil organic-matter levels are low as a result of high turnover rates.

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influence of organic, chemical, and integrated management practices on soil organic carbon and soil...

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