soil compaction and water table effects on soil aeration and corn growth in a greenhouse study

SOIL T E C H N O L O G Y vol. 4, p. 329-342 Cremlingen 1991

SOIL C O M P A C T I O N A N D WATER TABLE EFFECTS O N SOIL A E R A T I O N A N D C O R N G R O W T H

IN A G R E E N H O U S E S T U D Y

E. Zainol, 1L Lal, T. VanToai & N. Fausey, Columbus

Summary

A greenhouse experiment was conducted to study the effects of aeration on growth of corn seedlings. Variable aeration regimes were created by a combination of 3 levels of soil compaction (1.20, 1.37 and 1.56 Mg m -3) and 3 water table depths (10-cm, 20-cm and 30-cm). Soil aeration was assessed by measuring the oxygen diffusion rate (ODR) and the gaseous composition of soil air. Samples of soil air were analyzed for concentrations of oxygen, carbon dioxide, ethylene and nitrous oxide.

The ODR decreased with increasing soil compaction. The average ODR for the 30 cm water table was 193.5, 89.2 and 15.4 #g 02 m -2 s -1 for the three compaction treatments of 1.2, 1.37 and 1.56 Mg m -3, respectively. At 40 days after planting, concentration of carbon dioxide in soil air was as high as 0.5% by volume. High concentrations of ethylene and nitrous oxide were also measured in those samples that contained high levels of carbon dioxide. The range of concentration was 2-19 ppm for ethylene and 2-20 ppm for nitrous oxide.

The vegetative growth of corn

ISSN 0933-3630 @1991 by CATENA VERLAG, W-3302 Cremlingen-Destedt, Germany 0933-3630/91/5011851/US$ 2.00 + 0.25

seedlings, as measured by root and shoot weights and plant height, was not significantly affected by the treatments imposed. However, stomatal conductance and photosynthesis significantly differed among treatments.

1 Introduction

Anaerobic environments in soil are caused by the reduction of the soil aeration porosity as a result of soil compaction or excessive wetness (Cur- fie 1984). The anaerobiosis thus created may adversely affect the activity of plant roots and micro-organisms. Air porosity and gaseous composition of soil air are commonly used as measur- able indicators of the degree of soils anaerobiosis. However, these parameters are highly variable and difficult to characterize (Grable 1966). Nonethe- less, air samples from inundated soils have been shown to contain more CO2 than air samples from well-drained soils (Trought & Drew 1980, Kristensen & Enoch 1964). The desire to determine the root respiration and plant responses to anaerobic environment has led to the widespread use of oxygen diffusion rate (ODR) as an important indicator of the aeration status (Glinski & Stepniewski 1985). In general, both gaseous composition of soil air and the ODR are used

SOIL TECHNOLOGY A cooperating Journal of CATENA

330 Zainol, Lal, VanToai & Fausey

as indices of soil aeration. For example, Callebaut et al. (1982) observed that both the oxygen content of soil air and the ODR registered an increasing trend with a falling water table.

Some crops develop adaptive mech- anisms to cope with modest levels of anaerobic environment. Although field experiments are extremely useful for general agronomic research, establishing the cause-effect relationship is rather difficult under uncontrolled field conditions. On the other hand, research under controlled conditions, although artificial, can pro- vide the database needed to establish the effects of oxygen stress on crop growth.

Several experiments reported in the literature have shown that plant root growth is sensitive to anaerobiosis caused by mechanical impedance (Gerard et al. 1982, Logsdon et al. 1987) or by inun- dation (Lal & Taylor 1969, 1970). In addition to roots, stomates are also sensitive to oxygen stress. For example, So- jka (1985) observed that the leaf diffu- sive resistance of soybean increases with decreasing ODR and 02 concentration in soil air. Improved aeration is apparently an important factor responsible for a positive response of crops to improved drainage (Bornstein et al. 1984, Fausey & Lal 1989a, b).

The purpose of this study was to ex- amine the interactive effects of water table and soil compaction on the oxygen status of the soil and on corn growth under greenhouse environments. This study is relevant to the field situation in early spring in Ohio when crop growth during the seedling stage is adversely affected by poor drainage conditions and relatively high soil surface density due to harvest traffic in the fall and tillage traffic in the spring.

2 Material and methods

The greenhouse study had a split de- sign with two main factors, each repli- cated three times. Three levels of soil compaction and three water table depths were combined to give nine different levels of soil aeration. The water table depth was imposed as a main plot treatment. Containers with 3 levels of soil compaction were randomized within each water table treatment. The desired water table depth was regulated in aluminum tanks of 1.14xl.14x0.3 m dimensions. Each tank was partitioned into three equal sized compartments, and each compartment was filled to the desired water table depth. Each compartment contained three containers of different levels of soil compaction.

Soil from the A horizon of Ockley silt loam (fine loamy, mixed, mesic, Typic Hapludalf) was used in this study. Some of its physico-chemical properties are presented in tab. 1. Air-dried soil finer than 6 mm was packed into galvanized cylinders of 25-cm diameter and 40-cm depth. The bottom-less cylinder was placed within a plastic pot of 30-cm diameter and 35-cm depth. Holes were drilled at the base and on the lower sides of the pot for facilitating rapid move- ment of water. There was a 2.2-cm layer of the fine gravel placed at the bottom of the container. Coarse-meshed cheese cloth was used to separate the gravel from the soil above.

A pre-calculated weight of soil was packed into the cylinder in three layers to attain three dry soil compaction levels of 1.20, 1.37 and 1.56 Mg m 3. The inter- wall space between the galvanized cylinder and the plastic pot was filled with bentonite clay to eliminate soil shrink- age from the plastic wall. Once packed,

S O l [ I I ( H N ( I I ( I G ' ~ \ c o o p e r a l i n g J o u r n a l o l ( ' A T E N A

Aeration and Corn Growth 331

Soil separates (%) pH Organic Avail- Total Sand Silt Clay (1:1 in Carbon able P Mn

H20) (%) (ppm) (ppm)

17.9 56.0 26.1

Exchangeable bases (meq/100 g)

K Na Ca Mg

7.6 3.21 22.2 19.0 0.24 0 . 0 6 9 . 6 0 2.35

Tab. la: Textural and chemical properties of the soil used.

Sieve opening Aggregates retained (mm) (% by weight)

5 2 1 0.5 0.25

Total

Mean weight diameter (mm) =

9.5 20.9 8.5 9.1

14.1

62.1

1.60 mm

Tab. lb: Aggregate size distribution of the soil used.

Suction, q~m Moisture retention Moisture retention (®, v/v) for different bulk densities (Mg m -3)

(cm of H20) (w, g/g) 1.20 1.37 1.56

0 0.38 0.46 0.52 0.59 10 0.34 0.41 0.47 0.53 30 0.33 0.40 0.45 0.51 60 0.30 0.36 0.41 0.41

Tab. lc: Moisture retention characteristics of the soil used.

the gaNanized cylinder was pulled out. The soil-packed plastic pots were im- mersed in the compartments of the tanks in which the desired level of water table was previously maintained. Soil in all pots was pre-saturated by bringing the water table to the soil surface for 48 hours and then draining to the respec- tive water levels at 10, 20, and 30 cm below the soil surface.

Corn (Zea mays L.) var. Pioneer 3352 was used as the indicator plant. Seven pre-germinated seedlings were planted in

each pot. At seven days after planting, the seedlings were thinned out to three per pot. The plants were grown for six weeks. Photosynthetic rate and stomatal conductance were measured using a leaf chamber analyzer (Analytical De- velopment Co. Ltd.) t Measurement were made at 1300 hrs on clear days.

Soil air samples were collected from

1Mention of commercial products or brand names is for the convenience of the reader only and implies no endorsement by the authors or their employees.

SOIl. TECHNOLOGY A cooperating Journal of CATENA


V i o l

N e e d l e

S y r i n g e

Grc lve ls

Wo to r

H o l e s - - - - -

1 - - - 2 i i : i : i : .""."] '~'* ~ : i : i : i : ! : i : i : ! ' ~ ~enton i te I,° . ' . • . ° " - ' . ' - ' - ' • ' , ' • 1

: , i , , . ° , . - . • , - ° . ° , . . - . - ° q

! • ' • ' . " ' . ' . ' • " . ° . ° ° " " . ' . ° . . . ° • • • -

- - ; t i i : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : / - . . . . . . . - , ,: : . : • : . : . : . : . : . : . : : . : . : : : : : : :.: :,

l, • - • . • • • ° • • " • " • " • • • " • " • " • " • " • " • " • " • " - " • " A - - - - - }l 1 . " 1 1 , " , " , [ . " , " . " . " , l I " . l . l . 1 . 1 , " . " i " , [ [ l W O t O r

. ' _ . ' _ ' 5 " 7 " ~ " . - ' ~ = u ' - - ' - " z ,-. . - . . . . . . Cheese CIofl- ~ i j .: ' ' ~_..~- 7 ... . . - -Grovels -

' '~ . i .~-m~..M'- Wooden - ~ - : - - l i ' ~ - ~ - - BLocks

A luminum Tank

Fig. 1: Set up of the container in the experiment.

a removable 10-ml vial connected to a gas diffusion tube as described by Tay- lor & Abrahams (1953) and Shapiro et al. (1956)• The vial was connected to a 20 ml syringe via a 22-gauge hypo- dermic needle. The syringe without its collar, was placed in the soil so that the open end was 10 cm beneath the soil surface. The base of the syringe was placed on a fine-gravel layer 2 cm thick. The air in the vial was in equilibrium with soil air. Gas samples were taken periodi- cally by extracting 300/~L samples using a gas-tight syringe• The overall setup of the container and tank is shown in fig. 1.

Concentrations of gases in the soil air

were determined using a gas chromato- graph (Varian GC Model 3700) 2 He- lium was used as the carrier gas at the flow rate of 0.0005 L s 1. The temperature of the thermal conductivity detector was at 100°C. A molecular sieve no. 5 column was used to determine oxygen concentrations, while the concentrations of carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and ethylene were determined with a Chro- mosorb 102 column. The temperature settings for the columns were 35°C and

2Mention of commercial products or brand names is for the convenience of the reader only and implies no endorsement by the authors or their employees.

~ , O I L I [ ~ ( ! H N ( ) I O ( ; Y A c o o p e r a t i n g J o u r n a l o f C A ' I E N A


Water table depth Soil compaction (cm) (Mg m -3 )

10

Mean

20

Mean

30

Mean

1.20 1.37 1.56

1.20 1.37 1.56

1.20 1.37 1.56

Time of measurement (days after planting) 14 28 42

/~g 02 m -2 s -1 Mean

1.2 3.9 4.6 3.2 0.9 3.2 1.7 1.9 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.1 1.0 2.7 2.5 2.1

9.3 17.2 15.1 13.9 5.6 15.4 13.4 11.5 3.7 3.3 4.9 4.0 6.2 12.0 I1.1 9.8

285.2 1 4 6 . 7 1 4 8 . 5 193.5 231.1 19.8 16.9 89.2

15.l 17.3 13.9 15.1 177.1 61.3 59.8 99.4

Tab. 2: Soil compaction and water table effects on ODR.

25°C, respectively. The peak areas of the recorder-traces were determined with an electronic integrator. The gas concentrations were quantified by comparing to the peak areas of standard gases. The soil oxygen diffusion rates (ODR) were measured by the platinum electrode technique (Phene 1986). In each container, five electrodes were inserted to a 10 cm depth. The applied voltage was 0.065 V.

There was no supplementary irriga- tion. Periodic measurements made with tensiometers at 10-cm depth indicated that the soil moisture was within the fa- vorable range for seedling growth. All containers received 50 ppm calcium nitrate fertilizer at 21 days after planting (DAP) when nitrogen deficiency symp- toms were observed.

At harvest, shoot and root samples were obtained for dry weight determina- tions. Root samples were extracted from the center of each pot with a soil sam- piing probe 2 cm in diameter and sepa- rated from the soil by a hydropneumatic root washer (Coillison's Variety Fabrica- tion Inc.).

3 Results and discussions

3.1 Oxygen diffusion rates (ODR)

The data in tab. 2 show that the O D R was significantly different among the treatments. Within each WTD, the O D R showed a decreasing trend with the increase in soil compaction. The effect of soil compaction on O D R was especially pronounced for the 30-cm W T D treatment. The mean O D R of the 30- cm W T D treatment was 193.5, 89.2 and 15.4 /~g 02 m -2 s - l for the soil compaction of 1.2, 1.37, and 1.56 Mg m -3, respectively. The high O D R values at the 30-cm W T D and 1.20 Mg m -3 soil compaction was an indication of the abun- dance of air-filled macropores in this treatment. The effect of soil compaction on ODR, however, was not statistically significant for the 10-cm WTD. The low O D R values in the 10-cm W T D treatment showed that near saturation was achieved at that WTD. The results re- flect the direct influence of the moisture status on the aeration status of the soil.

SOIL TECHNOLOGY--A cooperating Journal of CATENA

334 Zamol, LaL VanToai & Fausey

0.5

0 4

0 3

0"2

0,1

1.20 My m - 3 ~ / ~

I : P (

I0 20 30 40 I

5O

E

0

"0

o i5 t - O e',, },. 0

0 . 4

0"3

0 " 2

0 I I

0 ,,

/ , 3 7 My m - 3

I l I i i

I0 20 30 40 50

0 . 5

0 . 4

0"3

°2 f 0 ~

I

0 L

N

1.56 My m-,3 ~ , ~

i I I I

I0 2 0 3 0 4 0 I

50

Days after planting

Fig. 2: Mean carbon dioxide concentration at three water table depths and at three density levels.

SOIL I'ECHNOLOGY A cooperating Journal of CATENA


The large variability in ODR values for the 20-cm WTD and 1.37 Mg m -3 compaction treatment is difficult to ex- plain and may indicate that the microelectrode method is not very effec- tive for characterizing the aeration of well-drained soils with high bulk densities. Asady & Smucker (1989) observed that for clayey soils, the microelectrode method is sensitive to aeration status at low bulk densities while the gas diffu- sivity measurements are sensitive at high bulk densities.

According to Glinski & Stepniewski (1985), the critical ODR for plant emergence is 16 #g 02 m -2 s -1. The 30- cm WTD treatment was apparently ad- equate in providing such ODR values. Since pre-germinated seedlings were used in this study, the effect of ODR on seedling emergence was not observed. Corn has been known to tolerate moder- ate level of anaerobic environments (Er- ickson & Van Doren 1961). The ability of the root tips to exploit relatively aer- ated microsites is a possible explanation for this tolerance. In this study, corn roots were observed to be concentrated at the soil surface in the high WTD, low soil compaction treatment as well as in the low WTD, high soil compaction treatment.

3.2 Soil air composition

In this study soil air was sampled by diffusion-equilibrium rather than by mass flow. Sampling by diffusion- equilibrium can avoid the error caused by mixing of gases from different soil depths. The diffusion of gases from soil into the collection tube is governed by the following equation (Taylor & Abra- ham 1953) :

OP DoA (P - Px) - - - - X - -

Ot V L

where V is the volume of the syringe and the collection container, Do is the diffusion coefficient of gas into the air, A is the cross-section area of the diffusion tube of length L. P and Px are partial pressures of gas in the collection chamber and at the lower end of the diffusion tube, respectively. This equation has been tested and found suitable for obtaining representative samples of soil air by several authors (Shapiro et al. 1956, Yamaguchi et al. 1962, Lal & Taylor 1969). The technique for sampling with a syringe from the diffusion tube is especially suited for laboratory and greenhouse studies (Yamaguchi et al. 1962).

There are several other methods (Hack 1956, Hammond et al. 1955, Dasberg & Bakker 1970, Davidson et al. 1986) which are suited for field conditions where large samples can be obtained. These methods are time consuming and require large amounts of gas samples. Chances of mixing are high. These methods, therefore are not suitable for controlled laboratory or greenhouse studies.

The average concentrations of carbon dioxide in soil air measured over four sampling dates are shown in fig. 2. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) with re- gard to the concentrations of 02 and CO2 is presented in tab. 3. There was a high degree of variability of the gaseous composition within each treatment. The high variability may partly be due to the small size of the container. Con- sequently, there were no significant effects on concentration of CO2 with re- gard to soil compaction or WTD treatments. There was no interaction among treatments regarding the concentrations of CO2. Regardless of the treatment, the



Mean squares and significant levels for DAP Source 14 28 42 50

A. Oxygen: Water table depth (WTD) Compaction (C) WTD X C

Mean LSD (5%) cv (%)

B. Carbon dioxide : Water table depth Compaction (C) WTD x C

Mean LSD (5%) cv (

.2859 2.00ll .5078 (P<0.1) .2326 1.2004 .4844 .0744 .1893 .9004 .5156 .0589 .9826 *

21.2 19.9 20.3 19.4 1.07 .82 .41 .46

5 4 2

.0010 .0296 (P<0.1) .0609 .0149

.0146 (P<0.1) .0630 (P<0.1) .0394 .0307

.0077 .0227 .0164 .0119

.25 .35 .55 .35

.07 .13 .26 .13 25 38 46 37

Tab. 3: ANOVA table of the effects Ol" treatments on the concentrations 0] oxygen and carbon dioxide in soil air.

maximum concentration of carbon dioxide in soil air was measured at 40 days after planting. At this time, the average concentration of carbon dioxide was as high as 0.5% v/v - - about 14 times that in the atmosphere. The maximum concentration of carbon dioxide measured was 1.27% by volume from a container having a soil compaction of 1.56 Mg m -3 and with the W T D at 20-cm.

The mean concentration of oxygen in soil air for different dates is shown in fig. 3. In contrast with CO2, the data show a decreasing trend in concentration of 02 with DAP corn. Furthermore, the relative fluctuations in concentration of 02 are small compared to those of CO2. Relatively high concentration of 02 observed may be due to its replen- ishment through diffusion from the atmosphere and shoots. Consequently, the anoxic stress in this study was not severe enough to hinder the biomass accumula- tion of corn seedlings as indicated later by the growth data. The 02 coneentra-

tion in soil air was affected by the interaction between W T D and compaction, as is evident by the data of the fourth sampling (tab. 3).

There were no consistent trends in the concentrations of ethylene and nitrous oxide in soil air. Both gases were detected during the third and fourth sampling. During the third sampling, relatively high concentrations of these gases were detected. This was also the sampling period with high concentrations of CO2. The nitrous oxide concentration was generally high in samples with the highest W T D and ranged from 13 to 20 ppm. The range of ethylene concentration was 2-19 ppm in W T D treatment of 20-cm. The concentration of nitrous oxide ranged from 2 to 14 ppm.

During the fourth sampling, only a few samples contained both nitrous oxide and ethylene. The decline in nitrous oxide content was evident from the range of values of 6--18 ppm for the highest W T D and 7-8 ppm for the 20-cm

SOII 1 E ( ' H N O L O G ~ A uooperat ing Journal of C A I E N A


2 2

2 0

18

16

1 , 2 0 /14(7 m - 3

14

o L,k~ r I0

A

J J I l

2 0 3 0 4 0 5 0

E

o

v

t-- a)

x 0

22 -

2 0

18

1-. .37 M y m - 3

m~m-- W2

\ 0

- - - - v V I I I I I

I 0 2 0 3 0 4 0 5 0

22

2 0

18

/ ' 5 6 M g m - 3

.-.,VV. l I J I I

I 0 2 0 3 0 4 0 5 0

Days after planting

Fig. 3: Mean oxygen concentration at three water table depths and at three density levels.



WTD treatment. The concentration of nitrous oxide in 30-cm WTD treatment was about 3 ppm. The concentration of ethylene ranged from 5-17 ppm in W T D of 10-cm to 2-7 ppm in W T D of 30-cm,

The transient nature of the occurrence of nitrous oxide in field soils has been reported in the literature (Dowdell & Smith 1974). In the present study also, we did not observe presence of nitrous oxide in all samples. In fact, nitrous oxide was detected in 37% and 18% of the samples during the third and fourth sampling respectively, while ethylene was measured in 30% and 18% of the samples during the same period. It is apparent that the high frequency of occurrence of both gases coincided with periods of high concentrations of CO2. There are several factors that influence the evolution of nitrous oxide and ethylene. Besides the low oxygen status, soil temperature and organic mat- ter level are also important. Smith & Dowdell (1974) detected increasing concentration of ethylene with increasing temperature and progressive depletion of oxygen. In the present study, both ethylene and nitrous oxide were detected during the periods when the oxygen status was near atmospheric level and the fluctuations in temperature were mini- mal. Non-detection of these gases during the first two samplings, followed by a peak during subsequent samplings can be attributed to an increase in biological population and the availability of appro- priate substrates. In this situation, the synthesis of ethylene and the formation of nitrites are hindered. The trend of the gaseous evolution suggested that rapid reduction of nitrite to nitrous oxide is a possible mechanism and the process of denitrification is short-lived under anaerobic conditions. Gaseous products of

nitrate reduction were also reported for excessively wet soils by Alexander (1977). Cooper & Smith (1963) also observed a rapid increase followed by a decline in concentrations of nitrous oxide and that of nitrite.

3.3 Plant growth

The effects of WTD and compaction on selected plant growth parameters are shown in tab. 4. The volumetric soil moisture content measured at harvest- ing showed that the soil moisture ten- sion was about 60 cm of water. Even though the trend in soil moisture content is consistent with the W T D treatment and compaction, this is not rel- fected in the root dry weight. The mean root weight was 0.35, 0.47 and 0.42 g for the soil compaction of 1.20, 1.37 and 1.56 Mg m -3, respectively. Similarly, soil compaction showed no effects on shoot dry weight and plant height. The results can be taken as an indication that the compaction treatments in this study were not severe enough to hinder plant growth.

The effects of W T D on plant growth were more significant. The root weight and shoot weight data showed an increasing trend with the lowering of the water table. The increase in shoot weight at the low WTD, however, is not reflected in the plant height. Corn plants grown at 10-cm, 20-cm and 30-cm WTD treatments for four weeks were 54.7, 53.6 and 50.8 cm tall, respectively.

The effects of W T D and compaction treatments on stomatal conductance and net photosynthesis are presented in tab. 5. Unlike vegetative growth parameters, compaction and W T D treatments had significant effects on these physiological parameters. Compact ion had a very

SOiL I 'ECHNOLOGY A cooperating Journal of CATENA


Treatment* Soil moisture Dry shoot Dry root Final content at harvest weight weight height

(v/v) (gm) (gm) (cm)

WTD1 C1 0.34 5.20 0.36 55.1 WTD1 C2 0.36 4.43 0.35 51.9 WTD1 C3 0.45 5.10 0.37 57.2 Mean 0.38 4.91 0.36 54.73

WTD2 Cl 0.32 4.87 0.31 56.5 WTD2 C2 0.37 4.87 0.50 49.6 WTD2 C3 0.41 5.63 0.49 54.7 Mean 0.37 5.12 0.43 53.6

WTD3 C1 0.31 5.70 0.38 52.5 WTD3 C2 0.35 4.40 0.56 47.4 WTD3 C3 0.39 5.40 0.39 52.4 Mean 0.35 5.17 0.44 50.7

Mean 5.07 0.41 53.0 LSD (5%) 2.19 0.35 9.9

* WTDI - 10 cm C1 - 1.20 Mg m -3 WTD2 - 20 cm C2 - 1.39 M G m -3 WTD3 - 30 cm C3 - 1.56 Mg m -3

T a b . 4 : Effect of water table depth ( W T D ) and compaction (C) treatments on soil moisture content at harvest and selected growth parameters of corn.

Mean squares and significance levels at DAP

Source 28 31

A. Stomatal conductance: Water table depth (WTD) .0053 .0041 Compact ion (C) .0424 .0065 W T D x C .0158" .0225*

Mean LSD (5%) CV (%)

B. Net photosynthesis: Water table depth (WTD) Compact ion (C) W T D x C

.14 .05

.11 .14 17 40

.2383 .7724 1.0814" .3033 .0701 2.3178 °

Mean 4.94 5.31 LSD (5%) .72 1.44 CV (%) 19 38

T a b . 5: ANO VA table o f the effects of treatments on stomatal conductance and net photosynthesis.

SOIL TECHNOLOGY--A cooperating Journal of CATENA


significant effect on s tomata l conductance (P<0.01) at 28 D A R Subsequently, at 31 DAP, the effect was s tat is t ical ly nonsignificant. However, the in terac t ion between W T D and compac t ion was significant (P<0.05) on both occasions. In the case o f the net photosynthesis , only soil compac t ion had a significant effect (P<0.05) at 28 DAP, while the interactive effect of W T D and compac t ion was significant at 31 D A R

While soil compac t ion affected the s tomata l conductance and the net pho to - synthet ic rate in corn. The physiological responses did not result in a reduct ion of the vegetat ive growth of the corn plants. The lack of soil compac t ion effect may be due to the shor t du ra t ion o f the experiment as repor ted by Van Diest (1962). The results of this s tudy confirm the tolerance o f corn plants to the hypoxic environment caused by high water table and soil compact ion .

4 Conclusion

O D R has been used as an indica tor o f the soil ae ra t ion status. However, this s tudy shows that O D R is only sensitive in un-sa tura ted soils. The gaseous com- pos i t ion o f soil air is a bet ter index o f the aera t ion status o f soil over a wide range o f mois ture regime. Soil compac t ion and elevated W T D resulted in higher levels of carbon dioxide in soil air t h roughou t the dura t ion of this exper iment . However, ni t rous oxide and ethylene were detected only at the later stages o f the exper iment .

Parameters o f vegetat ive growth o f corn (shoot and root growth, and p lant height) were not significantly affected by the W T D and compac t ion t reatments . On the contrary, compac t ion and W T D significantly affected s tomata l conductance. Net photosynthes i s was affected

only by soil compact ion .

Acknowledgement

The au thors wish to thank Mr. Ak ib Mohd. Yusoff for his assistance in the stat ist ical analyses and Dr. Ger ry Sims for the analysis o f soil air samples by gas chromatography . The assistance o f the staff and students of the soil physics section, A g r o n o m y Depar tment , Ohio State Universi ty, are grateful ly acknowledged. Final ly the au thor wish to thank the Di- rector o f the Rubbe r Research Inst i tu te of Ma lays i a for the f inancial assis tance to under take research at Ohio State Uni- versity.

References

ALEXANDER, M. (1977): Introduction to Soil Microbiology. John Wiley and Sons, pp. 467.

ASADY, G.H. & SMUCKER, J.M. (1989): Com- paction and root modification of soil aeration. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 53, 251 254.

BORNSTEIN, J., BENO1T, G.R., SCOTT, F.R., HEPLER, P.R. & HEDSTROM, W.E. (1984): Alfalfa growth and soil oxygen diffusion as influenced by depth to water table. Soil Sci. Soc. Am J. 48, 1165-1169.

CALLEBAUT, F., GABRIELS, D., MINJAUW, W. & DE BOODT, M. (1982): Redox potential, oxygen diffusion rate and soil gas composition in relation to water table level in two soils. Soil Sci. 134(3), 149 156.

CANNELL, R.Q. (1979): Effects of soil drainage on root growth and crop production. In: R. Lal & D.J. Greenland (eds.), Soil Physical Properties and Crop Production in the Tropics. J. Wiley & Sons, Chichester, U.K., 183-197.

CANNELL, R.Q., BELFORD, R.K., GALES, K., DENNIS, C.W. & DREW, R.D. (1980): Ef- fects of waterlogging at different stages of development on the growth and yield of winter wheat. J. Sci. Food Agric. 31, 117 132.

COOPER, G.S. & SMITH, R.L. (1963): Se- quence of products formed during denitrification in some diverse western soils. Soil Sci. Soc. Amer. Proc. 27, 659 662

gC)l[ IECIqNOLO~.~Y A cooperating Journal of CATENA


CURRIE, J.A. (1984): Gas diffusion through soil crumbs: the effects of compaction and wetting. J. Soil Sci. 35, 1-10.

DASBERG, S. & BAKKER, J.W. (1970): Char- acterizing soil aeration under changing soil moisture conditions for bean growth. Agron. J. 62, 689-692.

DAVIDSON, E.A., SWANK, W.T. & PERRY, I".O. (1986): Distinguishing between nitrifica- tion and denitrification as sources of gaseous nitrogen production in soil. Applied and Envi- ronmental Microbiology 52, 1280-1286.

DOWDELL, R.J. & SMITH, K.A. (1974): Field studies of the Soil Atmosphere II. Occurrence of nitrous oxide. J. Soil Sci. 25(2), 231-238.

DREW, M.C. (1983): Plant injury and adapta- tion to oxygen deficiency in the root environment, a review. Plant and Soil 75(2), 179-199.

ERICKSON, A.E. & VAN DOREN, D.M. (1961): The relation of plant growth and yield to soil oxygen availability. Trans. Int. Congr. Soil Sci. 7th Vol. Madison, WI. 428~132.

FAUSEY, N.R. & LAL, R. (1989a): Drainage- tillage effects on Crosby-Kokomo soil associa- tion in Ohio I. Effects on stand and corn yield. SOIL TECHNOLOGY 2, 361-370.

FAUSEY, N.R. & LAL, R. (1989b): Drainage- tillage effects on Crosby-Kokomo soil associa- tion in Ohio II. Soil temperature regime and infiltration. SOIL TECHNOLOGY 2, 371-383.

GLINSKI, J. & STEPNIEWSKI, W. (1985): Soil aeration and its role for plants. CRC Press, Boca Roton, Florida, pp. 229.

GRABLE, A.R. (1966): Soil aeration. Adv. Agron. 18, 57-106.

HACK, H.R.B. (1956): An application of a method of gas analysis to the study of soil air. Soil Sci. 82, 217-231.

HAMMOND, L.C., ALLAWAY, W.M. & LOOMIS, W.E. 0955): Effects of oxygen and carbon dioxide levels upon absorption of potas- sium by plants. Plant Physiol, 30, 155-161.

HUNDAL, S.S., SCHWAB, G.O. & TAYLOR, G.S. (1976): Drainage system effects on physical properties of lakebed clay soil. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 40, 300-305.

KRISTENSEN, K.J. & ENOCH, H. (1964): Soil air composition and oxygen diffusion rate in soil columns at different heights above a water table. Trans. 8th Int. Congr. Soil Sci., Bucharest, Romania 2, 159-169.

LAL, R. & TAYLOR, G.S. (1969): Drainage and nutrient effects in a field lysimeter study. I. Corn yield and soil conditions. Soil Sci. Soc. Amer. Proc. 33, 937-941.

LAL, R. & TAYLOR, G.S. (1970): Drainage and nutrient effects in a field lysimeter study. II. Mineral uptake by corn. Soil Sci. Soc. Amer. Proc. 34, 245 248.

LOGSDON, S.D., RENEAU, R.B., JR. & PARKER, .I.C. (1987): Corn seedling root growth as influenced by soil physical properties. Agron. J. 79, 221-224.

LETEY, J., STOLZY, L.H. & VALORAS, N. (1965): Relationship between oxygen diffusion rate and corn growth. Agron. J. 57, 91-92.

PHENE, C.J. (1986): Oxygen Electrode Mea- surement: methods of Soil Analysis. Klute, A. (ed.). Am. Soc. Agron. Monograph 9, Part 1, 1137-1158.

SCHWAB, G.O., FAUSEY, N.R. & WEAVER, C.R. (1975): Tile and surface drainage of clay soils. OARDC Re. Bulletin 1080, Wooster, OH.

SHAPIRO, R.E., TAYLOR, G.S. & VOLK, G. (1956): Soil oxygen contents and ion uptake by corn. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. Proc. 20, 193-197.

SMITH, K.A. & DOWDELL, R.J. (1974): Field studies of the soil atmosphere I. Relationship between ethylene, oxygen, soil moisture content and temperature. J. Soil Sci. 25, 217-230.

SOJKA, R.E. & STOLZY, L.H. (1980): Soil oxygen effects on stomatal response. Soil Sci. 130(6), 350-358.

SOJKA, R.E. (1985): Soil oxygen effects on two determinate soybean isolines. Soil Sci. 140(5), 333-343.

TAYLOR, G.S. & ABRAHAMS, J.H. (1953): A diffusion equilibrium method for obtaining soil gases under field conditions. Soil Sci. Soc. Amer. Proc. 17, 201-206.

TROUGHT, M.C.T. & DREW, M.C. (1980): The development of waterlogging damage in wheat seedlings (Triticum aestivum L.) I. Shoot and root growth in relation to changes in the concentrations of dissolved gases and solutes in the soil solution. Plant and Soil 54, 77-94.

VAN DIEST, A. (1962): Effects of soil aeration and compaction upon yield, nutrient uptake and variability in a greenhouse fertility experiment. Agron. J. 54, 515-518.

YAMAGUCHI, M., HOWARD, F.D., HUGHES, D.L & FLOCKER, W.J. (1962):


342 Zainol, LaL VanToai & Fausey

An improved technique for sampling and analysis of soil atmospheres. Soil Sci. Soc. Amer. Proc. 26, 512-513.

Addresses of authors: Zainol Eusof The Rubber Research Institute of Malaysia P.O. Box 10150 Kuala Lumpur Malaysia R. Lal Dept. of Agronomy The Ohio State University 2021 Coffey Road Columbus, Ohio 43210-1086 USA Dr. T. Van Toai Dr. N.R. Fausey USDA Agric. Res. Service 590 Woody Hayes Dr. Columbus, Ohio 43210-1057 USA

SOIl.. I'ECHNOLOGY A cooperating Journal of CATENA

soil compaction and water table effects on soil aeration and corn growth in a greenhouse study

Documents