soil porosity and water infiltration as influenced by tillage methods

Soil porosity and water infiltration as influenced

by tillage methods

J. Lipiec a,*, J. Kus b, A. Słowinska-Jurkiewicz c, A. Nosalewicz a

a Institute of Agrophysics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Doswiadczalna 4, 20-290 Lublin, Polandb Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation, Czartoryskich 8, 24-100 Puławy, Poland

c Institute of Soil Science and Environment Management, University of Agriculture,

Kr. Leszczynskego 7, 20-069 Lublin, Poland

Received 10 March 2005; received in revised form 21 July 2005; accepted 29 July 2005

www.elsevier.com/locate/still

Soil & Tillage Research 89 (2006) 210–220

Abstract

The relations between soil pore structure induced by tillage and infiltration play an important role in flow characteristics of

water and solutes in soil. In this study, we assessed the effect of long-term use of various tillage systems on pore size distribution,

areal porosity, stained (flow-active) porosity and infiltration of silt loam Eutric Fluvisol. Tillage treatments were: (1) ploughing

to the depth of 20 cm (conventional tillage (CT)); (2) ploughing to 20 cm every 6 years and to 5 cm in the remaining years (S/

CT); (3) harrowing to 5 cm each year (S); (4) sowing to the uncultivated soil (no tillage (NT)), all in a micro-plot experiment.

Equivalent pore size distribution was derived from the water retention curve, areal porosity – from resin-impregnated blocks

(8 cm � 9 cm � 4 cm) and stained porosity – from horizontal sections (every 2 cm) of column samples (diameter: 21.5 cm,

height: 20 cm) taken after infiltration of methylene blue solution. The pore size distribution curves indicated that the textural

peaks of the pore throat radius of approximately 1 mm were mostly defined under NT, whereas those in the structural domain of

radii of 110 mm radius—under CT. The differences among the tillage treatments were more pronounced at depth 0–10 cm than

10–20 cm. At both depths, the differences in pore size distribution between the tillage treatments were relatively greater in

structural than those in the matrix domain. CT soil had the greatest areal porosity and stained porosity. The stained porosity as a

function of depth could be well described by logarithmic equations in all treatments. Cumulative infiltration (steady state) as

measured by the double ring infiltrometer method was the highest under CT (94.5 cm) and it was reduced by 62, 36 and 61% in

S/CT, S and NT soil, respectively. Irrespective of tillage method, cumulative infiltration rates throughout 3 h most closely

correlated with stained porosity in top layers (0–6 cm). Overall, the results indicate that soil pore system under CT with higher

contribution of large flow-active pores compared to reduced and no tillage treatments enhanced infiltration and water storage

capacity.

# 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Pore size distribution; Areal porosity; Flow-active porosity; Infiltration; Tillage

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +48 81 744 5061; fax: +48 81 744 5067.

E-mail address: [email protected] (J. Lipiec).

0167-1987/$ – see front matter # 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

doi:10.1016/j.still.2005.07.012

J. Lipiec et al. / Soil & Tillage Research 89 (2006) 210–220 211

1. Introduction

Measurements of pore characteristics are becom-

ing more and more used to characterize soil structure

since they influence numerous functions in soils. One

important function of soil is transmission of water,

which directly affects plant productivity and the

environment. Infiltration of water increases water

storage for plants and groundwater recharge and

reduces erosion. The rate of infiltration is controlled

by the pore size distribution and the continuity of

pores or pathways (Kutılek, 2004). The role of macro-

pores in rapid infiltration under ponded conditions

(preferential flow) was stressed in numerous papers

(Ehlers, 1975; Lin et al., 1996; Arvidsson, 1997;

Guerif et al., 2001). Lin et al. (1996) reported that

10% of macro-pores (>0.5 mm) and meso-pores

(0.06–0.5 mm) contributed about 89% of the total

water flux. As shown by Ehlers (1975), the maximum

infiltrability of conducting channels in untilled soil

was more than 1 mm/min, although the volume of

these channels amounted to only 0.2 vol.%. The

preferential flow has also been observed in an

unsaturated soil under non-ponded conditions (Deeks

et al., 1999). Therefore, this flow has been increas-

ingly recognised as a major component of water

movement in many soils, particularly clays (Arm-

strong et al., 1999). Incorporating the preferential

flow component into models that assume a horizon-

tally homogeneous soil profile improves their

performance in predicting water distribution and

chemical movement in soil profile (Walczak et al.,

1996; Borah and Kalita, 1999; Kumar et al., 1999;

Ludwig et al., 1999).

In addition, a soil matrix with macro-pores will

offer greater potential for undisturbed root growth

because the roots can bypass the zones of high

mechanical impedance (Glinski and Lipiec, 1990;

Lipiec and Hatano, 2003). The structure and functions

of macro-pores can be an effective measure of soil

‘quality’ as they are relatively resistant to vertical

compression (Alakukku, 1996). Lin et al. (1999)

proposed to incorporate macro-porosity as a criterion

of soil structure in the soil morphological system.

Tillage largely influences pore size distribution.

Soils under conventional tillage (CT) generally have

lower bulk density and associated higher total porosity

within the plough layer than under no tillage (NT).

The changes in total porosity are related with

alterations in pore size distribution. This relation

can be different depending on soil type. Schjønning

and Rasmussen (2000) reported that under the same

site conditions, NT compared to CT resulted in lower

volume of macro-pores (>30 mm) on sandy soil and

silty loam, whereas the opposite effect was found on

sandy loam. Kay and VandenBygaart (2002) reported

in their review that converting from CT to NT

generally results in an increased volume fraction of

pores 100–500 mm and a decreased volume of pores

30–100 mm.

The effect of soil tillage and management on

transmission properties is not uniform. The results

showed that untilled compared to tilled soil had

greater (Freebarin et al., 1986; Arshad et al., 1999;

McGarry et al., 2000), similar (Ankeny et al., 1990)

or lower infiltration rates (Gantzer and Blake, 1978;

Gomez et al., 1999; Rasmussen, 1999). The inco-

nsistencies can be associated with pore functioning.

In NT soils, greater infiltration was attributed to

greater contribution of flow-active macro-pores

made by soil fauna or by roots of preceding crops

(Tebrugge and During, 1999), whereas in tilled soils

with stable structure—to preferential flow through

interaggregate pores (Lin et al., 1999). However, the

flow-active pores are not frequently quantified com-

bined with infiltration due to the time-consuming

measurements.

Understanding the relations between pore structure

induced by tillage and infiltration is of crucial

importance in predicting flow characteristics of water

and solutes in the soil profile. In this study, we

assessed the effect of long-term use of various tillage

systems on pore size distribution, areal porosity,

stained (flow-active) porosity and infiltration of silt

loam Eutric Fluvisol.

2. Materials and methods

2.1. Soil type and tillage experiment

The experiment was conducted on Eutric Fluvisol

by the FAO legend at the experimental field of the

Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation in

Puławy (51.258N, 21.588E), Poland. The soil has

25% clay (<2 mm), 62% silt (2–50 mm) and 13%

J. Lipiec et al. / Soil & Tillage Research 89 (2006) 210–220212

sand (50–2000 mm) at the depth 0–30 cm. Long-term

annual mean temperature and precipitations in the site

are 7.7 8C and 588 mm, respectively.

The experimental design used randomised block

with four replicates of micro-plots (1 m � 1.5 m).

The treatments were as follows: (1) ploughing to the

depth of 20 cm (CT); (2) ploughing to 20 cm every 6

years and to 5 cm in the remaining years (S/CT); (3)

harrowing to 5 cm each year (S); (4) sowing to the

uncultivated soil (NT). Hand implements were used to

simulate all the tillage operations as much as possible.

Using such implements allowed avoiding soil

compaction by traffic. Tillage was done at approxi-

mately 0.9–1.0 of plastic limit being considered as an

optimum water content for tillage (Dexter and Czyz,

2000; Mueller et al., 2003). The treatments were

applied during 18 years (from 1979 to 1997) with crop

rotation including maize, spring barley, winter rape,

winter wheat and faba bean. Weeds were controlled

with pre-emergence application of Roundup [gly-

phosate, h-(phosphonometyl)glycine] or Gramoxone

(paraquat. 1,l0-dimethyl-4,40-bipyridinum salts) (Kus,

1991).

The soil had a pH (in M KCl) of 7.2 and a soil

organic matter (SOM) content of 2.30% (w/w) in the

top layer at the beginning of the experiment. At the

end of the experiment, the pH and SOM values

under CT, S/CT, S and NT were 7.4, 7.1, 6.8, 6.8 and

2.16, 2.20, 2.43, 2.51% (w/w), respectively (Kus,

1999).

2.2. Measurements and soil sampling

All measurements and sampling were done in 1997

just after harvesting spring barley. Core samples of

100 cm3 volume, 5 cm diameter (four replicates) were

taken from the depths of 0–10 and 10–20 cm to find the

soil water retention and total porosity (Klute, 1986).

To obtain whole continuous pore size distribution

from the soil water retention curves, we used the

procedure described by Kutilek et al. (2006). The

standard soil water retention curves u(h) in this

procedure are transformed into the parametric forms

S(h), where S is the relative saturation and h is the

pressure head plotted as logarithm. Then, the

derivative curves dS(ln(h))/d(ln(h)) are calculated

and used for computation of pore size distribution

with the equation r = 1490/h, where r is the equivalent

pore radius in micrometer and h is the pressure head in

centimeter.

Samples for analysis of areal porosity were taken

under CT and NT treatments into metal containers

of 8 cm � 9 cm � 4 cm from the layers of 0–4 and

10–14 cm in the horizontal plane and from the layers

of 0–8 and 10–18 cm in the vertical plane. After

drying, the soil samples were saturated with a solution

of Polimal 109 polyester resin. When hard, the surface

of each block was polished with glass paper and

powder to obtain opaque sections. The measurements

were done with flatbed scanner and included pores

greater than 117 mm. This method gives insight to

large pores that cannot be determined from the water

retention curve. A more detailed description of the

procedure is in Słowinska-Jurkiewicz and Domzał

(1991).

Infiltration of water into the soil was determined by

the double ring infiltrometer (Bouwer, 1986), with a

21.5 cm inner diameter and 30 cm outer diameter

cylinder inserted 14 cm into the soil (three replicates).

Water entering the soil was measured with a calibrated

Mariotte bottle. A constant water head of 15 mm was

maintained in both rings. The measurements were done

at the initial soil water content corresponding to

approximately field water capacity in all the treatments.

This allowed to minimise the effect of different water

content. The infiltration data were described according

to Philip’s (1969) model using the least squares method.

To analyse the flow-active pores (preferential

flow), 50 mm of water and then 30 mm of 0.1%

methylene blue solution were infiltrated from the

soil surface on delimited areas of 1 m � 1 m. A

constant head of 15 mm water was maintained

during the infiltration. Afterwards, soil columns

were taken with steel cylinders of 21.5 cm diameter

and 20 cm height from the depth of 0–20 cm (three

replicates) from the same places, which were used

for measuring water infiltration. This column size

has been shown large enough to encompass a

representative elementary volume for measurements

of saturated hydraulic conductivity (Mallants et al.,

1997). The columns were then brought to the

laboratory and sectioned horizontally at 2 cm depth

intervals. Photographs of each section were used to

determine methylene blue stained porosity using the

program Scion Image for Windows. Dye staining

with depth provides information on the change in


flow-active porosity during infiltration (Trojan and

Linden, 1998).

Tillage effects on soil areal porosity were eval-

uated by using an analysis of variance (STATISTICA

6.0).

3. Results and discussion

3.1. Pore size distribution

The derivative presentation of pore size distribution

curve (Fig. 1) indicates that the porous system of the

studied soil is organized hierarchically with matrix

(textural) domain and secondary (structural) domain

consisting of two sub-domains. The domains can be

separated by the minimum pressure head and the

corresponding equivalent pore radii on the pore

distribution curve (Kutilek et al., 2006). The minima

between matrix and structural domains in our study

are similar among the tillage systems at both depths

and correspond to pore radius of approximately 6 mm.

However, as reported by Kutilek et al. (2006), the

minima cannot be taken as a fixed value. In their study,

the minima varied from 10.9 to 2.5 mm depending on

soil texture (from loamy sand to clay loam) and

Fig. 1. Continuous pore size distribution at depths 0–10 and 10–

20 cm for the four tillage treatments.

compressive force applied. The minima separating the

two structural sub-domains in our study are approxi-

mately 60 mm at depth 0–10 cm and 20 mm at depth

10–20 cm.

The differences in pore size distribution among

the tillage treatments were displayed throughout the

curve with different intensities depending on pore

radius. At depth 0–10 cm, the peak associated with

matric pore system, corresponding approximately to

pores of approximately 1 mm, was most defined

under NT. The peaks of pore throat radius in the

range of 10–20 mm, associated with the structural

domain, were most and least displayed under NT

and CT, respectively. However, the inverse was true

with respect to the peak of approximately 110 mm

radius. The smaller pore radius peaks are within the

range of equivalent radius from 0.25 to 25 mm

considered as storage pores (Greenland, 1977;

Pagliai et al., 2004) and those of greater radius—

as transmission pores (Ahuja et al., 1984; Ehlers

et al., 1995). The differences in pore size distribu-

tion were more pronounced at depth 0–10 cm than

10–20 cm. At both depths, the differences in pore

size distribution between the tillage treatments were

relatively greater in structural than those in the

matrix domain. These data well reflect yearly

loosening effect of conventional tillage. Higher

percentage of large pores under CT than NT has

been shown in other studies (Hill et al., 1985; Kay

and VandenBygaart, 2002). Kay and VandenBygaart

(2002) ascribed that increase to annual mixing and

homogenisation by the plough.

Table 1

Areal porosity for pores > 117 mm (percent of total area) on blocks

from conventionally tilled and non-tilled soil

Layer (cm) CT NT Mean

Vertical plane

0–8 9.62a (2.15)a 6.85b (1.12) 8.24a

10–18 8.03a (1.60) 6.87a (2.55) 7.45a

Mean 8.82a 6.86b

Horizontal plane

2 10.48a (2.50) 5.95b (1.52) 8.21a

12 10.20a (1.77) 6.39b (0.90) 8.29a

Mean 10.34a 6.17b

Means with the same letters in the row (a and b) are not significantly

different.a Standard deviation is shown in parentheses.


3.2. Areal porosity

The changes in pore space due to tillage can also be

seen in areal porosity (pores > 117 mm) derived from

resin-impregnated blocks. The data in Table 1 indicate

that mean values of areal porosity were greater in CT

than NTat both depths in horizontal and vertical planes.

Fig. 2. Examples of vertical plane (0–8 and 10–18 cm) pore space (black)

(CT) and non-tilled soil (NT).

The differences were relatively greater in the horizontal

than the vertical plane. Statistics showed that in all

cases except for the layer of 10–18 cm in the vertical

plane, the differences were significant (P < 0.05).

Figs. 2 and 3 present examples of pore distribution

patterns. In vertical planes (Fig. 2), the largest pore

spaces, both of the type of cavities and cracks with

images on resin-impregnated soil blocks from conventionally tilled


Fig. 3. Examples of horizontal plane (depths 2 and 12 cm) pore space (black) images on resin-impregnated soil blocks from conventionally tilled

(CT) and non-tilled soil (NT).

dimensions even above 10 mm, occurred mainly in the

soil under CT, especially in the layers situated close to

the soil surface. However, in the soil under NT, the pores

of smaller dimensions dominated. In many areas,

particularly under CT, the structure with well-separated

aggregates can be described as a complete or almost

complete structure (Fitzpatrick, 1984). However, under

NT, such areas were less numerous. There appeared,

instead, mainly in the deeper layer, large zones of non-

aggregate massive structure.

The horizontal cross-sections at the depths of 2 and

12 cm confirm the above observations (Fig. 3). In CT

soil, well-defined aggregates are separated by large

irregular cavities. The soil under NT was denser with


Fig. 4. Stained porosity with depth for four tillage treatments. Each

point represents the average of three replicates.

poorly defined aggregates and with some more

circular pores.

3.3. Stained porosity

Applying the methylene blue solution under

ponded conditions allowed staining flow-active

pores. The data in Fig. 4 indicate that the percentage

of the stained pores was the highest in CT and the

lowest in S throughout all depths. In all treat-

ments, the stained porosity as a function of depth

could be well described by logarithmic equation:

log(x) = a + b � y, where x is the stained porosity

(percent of total area), a and b the fitted coefficients

and y is the depth (cm). The higher (less negative)

values for the coefficient b in the equations for CT

and S/CT systems, including ploughing, can be

indicative of more continuous pores than for S and

NT.

Fig. 5 presents examples of distribution patterns of

flow-active pores. The CT treatment image had a

greater contribution of large flow-active pores,

whereas the remaining treatments, S in particular,

had large areas that did not contribute to flow. We did

not observe more circular biopores under NT than CT

as we did on resin-impregnated images. This is likely

due to uneven absorption of methylene blue by organic

components around the pores.

3.4. Infiltration

The changes in pore characteristics, induced

by tillage, had a substantial effect on cumulative

infiltration (Fig. 6). CT had the highest infiltration

throughout the time of water application. After

10 min, the cumulative infiltration being 20.2 cm

(infiltration rate of 69.0 cm h�1), it was lower in S/CT,

S and NT by 66, 38 and 58%, respectively. After 3 h,

the cumulative infiltration in CT was 94.5 cm

(infiltration rate of 17.0 cm h�1) and corresponding

reductions were similar compared with those after

10 min (62, 36 and 61%). The differences in initial

infiltration and reduction of infiltration rate with

time among tillage treatments imply higher capability

of CT pore system to increase amount of water

infiltrating before filling macro-pores and reaching

steady state. This can be supported by higher

contribution of large pores (Fig. 1; Table 1) and

flow-active porosity throughout the profile (Fig. 4) in

CT than in the remaining treatments. The cumulative

infiltration (Ic) was described by model of Philip

(1969), Ic = Kst + St0.5, where Ks is related to saturated

hydraulic conductivity, t the time elapsed and S is soil

water sorptivity term. The highest value of Ks under

CT corresponds well with most displayed peak of

approximately 110 mm radius at depth 0–10 cm

(Fig. 1) and the highest stained porosity (Fig. 4).

Also, value of sorptivity, being indicative of soil water

diffusivity and thus unsaturated hydraulic conductiv-

ity, was much higher under CT than remaining tillage

treatments.

The time required to reach steady-state infiltration,

when the rate of decline was less than 1% within 2 min,

was not much different between the tillage treatments

and ranged from 117 min in NT to 132 min in CT.

Our infiltration data contrast with results showing

that pores in NT can be more effective in transmitting

water than in CT (Freebarin et al., 1986; Kay, 1990;

McGarry et al., 2000) thanks mainly to the protective

effect of crop residues against crusting and increased

pore continuity in the former (Tebrugge and During,

1999). Greater infiltration of soil under CT than NT in

our study can be due to relatively high soil organic

matter and associated low susceptibility to sealing that

could stop the entry of water to the high interaggregate

flow-active porosity in CT (Fig. 4). Rapid flow along

interaggregate pores has been demonstrated in earlier

studies (e.g. Lin et al., 1996, 1999).

The values of correlation coefficients (R) between

flow-active porosity and infiltration were generally

higher for the porosities in upper than deeper layers


Fig. 5. Examples of the stained porosity patterns at 6 cm depth from the four tillage treatments.

(Table 2). For all layers up to the depth of 6 cm, the

correlation coefficients for 3 h cumulative infiltration

ranged from 0.83 to 0.95 and from 0.44 to 0.52 for two

deepest layers. Surprisingly, the coefficients were

relatively high for the depths of 12 and 14 cm (0.86–

0.92). The differences in correlation coefficients

between the depths can be partly associated with

decreasing stained porosity with depth to different

extent under given treatments (Fig. 3). Some authors

reported that prediction of the transport coefficient of

soil can be improved by including shape factors of

pores (Pagliai et al., 2004) and pore surface roughness

of flow-active pores using fractal dimensions (Hatano

et al., 1992; Gimenez et al., 1997).

It is worthy to note that the pore structure under CT,

allowing the improved infiltration, persisted until the

end of growing season when the measurements were

conducted. It indicates that soil in CT did not show a

characteristic trend for CT soil to become less porous

with time (Voorhees and Lindstrom, 1984; Hill et al.,

1985; Horn, 2004). Delayed densification of the CT soil

in our study could be associated with stable aggregate

structure and optimum moisture conditions during

tillage. Favourable effect of tillage at the optimum


Fig. 6. Infiltration rate. Error bars represent standard error of n = 3.

Table 2

Correlation coefficients (R) between stained porosity and cumulative infiltration

Elapsed time (h) Depth (cm)

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18

0.17 0.92* 0.76 0.91* 0.82 0.57 0.54 0.78 0.87 0.41 0.32

0.5 0.93* 0.79 0.93* 0.85 0.61 0.59 0.82 0.89 0.46 0.38

1 0.93* 0.81 0.94* 0.86 0.64 0.62 0.84 0.91* 0.49 0.41

2 0.93* 0.82 0.95* 0.87 0.66 0.64 0.85 0.92* 0.51 0.43

3 0.93* 0.83 0.95* 0.88 0.67 0.65 0.86 0.92* 0.52 0.44

* Significant at P = 0.1.

moisture on the stability of soil structure has been

reported earlier by Vez (1979) for a similar soil type.

The tillage induced infiltration rates may have

implications for the storage of water and chemical

movement (Lipiec and Stepniewski, 1995; Shipitalo

et al., 2000). In Poland, high water storage in the soil

profile is an important factor affecting crop production

(Lipiec et al., 2004).

Comparison of Table 1 and Fig. 4 reveals that

stained porosity is higher than areal porosity at

comparable depths. This can be due to adsorption of

methylene blue by this soil due to relatively high

organic matter content (2.16–2.51%, w/w). There was

no such effect in silty loam (Orthic Luvisol) of lower

organic matter content (1.48%, w/w) (Lipiec et al.,

1998). This emphasizes the importance of proper

selection of dye type as related to soil type and

associated properties.

4. Conclusion

Long-term application of various tillage methods

(conventional tillage, reduced tillage and no tillage) on

silt loam Eutric Fluvisol produced markedly different

pore size distribution, areal and stained (flow-active)

porosity. As shown by continuous pore size distribution

curve, the peaks in matrix domain were most displayed

under NT and those in structural domain—under CT.

The differences in pore size distribution between the

tillage treatments were relatively greater in structural

than those in the matrix domain and at depth 0–10 cm

than 10–20 cm. Moreover, CT soil had the greatest areal

porosity and stained porosity within plough layer. This

resulted in the highest infiltration throughout 3 h of

water application. The 3 h cumulative infiltration

into conventionally tilled soil (94.5 cm) was decreased

by 36–62% in other tillage treatments. Irrespective

of tillage methods, the cumulative infiltration was

correlated with stained porosity to the highest extent for

most upper soil layers (0–6 cm) (R = 0.82–0.95) and to

a much lower extent for deeper layers (16–20 cm)

(R = 0.43–0.51). The differences in water infiltration

among tillage treatments may have implications for

water storage capability.

Acknowledgement

This work was funded in part by the Polish State

Committee for Scientific Research (Grant No. 3 P06R

001 23).

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