Effects of Long-Term Fertilizer Application and Rainfall Distribution on Cotton Productivity,Profitability, and Soil Fertility in a Semi-arid Vertisol

Long-term fertilizer experiments were conducted on cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) for 21 years with eight fertilizer treatments in a fixed site during 1987–2007 to identify an efficient treatment to ensure maximum yield, greater sustainability, monetary returns, rainwater-use efficiency, and soil fertility over years. The results indicated that the yield was significantly influenced by fertilizer treatments in all years except 1987 1988, and 1994. The mean cotton yield ranged from 492 kg ha^?1 under the control to 805 kg ha^?1 under 25 kg nitrogen (N) [farmyard manure (FYM)] + 25 kg N (urea) + 25 kg phosphorus (P) ha^?1. Among the nutrients, soil N buildup was observed with all treatments, whereas application of 25 kg N + 12.5 kg P ha^?1 exhibited increase in P status. Interestingly, depletion of potassium (K) was recorded under all the fertilizer treatments as there was no K application in any of the treatments. An increase in soil N and P increased the plant N and P uptake respectively. Using relationships of different variables, principal component (PC) analysis technique was used for assessing the efficiency of treatments. In all the treatments, five PCs were found significant that explained the variability in the data of variables. The PC model of 25 kg N (FYM) + 25 kg N (urea) + 25 kg P ha^?1 explained maximum variability of 79.6% compared to other treatments. The treatment-wise PC scores were determined and used in developing yield prediction models and measurement of sustainability yield index (SYI). The SYI ranged from 44.4% in control to 72.7% in 25 kg N (FYM) + 25 kg N (urea) + 25 kg P ha^?1, which attained a mean cotton yield of 805 kg ha^?1 over years. Application of 25 kg N (FYM) + 25 kg N (urea) + 25 kg P ha^?1 was significantly superior in recording maximum rainwater-use efficiency (1.13 kg ha^?1 mm^?1) and SYI (30.5%). This treatment also gave maximum gross returns of Rs. 30272 ha^?1 with benefit–cost ratio of 1.60 and maintained maximum organic carbon and available N, P, and K in soil over years. These findings are extendable to cotton grown under similar soil and agroclimatic conditions in any part of the world.     

Modeling Effects of Soil Fertility of Nutrients and Precipitation of 22 Years on Sustainable Productivity and Profitability of Pearlmillet and Sorghum Rotation in Semi-arid Vertisols

Based on experiments conducted during 1988–2009 on rainfed pearl millet/sorghum with 9 treatments in Vertisols, an efficient treatment for sustainable productivity is identified. Twenty kg of nitrogen (N) from farmyard manure (FYM) + 20 kg N (urea) + 10 kg phosphorus (P) ha^?1 in pearl millet and 40 kg N (urea) + 20 kg P + 25 kg zinc sulfate (ZnSO₄) ha^?1 in sorghum gave maximum yield and rainwater-use efficiency, whereas 20 kg N (FYM) + 20 kg (urea) + 10 kg P ha^?1 in pearl millet and 40 kg (urea) + 20 kg P ha^?1 in sorghum and gave maximum soil N, P, and potassium (K) over years. The regression model of 20 kg N (crop residue) + 20 kg N (urea) + 10 kg P ha^?1 gave maximum R² for predicting sorghum equivalent yield separately through precipitation and soil variables, whereas 20 kg N (FYM) + 20 kg N (urea) + 10 kg P ha^?1 gave maximum R² under combined model of both variables. Treatment of 20 kg N (FYM) + 20 kg N (urea) + 10 kg P ha^?1 was superior for attaining maximum sorghum equivalent yield of 1062 kg ha^?1, net returns of Rs. 4805 ha^?1, benefit/cost (BC) ratio of 1.50, and 127 kg ha^?1 of soil N, 10.3 kg ha^?1 of soil P, and 386 kg ha^?1 of soil K over years.     

Chemical Fractions of Zinc and Their Contribution toward Its Availability under Long-Term Integrated Nutrient Management in Rice–Wheat Sequence in an Acidic Alfisol

This study was carried out in an ongoing field experiment initiated during the 1991 kharif season (May–October) on an acidic soil in the Western Himalayas of India to evaluate the effect of integrated nutrient supply on transformation of zinc (Zn) into various chemical pools. The continuous use of chemical fertilizers alone for 20 years brought about marked depletion in different pools of Zn compared to buffer plots, while integrated use of organic and chemical fertilizers recorded greater content than chemically treated plots. Nonspecifically adsorbed exchangeable Zn (Zn I) was the most important fraction of Zn contributing to diethylene triamine penta-acetic acid (DTPA)–extractable Zn. Content of DTPA-extractable Zn also increased in soil with integrated application of chemical fertilizers and organics over the years. Residual Zn was the most dominant form of Zn, contributing about 55% to total Zn, whereas nonspecifically adsorbed exchangeable Zn was the most important fraction of Zn contributing to DTPA Zn.     

Effect of Continuous Rice–Wheat Rotation on Soil Properties from Four Agro‐ecosystems of Indian Punjab

In Indian Punjab, rice–wheat is a dominant cropping system in four agro‐ecosystems, namely undulating subregion (zone 1), Piedmont alluvial plains (zone 2), central alluvial plains (zone 3), and southwestern alluvial plains (zone 4), varying in rainfall and temperature. Static and temporal variabilities in soil physical and chemical properties prevail because of alluvial parent material, management/tillage operations, and duration of rice–wheat rotation. A detailed survey was undertaken to study the long‐term effect of rice–wheat rotation on soil physical (soil separates, bulk density, modulus of rupture, saturated and unsaturated hydraulic conductivities, soil water content, and suction relations) and chemical (organic carbon, pH, electrical conductivity) properties of different textured soils (sandy clay loam, loam, clay loam, and silty clay loam) in these four zones of Punjab. Soil samples (of 0‐ to 30‐cm depth) from 45 sites were collected during 2006 and were analyzed for physical and chemical properties. The results showed that sand content and pH increased whereas silt and organic carbon decreased significantly from zones 1 to 4. Compared to other textures, significantly greater organic carbon, modulus of rupture, and pH in silty clay loam; greater bulk density in clay loam, and greater saturated hydraulic conductivity in sandy clay loam were observed. Irrespective of zone and soil texture, in the subsurface soil, there was a hard pan at 15–22.5 cm deep, which had high soil bulk density, modulus of rupture, more silt and clay contents (by 3–5%) and less organic carbon and hydraulic conductivity than the surface (0–15 cm) layer. These properties deteriorated with fineness of the soil texture and less organic carbon content. Continuous rice–wheat cropping had a deleterious effect on many soil properties. Many of these soils would benefit from the addition of organic matter, and crop yields may also be affected by the distinct hardpan that exists between 15 and 22.5 cm deep.     

Effect of Integrated Nutrient Management on Soil Physical Properties and Crop Productivity under a Maize (Zea mays)–Mustard (Brassica campestris) Cropping Sequence in Acidic Soils of Northeast India

A five-year (2001/02–2006/07) field experiment was carried out on acidic clay loam soil classified as Typic Hapludalf with a maize–mustard crop sequence to study the effect of continuous application of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK) fertilizers alone and in combination with lime, farmyard manure (FYM), and biofertilizers on soil physical properties, soil organic carbon (SOC), soil microbial biomass carbon (SMBC), and crop yields on the hilly ecosystem of Meghalaya. Significant improvement in the soil physical conditions of the soil was observed under integrated application of organic manure and inorganic fertilizers. Addition of NPK fertilizers along with organic manure, lime, and biofertilizers increased soil organic carbon (SOC) content, aggregate stability, moisture-retention capacity, and infiltration rate of the soil while reducing bulk density. The SOC content under the treatment of 100% NPK + lime + biofertilizer + FYM was significantly greater (68.58%) than in control plots. Maize and mustard crop yields also significantly increased (4.73- and 21.09-folds, respectively) with continuous application of balanced inorganic (100% NPK) + lime + biofertilizer + FYM as compared to the control plots. However, crop yields drastically reduced under application of integrated nutrients without FYM as compared to the treatment with FYM application. Thus, the results suggest that integrated use of a balanced inorganic fertilizer in combination with lime and organic manure sustains a soil physical environment that is better for achieving higher crop productivity under intensive cropping systems in the hilly ecosystem of northeastern India.     

Organic matter determination in arid region soils: loss-on-ignition versus wet oxidation

ABSTRACT

The precise assessment of soil organic matter (SOM) is required when studying soil pedology, chemistry, physics, and fertility. Besides, it is a key for evaluating soil quality, plant growth, and sustainable land management. This research aims to correlate the SOM resulted from loss-on-ignition (LOI) with those from wet combustion (Walkley–Black, WB). A total of 130 soil samples were collected from Egypt and analyzed using WB and LOI. In LOI, samples exposed to the combustion temperatures of 300, 375, 430, and 550°C for 2 and 4 hours. Using RStudio, simple linear regressions were conducted to estimate the most suitable temperature/time combinations. The results showed that applying lower temperatures (300 and 375°C) for 2 hours provided a strong correlation between LOI and WB with R² of 93 and 94% for all dataset and sandy soils, respectively. For clay soils the respective R² values at 300 and 375°C were 83 and 85%. The proposed combinations were valid to estimate SOM content for different soils with correlation up to 0.99 for sandy soils.     

The role of border areas for dendrochronological investigations on catastrophic snow avalanches: A case study from the Italian Alps

Snow avalanches are common in mountain environments, sometimes affecting inhabited areas and infrastructures (e.g. roads, bridges, and ski slopes). Their study is widespread and involves the use of a variety of different techniques, including dendrochronological methods. The aim of such investigations is principally to date past events, but also to detect variation in avalanche frequency as well as their spatial distribution. Trees affected by snow avalanches generally have scars, tilted trunks and broken branches, which allow past events to be dated to within a year. In this work tree rings were used to investigate a disruptive snow avalanche which occurred in 2001 in Val Mala in the Italian Alps. The event almost completely removed forest along the flow path, while the snow powder component of the avalanche also impacted on the adjacent forest. Comparison of tree reaction in surviving plants along the flow path and vegetation on the border showed i) the production of reaction wood even in apparently undisturbed trees and ii) the usefulness of border plants for dating past events. Different dendroecological indicators were investigated (i.e. reaction wood, scars, traumatic resin ducts, and variations in stem eccentricity) and reaction wood is evidently concentrated from 2001 not only in damaged trees but also in adjacent plants. The potential to investigate past snow avalanches by collecting samples from trees growing in border areas is presented: in the specific case of Val Mala, vegetation bordering the flow paths reacted to produce reaction wood in 2001, in a similar manner to plants along the flow track, demonstrating their usefulness in such investigations. Their response to the 2001 event confirms the possibility of applying dendrochronological techniques to trees adjacent to the flow path, even if they appear morphologically undisturbed, and proposes to use only border areas in cases of an absence of sufficient trees along the avalanche track.     

Effect of snow amount on runoff,soil loss and suspended sediment during periods of snowmelt in southern West Siberia

Surface runoff, soil loss, suspended sediment concentration (SSC), texture of eroded soils and suspended sediment were determined on slightly eroded chernozems (mouldboard fall-ploughed) during years with different amounts of snow in three areas of southern West Siberia (Predsalairye, Priobye and Kuznetsk hollow). These areas have different geomorphological and climatic characteristics and soils. Observations were made from 1969 to 2007. The soil loss during very low-snow and low-snow years did not exceed 2 t ha^− 1. After winters with normal amounts of snow, the runoff led to slight soil loss (2–5 t ha^− 1). Soil losses in high-snow and very high-snow years varied from slight to severe (4.8–15.8 t ha^− 1) depending on studied area. The main sediment exported during intensive snowmelt and the 1 mm of runoff transported from 35 to 150 kg ha^− 1 of soil material. The removal of soil particles < 0.01 mm (especially clay) prevailed during the initial and final stages of snowmelt. Clay removal by meltwater from the ploughed layer in high-snow and very high-snow years varied from 3300 to 4200 kg ha^− 1 and, in the initial and final stages of snowmelt clay removal, accounted for 1260–1,500 kg ha^− 1. Among the three studied regions, Predsalairye had decreased soil erosion resistance and was the area with the greatest danger of erosion.     

基于MODIS的雪情监测及其对农业的影响评估

2009年11月中旬,中国中部地区出现了大范围持续低温、雨雪、冰冻天气气候事件,造成了积雪灾害。本文利用连续多天的MODIS遥感数据,通过计算归一化差分积雪指数（NDSI,Normalized Difference SnowIndex）分析了北京、河南、河北、湖北、山东、山西、陕西7个地区的积雪状况,对积雪发生的时空特征进行了动态监测,并对监测省份农业受到的影响进行评估。结果表明：监测区整个降雪过程积雪面积呈单峰型变化,11月15日积雪面积最大,15日以后积雪面积开始减少,24日监测区积雪基本融化;山西省为本次降雪过程的核心区域,累计积雪总面积为62.89×10^4km^2,陕西、河南、河北省次之,分别为40.10×10^4km^2、37.62×10^4km^2、37.58×10^4km^2,山东、湖北、北京受积雪覆盖影响较小,积雪总面积分别为10.42×10^4km^2、8.52×10^4km^2、0.42×10^4km^2;监测期间油菜作物均处于出苗期,持续积雪覆盖会对其产量造成一定影响。已进入越冬期的冬小麦,稳定的积雪覆盖会产生积雪融水,进而土壤墒情得到改善,有利于作物来年生长。尚未进入越冬期的冬小麦抗寒能力较差,持续低温积雪对其生长及产量造成不良影响。     

2000~2017年蒙古高原积雪时空变化及其对气候响应研究

利用MOD10A1积雪产品逐像元提取积雪覆盖率、积雪日数、初雪日期、终雪日期,分析2000~2017年间蒙古高原各积雪参数的分布特征、变化及其与气温、降水的关系,为蒙古高原长期生态环境保护和应对全球变化制定适应对策提供参考依据。研究结果表明:(1)蒙古高原积雪覆盖率介于24~47%之间,且呈现"北部多南部少"的分布特点。积雪覆盖率最大出现在2002年,为46.02%;最小出现在2014年,为24.72%;1月份积雪覆盖率最大,为46.04%。积雪日数在46~82d之间,且呈现"北部长南部短"的分布特点,西北局部地区可达140d以上。积雪覆盖率和积雪日数以不明显的减少趋势为主,但西北部蒙古阿尔泰山、杭爱山,东部呼伦贝尔、锡林郭勒北侧和大兴安岭西侧小部分地区呈显著增长趋势。初雪日期北部出现早,南部晚,分布在第317~343d之间。终雪日期北部出现晚,南部早,分布在第45~63d之间。初雪日期和终雪日期均有不同程度的提前。(2)初步研究表明气温变化对积雪影响程度大于降水变化的影响。(3)整体上,蒙古高原积雪覆盖率随海拔升高而增大,但小尺度范围内,不同海拔地区积雪覆盖率变化多样。