Chemical Properties of Eroded Soil Material

In a 5‐year stationary investigation at an experimental station in central Croatia, total amounts of erosional drift were measured on a Stagnic Luvisol on which six tillage methods were used. The chemical properties of the tilled soil and the erosional drift were recorded for each trial method in the same plots. A generally higher soil reaction value, higher organic matter content and larger amounts of available phosphorus and potassium were found in the majority of erosional drifts compared to plot soil. On black fallow, erosional drifts contained significantly larger amounts of organic matter, available phosphorus and potassium than in other treatments. Higher contents of organic matter, phosphorus and potassium were recorded in erosional drifts from spring crop cultivation than in those from cultivation of winter wheat, oil‐seed rape and a consociation of summer barley and soybean. Also, higher losses of organic matter, phosphorus and potassium by erosional drift were recorded for the up/down the slope tillage methods than for no‐tillage and tillage across the slope. This suggests that no‐tillage and tillage across the slope can be recommended for this region, since these tillage methods conserve the soil and substantially reduce water pollution by chemical agents applied in agricultural production.