Quality and Crop Yield Potential of Moderately Degraded Alfisols Under Different Nutrient Inputs and Cropping Patterns

作     者：Wiqar AHMAD Farmanullah KHAN Zahir SHAH Muhammad Jamal KHAN 

作者机构：Department of Soil and Environmental Sciences The University of Agriculture PeshawarAMK Campus Department of Soil and Environmental Sciences The University of AgriculturePeshawar 

出 版 物：《Pedosphere》 (土壤圈（英文版）)

年 卷 期：2019年第29卷第2期

页      面：235-247页

核心收录：

学科分类：09[农学] 0903[农学-农业资源与环境] 090301[农学-土壤学] 

基　　金：Higher Education Commission of Pakistan 

主　　题：crop rotation crop performance degraded soil farmyard manure integrated nutrient management legume intercrop sustained production 

摘      要：Crop performance on degraded soil needs special management practices to overcome soil quality limitations. In a 2-year(from summer 2006 to winter 2007–2008) field trial on a moderately degraded Alfisol in Swabi District(34°7′12′′N, 72°28′20′′E), Pakistan,the effects of three cropping patterns, cereal-cereal(CC), cereal-legume(CL), and cereal-cereal and legume intercrop(CLI), were tested in main plots under four fertilization treatments in sub-plots, including no fertilization(control), farmers practice(FP, 60:45 kg ha^(-1) N:P_2O_5), recommended dose(RD, 120:90:60 kg ha^(-1) N:P_2O_5:K_2O), and integrated nutrient management(INM, 20 t ha^(-1) farmyard manure integrated with 50% N, 100% P, and K of recommended dose), using a split-plot randomized complete block design. The performance of CL was superior than CC in plant height, leaf area index(LAI), cob length, grain yield, biological yield, and grain protein(8%, 26%, 8%, 5%, 10%, and 8% increases, respectively), while CLI confirmed significant improvement only in LAI(25%) over CC. Response to nutrient inputs from all sources was in the order of INM RD FP control, and the maximum net economic return by INM(23% and 2.5 times higher than RD and FP, respectively) indicated severe deficiency of both macro-and micro-nutrients in the soil as well as degraded physical properties. Increases in soil organic matter, total N, total mineral N, available P and K, total porosity, and available water-holding capacity by 6%, 34%, 24%, 50%, 13%, 5%, and 7%, respectively, and decrease in soil bulk density by 4% after four crop seasons indicated optimistic changes in soil quality as a result of the combined effects of fertilization from organic and inorganic sources and legumes within crop rotation. This study suggests that keeping the soil covered under cereal-legume rotation crops all year round and treatment with INM(50% N from organic source and 50% from inorganic source) are the best management practice for sustained produc