Carbon sequestration and soil aggregation in center-pivot irrigated and dryland cultivated farming systems

Although irrigation is considered a beneficiary management for increasing soil organic C (SOC) stocks in (semi)arid environments, our understanding of the impact of irrigation on soil organic matter (SOM) dynamics in the field remains limited. We investigated the effect of irrigation on soil C storage in relation to soil aggregation by measuring C stocks of bulk soil and different aggreagate fractions in the top 20-cm layer of center-pivot irrigated vs. dryland farming systems in semiarid southwestern Nebraska. The irrigated fields (IRR) showed increased C inputs and larger SOC stocks than the dryland cultivated fields (DRY). Fractionation of bulk soil samples into non-microaggregate-associated particulate organic matter (free POM) and microaggregate-associated POM, silt, and clay fractions indicated that the larger bulk SOC stock under IRR was explained solely by an increase in microaggregate-associated C storage. Wet sieving of bulk soil showed that microaggregation was remarkably low under DRY and did not increase under IRR, suggesting that the protection of microaggregates inside macroaggregates was no prerequisite for C sequestration under IRR. The results of this study confirm the potential of irrigation to increase soil C stocks through preferential sequestration of C inside microaggregates, but question our understanding of the mechanisms underlying this preferential sequestration

Altitude and management affect soil fertility, leaf nutrient status and Xanthomonas wilt prevalence in enset gardens

Enset (Ensete ventricosum) is a productive, drought-tolerant and multipurpose food security crop grown in the densely populated Ethiopian highlands. It is a so-called orphan crop, and its production suffers from a lack of information on proper soil fertility management and its interaction with bacterial wilt disease caused by the pathogen Xanthomonas campestris pv. musacearum. The aim of this study was therefore to assess soil–plant nutrient variation within enset home gardens at three altitudes (ranging from 2000 to 3000m above sea level – a.s.l.) in the Gamo highlands and investigate whether this variation affects disease prevalence. Altitude in the rift valley covaries with soil leaching, and plant available P, Ca and Mg in soils significantly raised with decreasing altitude. Soil carbon and most nutrients reached very high levels in the gardens, whereas the more distant outfields were severely nutrient deprived. Differences in management intensity within the garden caused soil pH, conductivity, total organic carbon, total N and available P, K, Ca, Mg, Mn and Fe levels to significantly decline with distance from the house; yet, this decrease in soil nutrients was not mirrored in a response of foliar nutrient content, except for N. Hence, over-fertilization is likely, and establishing evidencebased nutrient recommendations for enset would benefit soil quality and productivity both in the gardens and in the outfields. Disease prevalence was high in the study area, with one-third of the farms affected in the recent past. Although more experimental work is needed to exclude confounding factors, our data indicate that the effects of altitude, P fertilization, micronutrients and K-Ca-Mg balance are promising avenues for further investigation into Xanthomonas wilt disease susceptibility

The role of citric acid as a phosphorus mobilization mechanism in highly P-fixing soils

Exudation of low molecular weight carboxylates is an important phosphorus (P) acquisition strategy for plants in strongly P-fixing soils. The effect of citrate exudation on P availability was studied in five acid soils with a large organic matter content and a low available P pool. The amount of molybdate reactive P extracted by citric acid 10 mM (0.1–2 mg kg-1) was larger than the molybdate reactive P (MRP) extracted by CaCl2 10-3 M (0.007–0.07 mg kg-1). Both extractants were adjusted to soil pH prior to extraction. Also, the total P content of citric acid extracts (2–44 mg kg-1) far exceeded the total P content of CaCl2 (0.2–1.5 mg kg-1). However, ratios of MRP to total dissolved P (TDP) remained constant. When citric acid was added to the CaCl2 -extracts (the pH of citric acid being adjusted to the pH of CaCl2 , and thus eliminating release of P through acidification) a significant pH increase was noted. Simultaneously, MRP increased significantly in all but one soil. This suggests that the P availability enhancing properties of citric acid are not only due to acidification of the plant rhizosphere, but also to its Al and Fe complexing capacity