Soil quality and spatial variability assessment of land use effects in a typic haplustoll

Soil management practices can have negative or positive effects on soil quality. Our objective was to assess the effect of long-term agricultural practices by evaluating selected soil physical and chemical properties. Soil samples were collected from two depths (0 to 15 and 15 to 30cm) within a native pasture and an adjacent agricultural field that was being used for three different crop rotations. Soil quality was quantified using aggregate stability, bulk density, soil texture and available water content as physical properties and pH, electrical conductivity, organic matter and available phosphorus as chemical properties. The farmland soils were functioning at 71 and 70 per cent of their full potential at the 0- to 15- and 15 to 30-cm-depth increments, respectively, whereas those from the pasture were functioning at 73 and 69 per cent, respectively. The assessment showed substantial loss in soil organic carbon following 50years of farmland cultivation. Tillage and fertilizer applications were presumably the primary reasons for weaker spatial dependence within farmland at the 0- to 15-cm depth. Grazing was postulated as the main reason for weaker spatial dependence within the pasture soils at the 15- to 30-cm depth. Overall, we conclude that 50years of cultivation has not caused soil quality to decline to a point that threatens sustainability of the agricultural fields. © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Quantifying the financial losses of rangeland degradation due to reduced milk yield in the rangelands of Erzurum Province in Turkey

WOS: 000365187600003This study estimated the financial losses associated with lower milk yields in the relatively poor rangeland conditions of the Erzurum Province in Turkey and the factors contributing to the lower milk yields associated with the state of the rangelands, the type of grazing livestock and the demographics of the farmers. The study was conducted in 11 villages in Erzurum Province in 2006 and 2007. The following variables were considered in the study: year, number of milking days in grazing season, age and level of education of the farmers, cattle breed, supplementary feeding during the grazing period, lactation number of the cows, rangeland condition, stocking rate of the rangelands, altitude, the proportion of small ruminants in the herd and the percentage of bare ground of the rangelands. According to the least-squares regression analysis, altitude, stocking rate, the number of milking days in the grazing season and the percentage of bare ground had negative effects on milk yield, whereas all other factors significantly increased milk yield. It was estimated that a 10% deterioration in rangeland condition would result in a reduction in daily milk yield of 1.23 kg per cow, 62 kg ha(-1) of rangelands and 1255 kg per farm in a 120-day grazing period. It was also found that the use of concentrate supplements during the grazing season was not cost-effective.Analysis of the factors affecting milk production and liveweight gain in the cattle farms dependent on natural grazing lands in Erzurum [TAGEM/HAYSUD/05/01/01/01]The results presented in the paper are an output of the research project numbered TAGEM/HAYSUD/05/01/01/01 and entitled 'Analysis of the factors affecting milk production and liveweight gain in the cattle farms dependent on natural grazing lands in Erzurum'