Long term impact of different tillage systems on carbon pools and stocks, soil bulk density, aggregation and nutrients: A field meta-analysis

Intensive tillage frequently has adverse impact on soil physical quality and soil organic carbon stocks in temperate regions. A consequence of this has been a reduction in crop production over the years demonstrating the necessity of effective and sustainable agriculture. This study aimed to evaluate soil organic carbon (SOC) storage and pools, soil bulk density, aggregation and nutrient availability under different tillage systems (no-tillage, chisel and conventional tillage), based on a long field experiment. After 10 years of crop rotation, in 0-30 cm soil depth, no-tillage system had higher total organic carbon over conventional tillage treatment. Plots under no-till and chisel treatments in 0-10 cm depth, had 7-13%, 34-35% and 9-15% higher non-labile fraction (Cfrac(4)), very-labile fraction (Cfrac(1)) and total organic carbon (TOC), respectively compared to that of conventional ones. Also, no-till system had higher passive carbon pool and carbon management index than conventional system. In addition, the conservative tillage, reduced soil bulk density compared with conventional tillage in the surface layer. The stability of slow-wetting and room storage aggregates from conservative tillage were significantly higher (p < 0.05) than conventional tillage. Overall, stability of soil aggregates is improved under conservative tillage. Tillage system, crop rotation and residues, increased soil available nutrients N, P and K in the 0-10 cm depth, with the highest values in no-tillage system. Therefore, conservation tillage could be recommended as a tillage practices that improve fertility soil characteristics and production sustainability.

Automated summary

Intensive tillage has negative impacts on soil physical quality and organic carbon stocks. Conservation tillage systems, such as no-till, improve soil fertility and stability of soil aggregates, leading to higher organic carbon content and nutrient availability.