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• Long-term effect of soil management on the carbon-dioxide emission of the soil

  515-527

  József Zsembeli

  Györgyi Kovács

  Krisztina Czellér

  Géza Tuba

  Views:

  81

  CO₂ emission from soils is one of the most important elements of the global carbon cycle, thus it has crucial rule in climate change. Each soil cultivation operation intervenes in the microbiological life of the soil, hence tillage is a factor through that the processes taking place in soil can be controlled. During the last decades, the organic material content of agricultural soils decreased to the half due to the intensive management resulting in the degradation of natural soil fertility. While intensive, plough-based tillage can cause soil degradation and erosion, the physical, chemical and biological status of the soil can be significantly improved through the application of conservation tillage methods. The results of long-term experiments prove that soil protective tillage enhances the  enrichment of organic matter in the top layer of the soil. In order to reveal the role of tillage systems in CO₂ emission from the soil,  regular measurements were carried out in the plots with conventional and reduced tillage of the soil cultivation experiment of Research Institute of Karcag. Anagas CD 98 and Gas Alert Micro 5w infrared gas analysers were used to measure CO₂-concentrations, and a specially developed method (consisting of a frame and a bowl) was applied to delimitate the measuring area. Most of the  measurements were done on stubbles after harvest in order to exclude root respiration. The weather conditions of the examined 10 years were very changeable providing a good chance to compare them to each other. We found the tillage operations resulting in  higher emission values in both tillage systems. On stubbles higher and more even emission was characteristic to reduced tillage due to the lower degree of soil disturbance and higher soil moisture content.

• New challenges in soil management

  91-92

  Márta Birkás

  Views:

  189

  Soil management represents two important tasks that are harmonization of the soil protection with demands of the crop to be grown on the given land under prevailing farming condition. Further goals are to preserve and/or develop the soil physical, biological and chemical condition and to avoid the unfavourable changes of the soil biological activity and the soil structure. Classical authors emphasised the importance of creating proper seedbed for plants. In the physical approach, tillage was believed to play an important role in controlling soil processes. Consequently, the period of several centuries dominated by this approach is referred to as the era of crop-oriented tillage (Birkás et al., 2017). The overestimation of the importance of crop requirements resulted in damaging the soils, which inevitably led to turn to the soil-focused tillage. Since the first years of climate change, as the new trends have raised concern, tillage must be turned into a climate-focused effort with the aim of reducing climate-induced stresses through improving soil quality.

  The development of soil management has always been determined by the economical background. At the same time, deteriorating site conditions have contributed to the conception of new tillage trends by forcing producers to find new solutions (e.g. dry farming theory in the past or adaptable tillage theory nowadays). Győrffy (2009) recited the most important keywords were listed in 2001 and that seemed to be important in the future of crop production. These keywords (endeavours) were as follows:

  − Biofarming, organic farming, alternative farming, biodynamic farming, low input sustainable agriculture;

  − Mid-tech farming, sustainable agriculture, soil conservation farming, no till farming, environmentally sound, environmentally friendly, diversity farming;

  − Crop production system, integrated pest management, integrated farming, high-tech farming;

  − Site specific production, site-specific technology, spatial variable technology, satellite farming;

  − Precision farming.

  Győrffy’s prognosis proved to be realistic and the efforts mentioned above have mostly been implemented. New challenges have also appeared in soil management in relation to the last decades. The most important endeavours for the future are:

  1) Preserving climate-induced stresses endangering soils.

  2) Turn to use climate mitigation soil tillage and crop production systems.

  3) Applying soil management methods are adaptable to the different soil moisture content (over dried or wet may be quite common).

  4) Use effectual water conservation tillage.

  5) Use soil condition specific tillage depth and method.

  6) Adapting the water and soil conservation methods in irrigation.

  7) Preserving and improving soil organic matter content by tillage and crop production systems.

  8) Considering that stubble residues are matter for soil protection, humus source and earthworm’ feed.

  9) Site-specific adoption of green manure and cover crops.

  10) Applying site-adopted (precision) fertilization and crop protection. Considering the development in agriculture, new endeavours will occur before long.

• Effects of cultivation methods on some soil biological parameters of a meadow chernozem soil (Vertisols)

  61-66

  Ágnes Oláh Zsuposné

  Views:

  76

  The effect of extended drought conditions on soil, the unfavourable cultivation technologies and the application of chemicals have been enhancing the processes of physical and biological soil degradation, so the fertility of soil is gradually declining. 
  The effects of two cultivation methods – traditional ploughing (TP) and conservation tillage (CT) – on the biological activity of a meadow
  chernozem soil were examined in a long term experiment. Different parameters of the biological activity of soil were determined. These are
  the numbers of total bacteria, microscopic fungi, aerobic cellulose decomposing bacteria, as well as the activities of some important soil
  enzymes and CO₂ production.
  Conservation tillage seemed to be a more favourable cultivation method for the majority of microorganisms, the activities of urease and
  dehydrogenase enzymes and CO₂ production, compared to the traditional ploughing system. These parameters increased significantly,
  especially in the upper layer of conservation tillage plots. Concerning the plant cultures, the majority of microbiological parameters were
  higher in the soil of vetch (Vicia sativa L.) depending on the cultivation methods, so involving the pulses to the crop-rotation seems to be
  very important in this soil type.
  According to the ninth year’s results, the importance of conservation tillage as a means of protecting the soil biological activity in meadow
  chernozem (Vertisols) can be established; it was proven by microbiological investigations.