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Site‐adjusted organic matter–balance method for use in arable farming systems
Author(s) -
Kolbe Hartmut
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
journal of plant nutrition and soil science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.644
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 1522-2624
pISSN - 1436-8730
DOI - 10.1002/jpln.200900175
Subject(s) - arable land , environmental science , organic matter , organic farming , soil carbon , total organic carbon , soil water , soil organic matter , agriculture , soil science , variance (accounting) , agricultural engineering , environmental chemistry , chemistry , ecology , engineering , accounting , organic chemistry , business , biology
Organic‐matter (OM) balancing can provide useful information for sustainable arable farm management. However, the balance methods commonly used are rather inaccurate and fail to meet current requirements. Therefore, an improved, site‐adjusted, semiquantitative technique based on the VDLUFA method developed by Körschens et al. (2004) in Germany was worked out for terrestrial soils for manual ( i.e. , not computer‐based) use in agricultural practice and consulting. It was optimized using results from 39 long‐term field trials to take into account site‐specific effects in Central Europe. The climatic, geogenic, and soil‐chemical influences on the process of OM decay were taken into consideration by adapting organic‐carbon (OC) coefficients of the organic material and the cultivation effects of crop species divided into six site‐specific groups. The balances calculated were adjusted to the soil organic‐carbon (SOC) concentrations, and the evaluation system was developed for use in conventional and organic agriculture on sites in Central Europe. The statistical deviation between calculated and field data is ± 3.7 g kg –1 for the VDLUFA method and ± (2.1–2.3) g kg –1 SOC for the site‐adjusted method, and the variance is reduced by 62%–68%. For use in farming, little information about soil and climatic characteristics, crop species, or organic material supply is needed, and the results can be used for in‐depth farm analyses and regulative reasons.