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Temporal trends of sulfur levels in soils of northwest Ohio ( USA ) between 2002 and 2014
Author(s) -
Michalovicz Leandro,
Dick Warren A.,
Tormena Cassio A.,
Müller Marcelo M. L.,
Cervi Eduardo C.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
land degradation and development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.403
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1099-145X
pISSN - 1085-3278
DOI - 10.1002/ldr.3745
Subject(s) - topsoil , environmental science , soil fertility , nutrient , soil acidification , soil water , agronomy , human fertilization , soil test , soil ph , soil quality , soil organic matter , sulfate , sulfur , soil science , chemistry , biology , organic chemistry
Sulfur (S) is an essential nutrient for plant growth. Despite increasing reports of yield responses of crops to S fertilization, there is limited information about changes in the soil test concentrations of S. This study used a soil chemical analysis dataset from 2002 to 2014 to evaluate changes in soil S and other nutrient levels. The soil‐test database comprised 8,428 topsoil samples (0–20 cm depth layer) collected from 143 farm fields located in the northwest (NW) Ohio counties of Defiance, Paulding, and Williams. Except for S, the database showed no significant changes in soil chemical properties from NW Ohio between 2002 and 2014. Soil sulfate (SO 4 2− ) levels have linearly decreased by 63% from 2002 to 2014, reaching the range of concentration considered deficient for the main cereal crops. With no changes in soil organic matter (SOM) and pH, this result was attributed primarily to enactment of air quality regulations, since soil SO 4 2− decreases were directly correlated with the reductions of SO 2 emissions (−70%), SO 4 2− in rainwater (−66%) and deposited (−52%) in NW Ohio between the years of 2002–2013. Furthermore, combined increasing crop yields and insufficient compensation by fertilization had role on decreasing soil SO 4 2− levels. Current fertilization practices and wet deposition of S have not been sufficient to balance S removals from soil leading to the declines in the soil test S levels. It is imperative to paid more attention to practices that maintain soil S fertility levels to avoid yield penalties associated with soil S deficiencies.