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On the Importance of Soil Homogeneity when Evaluating Field Trials
Author(s) -
Becher H. H.
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
journal of agronomy and crop science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.095
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1439-037X
pISSN - 0931-2250
DOI - 10.1111/j.1439-037x.1995.tb00192.x
Subject(s) - field trial , soil water , soil science , environmental science , homogeneity (statistics) , soil texture , agronomy , hydraulic conductivity , bulk density , mathematics , statistics , biology
The existence of strong heterogeneity of soils on a scale of plots for field trials is demonstrated by a trial for fodder crops on a Lithic Rendoll in Upper Bavaria, Germany. Initial basic (pH, C org , C carb texture) as well as physical (saturated hydraulic conductivity, bulk density, pore size distribution) soil properties vary strongly across a single plot. Due to the great extent of these variations, the effects of preceding and succeeding crops on soil structural properties within a subplot or subsubplot can only be evaluated with high uncertainty. The effect of weather on soil structural properties during the 18 month trial period must also be considered. Therefore, (i) no sampling of the soil at the end of the trial was done, and (ii) surveying the soil before designing field trials is recommended.