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Soil Profile Conditions of Cattle Feedlots
Author(s) -
Mielke Lloyd N.,
Swanson Norris P.,
McCalla Thomas M.
Publication year - 1974
Publication title -
journal of environmental quality
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.888
H-Index - 171
eISSN - 1537-2537
pISSN - 0047-2425
DOI - 10.2134/jeq1974.00472425000300010004x
Subject(s) - feedlot , infiltration (hvac) , environmental science , soil water , bulk density , organic matter , soil science , soil horizon , soil organic matter , transpiration , hydrology (agriculture) , zoology , chemistry , geology , ecology , materials science , biology , geotechnical engineering , composite material , biochemistry , photosynthesis
Characterization of the conditions that exist in the feedlot surface and soil profile is important to evaluation of the potentials for soil and water pollution. Cattle action and management activities create a dynamic condition in the feedlot. The organic matter surface causes physical and biochemical changes in the soil that are unlike natural or cultivated soils. The feedlot profile can be described as three layers: the organic matter, the interface, and the underlying soil. Measurable characteristics include bulk density, infiltration, and content of organic matter, water, and nitrate‐N. Generally, the surface 15.2‐cm depth of feedlot soils is compacted and has a high bulk density. Infiltration into the feedlot surface layers is essentially zero. There is no transpiration, and the soilwater content is more uniform through the profile than on cropped land.