U.S. flagAn official website of the United States government
                    Here's how you know **Official websites use .gov**
                            
                            A **.gov** website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
 **Secure .gov websites use HTTPS**
                            
                            A **lock** (                            
                              A locked padlock                                                      
                            
                            ) or **https://** means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.


Menu Agricultural Research Service
						
                    U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
 Wind Erosion and Water Conservation Research: Lubbock, TX
 close



    Research

                    Research Projects
                                    Publications
                                    Collaborations
                                    News
                                    Software
                People

                    Staff Listing
                                    CareersSearch small
                    Search
            
            ARS Home
                                About ARS
                                Contact Us




ARS Home Plains Area Lubbock, Texas Cropping Systems Research Laboratory Wind Erosion and Water Conservation Research Research Publications at this Location





- ARS National Programs
- Search for a scientific manuscript
- Search for a research project
- ARS Software
- Programs and Projects
- Collaborations
- Subjects of Investigation
- Publications

Title:   Author  item
                                            Acosta-Martinez, Veronicaitem
                                            ALLEN, VIVIEN - TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY
  Submitted to: Soil Science Society of America Journal
                                    Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
                                    Publication Acceptance Date: 9/1/2004
                                    Publication  Date: 11/1/2004
                                    Citation: Acosta Martinez, V., Allen, V. 2004. Soil microbial, chemical and physical properties in continuous cotton and integrated crop-livestock systems. Soil Science Society of America Journal. 68(6): 1875-1884.Interpretive Summary: Recently, interest has focused on developing more environmentally and economically possible crop-livestock systems that will guarantee agricultural activities on the Texas High Plains of the USA. This study evaluated a Conventional Cotton System and an Alternative Integrated Crop-Livestock System at the Texas Tech University Agricultural Field Laboratory near New Deal, TX, by investigating their soil properties. The Alternative Integrated Crop-Livestock System was represented by a constant perennial pasture, rye-cotton-wheat rotation, and wheat-fallow-rye rotation, and the Conventional Cotton System was represented by continuous cotton. After five years, organic C, microbial biomass C and N, fungi (fatty acids) indicators, and enzyme activities were increased at 0-5 cm soil depth in perennial pasture and wheat-fallow-rye rotation in comparison to continuous cotton. Studies on an important enzyme activity for S cycling in soil reflected that living microorganisms was the more predominant source of this enzyme in this semiarid soil in comparison to the enzymes attached in soil, and thus, not related to living microorganisms. Microbial biomass C and N and beta-glucosaminidase activity were increased at 5-10 cm soil depth in the perennial pasture and wheat-fallow-rye rotation compared to continuous cotton while organic C and total N remained similar among the systems. The increases in microbial biomass C and N, fungi indicators, and enzyme activities under the alternative systems studied must be due to its greater surface cover, and more diverse amounts of organic substrates available in soil relative to the low-crop residue system of continuous cotton, and they are anticipating changes that may occur to other soil properties.
                                Technical Abstract: Recent efforts in the Texas High Plains of the USA are focused on developing more environmentally sustainable and economically feasible crop and livestock production systems that will assure the viability of agricultural activities. We investigated selected chemical, physical, and microbiological properties of a Pullman soil (fine, mixed, thermic Torrertic Paleustolls with 38% clay, 28% silt, and 34% sand) under a Conventional Cotton System and an Alternative Integrated Crop Livestock System for 5 years. The study was located at the Texas Tech University Agricultural Field Laboratory near New Deal, TX. Soil samples (0-5, 5-10, 10-15 cm) were taken in November 2002 from constant perennial pasture, rye-cotton-wheat rotation, and wheat-fallow-rye rotation (Alternative Integrated Crop-Livestock System) and from continuous cotton (Conventional Cotton System). Organic C, microbial biomass C and N, fungi fatty acids indicators, and the activities of beta-glucosaminidase, beta-glucosidase, and arylsulfatase were increased at 0-5 cm depth in perennial pasture and wheat-fallow-rye rotation in comparison to continuous cotton. An increase in the intracellular and extracellular arylsulfatase activity, and on arylsulfatase protein content in soils under alternative systems was found at 0-5 depth compared to continuous cotton by using new methods available for these determinations. Microbial biomass C and N and beta-glucosaminidase activity were increased at 5-10 cm depth in the alternative systems compared to continuous cotton while organic C and total N remained similar among the systems. This study demonstrated the benefits in microbiological and chemical properties in a semiarid soil after five years caused by greater diversity and amounts of organic substrates under pasture and wheat-fallow-rye rotation compared to the lower crop residue system of continuous cotton.


Return to top


Connect with ARS Sign up


ARS Home
                            USDA.gov
                            Plain Writing
                            Policies & Links
                            Civil Rights Statements
                            FOIA
                            Accessibility Statement
                            Privacy Policy
                            Non-Discrimination Statement
                            Quality of Information
                            USA.gov
                            WhiteHouse.gov