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
                                            Cotton, Jonitem
                                            MOORE-KUCERA, JENNIFER - Texas Tech Universityitem
                                            Acosta-Martinez, Veronicaitem
                                            Burow, Gloria
  Submitted to: Biology and Fertility of Soils
                                    Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
                                    Publication Acceptance Date: 8/15/2012
                                    Publication  Date: 5/1/2013
                                    Citation: Cotton, J.E., Moore-Kucera, J., Acosta Martinez, V., Burow, G.B. 2013. Early changes due to sorghum biofuel cropping systems in soil microbial communities and metabolic functioning. Biology and Fertility of Soils. 49(4):403-413.Interpretive Summary: To meet the growing demands for food, fiber, and biofuels, land management decisions will require identification of most suitable crop for sustainable productivity in different geographic areas. Biofuel is known as the fuel produced from renewable resources such as biomass and forage crops to supplement fuel demand.  Our study evaluated the use of sorghum for biofuel initiatives in soils with low organic matter (marginal lands) due to intensive agricultural production under low biomass cotton cropping. We believe that if managed under high biomass cropping systems, these marginal lands may experience an improvement in their soil quality and functioning.  In our study, we detected changes in soil microbial communities and their enzyme activities important for nutrient cycling and organic matter during the two year transition from long-term cotton cropping systems to sorghum biofuel cropping systems.  This study has evaluated agronomic and cropping systems technology that can be applied towards sustainable sorghum production for integrated bioenergy/forage application with emphasis on minimizing water demand and improving soil quality.  Early results from this study suggest improvements in soil quality and the sustainability of sorghum biofuel cropping for low organic matter agricultural soils.
                                Technical Abstract: Evaluation of biofuel production cropping systems needs to address not only energy yields but also the impacts on soil attributes important for long-term sustainability.  In this study, forage sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) cropping systems were initiated on a low organic matter soil (<0.9%) with a history of intensively-tilled low-input cotton production in the semiarid Southern High Plains of the U.S.  Sorghum cropping systems were evaluated in a split-plot design with sorghum cultivar as the main plot and the combination of irrigation level (non-irrigated and deficit irrigated) and aboveground biomass removal rate (50% and 100%) as the split plot.  The sorghum cultivars used varied in yield potential and lignin content, which are important features for feedstock-producing crops.  Changes in soil microbial properties (0-10 cm) were detected during the two year transition from long-term cotton cropping systems to sorghum biofuel cropping systems.  Increases in microbial biomass C (16%) and N (17%) and differences in fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) profiles were detected after one growing season.  Enzyme activities targeting C, N, P, and S cycles increased 15-75% after two growing seasons.  Additionally, increases in enzyme activities (16-19%) and differences in FAME profiles were seen due to irrigation regardless of aboveground biomass removal rate, which may be due to an increase in belowground biomass production even with limited irrigation.  Biomass removal rate and the cultivar type had little effect on the soil microbial properties during the time frame of this study.  Early results from this study suggest improvements in soil quality and the sustainability of sorghum biofuel cropping for low organic matter agricultural soils.


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