Changes in soil chemical and physical properties following legumes and opportunity cropping on a cracking clay soilExport / Share PlumX View Altmetrics View AltmetricsArmstrong, R.D., Kuskopf, B.J., Millar, G., Whitbread, A.M. and Standley, J. (1999) Changes in soil chemical and physical properties following legumes and opportunity cropping on a cracking clay soil. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture, 39 (4). pp. 445-456. ISSN 0816-1089
Article Link: https://doi.org/10.1071/EA99014 AbstractIncorporating legumes into the cropping system has been shown to significantly improve the nitrogen nutrition of cereal crops in Central Queensland. However, little is known about the effect of these legumes on the chemical and physical properties of soil. We examined changes in soil chemical (total nitrogen, organic carbon and pH) and physical (bulk density, cone penetrometer resistance and saturated hydraulic conductivity) properties following either continuous cropping (sorghum or mungbean) or pasture legumes (siratro, lucerne, lablab and desmanthus) over 4 years. Soil carbon was also fractionated using a KMnO4 oxidation procedure which classifies the soil carbon into either labile or non-labile pools. It was concluded that although all legumes generally enhanced the chemical and physical properties of the cracking clay, perennial legumes such as siratro would have a greater beneficial effect in the longer term than annual legumes.
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