Soil health changes following transition from an annual cropping to perennial management‐intensive grazing agroecosystem
Abstract Management‐intensive grazing (MiG) on irrigated, perennial pastures has steadily increased in the western United States due to pressure for reducing public lands grazing, overall declining land available for pasture, and decreasing commodity prices. However, there are still many unknowns re...
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Series: | Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment |
Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/agg2.20181 |
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doaj-0231195e3e164227881a0a1d7abc96702021-06-30T05:10:35ZengWileyAgrosystems, Geosciences & Environment2639-66962021-01-0142n/an/a10.1002/agg2.20181Soil health changes following transition from an annual cropping to perennial management‐intensive grazing agroecosystemCasey J. Shawver0James A. Ippolito1Joe E. Brummer2Jason K. Ahola3Ryan D. Rhoades4Dep. of Soil and Crop Sciences CO State Univ. Fort Collins CO 80523 USADep. of Soil and Crop Sciences CO State Univ. Fort Collins CO 80523 USADep. of Soil and Crop Sciences CO State Univ. Fort Collins CO 80523 USADep. of Animal Sciences CO State Univ. Fort Collins CO 80523 USADep. of Animal Sciences CO State Univ. Fort Collins CO 80523 USAAbstract Management‐intensive grazing (MiG) on irrigated, perennial pastures has steadily increased in the western United States due to pressure for reducing public lands grazing, overall declining land available for pasture, and decreasing commodity prices. However, there are still many unknowns regarding MiG and its environmental impact, especially with regards to soil health. Over a 2‐yr period, a study evaluating the change in soil health under a full‐scale, 82‐ha pivot‐irrigated perennial pasture system grazed with ∼230 animal units (AUs) using MiG. Soil analysis included 11 soil characteristics aggregated into the Soil Management Assessment Framework (SMAF), which outputs results for soil biological, physical, nutrient, chemical, and overall soil health indices (SHIs). Over time, positive impacts were observed in the chemical and biological SHI due to decreases in salt content and increases in microbial and enzymatic activities. Soil organic C (SOC) remained unchanged, yet positive biological SHI changes are potential precursors to future SOC increases. The chemical and nutrient SHI increased in the soil surface due to reductions in salt content in conjunction with increased plant‐available soil P, as a result of salt leaching via irrigation and pre‐study inorganic P fertilizer application in conjunction with manure deposition due to MiG, respectively. Finally, a negative impact was also observed in the physical SHI, driven primarily by increasing bulk density due to hoof pressure from cattle grazing. If managed correctly, compaction issues can be avoided, with MiG systems having potential success in supporting grazing while promoting soil health for environmental and economic sustainability.https://doi.org/10.1002/agg2.20181 |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Casey J. Shawver James A. Ippolito Joe E. Brummer Jason K. Ahola Ryan D. Rhoades |
spellingShingle |
Casey J. Shawver James A. Ippolito Joe E. Brummer Jason K. Ahola Ryan D. Rhoades Soil health changes following transition from an annual cropping to perennial management‐intensive grazing agroecosystem Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment |
author_facet |
Casey J. Shawver James A. Ippolito Joe E. Brummer Jason K. Ahola Ryan D. Rhoades |
author_sort |
Casey J. Shawver |
title |
Soil health changes following transition from an annual cropping to perennial management‐intensive grazing agroecosystem |
title_short |
Soil health changes following transition from an annual cropping to perennial management‐intensive grazing agroecosystem |
title_full |
Soil health changes following transition from an annual cropping to perennial management‐intensive grazing agroecosystem |
title_fullStr |
Soil health changes following transition from an annual cropping to perennial management‐intensive grazing agroecosystem |
title_full_unstemmed |
Soil health changes following transition from an annual cropping to perennial management‐intensive grazing agroecosystem |
title_sort |
soil health changes following transition from an annual cropping to perennial management‐intensive grazing agroecosystem |
publisher |
Wiley |
series |
Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment |
issn |
2639-6696 |
publishDate |
2021-01-01 |
description |
Abstract Management‐intensive grazing (MiG) on irrigated, perennial pastures has steadily increased in the western United States due to pressure for reducing public lands grazing, overall declining land available for pasture, and decreasing commodity prices. However, there are still many unknowns regarding MiG and its environmental impact, especially with regards to soil health. Over a 2‐yr period, a study evaluating the change in soil health under a full‐scale, 82‐ha pivot‐irrigated perennial pasture system grazed with ∼230 animal units (AUs) using MiG. Soil analysis included 11 soil characteristics aggregated into the Soil Management Assessment Framework (SMAF), which outputs results for soil biological, physical, nutrient, chemical, and overall soil health indices (SHIs). Over time, positive impacts were observed in the chemical and biological SHI due to decreases in salt content and increases in microbial and enzymatic activities. Soil organic C (SOC) remained unchanged, yet positive biological SHI changes are potential precursors to future SOC increases. The chemical and nutrient SHI increased in the soil surface due to reductions in salt content in conjunction with increased plant‐available soil P, as a result of salt leaching via irrigation and pre‐study inorganic P fertilizer application in conjunction with manure deposition due to MiG, respectively. Finally, a negative impact was also observed in the physical SHI, driven primarily by increasing bulk density due to hoof pressure from cattle grazing. If managed correctly, compaction issues can be avoided, with MiG systems having potential success in supporting grazing while promoting soil health for environmental and economic sustainability. |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1002/agg2.20181 |
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