How Switching to a Rotational Cropping System Changes Soil Properties after 12 Years of Continuous Corn.

Research plots have now been established for about 12 years to look at organic matter accumulation and nutrient content as it relates to tillage and fertilizer inputs in a cornfield. This past year cover crops and soybeans were added to the rotation. The research is a split plot design where tillage (conventional or no-till) is the primary factor and the secondary factor is fertilizer source (inorganic, 1/2 inorganic + 1/2 organic, and organic). This presentation will look at the influence of both tillage and fertilizer on nutrient and organic matter accumulations based on changes in the cropping systems. In the initial data following corn production only, differences were found in OM content and nutrients based on fertilizer type but not tillage (p<=0.05).