139-9 Total and Active Soil Carbon Fractions in Row Crop Systems Under Organic and Conventional Management: Assessment for Adequate Sampling.

See more from this Division: S06 Soil & Water Management & Conservation
See more from this Session: Agricultural Management Practices Impact On Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Pools and Soil Quality Dynamics: I
Monday, October 22, 2012: 10:35 AM
Duke Energy Convention Center, Room 237-238, Level 2
Share |

Carmen M. Ugarte, Edmond R. Zaborski and Michelle M. Wander, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL
Agricultural soils have the potential to be significant sinks for sequestering atmospheric CO2. Schemes for encouraging sequestration, such as farmer payments, need accurate, precise, and economical methods to monitor actual sequestration.  Protocols to assess C sequestration rates in agronomic fields are not yet well developed. In this study we compare the ability of organic, conventional tilled, and conventional no-tilled cropping systems to sequester soil organic C. In addition, we use our data to conduct a power analysis that will inform the development of protocols for monitoring sequestration in agricultural soils. In 2011, we sampled 24 row crop production fields from across Illinois.  Fields were grouped to contain a common sampled soil type with groups including organic, conventional tilled, and conventional no-tilled fields in both corn and soybean phases of their rotations. Twenty-four soil cores were collected in each field and split into three different sampling depths. Each sample-by-depth was analyzed separately for total organic C, particulate organic matter-C, potentially mineralizable N, and enzymatic activity. Our discussion will expand on issues of sampling intensity and expected minimum detectable differences.
See more from this Division: S06 Soil & Water Management & Conservation
See more from this Session: Agricultural Management Practices Impact On Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Pools and Soil Quality Dynamics: I