Evaluating the Influence of Corn Stover Removal Treatments on Soil Properties in North Dakota.

Corn stover is harvested as bedding for animals, cellulosic ethanol, and as an additive to distiller grains for feeding livestock.  The complete removal of crop residue can decrease soil organic matter, increase soil erosion, decrease soil fertility, increase soil bulk density, and result in loss of soil water retention capabilities. We evaluated a residue removal study established in 2008 on a complex of Maddock-Embden-Hecla sandy loam soils which includes irrigated continuous corn and corn/soybean rotation plots. The effects of stover removal treatments (0, 30, 60, or 100% of residue removed) on water infiltration, aggregate stability, wind erodability, soil penetration resistance, soil organic matter and nitrogen availability indexes. The stover was removed only from the plots in the corn phase of the rotation with no residue removal from the soybean plots. Preliminary results of the continuous corn plot shows a significantly higher wind erodible soil fraction, significantly lower field moist aggregates stability and water infiltration rate for the 100% treatment. The corn-soybean (corn phase) plot displays a significantly lower water infiltration for the 100% removal  while soybean phase plots display significantly lower air-dry aggregate stability for the 100% residue removal rate.