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Full-Text Articles in Plant Sciences
Microbial Community Response To Various Degrees Of Pasture Soil Disturbance, Pieter A. Swanepoel, Philip R. Botha, Johan Habig
Microbial Community Response To Various Degrees Of Pasture Soil Disturbance, Pieter A. Swanepoel, Philip R. Botha, Johan Habig
IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)
Commercial dairy farming from planted pasture is commonly practised in the southern Cape region of South Africa. These pastures are established by various methods ranging in degree of disturbance from no-tillage to conventional tillage. Different establishment methods may alter the below-ground ecosystem, and depending on the degree of disturbance, lead to changes in microbial biodiversity and soil health. Disturbance of pasture soil may play an important role in regulating soil microbial community structure. The aim of this study was to investigate changes in soil microbial community-level physiological profiles of kikuyu (Pennisetum clandestinum) pastures reinforced with annual ryegrass ( …
Soil Carbon And Nitrogen Mineralization And Crop Parameters In Typical Maize-Bean Intercropping In Western Kenya, Judith A. Odhiambo, Urszula Norton, Emmanuel C. Omondi, Dennis Ashilenje, Jay B. Norton
Soil Carbon And Nitrogen Mineralization And Crop Parameters In Typical Maize-Bean Intercropping In Western Kenya, Judith A. Odhiambo, Urszula Norton, Emmanuel C. Omondi, Dennis Ashilenje, Jay B. Norton
Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Faculty Research
Smallholder farmers in western Kenya who plant maize (Zea mays L.) intercropped with beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) face many challenges associated with nutrient-poor soils and weather-related crop failures. In regions where temperatures are favorable, crops are grown twice per year during long and short rainy seasons and in other regions, once per year during one long growing season. Growing crops two times per year necessitates frequent land preparation using inversion-type tillage. Little is known about the impact of current tillage-intensive crop management on annual soil organic matter (SOM) recovery. The aim of this study was to assess changes to soil …