Effect of cropland management and slope position on soil organic carbon pool at the North Appalachian Experimental Watersheds

Soil organic matter is strongly related to soil type, landscape morphology, and soil and crop management practices. Therefore, long-term (15–36-years) effects of six cropland management systems on soil organic carbon (SOC) pool in 0–30 cm depth were studied for the period of 1939–1999 at the North Appalachian Experimental Watersheds (<3 ha, Dystric Cambisol, Haplic Luvisol, and Haplic Alisol) near Coshocton, OH, USA. Six management treatments were: (1) no tillage continuous corn with NPK (NC); (2) no tillage continuous corn with NPK and manure (NTC-M); (3) no tillage corn–soybean rotation (NTR); (4) chisel tillage corn–soybean rotation (CTR); (5) moldboard tillage with corn–wheat–meadow–meadow rotation with improved practices (MTR-I); (6) moldboard tillage with corn–wheat–meadow–meadow rotation with prevalent practices (MTR-P). The SOC pool ranged from 24.5 Mg ha−1 in the 32-years moldboard tillage corn (Zea mays L.)–wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)–meadow–meadow rotation with straight row farming and annual application of fertilizer (N:P:K=5:9:17) of 56–112 kg ha−1 and cattle (Bos taurus) manure of 9 Mg ha−1 as the prevalent system (MTR-P) to 65.5 Mg ha−1 in the 36-years no tillage continuous corn with contour row farming and annual application of 170–225 kg N ha−1 and appropriate amounts of P and K, and 6–11 Mg ha−1 of cattle manure as the improved system (NTC-M). The difference in SOC pool among management systems ranged from 2.4 to 41 Mg ha−1 and was greater than 25 Mg ha−1 between NTC-M and the other five management systems. The difference in the SOC pool of NTC-M and that of no tillage continuous corn (NTC) were 16–21 Mg ha−1 higher at the lower slope position than at the middle and upper slope positions. The effect of slope positions on SOC pools of the other management systems was significantly less (<5 Mg ha−1). The effects of manure application, tillage, crop rotation, fertilizer rate, and soil and water conservation farming on SOC pool were accumulative. The NTC-M treatment with application of NPK fertilizer, lime, and cattle manure is an effective cropland management system for SOC sequestration.