Location: Columbia Plateau Conservation Research Center
2020 Annual Report
Accomplishments
1. Management practices to reduce the decline in micronutrient concentration in wheat. Impact of tillage and nitrogen (N) application rates on micronutrient content in wheat is limited. An ARS researcher at Pendleton, Oregon, along with an Oregon State University collaborator, compared impacts of long-term sweep tillage, disking, and moldboard plow, and five N rates on the availability of micronutrients in soils and wheat tissues. A greater concentration of soil manganese (Mn) was found under disk than under moldboard plow. Inorganic N application reduced extractable soil copper (Cu), but increased Mn in wheat grain. Comparison of micronutrients with adjacent undisturbed grass pasture revealed that after 75 years of N fertilization and tillage, the wheat-fallow plots lost 43% and 53% of extractable zinc (Zn) and Cu, respectively. Disking and N application could reduce the rate of micronutrient declines in soil and wheat grain over time compared to moldboard plow tillage without N fertilization. However, nitrification-derived acidity must be considered. This information will help farmers choose the most effective tillage and N fertilizer rates to provide proper plant micronutrients to maintain wheat yields and nutritional value while sustaining dryland crop production.
2. Macronutrients in soils and wheat reflect variation in crop residue and fertilizer inputs. Knowledge of the consequences of long-term land management on nutrient status is limited. An ARS researcher at Pendleton, Oregon, along with a collaborator from Oregon State University, used a long-term agroecosystem experiment to examine macronutrient dynamics associated with residue management methods and the type of fertilizer under a dryland winter wheat-fallow rotation. After receiving the same treatments for 84 years, concentrations of soil organic carbon, total nitrogen (N), sulfur, extractable magnesium, potassium (K), and phosphorous (P) in the top four inches of soil significantly increased with the addition of farmyard manure (FYM), compared to synthetic N fertilizer. The N rate of 80 pounds per acre reduced the accumulations of P, K, and calcium in grain compared to the 0 and 40 pounds per acre N applications. The residue incorporation with FYM can play a vital role in reducing the macronutrient decline over time. Growers and their advisors can use this information to guide the development of proper soil fertility practices to improve wheat nutritional value and maintain wheat yields while sustaining dryland wheat production.
3. Organic and inorganic amendment reduced declines in micronutrient concentration in wheat. Information on the effects of various methods of residue management on micronutrients in soil and wheat over time is limited. An ARS researcher at Pendleton, Oregon, along with a collaborator at Oregon State University, used a long-term experiment to determine the impact of synthetic nitrogen (N) fertilizer, farmyard manure (FYM), and crop residue management on micronutrient concentrations in soil and wheat tissue. After 84 years, extractable manganese and boron in the top four inches of soil decreased in all plots, except for boron in farmyard manure and spring-burned residue plots. Extractable zinc (Zn) increased with FYM while it decreased with synthetic N application; however, total Zn in wheat grain increased by 7% with 80 pounds per acre synthetic N compared to FYM application. Wheat growers can integrate synthetic N fertilizer with FYM with the most effective residue management to reduce micronutrient losses from cultivation over time and provide proper plant micronutrients to maintain wheat yields and nutritional value.
4. Impact of tillage timing and intensity on micronutrient concentrations in soil and wheat tissues. Tillage and nitrogen (N) fertilization effect on soil and plant micronutrient dynamics under a dryland winter wheat-spring pea rotation remain uncertain. An ARS researcher at Pendleton, Oregon, along with an Oregon State University collaborator, used archived samples to determine the influence of tillage timing, and intensity (fall tillage, spring tillage, and no-tillage) on soil micronutrient concentrations in soil and winter wheat, and compared soil micronutrient concentrations with a nearby grass pasture. After 52 years of wheat-pea rotation, extractable boron, manganese (Mn), zinc (Zn), copper, and iron in soil were unaffected by tillage methods; however, a significant decline in extractable Zn in the top four inches of soil was observed compared to adjacent undisturbed grass pasture. The no-tillage plots maintained extractable Mn concentration comparable with the grass pasture plot, while fall tillage, and spring tillage plots had lower Mn than grass pasture. The decline in soil pH, and the greater amount of organic matter within the surface soil of no-tillage plots sustained micronutrient availability compared to other tillage methods. This information will help growers and their advisors in selecting proper management and soil fertility practices to improve crop nutritional value while sustaining wheat yields and dryland wheat production.
Review Publications
Wuest, S.B., Schillinger, W.F. 2019. Soil water dynamics with spring camelina in a three-year rotation in Washington’s winter wheat-fallow region. Soil Science Society of America Journal. 83(5):1525-1532. https://doi.org/10.2136/sssaj2019.05.0157.
Phillips, C.L., Light, S.E., Gollany, H.T., Chiu, S., Wanzek, T.A., Meyer, K.M., Trippe, K.M. 2020. Can biochar conserve water in Oregon agricultural soils? Soil and Tillage Research. 198. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2019.104525.
Williams, J.D., Reardon, C.L., Long, D.S. 2020. Productivity and water use efficiency of intensified dryland cropping systems under low precipitation in Pacific Northwest, USA. Field Crops Research. 254. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fcr.2020.107787.
Shiwakotia, S., Zheljazkov, V.D., Gollany, H.T., Kleber, M., Xing, B., Astatkie, T. 2020. Macronutrient in soils and wheat from long-term agroexperiments reflects variations in residue and fertilizer inputs. Nature Scientific Reports. 10. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-60164-6.
Shiwakotia, S., Zheljazkov, V.D., Gollany, H.T., Kleber, M., Xing, B. 2019. Micronutrients decline under long-term tillage and nitrogen fertilization. Scientific Reports. 9. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-48408-6.
Shiwakotia, S., Zheljazkov, V.D., Gollany, H.T., Kleber, M., Xing, B., Astatkie, T. 2019. Micronutrients in the soil and wheat: Impact of 84 years of organic or synthetic fertilization and crop residue management. Agronomy. 9(8). https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy9080464.
Villas-Boas, P., Franco, M.A., Martin-Neto, L., Gollany, H.T., Milori, D. 2019. Applications of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy for soil analysis, part I: review of fundamentals and chemical and physical properties. European Journal of Soil Science. 71(5):789-804. https://doi.org/10.1111/ejss.12888.
Villas-Boas, P., Franco, M.A., Martin-Neto, L., Gollany, H.T., Milori, D. 2019. Applications of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy for soil characterization, part II: review of elemental analysis and soil classification. European Journal of Soil Science. 71(5):805-818. https://doi.org/10.1111/ejss.12889.
