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Title: SOIL ORGANIC CARBON AND CARBON DIOXIDE FLUXES AFFECTED BY STOVER REMOVAL FROM NO-TILL CORN

Author
item BLANCO-CANQUI, HUMBERTO - OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY
item LAL, RATTAN - OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY
item POST, WILIFRED - OAK RIDGE NAT'L LAB
item IZAURRALDE, R - UNIV. OF MARYLAND
item Owens, Lloyd

Submitted to: Agronomy Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/1/2005
Publication Date: 10/19/2005
Citation: Blanco-Canqui, H., Lal, R., Post, W., Izaurralde, C.R., Owens, L.B. 2005. Soil organic carbon and carbon dioxide fluxes affected by stover removal from no-till corn [abstract] [CD-ROM]. ASA-CSSA-SSSA Annual Meeting Abstracts. ASA-CSSA-SSA Annual Meeting. November 6-10, 2005, Salt Lake City, Utah.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Conversion of corn (Zea mays L.) stover to biofuel is among the portfolio of potential options to reduce over-dependence on fossil fuels and net CO2 emissions. The extent to which the stover removal for biofuel production affects the soil organic carbon (SOC) storage and CO2 fluxes in no-till systems is not well documented. We quantified the total SOC and CO2 fluxes from three soils managed with varying quantities of stover under no-till corn after one year of stover management in Ohio. The three soils were Rayne silt loam (RSL), Hoytville clay loam (HCL), and Celina silt loam (CSL), each comprising six treatments of 0 (T0), 25 (T25), 50 (T50), 75 (T75), 100 (T100), and 200 (T200) % of corn stover corresponding to 0, 1.25, 2.50, 3.75, 5.00, and 10.00 Mg ha-1 of stover, respectively. Stover harvesting had a rapid and significant effect on total SOC and CO2 fluxes, but the effects were soil-dependent. Mass SOC in the 0- to 5-cm soil depth decreased with increasing stover removal at all but HCL (P<0.01). Complete stover removal reduced mass SOC (19.0 vs. 13.7 Mg ha-1) by 39% for the RSL and by (21.0 vs. 15.4 Mg ha-1) 30% for the CSL compared to T100, indicating that SOC changes were positive (gains) when stover is returned and negative (losses) when stover is removed. The CO2 fluxes increased with increasing rates of stover retention for the RSL where fluxes from T0 were 87% and 73% of those from T75 and T100, respectively. Significant CO2 losses from mulched soils may, however, be offset by the increased SOC storage. Results show that stover removal effects on SOC and CO2 fluxes can be rapid, but further research is needed to determine the long-term stover removal-induced changes in SOC storage.