Integrated crop-livestock systems result in less nitrate leaching than ungrazed crop systems in North Florida.

Autor: Santos ERS; Department of Agricultural, Food, and Nutritional Science, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada., Dubeux JCB Jr; North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Marianna, Florida, USA., Mackowiak CL; North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Quincy, Florida, USA., Wright DL; North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Quincy, Florida, USA., Anguelov G; North Florida Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Quincy, Florida, USA.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Journal of environmental quality [J Environ Qual] 2023 Jul-Aug; Vol. 52 (4), pp. 847-858. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Apr 30.
DOI: 10.1002/jeq2.20474
Abstrakt: Integrated crop-livestock systems provide an array of benefits to agricultural systems, including a reduction in nitrogen (N) leaching. A farm approach to integrate crops and livestock is the adoption of grazed cover crops. Moreover, the addition of perennial grasses into crop rotations may improve soil organic matter and decrease N leaching. However, the effect of grazing intensity in such systems is not fully understood. This 3-year study investigated short-term effects of cover crop planting (cover and no cover), cropping system (no grazing, integrated crop-livestock [ICL], and sod-based rotation [SBR]), grazing intensity (heavy, moderate, and light grazing), and cool-season N fertilization (0, 34, and 90 kg N ha -1 ) on NO 3 -N and NH 4 -N concentration in leachate, and cumulative N leaching by using 1.5-m deep drain gauges. The ICL was a cool-season cover crop-cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) rotation, whereas SBR was a cool-season cover crop-bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum Flüggé) rotation. There was a treatment × year × season for cumulative N leaching (p = 0.035). Further contrast analysis indicated that cover crops decreased cumulative N leaching compared to no cover (18 vs. 32 kg N ha -1 season -1 ). Nitrogen leaching was lesser for grazed compared to nongrazed systems (14 vs. 30 kg N ha -1 season -1 ). Treatments containing bahiagrass had lesser NO 3 -N concentration in leachate (7 vs. 11 mg L -1 ) and cumulative N leaching (8 vs. 20 kg N ha -1 season -1 ) compared to ICL systems. Adding cover crops can reduce cumulative N leaching in crop-livestock systems; moreover, warm-season perennial forages can further enhance this benefit.
(© 2023 The Authors. Journal of Environmental Quality published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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