SOIL HEALTH. Dean Krehbiel State Resource Conservationist Salina, Kansas Helping People Help the Land

Transcription

1 SOIL HEALTH Dean Krehbiel State Resource Conservationist Salina, Kansas Helping People Help the Land

2 SOIL HEALTH What is It? Soil Health (Soil Quality) is the capacity of a specific kind of soil to function within natural or managed ecosystem boundaries, to sustain plant and animal productivity, maintain or enhance water and air quality, and support human health and habitation (Karlen et al., 1997). Soil Science Society of America s Ad Hoc Committee on Soil Quality

3 Mimic Native Range

4 Keys To Soil Health Understand your context Protect the soil habitat Provide diverse food (carbon)

5 What We See

6 What We Try To Understand The more I learn, the more I realize how little I know Kansas Prairie Soil Profile National Geographic Society

7 What We Try To Understand

8 Keys to Protecting the Soil Habitat & Providing Diverse Food Realize the soil is ALIVE! Maximize energy capture & flow Facilitate nutrient and water cycles Make ecosystem-based decisions

9 SOIL LIFE Typical numbers of soil organisms in a healthy prairie ecosystem Bacteria Fungi Prairie Organisms per gram (teaspoon) of soil 100 mil. -1 bil. 10s 100 s of yards Protozoa 1000 s Nematodes 10 s 100 s Organisms per square foot Arthropods Earthworms Credit: USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

10 SOIL LIFE SOIL FOOD WEB Photo Credit: Tugel, A.J., A.M. Lewandowski, eds Soil Biology Primer. NRCS Soil Quality Institute, Ames, IA.

11 SOIL LIFE SOIL FOOD WEB Photo Credit: Tugel, A.J., A.M. Lewandowski, eds Soil Biology Primer. NRCS Soil Quality Institute, Ames, IA.

12 When Soil Temperature Reaches F Soil bacteria die 130 F 100% moisture is lost through ET 113 F Some bacteria species start dying 100 F 15% moisture is used for growth 95 F 85% moisture lost through ET 70 F 100% moisture is used for growth J.J. McEntire, WUC, USDA SCS, Kernville TX, R

13 SOIL LIFE SOIL FOOD WEB Saprophytic Fungi (decomposers) Photo Credit: Randy Molina, Oregon State University, Corvallis

14 SOIL LIFE SOIL FOOD WEB Arbuscular Mycorrhizal (AM) fungi Photo Credit: Tugel, A.J., A.M. Lewandowski, eds Soil Biology Primer. NRCS Soil Quality Institute, Ames, IA.

15 SOIL LIFE Direct Interplant Mycorrhizal fungi Mycorrhizal mediated Interplant transfer up to 19.7 inches

16 SOIL LIFE SOIL FOOD WEB Photo Credit: Tugel, A.J., A.M. Lewandowski, eds Soil Biology Primer. NRCS Soil Quality Institute, Ames, IA.

17 SOIL LIFE SOIL FOOD WEB Photo Credit: Tugel, A.J., A.M. Lewandowski, eds Soil Biology Primer. NRCS Soil Quality Institute, Ames, IA.

18 SOIL LIFE SOIL FOOD WEB Photo Credit: Tugel, A.J., A.M. Lewandowski, eds Soil Biology Primer. NRCS Soil Quality Institute, Ames, IA.

19 SOIL LIFE Moxidectin Abamectin Ivermectin Eprinomectin Doramectin Pyrethroid Publication: Dung Beetles of Central and Eastern North Carolina Cattle Pastures Dung Beetles Create tunnels Bury manure Reduce flies

20 Costa Rica 150 Plants and Animals 24 Hours Forest Cape Town, South Africa 100 Plants and Animals 24 Hours Grassland Iowa Corn Field 8 Plants and Animals 24 Hours

21 Soil Engineers: Earthworms Subsoil macropores Model of earthworm burrow systems - 75 ind/m 2-30% endogeic ( 2-3 mm) - 70% anecic ( 6 mm) - core 212 cm 1 m 1 m Bastardie, Capowiez et al. Biol Fertil Soils (2002) 36:

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23 Reactions in the Soil Food Web The Microbial Food web of Grassland Soil Springtails Roots Root feeding nematodes Fungus feeding mites Predatory mites Mycorrhizae Soil organic matter & residues Fungi Fungus feeding nematodes Predatory nematodes Bacteria Flagellates Bacteria feeding nematodes Amoebae (Killham, 1994)

24 What happens when an organism is missing? Roots Root feeding nematodes Fungus feeding mites Predatory mites Soil organic matter & residues Fungi Predatory nematodes Bacteria Flagellates Bacteria feeding nematodes Amoebae

25 Keys to Protecting the Soil Habitat & Providing Diverse Food Build It and They Will Come

26 Keys to Protecting the Soil Habitat & Providing Diverse Food Realize the soil is ALIVE! Maximize Energy Capture Facilitate Nutrient and Water Cycles Make Ecosystem-Based Decisions

27 Energy Flow

28 Energy Capture & Flow Sunlight Energy

29 Photosynthesis Plant Growth Sunlight Energy Oxygen Carbon Dioxide Water

30 Energy Capture Solar Panel Pasture management is really leaf management! Grass: The Stockman s Crop

31 Keys to Protecting the Soil Habitat & Providing Diverse Food Realize the soil is ALIVE! Maximize Energy Capture Facilitate Nutrient and Water Cycles Make Ecosystem-Based Decisions

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33 Soil Organic Matter 1/3 Above 2/3 Below Biomass Production 30-35% of root system replaced annually * USDA/NRCS publication Rangeland Soil Quality Organic Matter (Range Sheet 6)

34 Community Plant Growth

35 Root Growth Grazing Affects on Grass Root Growth % Root Growth 120% 100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0% 100% 100% 100% 100% 97% 50% 22% 0% 0% -20% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% % Leaf Volume Removed Take Half, Leave Half 80% removal = 12 days w/no root growth 90% removal = 18 days w/no root growth

36 Precipitation vs. Growth

37 Precipitation Marion What plants benefit?

38 Western Ragweed

39 Soil Aggregate Stability Glomalin is a Glycoprotein (sugar protein) Coats and protects hyphae Deposited on organic matter and soil particles Hydrophobic (water hating) Holds soil particles together -Six et al., 2002

40 Soil Aggregate Stability Aggregate Stability Demonstration

41 Soil Organic Matter Short, Weak Leaves = Short, Weak Roots

42 Benefits of Soil Organic Matter (a brief selection) P P N K N K N K P Soil Moisture Soil Air Soil Nutrients Structure + Plant Productivity Many more!!!

43 WATER CYCLE

44 Infiltration Manage so that your pond is full or dry?

45 Infiltration

46 Infiltration Can we create our own drought?

47 Percolation

48 Infiltration After 670 tests on 9 range-soil-groups that soil structure of the surface was more important than any other soil factor in determining infiltration rate. (Rauzi and Fly 1968) Rauzi (1963) in a study at the Northern Great Plains Field Station in Mandan, North Dakota found that total water intake on a moderately grazed pasture was 1.6 times greater than on a heavily grazed pasture after a one hour rainfall simulation and 1.8 times as great on an ungrazed area as on a moderately grazed pasture.

49 Infiltration

50 Water Erosion GULLY EROSION 2 Soil particles may be lifted upwards of 60 cm (23.6 inches) or more and 2 meters (6.5 feet) horizontally by raindrop splash. (Osborn 1954) 6.5

51 Water Erosion A cattle trail 1 ft wide, 3 inches deep, and 100 ft long has displaced 1 ton of soil

52 Keys to Protecting the Soil Habitat & Providing Diverse Food Realize the soil is ALIVE! Maximize Energy Capture Facilitate Nutrient and Water Cycles Make Ecosystem-Based Decisions

53 Decisions

54 Plant Community Response

55 Maximize Diversity Diversity Above Diversity Below Kansas Prairie Soil Profile National Geographic Society

56 Interesting Observation in Cropland

57 Utilize energy efficiently understand the power of diversity: Collaboration is more apparent than Competition: ND case study: 2006 Production On Burleigh District Plot with 1.8 in. of rain Lbs./dry matter/plot

58 Turnip July 31

59 Oilseed Radish July 31

60 Cocktail July 31 January 30, 2013 The Stress Gradient Hypothesis holds that as stress increases in an ecosystem, mutually supportive interactions become more significant and negative interactions, such as competition, become less so. The idea has been hotly debated but is now backed by a review of hundreds of studies co-authored in Ecology Letters by Mark Bertness, professor of biology at Brown

61 Sunflower Mix

62 Minimize Disturbance Plant Diversity Cover Living Roots Livestock.

63 Soil center of attention Benefits of healthy soil Management is required

64 NRCS local field office K-State Research and Extension Local network of producers

65 Equal Opportunity Nondiscrimination Policy The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination against its customers, employees and applicants for employment on the bases of race, color, national origin, age, disability, sex, gender identity, religion, reprisal, and where applicable, political beliefs, marital status, familial or parental status, sexual orientation, or all or part of an individual s income is derived from any public assistance program, or protected genetic information in employment or in any program or activity conducted or funded by the Department. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs and/or employment activities.) To File an Employment Compliant If you wish to file an employment complaint, you must contact your agency s EEO Counselor within 45 days of the date of the alleged discriminatory act, event, or in the case of a personnel action. Additional information can be found online at To File a Program Complaint If you wish to file a Civil Rights program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, found online at or at any USDA office, or call (866) to request the form. You may also write a letter containing all of the information requested in the form. Send your completed complaint form or letter to us by mail at U.S. Department of Agriculture, Director, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C , by fax at (202) , or at program.intake@usda.gov. Persons with Disabilities Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities and you wish to file either an EEO or program complaint please contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) or (800) (in Spanish). Persons with disabilities, who wish to file a program complaint, please see information above on how to contact us by mail or by . If you require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.), please contact USDA s TARGET Center at (202) (voice and TDD). Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program For any other information dealing with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) issues, persons should either contact the USDA SNAP Hotline Number at (800) , which is also in Spanish, or call the State Information/Hotline Numbers. All Other Inquires For any other information not pertaining to civil rights, please refer to the listing of the USDA Agencies and Offices.