Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-s2hrs Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T07:41:08.831Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Increased nitrogen retention by cover crops: implications of planting date on soil and plant nitrogen dynamics

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 November 2019

Yangxue Zhou ,
Lindsey Roosendaal  and
Laura L. Van Eerd
Yangxue Zhou
Affiliation:
School of Environmental Sciences, University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus, Ridgetown, Ontario, N0P 2C0, Canada
Lindsey Roosendaal
Affiliation:
School of Environmental Sciences, University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus, Ridgetown, Ontario, N0P 2C0, Canada
Laura L. Van Eerd*
Affiliation:
School of Environmental Sciences, University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus, Ridgetown, Ontario, N0P 2C0, Canada
*
Author for correspondence: Laura L. Van Eerd, E-mail: lvaneerd@uoguelph.ca
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Cover crops are frequently adopted to immobilize residual nitrogen post-harvest, thereby reducing potential N losses. However, the effectiveness of a cover crop depends on the species planting date, and other management practices. Limited information on N dynamics in cover crop systems is available specially in short-season vegetable rotations under temperate climate. From 2008 to 2010, a split-plot field experiment was carried out in a humid, temperate climate with cover crop treatment as the main plot factor [no cover crop control (NoCC), cereal rye, hairy vetch, oat, forage pea, oilseed radish (OSR) and a control with fertilizer N to the cucumber crop (NoCC + N)], and cover crop planting date as the split factor (early and late) to evaluate their impacts on cover crop biomass and N dynamics over the fall and following cucumber crop. All cover crop treatments significantly lowered soil mineral nitrogen (SMN) by 39–87% compared to the NoCC control, which was concomitant with cover crop growth and N accumulation. In the fall, SMN (0–90 cm depth) was less under the early-planted cover crops (avg. 78 kg N ha−1) compared to the late-planted (avg. 100 kg N ha−1). In April, greater plant available nitrogen (PAN, sum of SMN to 60 cm depth and plant N) with cover crops than without demonstrated N conservation over the winter and into the cucumber crop. Crop yield was equal to or better with a cover crop compared with the NoCC in both years; moreover, compared to the NoCC + N control yields were equivalent with OSR and pea. Oat, vetch and pea cover crops benefited the most by having an earlier planting date, while OSR and rye are recommended if the planting date is delayed. Although an early August planting date significantly increased plant N accumulation and SMN by November, this species-dependent interaction did not persist into the following season in yield and N accounted for in the system.

Keywords

Cover cropscucumber rotationN recoveryplant available nitrogensoil mineral nitrogen
Type
Research Paper
Information
Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems , Volume 35 , Issue 6 , December 2020 , pp. 720 - 729
Check for updates
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2019

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Footnotes

*

These authors contribute as co-first authors of this publication.

References

Alonso-Ayuso, M, Quemada, M, Vanclooster, M, Ruiz-Ramos, M, Rodriguez, A and Gabriel, JL (2018) Assessing cover crop management under actual and climate change conditions. Science of the Total Environment 621, 1330–1341.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Anugroho, F, Kitou, M, Nagumo, F, Kinjo, K and Tokashiki, Y (2009) Effect of the sowing date on the growth of hairy vetch (Vicia villosa) as a cover crop influenced the weed biomass and soil chemical properties in a subtropical region. Weed Biology and Management 9, 129–136.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Björkman, T, Lowry, C, Shail, JW Jr, Brainard, DC, Anderson, DS and Masiunas, JB (2015) Mustard cover crops for biomass production and weed suppression in the Great Lakes region. Agronomy Journal 107, 1235–1249.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brandsaeter, LO, Heggen, H, Riley, H, Stubhaug, E and Henriksen, TM (2008) Winter survival, biomass accumulation and N mineralization of winter annual and biennial legumes sown at various times of year in Northern Temperate Regions. European Journal of Agronomy 28, 437–448.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carlson, S and Stockwell, R (2013) Research priorities for advancing adoption of cover crops in agriculture-intensive regions. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development 3, 25–129.Google Scholar
Edwards, L and Burney, J (2007) Effect of cover crop seeding rate and date on cool period soil erosion control in potato production in PEI, Canada. Canadian Journal of Plant Science 87, 851–854.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Farsad, A, Randhir, TO, Herbert, SJ and Hashemi, M (2011) Spatial modeling of critical planting date for winter rye cover crop to enhance nutrient recovery. Agronomy Journal 103, 1252–1257.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Guoa, R, Lia, X, Christie, P, Chena, Q and Zhanga, F (2007) Seasonal temperatures have more influence than nitrogen fertilizer rates on cucumber yield and nitrogen uptake in a double cropping system. Environmental Pollution 151, 443–451.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hashemi, M, Farsad, A, Sadeghpour, A, Weis, SA and Herbert, SJ (2013) Cover-crop seeding-date influence on fall nitrogen recovery. Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science 176, 69–75.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
in 't Zandt, D, Fritz, C and Wichern, F (2018) In the land of plenty: catch crops trigger nitrogen uptake by soil microorganisms. Plant and Soil 423, 549–562.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jahanzad, E, Barker, AV, Hashemi, M, Eaton, T, Sadeghpour, A and Weis, SA (2016) Nitrogen release dynamics and decomposition of buried and surface cover crop residues. Agronomy Journal 108, 1735–1741.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kuo, S and Jellum, EJ (2002) Influence of winter cover crop and residue management on soil nitrogen availability and corn. Agronomy Journal 94, 501–508.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lawson, A, Fortuna, AM, Cogger, C, Bary, A and Stubbs, T (2013) Nitrogen contribution of rye-hairy vetch cover crop mixtures to organically grown sweet corn. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems 28, 59–69.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lawson, A, Cogger, C, Bary, A and Fortuna, AM (2015) Influence of seeding ratio, planting date, and termination date on rye-hairy vetch cover crop mixture performance under organic management. PLoS ONE 10, e0129597. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0129597.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lee, S, Yeo, IY, Sadeghi, AM, McCarty, GW, Hively, WD and Lang, MW (2016) Impacts of watershed characteristics and crop rotations on winter cover crop nitrate-nitrogen uptake capacity within agricultural watersheds in the Chesapeake Bay region. PLoS ONE 11, e0157637. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0157637.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Maynard, DG, Kalra, YP and Crumbaugh, JA (2008) Nitrate and exchangeable ammonium nitrogen. In Gregorich, EG and Carter, MR (eds), Soil Sampling and Methods of Analysis, 2nd Edn. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, pp. 71–80.Google Scholar
McDaniel, MD, Tiemann, LK and Grandy, AS (2014) Does agricultural crop diversity enhance soil microbial biomass and organic matter dynamics? A meta-analysis. Ecological Applications 24, 560–570.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McGill, W and Figueiredo, C (2008) Soil chemical analyses: Total nitrogen. In Gregorich, EG and Carter, MR (eds), Soil Sampling and Methods of Analysis, 2nd Edn. Boca Ratan, FL: CRC Press, pp. 239–250.Google Scholar
Moore, EB, Wiedenhoeft, MH, Kaspar, TC and Cambardella, CA (2014) Rye cover crop effects on soil quality in no-till corn silage-soybean cropping systems. Soil Science Society of America Journal 78, 968–976.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Murrell, EG, Schipanski, ME, Finney, DM, Hunter, MC, Burgess, M, LaChance, JC, Baraibar, B, White, CM, Mortensen, DA and Kaye, JP (2017) Achieving diverse cover crop mixtures: effects of planting date and seeding rate. Agronomy Journal 109, 259–271.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ngouajio, M and Mennan, H (2005) Weed populations and pickling cucumber (Cucumis sativus) yield under summer and winter cover crop systems. Crop Protection 24, 521–526.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Odhiambo, JJO and Bomke, AA (2007) Cover crop effects on spring soil water content and the implications for cover crop management in south coastal British Columbia. Agricultural Water Management 88, 92–98.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pantoja, JL, Woli, KP, Sawyer, JE and Barker, DW (2016) Winter rye cover crop biomass production, degradation, and nitrogen recycling. Agronomy Journal 108, 841–853.Google Scholar
Reiss, ER and Drinkwater, LE (2018) Cultivar mixtures: a meta-analysis of the effect of intraspecific diversity on crop yield. Ecological Applications 28, 62–77.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ritter, WF, Scarborough, RW and Chirnside, AEM (1998) Winter cover crops as a best management practice for reducing nitrogen leaching. Journal of Contaminant Hydrology 34, 1–15.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Roesch-McNally, GE, Basche, AD, Arbuckle, JG, Tyndall, JC, Miguez, FE, Bowman, T and Clay, R (2018) The trouble with cover crops: farmers' experiences with overcoming barriers to adoption. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems 33, 322–333.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schomberg, HH, Steiner, JL and Unger, PW (1994) Decomposition and nitrogen dynamics of crop residues – residue quality and water effects. Soil Science Society of America Journal 58, 372–381.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schultheis, JR, Wehner, TC and Walters, SA (1998) Optimum planting density and harvest stage for little-leaf and normal-leaf cucumbers for once-over harvest. Canadian Journal of Plant Science 78, 333–340.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sievers, T and Cook, RL (2018) Aboveground and root decomposition of cereal rye and hairy vetch cover crops. Soil Science Society of America Journal 82, 147–155.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Snapp, SS and Borden, H (2005) Enhanced nitrogen mineralization in mowed or glyphosate treated cover crops compared to direct incorporation. Plant and Soil 270, 101–112.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Strock, JS, Porter, PM and Russelle, MP (2004) Cover cropping to reduce nitrate loss through subsurface drainage in the northern US Corn Belt. Journal of Environmental Quality 33, 1010–1016.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thorup-Kristensen, K (2001) Are differences in root growth of nitrogen catch crops important for their ability to reduce soil nitrate-N content, and how can this be measured? Plant and Soil 230, 185–195.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thorup-Kristensen, K (2006) Effect of deep and shallow root systems on the dynamics of soil inorganic N during 3-year crop rotations. Plant and Soil 288, 233–248.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tian, Y, Liu, J, Zhang, X and Gao, L (2010) Effects of summer catch crop, residue management, soil temperature and water on the succeeding cucumber rhizosphere nitrogen mineralization in intensive production systems. Nutrient Cycling Agroecosystems 88, 429–446.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tonitto, C, David, MB and Drinkwater, LE (2006) Replacing bare fallows with cover crops in fertilizer-intensive cropping systems: a meta-analysis of crop yield and N dynamics. Agriculture Ecosystems & Environment 112, 58–72.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van Eerd, LL (2018) Nitrogen dynamics and yields of fresh bean and sweet corn with different cover crops and planting dates. Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems 111, 33–46.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van Eerd, LL and O'Reilly, KA (2009) Yield, nitrogen dynamics, and fertilizer use efficiency in machine-harvested cucumber. HortScience 44, 1712–1718.CrossRefGoogle Scholar