0000000000485865
AUTHOR
Anna Maria Stellacci
Improved Beerkan run methodology to assess water impact effects on infiltration and hydraulic properties of a loam soil under conventional- and no-tillage
Beerkan infiltration experiments with three water pouring heights (low, L = 3 cm; intermediate, M = 100 cm; high, H = 200 cm) were performed on both a no-tilled (NT) and a conventionally tilled (CT) bare loam soil to determine the surface soil hydraulic properties by the BEST-steady algorithm. Saturated soil hydraulic conductivity, Ks, significantly and monotonically decreased from the L to the H runs (from 236 to 37 mm h‒1) and lower Ks values were detected under CT (163–23 mm h‒1) than NT (346–51 mm h‒1) for each water pouring height. For both soil management practices, the gravitational potential energy, Ep, of the water used for the infiltration runs, explained most of the variance in t…
The Mechanical Impact of Water Affected the Soil Physical Quality of a Loam Soil under Minimum Tillage and No-Tillage: An Assessment Using Beerkan Multi-Height Runs and BEST-Procedure
The multi-height (low, L = 3 cm
Application of multivariate analysis techniques for selecting soil physical quality indicators: A case study in long-term field experiments in Apulia (Southern Italy)
Long-term field experiments and multivariate analysis techniques represent research tools that may improve our knowledge on soil physical quality (SPQ) assessment. These techniques allow us to measure relatively stable soil conditions and to improve soil quality judgment, thereby reducing uncertainties. A monitoring of SPQ under long-term experiments, aimed at comparing crop residue management strategies (burning vs. incorporation of straw, FE1) and soil management (minimum tillage vs. no tillage, FE2), was established during the crop growing season of durum wheat. The relationships between five SPQ indicators (bulk density [BD], macroporosity [PMAC], air capacity [AC], plant available wate…