Changes in pore structure in a no-till chronosequence of silt loam soils, southern Ontario

Abstract

Many research studies have dealt with the influences of minimum or no-till soil management practices on the major physical, chemical, biological and morphological properties in the soil profile. However little work has been done on the assessment of the rates of changes in pore properties as management practices are converted from conventional to no-till (NT) methods. Short-term changes in soil micromorphology attributed to conversion to no-till from conventionally tilled management are evaluated in this paper. As the number of years in no-till increased there was a decrease in the number pores of 30- to 100-µm diameter in the no-till soils. However, pores from 100- to 500-µm diameter increased in number only after 4 yr of NT. The pores of this size are important for water storage, transmission and root development. The decline in the number of these pores after no-till initiation followed by the increase after 4 yr may explain why crop yields tend to be lower only after the first few years after implementing no-till. The 100- to 500-µm diameter pores may be crucial for the proper development of roots in wheat and corn. The no-till soils had greater numbers of horizontally oriented elongated macropores in the top 5 to 15 cm of the soil profile due to the lack of tillage and annual freeze-thaw processes. These pores may inhibit proper drainage and root penetration. Rounded macropores increased with the number of years the soil was in no-till as these pores were maintained each year due to the lack of tillage and greater faunal activity in the no-till soils. Key words: Micromorphology, image analysis, earthworms, no-till, soil structure