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Effects of long-term inorganic and organic fertilizations on the soil micro and macro structures of rice paddies

Zhou, Hu; Fang, Huan; Mooney, Sacha Jon; Peng, Xinhua

Authors

Hu Zhou

Huan Fang

SACHA MOONEY sacha.mooney@nottingham.ac.uk
Professor of Soil Physics

Xinhua Peng



Abstract

The soil structure of paddy soil is very dynamic from the aggregate to the pedon scale because of intensive anthropogenic management strategies. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that long-term inorganic and organic fertilizations can affect soil structure at different scales. Microstructure assessed by soil aggregates (3–5 mm in diameter) and macrostructure assessed by small soil cores (CoreS) (5 cm in diameter, 5 cm in height) and large soil cores (CoreL) (10 cm in diameter, 10 cm in height) were sampled from three long-term fertilization treatments, including no fertilizer (CK), application of inorganic fertilizer (NPK), and a combination of inorganic fertilizer and organic manure (NPKOM), established in 1982. They were scanned at two scales with two types of micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) and quantified using image analysis. Results showed that relative to CK treatment, long-term NPKOM fertilization increased soil organic C (SOC) by 28% and available water content (AWC) by 20%, but decreased soil bulk density by 0.2 g cm− 3 whereas NPK showed no difference. Soils under CK and NPK treatments exhibited an identical dense structure at both aggregate and core scales in which pores were mainly cracks resulting from shrink/swell processes, and showed no significant difference in porosity and size distribution of the CT-identified pores (> 3.7 μm). Compared with the CK treatment, the soil in the NPKOM treatment had greater intra- and inter-aggregate pores, and increased porosity by 58.3%, 144.9%, and 65.9% at aggregate, CoreS, and CoreL scales, respectively. These were attributed to the biopores formed from decayed roots, stubble, and organic manures as a result of increased yields and direct amendment of organic manure. Overall, this study demonstrates that organic fertilization can improve the physical qualities of paddy soils across different scales but inorganic fertilization in isolation does not.

Citation

Zhou, H., Fang, H., Mooney, S. J., & Peng, X. (2016). Effects of long-term inorganic and organic fertilizations on the soil micro and macro structures of rice paddies. Geoderma, 266, 66-74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2015.12.007

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Dec 10, 2015
Online Publication Date Dec 22, 2015
Publication Date Mar 15, 2016
Deposit Date Mar 9, 2017
Publicly Available Date Mar 28, 2024
Journal Geoderma
Print ISSN 0016-7061
Electronic ISSN 1872-6259
Publisher Elsevier
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 266
Pages 66-74
DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2015.12.007
Keywords Paddy soil; Soil structure; Aggregate; Pore; Micro-CT; Fertilization
Public URL https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/780473
Publisher URL http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0016706115301592

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