Sampling No-till Soils
No-till management affects soil nutrient cycling. Top-dressed ammonium-based fertilizers & manure acidify the uppermost few inches of the soil through naturally occurring chemical reactions.
Non-mobile soil nutrients like phosphorous & potassium become highly concentrated at the top of the soil profile. As a result, farmers practicing continuous no-till should adjust their soil sampling protocol to accurately assess soil chemical properties.
Tilled Soils
In conventionally tilled systems, nutrients are generally evenly distributed to the depth of the plow disturbance.
Collect soil samples from the uppermost 6 inches
No-Till Soils
In no-till systems, the soil surface will be both more nutrient-rich and more acidic. The effect will be particularly pronounced during the first few years of transition, when large soil organisms, like worms, aren’t present in high concentrations to “mix” the soil.
Farmers should still collect a soil sample from the uppermost 6 inches for fertilizer and lime recommendations. It is very important that the soil sample be a 6-inch deep composite; a shallower sample will make the soil appear more nutrient rich than it really is.
If the P and K levels in the 6-inch sample are low or very low, then injecting phosphorus and potash with the planter or a separate fertilizer injector is recommended. These nutrients may be in higher concentration in the uppermost 2 inches, but seedlings won’t be able to access the nutrients.
In addition, collect a sample of the uppermost 2 inches to monitor surface acidity. In long-term no-till fields, surface fertilizer application and accumulation of organic matter concentrates acidity at the soil surface. These no-till fields may have surface soil pH in the 4.0-5.0 range, which can cause aluminum toxicity for young seedlings and poor performance of some herbicides.
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