Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
6.8
3.3
Journals
Sustainability
Special Issues
Animal Manure and Sustainable Soil Fertility
sustainability-logo
Submit to Sustainability Review for Sustainability Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

► Journal Menu

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser
share announcement

Animal Manure and Sustainable Soil Fertility

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Agriculture".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2021) | Viewed by 11789

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Oldřich Látal

E-Mail Website
Assistant Guest Editor
Department of Agrochemistry, Soil Science, Microbiology and Plant NutritionMendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 1, Brno, Czech Republic
Interests: manure quality; manure applications; cattle breeding; stable systems
Dr. Petr Šařec

E-Mail Website
Assistant Guest Editor
Department of Machinery Utilization, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague (CULS), Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Prague, Czech Republic
Interests: crop production technologies; soil sustainability; farm machinery management and assessment; conservation tillage systems; soil compaction
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Petr Novák

E-Mail Website
Chief Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural Machines, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague (CZU), Kamýcká 129, 165 00 Praha 6, Suchdol, Czech Republic
Interests: soil science; erosion problems; tillage systems; soil fertility
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Over the past few decades, the demands on agricultural production have been growing rapidly. The increase in pressure has mostly been due to climate change, changes in crop rotation, decreased arable land area, and reduced livestock farming. Intensification of agriculture has led to a lack of quality soil organic matter (SOM), one of the main causes of decreased soil productivity in Europe. This has resulted in a reduction in the diversity and fertility of arable land and is associated with other soil degradation issues related to soil structure and other properties. It is also known that organic matter naturally reduces soil compaction. In Europe alone, about 33 million hectares are threatened by soil compaction. The addition of animal manure to the soil profile has a beneficial effect on reclaiming and improving the physical quality of degraded soil. The application of manure contributes to the increased SOM and affects the physical, biological, and chemical properties of soil. Recently, alternative manure application technologies have been developed to reduce environmental risks while enhancing farm economics. Manure can be treated with so-called activators or conditioners whose outcomes have not been thoroughly explored yet.

This Special Issue aims to present the latest research on the association between animal manure and sustainable soil fertility. Areas of interest include

  • The effects of various types of animal manure on soil physical, chemical, and microbial characteristics of soil;
  • The development and implementation of new manure application technologies, e.g., spatially variable application, strip-till, etc.;
  • Soil degradation issues related to a decrease in soil organic matter;
  • Treatment of animal manure by substances or activators and the subsequent impact on soil fertility.

We invite authors to contribute to this Special Issue by submitting original research papers, comprehensive reviews, and specific case studies that focus on methods, models, techniques and analyses related to animal manure, its application, and its effect on soil fertility. Papers selected for this Special Issue will be subject to a rigorous peer review procedure with the aim being the rapid and wide dissemination of research results, developments, and applications.

Prof. Dr. Petr Novák
Dr. Oldřich Látal
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Petr Šařec
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • soil organic matter
  • manure quality
  • new application technologies
  • precision fertilizing

Published Papers (5 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

12 pages, 999 KiB  
Article
Difference of Soil Aggregates Composition, Stability, and Organic Carbon Content between Eroded and Depositional Areas after Adding Exogenous Organic Materials
by Mingzhao Han, Miaomiao Wang, Guoqing Zhai, Yongjiang Li, Supu Yu and Enheng Wang
Sustainability 2022, 14(4), 2143; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14042143 - 14 Feb 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1678
Abstract
Black soil in northeastern China has suffered widespread soil degradation due to long-term cultivation while causing eroded–depositional landscapes, leading to soil-associated carbon redistribution. In agricultural systems, adding exogenous organic material to degraded soil is a common measure to improve soil aggregate stability and [...] Read more.
Black soil in northeastern China has suffered widespread soil degradation due to long-term cultivation while causing eroded–depositional landscapes, leading to soil-associated carbon redistribution. In agricultural systems, adding exogenous organic material to degraded soil is a common measure to improve soil aggregate stability and soil quality. However, differences in soil properties may alter the decomposition and turnover of organic material in aggregates. Using a uniform method to restore the eroded (E) and depositional (D) soils is inefficient. Therefore, an indoor constant temperature and humidity incubation experiment with the addition of three organic materials, namely, straw (S), biochar (B), and swine manure (M), was designed with an equal amount of carbon. Soil aggregate composition, stability, and organic carbon from eroded and depositional soils were analyzed for evaluating the amendment efficiency of soil quality by exogenous organic material addition. The main results were as follows: adding straw and swine manure could effectively promote >2-mm aggregates formation (E: 7.1%, 8.8%; D: 17.3%, 8.6%) and significantly improved the mean weight diameter (MWD) (E: 0.45 mm, 0.52 mm; D: 0.96 mm, 0.54 mm), while the addition of biochar significantly increased the proportion of 0.25–2-mm aggregates (E: 7.9%; D: 10.9%), but the effect of improving MWD was less than straw and swine manure. All the three organic materials could significantly increase soil total organic carbon (TOC) (S, B and M: 1.95, 3.12 and 2.46 g·kg−1) in the eroded area, and the effect of biochar was the best, whereas it was not significant for the soil in the depositional area. Specially, adding swine manure and adding straw is more beneficial to the restoration of eroded areas and depositional areas, respectively. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Manure and Sustainable Soil Fertility)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

7 pages, 479 KiB  
Article
The Effect of Ash Admixture on Compost Quality and Availability of Nutrients
by Martin Dědina, Alice Jarošíková, Petr Plíva and Martin Dubský
Sustainability 2022, 14(3), 1640; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031640 - 30 Jan 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2568
Abstract
The effect of graded doses of ash from biomass wood chips and straw admixture combustion on compost properties was investigated through a set of large-scale experiments. In a compost plant, matured organic composts were prepared from raw organic mixtures based on biodegradable waste, [...] Read more.
The effect of graded doses of ash from biomass wood chips and straw admixture combustion on compost properties was investigated through a set of large-scale experiments. In a compost plant, matured organic composts were prepared from raw organic mixtures based on biodegradable waste, separated digestate, straw, and biomass ash admixture of 0, 3, 6, and 9 wt. %. Final composts, as well as individual components, were analyzed for basic physical and chemical properties, total and available nutrients, and potentially hazardous elements. Biomass ash addition increased the total nutrient content (P, K, Mg, Ca, and S) in the studied composts. The highest ash addition (9 wt. %) increased the nutrient content as follows: Ca (2.6×), Mg (1.6×), K (1.5×), P (1.2×), S (1.3×). However, the availability of some nutrients (especially P, K, and Mg) for plant nutrition was reduced by the increasing amount of ash admixture. Even at the highest dosage of biomass ash addition, desirable chemical (nutrient content) and physical properties of composts (especially dry bulk density) were both obtained. The content of hazardous elements was below the legal limit values in all studied composts. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Manure and Sustainable Soil Fertility)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

15 pages, 3293 KiB  
Article
Potential Impact of Biostimulator NeOsol and Three Different Manure Types on Physical Soil Properties and Crop Status in Heavy Soils Conditions
by Václav Novák, Petr Šařec, Kateřina Křížová, Petr Novák and Oldřich Látal
Sustainability 2022, 14(1), 438; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14010438 - 31 Dec 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1984
Abstract
This study was conducted to understand the long-term influence of biostimulator NeOsol in combination with different manure types on soil’s physical properties and crop status. NeOsol is a soil biostimulator that should stimulate the biological reactions of the soil profile and improve the [...] Read more.
This study was conducted to understand the long-term influence of biostimulator NeOsol in combination with different manure types on soil’s physical properties and crop status. NeOsol is a soil biostimulator that should stimulate the biological reactions of the soil profile and improve the soil’s physical and chemical properties. A six-year experiment was conducted with eight treatments: NPK, cattle manure, pig manure, poultry manure, and the same four treatments with the NeOsol added on top. The in situ sampling of soil properties provided data on unit draft (UD), bulk density (BD), and saturated hydraulic conductivity (SHC). Furthermore, remotely sensed data were analyzed to describe crop status via three selected vegetation indices (VI), and crop yields were assessed last. The variants treated with NeOsol demonstrated decreases in UD over time; BD, SHC, and VI did not significantly change. The impact on yield was significant and increased over time. When comparing the variants with manure application to those without one, the cattle manure led to significantly higher SHC; the pig manure led to significantly lower UD and BD but significantly higher SHC and yield; and the poultry manure led to significantly lower UD and BD but higher yield. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Manure and Sustainable Soil Fertility)
►▼ Show Figures

Graphical abstract

21 pages, 524 KiB  
Article
Valuing Cattle Manure as an Agricultural Resource for Efficiency and Environmental Sustainability
by Erich von Stroheim and Dana Loyd Keske Hoag
Sustainability 2021, 13(16), 9375; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13169375 - 20 Aug 2021
Viewed by 1520
Abstract
Within a context of beef feedlots and feed-crop production systems, we surveyed farmers to identify their perceived monetary value for the manure they used or could have used. Value is contextual with respect to a number of socio-economic, environmental, regulatory, and physical factors, [...] Read more.
Within a context of beef feedlots and feed-crop production systems, we surveyed farmers to identify their perceived monetary value for the manure they used or could have used. Value is contextual with respect to a number of socio-economic, environmental, regulatory, and physical factors, which influence farmer’s inclinations about how they manage manure. The most desirable manure management strategies are likely practiced by those who perceive its value highest, and, conversely, the least desirable manure management strategies are likely practiced by those who assign the lowest value to it. This study considered factors that affect or relate to farmer perceptions of manure’s value. Using quantile regression, we observed variations in how farmers perceived the value of manure, considering farm and farmer characteristics, farming practices, select preferences, and whether or not they used manure on their own cropland. For example, we found that livestock producers who grow feed for their own cattle value manure differently compared to crop producers who do not manage cattle, most likely due to perceived need. Added years of experience in farming lowered the farmer’s perception of manure’s value. Additionally, extra tillage required when using manure was seen by farmers not as a burden but rather as a benefit. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Manure and Sustainable Soil Fertility)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

16 pages, 3256 KiB  
Article
Patterns of Nutrient Dynamics within and below the Rootzone of Collard Greens Grown under Different Organic Amendment Types and Rates
by Ripendra Awal, Almoutaz El Hassan, Farhat Abbas, Ali Fares, Haimanote K. Bayabil, Ram L. Ray and Selamawit Woldesenbet
Sustainability 2021, 13(12), 6857; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13126857 - 17 Jun 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2498
Abstract
The knowledge about nutrient dynamics in the soil is pivotal for sustainable agriculture. A comprehensive research trial can retort unanswered questions. Dynamics of nutrients sourced from organic amendment types (chicken manure, dairy manure, and MilorganiteTM) applied at different rates (0, 168, [...] Read more.
The knowledge about nutrient dynamics in the soil is pivotal for sustainable agriculture. A comprehensive research trial can retort unanswered questions. Dynamics of nutrients sourced from organic amendment types (chicken manure, dairy manure, and MilorganiteTM) applied at different rates (0, 168, 336, 672 kg total N/ha) were monitored within and below the rootzone of collard greens cultivated on a sandy loam soil in Prairie View, TX, USA. Macro- and micronutrients (e.g., TN: total nitrogen, P: phosphorous, K: potassium, Na: sodium, Ca: calcium, Mg: magnesium, B: boron, Cu: copper, Fe: iron, and Zn: zinc) were analyzed from soil solution samples collected during six sampling periods from within and below the rootzone. As hypothesized, the organic amendment types and rates significantly (p < 0.05 and/or 0.01) affected nutrient dynamics within and below the crop rootzone. Chicken manure released significantly more TN, P, K, Na, Ca, Mg, B, Cu, and Fe than the other two amendments. The application of chicken manure and MilorganiteTM resulted in higher below-the-rootzone leachate concentration of TN, Na, Mg, and Ca than in the leachates of dairy manure. Dairy manure treatments had the lowest concentrations of TN, Ca, and Mg; whereas, MilorganiteTM had the lowest concentrations of P, K, Na, B, and Cu in the collected leachates. The higher level of P (i.e., 4% in MilorganiteTM as compared to 2 and 0.5% in chicken and dairy manures, respectively, might have reduced the formation of Vesicular-Arbuscular (VA) mycorrhizae—a fungus with the ability to dissolve the soil P, resulting in slow release of P from MilorganiteTM treatment than from the other two treatments. Patterns of nutrient dynamics varied with rain and irrigation events under the effects of the soil water and time lapse of the amendment applications’ rates and types. All the macronutrients were present within the rootzone and leached below the rootzone, except Na. The dynamic of nutrients was element-specific and was influenced by the amendments’ type and application rate. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Manure and Sustainable Soil Fertility)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-5
Back to TopTop