Effect of organic amendments (manure, compost, green manure) on soil quality and nutrient cycling in the North Central Region

1999 Annual Report for LNC99-156

Project Type: Research and Education
Funds awarded in 1999: $52,360.00
Projected End Date: 12/31/2001
Matching Non-Federal Funds: $10,332.00
Region: North Central
State: Nebraska
Project Coordinator:
Jürg Blumenthal
Univ. of Nebraska

Effect of organic amendments (manure, compost, green manure) on soil quality and nutrient cycling in the North Central Region

Summary

Objectives of this project are to:

1) Compile information on the effect of organic soil amendments on soil quality and nutrient cycling in the North Central region;

2) Synthesize the information into the following educational products: a) scientific popular articles, b) slide show with documentation, c) poster display, d) self-study material, and e) web page.

3) Increase with our products the understanding of a broad audience (producers, scientists, educators and others) of organic soil amendments and, thereby, lead to a better utilization of this resource to ensure sustainable and environmentally sound crop production.

During this first year of our project, we accomplished objective 1. We searched the literature using the databases CAB Abstracts (CAB International, Tucson, AZ), AGRICOLA, and Biological Abstracts (Biological Abstracts Inc., BIOSIS). Additionally, we reviewed the list of NCR SARE projects. Initially, we used the very broad search criteria “manure”, “green manure”, and “compost”. Literature and NCR SARE project reports matching our broad search criteria were reviewed and classified into relevant to the scope of our synthesis or not relevant. Relevant articles were reviewed in detail and keywords were assigned to each article. All relevant literature was compiled into a bibliography, which is available as a hardcopy and in electronic form using the reference database software Procite (ISI ResearchSoft, Berkeley, CA).

Our initial search produced more than 3500 Journal articles, Conference proceedings, book chapters, and Extension bulletins. This field was narrowed down to 421 pieces of literature we deemed relevant in the context of our work. Within the north Central region of the US most work on the topic was done in Iowa (56 references) followed by Minnesota (51 references). The least reports were available from South Dakota (5 references) and North Dakota (12 references). The largest category of reports described effects of manure utilization (204 references) followed by effects of sludge application (94 references). Additionally, 48 NCR SARE reports were included in our bibliography. Most of the projects were conducted in Iowa and Illinois (8 projects in each state) and least of the projects in South Dakota (0 project) and Missouri (1 project). The largest categories of projects were on manure (12 projects) and green manure utilization (11 projects). Currently, work is underway to synthesize this information into educational products (objective 2).

The bibliography we assembled has several potential contributions. It is the most comprehensive compilation of work in the topic area done in the North Central region of the US and can be used as a initial point of reference by persons and entities interested in the topic area. Valuable information is also contained in the geographical distribution of the reports throughout the region and in the frequency with which certain problems were investigated. This information can be valuable in directing further research and bridging gaps in the knowledge about organic soil amendments.

Collaborators:

Constanza Montealegre

Soil Microbiologist
Univ. of Nebraska
Panhandle Research & Extension Center
4502 Avenue I
Scottsbluff, NE 69361
Office Phone: 3086321372