Harvest residue effects on soil organic matter, nutrients and microbial biomass in eucalypt plantations in Kerala, India

• Published in: Forest ecology and management Vol. 328; pp. 140 - 149
• Main Authors: Kumaraswamy, S., Mendham, D.S., Grove, T.S., O’Connell, A.M., Sankaran, K.V., Rance, S.J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier B.V 15-09-2014; Elsevier
• Subjects: Animal and plant ecology; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Artificial regeneration. Forest nurseries. Planting; Biological and medical sciences; Biomass; Eucalyptus; Forestry; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; India; Land use; Management; N-mineralization; Nutrients; Plantations; Residues; Soil (material); Soil C, N and P; Soil fertility maintenance; Sowing and planting; Synecology; Terrestrial ecosystems; Tropical plantations; Asia; Kerala; India; India, Kerala; Tropical plantations; Eucalyptus; N-mineralization; Soil fertility maintenance; Land use; Soil C, N and P; Organic matter; Soil fertility; Tropical zone; Soil quality; Inorganic element; Mineralization; Dicotyledones; Angiospermae; Myrtaceae; Macronutrient(mineral); Forest ecology; Property of soil; Woody plant; Nitrogen; Microbial biomass; Soils; Nitrogen cycle; Artificial forest stand; Crop residues; Forestry; Nutrient; Spermatophyta
• ISSN: 0378-1127; 1872-7042
• DOI: 10.1016/j.foreco.2014.05.021

•Harvest residue management had few effects on soil nutrient pools at age 2years.•Residue retention tended to increase N availability and soil microbial biomass.•Residue retention is important, but is not likely to be a substitute for fertilizer.
Conservative site management practices such as harvest residue retention can potentially convey long term benefits for site sustainability, but they are only practiced to a limited extent in many Eucalyptus plantations in the tropical regions. Burning and/or removal of harvest residues can remove substantial quantities of nutrients, but it is still common practice in many parts of India. We explored the effect of harvest residue retention or removal on soil properties at 4 multi-rotation Eucalyptus plantations in Kerala, India. Soil carbon, N and P content were little influenced by differing harvest residue treatments. Interestingly, soil N mineralization rates were affected only minimally by harvest residue retention at individual sites, however, laboratory incubations demonstrated a significant increase in soil N-mineralization potential with increasing harvest residue additions. Soil microbial biomass was influenced to a lesser extent by harvest residue retention. We conclude that harvest residue retention can help to sustain the soil fertility in subsequent rotations and minimize the loss of nutrients from the sites, but fertilizers are still likely to be an important part of the nutrient management regime for productive plantations.