Cover Crop - Soil Quality Management

Soil Quality Management

Cover crops can also improve soil quality by increasing soil organic matter levels through the input of cover crop biomass over time. Increased soil organic matter enhances soil structure, as well as the water and nutrient holding and buffering capacity of soil (Patrick et al. 1957). It can also lead to increased soil carbon sequestration, which has been promoted as a strategy to help offset the rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide levels (Kuo et al. 1997, Sainju et al. 2002, Lal 2003).

Although cover crops can perform multiple functions in an agroecosystem simultaneously, they are often grown for the sole purpose of preventing soil erosion. Soil erosion is a process that can irreparably reduce the productive capacity of an agroecosystem. Dense cover crop stands physically slow down the velocity of rainfall before it contacts the soil surface, preventing soil splashing and erosive surface runoff (Romkens et al. 1990). Additionally, vast cover crop root networks help anchor the soil in place and increase soil porosity, creating suitable habitat networks for soil macrofauna (Tomlin et al. 1995).

Soil quality is managed to produce optimum circumstances for crops to flourish. The principal factors of soil quality are soil salination, pH, microorganism balance and the prevention of soil contamination.