Soil & Tillage Research最新文献

{"title":"Impact of optimized tillage and mulching practices on soil water and yield responses to precipitation: A 20-year field experiment study","authors":"Jia Wang ,&nbsp;Jun Fan ,&nbsp;Zijun Dai ,&nbsp;Mingde Hao","doi":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107086","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107086","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The effects of long-term no-tillage (NT) and mulching on water retention, yield increase, and yield stability under different precipitation conditions are inconsistent, and few studies have simultaneously explored the combined effects of these factors. Therefore, we conducted a 20-year field experiment (2004–2023) to study the effects of tillage systems (conventional tillage (CT) and no-tillage (NT)) and mulching patterns (no mulching (NM), plastic mulching (PM), straw mulching (SM), and straw and plastic dual mulching (SPM)) under different precipitation conditions on soil water storage (SWS) and utilization characteristics, yield and its stability. The results showed that long-term no-tillage significantly increased SWS during both the fallow and growing periods under three precipitation types. SPM significantly increased pre-sowing SWS (SWS_GB) compared to single mulching (PM and SM) in dry and wet years (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). In dry years, PM increased the consumption of deep soil water (100–220 cm), and the evapotranspiration (ET) of PM was the highest (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). In dry and normal years, NT and SPM significantly improved water use efficiency (WUE) and precipitation use efficiency (PUE) during the growing period. The combination of no-tillage and mulching enhances soil water content, and long-term implementation contributes to higher yield and increased yield stability. The effect of NT and mulching on yield increase was positively correlated with the duration of cultivation. Specifically, after 10, 15, and 20 years, the yield under NT was significantly higher than CT by 6.5 %, 6.0 %, and 8.3 %. Over the 20 years, the yield under PM, SM, and SPM was higher than NM by 13.8 %, 10.1 %, and 20.3 % (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). PUE, SWS_GB, and WUE are important factors affecting yield in dry and normal years. Therefore, NT and SPM have broader applicability across different precipitation types. In particular, under the future trends of global warming and increasing aridity, this practice is well-suited for the arid and semi-arid regions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49503,"journal":{"name":"Soil & Tillage Research","volume":"259 ","pages":"Article 107086"},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2026-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146000549","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Alley cropping associated with conservation tillage can promote short-term soil aggregation and carbon sequestration in European woody crops","authors":"Manuel González-Rosado ,&nbsp;Virginia Sánchez-Navarro ,&nbsp;Beatriz Lozano-García ,&nbsp;Jesús Aguilera-Huertas ,&nbsp;Luis Parras-Alcántara ,&nbsp;Dénes Lóczy ,&nbsp;María Almagro ,&nbsp;María Martínez-Mena ,&nbsp;Carolina Boix-Fayos ,&nbsp;Elvira Díaz-Pereira ,&nbsp;María Dolores Gómez-López ,&nbsp;Gregorio García-Fernández ,&nbsp;Raúl Zornoza","doi":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107073","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107073","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Crop diversification has been reported as an effective strategy for regenerative agriculture, soil health and crop resilience under climate change scenarios. The objective of this study was to assess the short-term effect of alley cropping and conservation tillage in different European woody crops on crop yields, soil organic carbon, total nitrogen, soil aggregation and water retention, compared to monocultures under conventional tillage. A three-year field trial was conducted in spring at two depths, 0–10 and 10–30 cm, in four diversified woody crops: i) Almond trees <em>(Prunus dulcis)</em> intercropped with caper (<em>Capparis spinosa)</em> and no-till, or thymus (<em>Thymus hyemalis)</em> and no-till in Calcaric Regosol; 2) Olive trees (<em>Olea europaea</em>) intercropped with saffron (<em>Crocus sativus)</em> and no-till, vetch rotated with oat (<em>Vicia sativa</em>/<em>Avena sativa)</em> and reduced tillage (10 cm depth), or lavender (<em>Lavandula x intermedia)</em> and reduced tillage (10 cm depth) in Calcaric Cambisol; 3) Mandarin trees(<em>Citrus sinensis)</em> intercropped with vetch/barley (<em>Vicia sativa/Hordeum vulgare</em>) rotated with fava bean with conventional tillage, or rotations of fava bean (<em>Vicia faba</em>), purslane (<em>Portulaca oleracea</em>) and cowpea (<em>Vigna unguiculata</em>) with conventional tillage (30 cm depth) in Calcaric Regosol; and 4) Vineyard (<em>Vitis vinifera)</em> intercropped with yarrow (<em>Achillea millefolium)</em> or a native grass mix under conventional tillage (30–40 cm depth) in Chromic Cambisol. This study provides a clear differentiation between the effects of alley cropping and those of tillage management. Results showed that alley cropping did not significantly contribute to improve the studied soil properties after three years of implementation, although the cash crop yield was not negatively affected. However, when alley cropping was associated with conservation tillage, we observed a significant increase in soil organic carbon content (49 % and 36 % for no-till and reduced tillage, respectively), soil water retention (10 % and 18 % for no-till and reduced tillage, respectively) and higher proportion of macroaggregates (4.6 % and 5.3 % for no-till and reduced tillage, respectively) compared to conventional tillage. Therefore, conservation tillage needs to be implemented in association with alley cropping to improve soil properties at short-term, promoting soil carbon sequestration without compromising crop yields.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49503,"journal":{"name":"Soil & Tillage Research","volume":"259 ","pages":"Article 107073"},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2026-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146014529","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Impact of drain spacing on subsurface drainage and greenhouse gas fluxes in a grassland on a Mollic gleysol in western Norway","authors":"Sissel Hansen ,&nbsp;Synnøve Rivedal ,&nbsp;Samson Øpstad ,&nbsp;Johannes Deelstra ,&nbsp;Trond Børresen ,&nbsp;Torfinn Torp ,&nbsp;Peter Dörsch","doi":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107067","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107067","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>To study the effect of drainage intensity on GHG emissions and N drainage losses in cool-humid Norway, we established drainage systems with 6 and 12 m drain spacing in a previously undrained sandy loam (Mollic gleysol) collecting data in the years 2014–2016. After sowing a mixed grass ley, subsurface drainage was larger (1271 versus 699 mm) and mean ground water table (GWT) lower (102 versus 79 cm) with 6 than with 12 m drain spacing. Water filled pore space (WFPS) remained high throughout most of the year (&gt; 80 %). It was highest in 12 m drain spacing, but shortly after fertilizations no differences between the two drainage systems were found. N₂O emissions after fertilization were larger in the 12 m system than in the 6 m system. Cumulative N₂O emissions in the 6 and 12 m system were 4.0 versus 2.5 kg N ha⁻² yr⁻¹. N leaching for the entire observation period (29 months) was larger in the 6 m (42 kg ha⁻¹) than the 12 m (19 kg ha⁻¹) system<em>.</em> Grass yields, plant N-recovery and fertilizer N use efficiency was larger with 6 than 12 m. The mean N₂O emission factor was significantly higher with 6 than with 12 m drain spacing (1.4 versus 0.8 % N₂O-N of N applied). The 6 m system acted as a net sink for CH₄, whereas the 12 m system was a net CH₄ source and had a higher climate forcing than the 12 m system (1390 versus 1110 g CO₂ eq. m⁻² yr⁻¹), but scaled for grass dry matter yield the climate forcing was similar. We conclude that larger N₂O emissions with 6 m drain spacing were likely due to a combination of less complete denitrification and a naturally higher SOM content at this site, releasing extra mineral N. Our study can therefore not confirm that increased drainage intensity intrinsically reduces N₂O emissions from crop production in cool-humid climates.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49503,"journal":{"name":"Soil & Tillage Research","volume":"259 ","pages":"Article 107067"},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2026-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145980514","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Soil cultivation for potatoes. A global survey of cultivation practices","authors":"Mark A. Stalham ,&nbsp;Shaunagh Slack ,&nbsp;Ryan Barrett ,&nbsp;Ranjan Bhattacharyya ,&nbsp;Karina M.V. Cavalieri-Polizeli ,&nbsp;Rosario Fuentes del Río ,&nbsp;Iain Kirkwood ,&nbsp;John E. McPhee ,&nbsp;Simon McWilliam ,&nbsp;Mark J. Pavek ,&nbsp;Mehdi Rahmati ,&nbsp;Lautaro Rios ,&nbsp;Kirstie Speed ,&nbsp;Martin Steyn ,&nbsp;Mike Thornton ,&nbsp;Lucy Tillier ,&nbsp;Barry White ,&nbsp;Philip Wright ,&nbsp;Ying Zhao ,&nbsp;Blair M. McKenzie","doi":"10.1016/j.still.2025.107052","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.still.2025.107052","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Papers on potato cultivation experiments rarely provide detailed information about the type and number of cultivation operations used. There is a need to document best practice for cultivating soil for potato production. A global survey was conducted to document the types, frequency and depths of cultivation systems used for potato production in different regions, and to identify representative cultivation sequences used in current commercial practice. Analysis of 65 survey responses representing the major global production areas found that, compared with the literature, cultivation intensity, depth and number of operations were generally greater than necessary for seedbed preparation. Deep non-inversion and inversion techniques for primary cultivations were frequently succeeded by powered, high-intensity rotary equipment. Tubers accounted for only 2–7 % of the total soil volume in the ridge, yet the large cross-sectional area of the planted ridges was adequate for containing high tuber yields without causing greening. Yields reported by growers were generally not correlated with intensity or number of cultivation operations or the size of ridges produced. Additionally, none of the surveyed growers practiced minimum or reduced tillage. This suggests there are opportunities to reduce the number of cultivation operations in potato production, potentially minimising soil disturbance and providing benefits such as improved soil quality, reduced greenhouse gas emissions (both from fuel and gaseous losses from soils during cultivation), lower machinery wear and a smaller carbon footprint.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49503,"journal":{"name":"Soil & Tillage Research","volume":"259 ","pages":"Article 107052"},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2026-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145980566","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Depth-stratified isotopic and molecular signatures reveal decoupled soil organic matter dynamics following grassland-to-cropland conversion","authors":"Yuxin Yan,&nbsp;Yumei Peng,&nbsp;Jia Shi,&nbsp;Chunpeng Huo,&nbsp;Xiang Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107095","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107095","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Land-use transitions (LUTs) from native grasslands to croplands induce duration-dependent destabilization in soil organic carbon (SOC) dynamics, with subsoil pools (80–100 cm) exhibiting disproportionately high vulnerability to prolonged agricultural management. This study assessed the time-dependent impacts of LUTs on SOC dynamics, by integrating stable isotopic (δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N), stoichiometric (C/N), and molecular (lignin phenols) indicators across topsoil (0–20 cm) and subsoil layers. Our results revealed bulk soils exhibited significant enrichment in δ¹³C (Δ=1.53–2.10 ‰) and δ¹⁵N (Δ=0.03–2.91 ‰) following conversion, with mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) retaining isotopic signatures closely aligned with bulk soil. Lignin content in topsoil decreased by 18.1 % after initial cultivation but recovered under long-term management, while subsoils showed progressive lignin accumulation (+160–200 %). Compared to native systems, managed croplands exhibited a tendency toward isotopic and functional decoupling between particulate organic matter (POM) and MAOM fractions, alongside a breakdown of δ¹³C-δ¹⁵N correlations, indicative of a shift in underlying biogeochemical cycling. These changes were most pronounced in subsoils, challenging the assumption of deep SOC stability. Overall, our findings provide critical insights into the mechanisms underlying SOM persistence and vulnerability under land-use transition and highlight the need for depth- and fraction-specific assessments in managed ecosystems.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49503,"journal":{"name":"Soil & Tillage Research","volume":"259 ","pages":"Article 107095"},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2026-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146072100","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Plant and microbial pathways driving soil carbon sequestration in dryland leguminous shrublands","authors":"Zi-Qiang Yuan ,&nbsp;Chao Fang ,&nbsp;Xin Song ,&nbsp;Yi Wu ,&nbsp;Feng Zhang ,&nbsp;Xiang-Wen Fang ,&nbsp;Guang-Qian Yao ,&nbsp;Kevin Van Sundert ,&nbsp;Feng-Min Li","doi":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107096","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107096","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The establishment of leguminous shrubs has become a key strategy for dryland restoration, offering substantial potential to enhance soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration. However, the mechanisms governing SOC stabilization in these systems remain insufficiently understood. Here, we investigated 30 <em>Caragana korshinskii</em> shrubland sites distributed across north-facing (NFS) and south-facing slopes (SFS) to identify the dominant drivers of SOC accrual within the 0–40 cm soil profile relative to adjacent croplands. Across both slope aspects, NFS shrublands exhibited a 77 % increase in particulate organic carbon (POC) and a 28 % increase in mineral-associated organic carbon (MAOC), whereas SFS shrublands showed a markedly larger enhancement in POC (257 %) but a comparable increase in MAOC (22 %). Shrubland soils accumulated substantially greater quantities of lignin phenols and microbial residue carbon (MRC), increasing by 43 % and 49 % on NFS and by 183 % and 75 % on SFS, respectively, compared with croplands. Isotopic signatures (δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C) were consistently more depleted in shrublands across both slope aspects, indicating shifts in organic matter sources and transformation pathways. Structural equation modelling revealed that <em>C. korshinskii</em> establishment enhanced both POC and MAOC pools by increasing root biomass and soil total nitrogen, thereby stimulating microbial activity and the accumulation of lignin phenols and MRC. Slope aspect exerted an indirect influence on POC and MAOC through its effects on root biomass, soil moisture, and mineral properties. Our findings provide direct evidence that leguminous shrubs promote SOC sequestration through the coordinated action of plant and microbial pathways, highlighting a key mechanism by which topography modulates the formation and stabilization of SOC under changing land use regimes in dryland ecosystems.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49503,"journal":{"name":"Soil & Tillage Research","volume":"259 ","pages":"Article 107096"},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2026-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146072099","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Optimizing irrigation and fertilization strategies to reduce the carbon footprint and enhance ecological-economic benefit in non-film drip-irrigated cotton fields in southern Xinjiang","authors":"Fengnian Zhao ,&nbsp;Lei Zhang ,&nbsp;Xin Zhao ,&nbsp;Yucai Xie ,&nbsp;Yuanhang Guo ,&nbsp;Weixiong Huang ,&nbsp;Hongbo Wang ,&nbsp;Xingpeng Wang ,&nbsp;Yang Gao","doi":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107068","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107068","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>With growing concerns about global warming, balancing cotton yield and greenhouse gas emissions is crucial for sustainable agricultural production. While deficit irrigation and nitrogen fertilizer reduction have been proven effective strategies in improving irrigation water productivity and nitrogen use efficiency in Xinjiang, their impacts on carbon footprint and ecological-economic benefits of cotton remains unclear. To quantify the effects of irrigation and nitrogen application on soil carbon emissions and ecological environment in cotton fields, a two-year field experiment was conducted in the Tarim River Basin from 2022 to 2023. The study monitored greenhouse gas emissions, cotton yield, carbon footprint, and ecological-economic benefit under two irrigation quotas (W1: 45 mm deficit irrigation, W2: 54 mm full irrigation) and three nitrogen fertilizer levels (F1: 150 kg ha⁻¹ with a 50 % nitrogen reduction, F2: 225 kg ha⁻¹ with a 75 % nitrogen reduction, F3: 300 kg ha⁻¹ conventional application). Results showed that increasing irrigation and nitrogen application significantly raised soil CO₂ and N₂O emissions by 79.75–340.43 kg CO₂-C ha⁻¹ and by 0.17–0.46 kg N₂O-N ha⁻¹, respectively, while reducing soil CH₄ uptake by 0.03–0.08 kg ha⁻¹(P &lt; 0.01). The W2F2 treatment (54 mm irrigation, 225 kg·ha⁻¹ nitrogen) outperformed the conventional W2F3 treatment, reducing 70.96 kg CO₂-C ha⁻¹, 0.21 N₂O-N ha⁻¹, 7.48 % carbon footprint, and 14.70 % carbon footprint per unit yield. Additionally, it increased CH₄ uptake by 0.02 kg CH₄-C ha⁻¹, yield by 8.47 %, irrigation water use productivity by 8.47 %, nitrogen partial factor productivity by 44.23 %, and ecological-economic benefit by 38.81 %. Thus, applying 225 kg ha⁻¹ nitrogen with a 54 mm irrigation quota is an effective strategy to reduce the carbon footprint while improving cotton yield, resource use efficiency, and ecological-economic benefits in filmless drip-irrigated cotton fields in southern Xinjiang.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49503,"journal":{"name":"Soil & Tillage Research","volume":"259 ","pages":"Article 107068"},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2026-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145961663","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Soil crack healing, recurrence and the temporal persistence of preferential flow under wet-dry cycles revealed by deep-learning image analysis and breakthrough curves","authors":"Qinglong Zhang ,&nbsp;Ce Wang ,&nbsp;Meixiang Xie ,&nbsp;Wei Qi ,&nbsp;Genxiang Feng ,&nbsp;Zhanyu Zhang ,&nbsp;Yuanjie Li","doi":"10.1016/j.still.2025.107054","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.still.2025.107054","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Desiccation cracks in clayey soils are prone to alternate appearance, propagation, self-healing, and recurrence in the same vicinity when subjected to wet-dry cycles. Cracks alter the energy-driven mechanism from capillary potential dominance to viscous or gravitational dominance, thus inducing preferential flow of water, fertilizers, pesticides and microplastics, etc. However, the mechanisms by which healed, residual or recurring cracks further trigger preferential flow remain to be elucidated. This study investigated crack healing, recurrence, and their prolonged influence on preferential flow during four wet-dry cycles using deep-learning-based crack image analysis and bromide breakthrough curve monitoring. Results showed a decline in crack intensity with increasing cycles but persistent spatial recurrence, with over 65 % similarity between drying stages. The crack recurring similarity between adjacent dry cycles was greater than that between more distant cycles, indicating incomplete healing of crack-induced structural damages. Across wet-dry cycles, breakthrough curves exhibited progressive left-skewing with earlier peak arrivals (45.4 % earlier than that in the first cycle) and heightened peak concentrations, confirming intensified preferential flow despite diminished surface cracking. The Mobile-Immobile model effectively described the breakthrough curve from a physical point of view of two domains (R² &gt; 0.9) and also corroborated gradual left-skewing migration of the preferential breakthrough curve across wet-dry cycles. Pearson correlation analysis revealed that despite a visible decline in surface cracking, internal residual cracks and evolving pore connectivity may sustain or even enhance preferential flow. This study revealed the recurrence mechanism of desiccation cracks under multi-stage wet-dry cycles and their potential temporal stability as preferential pathways. This study provides a theoretical basis for the inhibition and restoration of desiccation cracks, as well as for the prevention of deep percolation of water and leaching of nutrients in farmland soils.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49503,"journal":{"name":"Soil & Tillage Research","volume":"259 ","pages":"Article 107054"},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2026-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145941285","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Field-scale mapping of soil available phosphorus in cropland via interpretable machine learning and multispectral remote sensing","authors":"Jinkai Qiu ,&nbsp;Xiuying Xu ,&nbsp;Liqiang Qi ,&nbsp;Ye Kang ,&nbsp;Wei Zhang ,&nbsp;Yanliang Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107091","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.still.2026.107091","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Soil available phosphorus (SAP) is a key indicator for assessing crop fertilization requirements. Accurately and quickly mapping the spatial distribution of SAP in cropland is crucial for guiding variable fertilization decisions. To explore a suitable model for estimating SAP at the field scale and enhance its credibility and interpretability, this study focused on multiple croplands at the Jianshan Farm in Heilongjiang Province. Soil samples were collected during the autumn bare soil period, and synchronous Sentinel-2 satellite imagery was acquired. A dataset was constructed by integrating spectral remote sensing factors with topographic variables. Random Forest Regression (RFR), Categorical Boosting (CatBoost), and Back Propagation Neural Network (BPNN) were employed to establish models for estimating SAP content in cropland. The zebra optimization algorithm (ZOA) was used to perform hyperparameter optimization and performance analysis on the best-performing model. On this basis, the Shapley additive explanations (SHAP) method was adopted to quantitatively analyze the contribution and impact of environmental variables on model predictions. Spatial distribution mapping of SAP content was conducted for both the experimental and newly added plots to evaluate the model's applicability. The results indicated that the ZOA-BPNN-G model, developed using raw bands, soil indices, and topographic variables, achieved the highest accuracy in estimating SAP (R²=0.6229, r = 0.8385, RMSE=8.4359 mg/kg, MAE=5.9816 mg/kg, MAPE=15.5123 %). Compared with the estimation model before optimization, R² increased by 9.55 %age points, and r increased by 7.91 %age points, while the values of other evaluation indicators decreased. The raw bands and soil indices are the primary explanatory variables for estimating SAP content, with key features including NDSI, B8A, BI, and B3. Interpretability analysis and uncertainty analysis improved the transparency and credibility of the model. The proposed estimation model achieved good SAP mapping results on the experimental plots and had a strong correspondence with the SAP measured data. The MAPE for the newly added plot reached 13.1288 %, confirming the application feasibility of the proposed method to the autumn bare soil in the study area. It can provide theoretical and technical support for the rapid detection of SAP content and the generation of variable fertilization prescription maps.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49503,"journal":{"name":"Soil & Tillage Research","volume":"259 ","pages":"Article 107091"},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2026-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146033232","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Assessing soil organic carbon responses to tillage and extreme weather in Pakistan using the CQESTR model","authors":"Adnan Zahid ,&nbsp;Hero T. Gollany ,&nbsp;Sajid Ali ,&nbsp;Mukhtar Ahmad ,&nbsp;Nadeem Iqbal","doi":"10.1016/j.still.2025.107047","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.still.2025.107047","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Intensive tillage has depleted soil organic carbon (SOC) and threatened the sustainability of the rice-wheat cropping system of South Asia. This study assessed SOC dynamics using the CQESTR model, a process-based model, to identify the best management option under five tillage and extreme weather scenarios: (i) conventional tillage (S-1), (ii) residue incorporation (S-2), (iii) direct seeding with straws removed (S-3), (iv) direct seeding with rice straw returned while wheat straw removed (S-4), and (v) conservation tillage with both rice and wheat residues retained (S-5). Five yield scenarios (i.e., current yield, 5 or 10 % decrease/increase) were simulated with three extreme weather scenarios. The CQESTR-simulated and the measured values were strongly correlated (r = 0.991, p &lt; 0.001) for the 0–45 cm soil depth across different tillage scenarios. Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE) of 0.99, a root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.36, and a mean square deviation (MSD) of 0.13 confirmed simulated and measured values were well correlated. Among the tillage scenarios, the highest SOC gain of 1.84 Mg ha-¹ year-¹ was recorded under the S-5 scenario, followed by 0.24, 0.21, and 0.21 Mg ha-¹ year-¹ under S-4, S-3, and S-2, respectively. In contrast, conventional tillage (S-1) was predicted to lose 0.49 Mg ha⁻¹ under predictive periods of 2019–2038. The conservation tillage with residues retained (S-5) sequestered SOC, while S-1 depleted SOC across all scenarios. The S-5 had a maximum SOC increase of 3.0 Mg ha⁻¹ at 110 % yield and 2.6 Mg ha⁻¹ with baseline weather under RCP 4.5 during 20 predictive years. Therefore, continuous conservation tillage with total residue returned (S-5) can potentially reduce the effects of extreme weather while increasing SOC and enhancing the region's sustainability.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49503,"journal":{"name":"Soil & Tillage Research","volume":"259 ","pages":"Article 107047"},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2026-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146038960","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}