An evaluation of nitrogen indicators for soil health in long-term agricultural experiments

Daniel Liptzin; Elizabeth L. Rieke; Shannon B. Cappellazzi; G. Mac Bean; Michael Cope; Kelsey L.H. Greub; Charlotte E. Norris; Paul W. Tracy; Ezra Aberle; Amanda Ashworth; Oscar Bañuelos Tavarez; Andy I. Bary; R. Louis Baumhardt; Alberto Borbón Gracia; Daniel C. Brainard; Jameson R. Brennan; Dolores Briones Reyes; Darren Bruhjell; Cameron N. Carlyle; James J.W. Crawford; Cody F. Creech; Steve W. Culman; Bill Deen; Curtis J. Dell; Justin D. Derner; Thomas F. Ducey; Sjoerd W. Duiker; Robert S. Dungan; Miles F. Dyck; Benjamin H. Ellert; Martin H. Entz; Avelino Espinosa Solorio; Steven J. Fonte; Simon Fonteyne; Ann Marie Fortuna; Jamie L. Foster; Lisa M. Fultz; Audrey V. Gamble; Charles M. Geddes; Deirdre Griffin-LaHue; John H. Grove; Stephen K. Hamilton; Xiying Hao; Zachary D. Hayden; Nora Honsdorf; Julie A. Howe; James A. Ippolito; Gregg A. Johnson; Mark A. Kautz; Newell R. Kitchen; Sandeep Kumar; Kirsten S.M. Kurtz; Francis J. Larney; Katie L. Lewis; Matt Liebman; Antonio Lopez Ramirez; Stephen Machado; Bijesh Maharjan; Miguel Angel Martinez Gamiño; William E. May; Mitchel P. McClaran; Marshall D. McDaniel; Neville Millar; Jeffrey P. Mitchell; Amber D. Moore; Philip A. Moore; Manuel Mora Gutiérrez; Kelly A. Nelson; Emmanuel C. Omondi; Shannon L. Osborne; Leodegario Osorio Alcalá; Phillip Owens; Eugenia M. Pena-Yewtukhiw; Hanna J. Poffenbarger; Brenda Ponce Lira; Jennifer R. Reeve; Timothy M. Reinbott; Mark S. Reiter; Edwin L. Ritchey; Kraig L. Roozeboom; Yichao Rui; Amir Sadeghpour; Upendra M. Sainju; Gregg R. Sanford; William F. Schillinger; Robert R. Schindelbeck; Meagan E. Schipanski; Alan J. Schlegel; Kate M. Scow; Lucretia A. Sherrod; Amy L. Shober; Sudeep S. Sidhu; Ernesto Solís Moya; Mervin St Luce; Jeffrey S. Strock; Andrew E. Suyker; Virginia R. Sykes; Haiying Tao; Alberto Trujillo Campos; Laura L. Van Eerd; Harold M. van Es; Nele Verhulst; Tony J. Vyn; Yutao Wang; Dexter B. Watts; David L. Wright; Tiequan Zhang; Cristine L.S. Morgan; C. Wayne Honeycutt

doi:10.1002/saj2.20558

An evaluation of nitrogen indicators for soil health in long-term agricultural experiments

Daniel Liptzin, Elizabeth L. Rieke, Shannon B. Cappellazzi, G. Mac Bean, Michael Cope, Kelsey L.H. Greub, Charlotte E. Norris, Paul W. Tracy, Ezra Aberle, Amanda Ashworth, Oscar Bañuelos Tavarez, Andy I. Bary, R. Louis Baumhardt, Alberto Borbón Gracia, Daniel C. Brainard, Jameson R. Brennan, Dolores Briones Reyes, Darren Bruhjell, Cameron N. Carlyle, James J.W. CrawfordCody F. Creech, Steve W. Culman, Bill Deen, Curtis J. Dell, Justin D. Derner, Thomas F. Ducey, Sjoerd W. Duiker, Robert S. Dungan, Miles F. Dyck, Benjamin H. Ellert, Martin H. Entz, Avelino Espinosa Solorio, Steven J. Fonte, Simon Fonteyne, Ann Marie Fortuna, Jamie L. Foster, Lisa M. Fultz, Audrey V. Gamble, Charles M. Geddes, Deirdre Griffin-LaHue, John H. Grove, Stephen K. Hamilton, Xiying Hao, Zachary D. Hayden, Nora Honsdorf, Julie A. Howe, James A. Ippolito, Gregg A. Johnson, Mark A. Kautz, Newell R. Kitchen, Sandeep Kumar, Kirsten S.M. Kurtz, Francis J. Larney, Katie L. Lewis, Matt Liebman, Antonio Lopez Ramirez, Stephen Machado, Bijesh Maharjan, Miguel Angel Martinez Gamiño, William E. May, Mitchel P. McClaran, Marshall D. McDaniel, Neville Millar, Jeffrey P. Mitchell, Amber D. Moore, Philip A. Moore, Manuel Mora Gutiérrez, Kelly A. Nelson, Emmanuel C. Omondi, Shannon L. Osborne, Leodegario Osorio Alcalá, Phillip Owens, Eugenia M. Pena-Yewtukhiw, Hanna J. Poffenbarger, Brenda Ponce Lira, Jennifer R. Reeve, Timothy M. Reinbott, Mark S. Reiter, Edwin L. Ritchey, Kraig L. Roozeboom, Yichao Rui, Amir Sadeghpour, Upendra M. Sainju, Gregg R. Sanford, William F. Schillinger, Robert R. Schindelbeck, Meagan E. Schipanski, Alan J. Schlegel, Kate M. Scow, Lucretia A. Sherrod, Amy L. Shober, Sudeep S. Sidhu, Ernesto Solís Moya, Mervin St Luce, Jeffrey S. Strock, Andrew E. Suyker, Virginia R. Sykes, Haiying Tao, Alberto Trujillo Campos, Laura L. Van Eerd, Harold M. van Es, Nele Verhulst, Tony J. Vyn, Yutao Wang, Dexter B. Watts, David L. Wright, Tiequan Zhang, Cristine L.S. Morgan, C. Wayne Honeycutt

Plant and Soil Sciences

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Various soil health indicators that measure a chemically defined fraction of nitrogen (N) or a process related to N cycling have been proposed to quantify the potential to supply N to crops, a key soil function. We evaluated five N indicators (total soil N, autoclavable citrate extractable N, water-extractable organic N, potentially mineralizable N, and N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase activity) at 124 sites with long-term experiments across North America evaluating a variety of managements. We found that 59%–81% of the variation in N indicators was among sites, with indicator values decreasing with temperature and increasing with precipitation and clay content. The N indicators increased from 6%–39% in response to decreasing tillage, cover cropping, retaining residue, and applying organic sources of nutrients. Overall, increasing the quantity of organic inputs, whether from increased residue retention, cover cropping, or rotations with higher biomass, resulted in higher values of the N indicators. Although N indicators responded to management in similar ways, the analysis cost and availability of testing laboratories is highly variable. Further, given the strong relationships of the N indicators with carbon (C) indicators, measuring soil organic C along with 24-h potential C mineralization could be used as a proxy for N supply instead of measuring potentially mineralizable N or any other N indicator directly.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	868-884
Number of pages	17
Journal	Soil Science Society of America Journal
Volume	87
Issue number	4
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20558
State	Published - Jul 1 2023

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
Names of laboratories and equipment were given to provide specific information and do not constitute endorsement by the authors. We would like to thank Cornell Soil Health Laboratory, Soil Water and Environmental Lab at The Ohio State University, and Ward Laboratories for performing analysis on samples and their contributions to this study. The NAPESHM project is part of a broader effort titled, “Assessing and Expanding Soil Health for Production, Economic, and Environmental Benefits.” The project is funded by the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (grant ID 523926), General Mills, and The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation. The content of this publication is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research. The authors acknowledge the following individuals and groups for their contribution to the long‐term research sites: William Bryan, Joshua Heitman, April Leytem, Mark Liebig, Deanna Osmond, Michael Thompson, the Center for Environmental Farming Systems in Goldsboro NC (Melissa Bell, Nancy Creamer, Alan Franzluebbers, Tomas Moreno, Paul Mueller, Chris Reberg‐Horton), and C.S. Tan, T.W. Welacky, D. Lawrence, M.R. Reeb, M. Soultani, and K. Rinas from Harrow Research and Development Center, Agriculture and Agri‐Food Canada. Support for the sampling by Michigan State University was provided by the U.S. National Science Foundation's Long‐term Ecological Research program at the Kellogg Biological Station (DEB 1832042), the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Long‐term Agroecosystem Research program, and MSU AgBioResearch.

Funding Information:
Names of laboratories and equipment were given to provide specific information and do not constitute endorsement by the authors. We would like to thank Cornell Soil Health Laboratory, Soil Water and Environmental Lab at The Ohio State University, and Ward Laboratories for performing analysis on samples and their contributions to this study. The NAPESHM project is part of a broader effort titled, “Assessing and Expanding Soil Health for Production, Economic, and Environmental Benefits.” The project is funded by the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (grant ID 523926), General Mills, and The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation. The content of this publication is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research. The authors acknowledge the following individuals and groups for their contribution to the long-term research sites: William Bryan, Joshua Heitman, April Leytem, Mark Liebig, Deanna Osmond, Michael Thompson, the Center for Environmental Farming Systems in Goldsboro NC (Melissa Bell, Nancy Creamer, Alan Franzluebbers, Tomas Moreno, Paul Mueller, Chris Reberg-Horton), and C.S. Tan, T.W. Welacky, D. Lawrence, M.R. Reeb, M. Soultani, and K. Rinas from Harrow Research and Development Center, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. Support for the sampling by Michigan State University was provided by the U.S. National Science Foundation's Long-term Ecological Research program at the Kellogg Biological Station (DEB 1832042), the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Long-term Agroecosystem Research program, and MSU AgBioResearch.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Authors. Soil Science Society of America Journal published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Soil Science Society of America.

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Soil Science

Access to Document

10.1002/saj2.20558

Cite this

Liptzin, D., Rieke, E. L., Cappellazzi, S. B., Bean, G. M., Cope, M., Greub, K. L. H., Norris, C. E., Tracy, P. W., Aberle, E., Ashworth, A., Tavarez, O. B., Bary, A. I., Baumhardt, R. L., Gracia, A. B., Brainard, D. C., Brennan, J. R., Reyes, D. B., Bruhjell, D., Carlyle, C. N., ... Honeycutt, C. W. (2023). An evaluation of nitrogen indicators for soil health in long-term agricultural experiments. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 87(4), 868-884. https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20558

@article{87da8c455d244e0db1dd86e2193fe951,

title = "An evaluation of nitrogen indicators for soil health in long-term agricultural experiments",

abstract = "Various soil health indicators that measure a chemically defined fraction of nitrogen (N) or a process related to N cycling have been proposed to quantify the potential to supply N to crops, a key soil function. We evaluated five N indicators (total soil N, autoclavable citrate extractable N, water-extractable organic N, potentially mineralizable N, and N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase activity) at 124 sites with long-term experiments across North America evaluating a variety of managements. We found that 59%–81% of the variation in N indicators was among sites, with indicator values decreasing with temperature and increasing with precipitation and clay content. The N indicators increased from 6%–39% in response to decreasing tillage, cover cropping, retaining residue, and applying organic sources of nutrients. Overall, increasing the quantity of organic inputs, whether from increased residue retention, cover cropping, or rotations with higher biomass, resulted in higher values of the N indicators. Although N indicators responded to management in similar ways, the analysis cost and availability of testing laboratories is highly variable. Further, given the strong relationships of the N indicators with carbon (C) indicators, measuring soil organic C along with 24-h potential C mineralization could be used as a proxy for N supply instead of measuring potentially mineralizable N or any other N indicator directly.",

author = "Daniel Liptzin and Rieke, {Elizabeth L.} and Cappellazzi, {Shannon B.} and Bean, {G. Mac} and Michael Cope and Greub, {Kelsey L.H.} and Norris, {Charlotte E.} and Tracy, {Paul W.} and Ezra Aberle and Amanda Ashworth and Tavarez, {Oscar Ba{\~n}uelos} and Bary, {Andy I.} and Baumhardt, {R. Louis} and Gracia, {Alberto Borb{\'o}n} and Brainard, {Daniel C.} and Brennan, {Jameson R.} and Reyes, {Dolores Briones} and Darren Bruhjell and Carlyle, {Cameron N.} and Crawford, {James J.W.} and Creech, {Cody F.} and Culman, {Steve W.} and Bill Deen and Dell, {Curtis J.} and Derner, {Justin D.} and Ducey, {Thomas F.} and Duiker, {Sjoerd W.} and Dungan, {Robert S.} and Dyck, {Miles F.} and Ellert, {Benjamin H.} and Entz, {Martin H.} and Solorio, {Avelino Espinosa} and Fonte, {Steven J.} and Simon Fonteyne and Fortuna, {Ann Marie} and Foster, {Jamie L.} and Fultz, {Lisa M.} and Gamble, {Audrey V.} and Geddes, {Charles M.} and Deirdre Griffin-LaHue and Grove, {John H.} and Hamilton, {Stephen K.} and Xiying Hao and Hayden, {Zachary D.} and Nora Honsdorf and Howe, {Julie A.} and Ippolito, {James A.} and Johnson, {Gregg A.} and Kautz, {Mark A.} and Kitchen, {Newell R.} and Sandeep Kumar and Kurtz, {Kirsten S.M.} and Larney, {Francis J.} and Lewis, {Katie L.} and Matt Liebman and Ramirez, {Antonio Lopez} and Stephen Machado and Bijesh Maharjan and Gami{\~n}o, {Miguel Angel Martinez} and May, {William E.} and McClaran, {Mitchel P.} and McDaniel, {Marshall D.} and Neville Millar and Mitchell, {Jeffrey P.} and Moore, {Amber D.} and Moore, {Philip A.} and Guti{\'e}rrez, {Manuel Mora} and Nelson, {Kelly A.} and Omondi, {Emmanuel C.} and Osborne, {Shannon L.} and Alcal{\'a}, {Leodegario Osorio} and Phillip Owens and Pena-Yewtukhiw, {Eugenia M.} and Poffenbarger, {Hanna J.} and Lira, {Brenda Ponce} and Reeve, {Jennifer R.} and Reinbott, {Timothy M.} and Reiter, {Mark S.} and Ritchey, {Edwin L.} and Roozeboom, {Kraig L.} and Yichao Rui and Amir Sadeghpour and Sainju, {Upendra M.} and Sanford, {Gregg R.} and Schillinger, {William F.} and Schindelbeck, {Robert R.} and Schipanski, {Meagan E.} and Schlegel, {Alan J.} and Scow, {Kate M.} and Sherrod, {Lucretia A.} and Shober, {Amy L.} and Sidhu, {Sudeep S.} and Moya, {Ernesto Sol{\'i}s} and Luce, {Mervin St} and Strock, {Jeffrey S.} and Suyker, {Andrew E.} and Sykes, {Virginia R.} and Haiying Tao and Campos, {Alberto Trujillo} and {Van Eerd}, {Laura L.} and {van Es}, {Harold M.} and Nele Verhulst and Vyn, {Tony J.} and Yutao Wang and Watts, {Dexter B.} and Wright, {David L.} and Tiequan Zhang and Morgan, {Cristine L.S.} and Honeycutt, {C. Wayne}",

note = "Funding Information: Names of laboratories and equipment were given to provide specific information and do not constitute endorsement by the authors. We would like to thank Cornell Soil Health Laboratory, Soil Water and Environmental Lab at The Ohio State University, and Ward Laboratories for performing analysis on samples and their contributions to this study. The NAPESHM project is part of a broader effort titled, “Assessing and Expanding Soil Health for Production, Economic, and Environmental Benefits.” The project is funded by the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (grant ID 523926), General Mills, and The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation. The content of this publication is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research. The authors acknowledge the following individuals and groups for their contribution to the long‐term research sites: William Bryan, Joshua Heitman, April Leytem, Mark Liebig, Deanna Osmond, Michael Thompson, the Center for Environmental Farming Systems in Goldsboro NC (Melissa Bell, Nancy Creamer, Alan Franzluebbers, Tomas Moreno, Paul Mueller, Chris Reberg‐Horton), and C.S. Tan, T.W. Welacky, D. Lawrence, M.R. Reeb, M. Soultani, and K. Rinas from Harrow Research and Development Center, Agriculture and Agri‐Food Canada. Support for the sampling by Michigan State University was provided by the U.S. National Science Foundation's Long‐term Ecological Research program at the Kellogg Biological Station (DEB 1832042), the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Long‐term Agroecosystem Research program, and MSU AgBioResearch. Funding Information: Names of laboratories and equipment were given to provide specific information and do not constitute endorsement by the authors. We would like to thank Cornell Soil Health Laboratory, Soil Water and Environmental Lab at The Ohio State University, and Ward Laboratories for performing analysis on samples and their contributions to this study. The NAPESHM project is part of a broader effort titled, “Assessing and Expanding Soil Health for Production, Economic, and Environmental Benefits.” The project is funded by the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (grant ID 523926), General Mills, and The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation. The content of this publication is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research. The authors acknowledge the following individuals and groups for their contribution to the long-term research sites: William Bryan, Joshua Heitman, April Leytem, Mark Liebig, Deanna Osmond, Michael Thompson, the Center for Environmental Farming Systems in Goldsboro NC (Melissa Bell, Nancy Creamer, Alan Franzluebbers, Tomas Moreno, Paul Mueller, Chris Reberg-Horton), and C.S. Tan, T.W. Welacky, D. Lawrence, M.R. Reeb, M. Soultani, and K. Rinas from Harrow Research and Development Center, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. Support for the sampling by Michigan State University was provided by the U.S. National Science Foundation's Long-term Ecological Research program at the Kellogg Biological Station (DEB 1832042), the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Long-term Agroecosystem Research program, and MSU AgBioResearch. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2023 The Authors. Soil Science Society of America Journal published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Soil Science Society of America.",

year = "2023",

month = jul,

day = "1",

doi = "10.1002/saj2.20558",

language = "English",

volume = "87",

pages = "868--884",

number = "4",

}

Liptzin, D, Rieke, EL, Cappellazzi, SB, Bean, GM, Cope, M, Greub, KLH, Norris, CE, Tracy, PW, Aberle, E, Ashworth, A, Tavarez, OB, Bary, AI, Baumhardt, RL, Gracia, AB, Brainard, DC, Brennan, JR, Reyes, DB, Bruhjell, D, Carlyle, CN, Crawford, JJW, Creech, CF, Culman, SW, Deen, B, Dell, CJ, Derner, JD, Ducey, TF, Duiker, SW, Dungan, RS, Dyck, MF, Ellert, BH, Entz, MH, Solorio, AE, Fonte, SJ, Fonteyne, S, Fortuna, AM, Foster, JL, Fultz, LM, Gamble, AV, Geddes, CM, Griffin-LaHue, D, Grove, JH, Hamilton, SK, Hao, X, Hayden, ZD, Honsdorf, N, Howe, JA, Ippolito, JA, Johnson, GA, Kautz, MA, Kitchen, NR, Kumar, S, Kurtz, KSM, Larney, FJ, Lewis, KL, Liebman, M, Ramirez, AL, Machado, S, Maharjan, B, Gamiño, MAM, May, WE, McClaran, MP, McDaniel, MD, Millar, N, Mitchell, JP, Moore, AD, Moore, PA, Gutiérrez, MM, Nelson, KA, Omondi, EC, Osborne, SL, Alcalá, LO, Owens, P, Pena-Yewtukhiw, EM, Poffenbarger, HJ, Lira, BP, Reeve, JR, Reinbott, TM, Reiter, MS, Ritchey, EL, Roozeboom, KL, Rui, Y, Sadeghpour, A, Sainju, UM, Sanford, GR, Schillinger, WF, Schindelbeck, RR, Schipanski, ME, Schlegel, AJ, Scow, KM, Sherrod, LA, Shober, AL, Sidhu, SS, Moya, ES, Luce, MS, Strock, JS, Suyker, AE, Sykes, VR, Tao, H, Campos, AT, Van Eerd, LL, van Es, HM, Verhulst, N, Vyn, TJ, Wang, Y, Watts, DB, Wright, DL, Zhang, T, Morgan, CLS & Honeycutt, CW 2023, 'An evaluation of nitrogen indicators for soil health in long-term agricultural experiments', Soil Science Society of America Journal, vol. 87, no. 4, pp. 868-884. https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20558

TY - JOUR

T1 - An evaluation of nitrogen indicators for soil health in long-term agricultural experiments

AU - Liptzin, Daniel

AU - Rieke, Elizabeth L.

AU - Cappellazzi, Shannon B.

AU - Bean, G. Mac

AU - Cope, Michael

AU - Greub, Kelsey L.H.

AU - Norris, Charlotte E.

AU - Tracy, Paul W.

AU - Aberle, Ezra

AU - Ashworth, Amanda

AU - Tavarez, Oscar Bañuelos

AU - Bary, Andy I.

AU - Baumhardt, R. Louis

AU - Gracia, Alberto Borbón

AU - Brainard, Daniel C.

AU - Brennan, Jameson R.

AU - Reyes, Dolores Briones

AU - Bruhjell, Darren

AU - Carlyle, Cameron N.

AU - Crawford, James J.W.

AU - Creech, Cody F.

AU - Culman, Steve W.

AU - Deen, Bill

AU - Dell, Curtis J.

AU - Derner, Justin D.

AU - Ducey, Thomas F.

AU - Duiker, Sjoerd W.

AU - Dungan, Robert S.

AU - Dyck, Miles F.

AU - Ellert, Benjamin H.

AU - Entz, Martin H.

AU - Solorio, Avelino Espinosa

AU - Fonte, Steven J.

AU - Fonteyne, Simon

AU - Fortuna, Ann Marie

AU - Foster, Jamie L.

AU - Fultz, Lisa M.

AU - Gamble, Audrey V.

AU - Geddes, Charles M.

AU - Griffin-LaHue, Deirdre

AU - Grove, John H.

AU - Hamilton, Stephen K.

AU - Hao, Xiying

AU - Hayden, Zachary D.

AU - Honsdorf, Nora

AU - Howe, Julie A.

AU - Ippolito, James A.

AU - Johnson, Gregg A.

AU - Kautz, Mark A.

AU - Kitchen, Newell R.

AU - Kumar, Sandeep

AU - Kurtz, Kirsten S.M.

AU - Larney, Francis J.

AU - Lewis, Katie L.

AU - Liebman, Matt

AU - Ramirez, Antonio Lopez

AU - Machado, Stephen

AU - Maharjan, Bijesh

AU - Gamiño, Miguel Angel Martinez

AU - May, William E.

AU - McClaran, Mitchel P.

AU - McDaniel, Marshall D.

AU - Millar, Neville

AU - Mitchell, Jeffrey P.

AU - Moore, Amber D.

AU - Moore, Philip A.

AU - Gutiérrez, Manuel Mora

AU - Nelson, Kelly A.

AU - Omondi, Emmanuel C.

AU - Osborne, Shannon L.

AU - Alcalá, Leodegario Osorio

AU - Owens, Phillip

AU - Pena-Yewtukhiw, Eugenia M.

AU - Poffenbarger, Hanna J.

AU - Lira, Brenda Ponce

AU - Reeve, Jennifer R.

AU - Reinbott, Timothy M.

AU - Reiter, Mark S.

AU - Ritchey, Edwin L.

AU - Roozeboom, Kraig L.

AU - Rui, Yichao

AU - Sadeghpour, Amir

AU - Sainju, Upendra M.

AU - Sanford, Gregg R.

AU - Schillinger, William F.

AU - Schindelbeck, Robert R.

AU - Schipanski, Meagan E.

AU - Schlegel, Alan J.

AU - Scow, Kate M.

AU - Sherrod, Lucretia A.

AU - Shober, Amy L.

AU - Sidhu, Sudeep S.

AU - Moya, Ernesto Solís

AU - Luce, Mervin St

AU - Strock, Jeffrey S.

AU - Suyker, Andrew E.

AU - Sykes, Virginia R.

AU - Tao, Haiying

AU - Campos, Alberto Trujillo

AU - Van Eerd, Laura L.

AU - van Es, Harold M.

AU - Verhulst, Nele

AU - Vyn, Tony J.

AU - Wang, Yutao

AU - Watts, Dexter B.

AU - Wright, David L.

AU - Zhang, Tiequan

AU - Morgan, Cristine L.S.

AU - Honeycutt, C. Wayne

N1 - Funding Information: Names of laboratories and equipment were given to provide specific information and do not constitute endorsement by the authors. We would like to thank Cornell Soil Health Laboratory, Soil Water and Environmental Lab at The Ohio State University, and Ward Laboratories for performing analysis on samples and their contributions to this study. The NAPESHM project is part of a broader effort titled, “Assessing and Expanding Soil Health for Production, Economic, and Environmental Benefits.” The project is funded by the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (grant ID 523926), General Mills, and The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation. The content of this publication is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research. The authors acknowledge the following individuals and groups for their contribution to the long‐term research sites: William Bryan, Joshua Heitman, April Leytem, Mark Liebig, Deanna Osmond, Michael Thompson, the Center for Environmental Farming Systems in Goldsboro NC (Melissa Bell, Nancy Creamer, Alan Franzluebbers, Tomas Moreno, Paul Mueller, Chris Reberg‐Horton), and C.S. Tan, T.W. Welacky, D. Lawrence, M.R. Reeb, M. Soultani, and K. Rinas from Harrow Research and Development Center, Agriculture and Agri‐Food Canada. Support for the sampling by Michigan State University was provided by the U.S. National Science Foundation's Long‐term Ecological Research program at the Kellogg Biological Station (DEB 1832042), the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Long‐term Agroecosystem Research program, and MSU AgBioResearch. Funding Information: Names of laboratories and equipment were given to provide specific information and do not constitute endorsement by the authors. We would like to thank Cornell Soil Health Laboratory, Soil Water and Environmental Lab at The Ohio State University, and Ward Laboratories for performing analysis on samples and their contributions to this study. The NAPESHM project is part of a broader effort titled, “Assessing and Expanding Soil Health for Production, Economic, and Environmental Benefits.” The project is funded by the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (grant ID 523926), General Mills, and The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation. The content of this publication is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research. The authors acknowledge the following individuals and groups for their contribution to the long-term research sites: William Bryan, Joshua Heitman, April Leytem, Mark Liebig, Deanna Osmond, Michael Thompson, the Center for Environmental Farming Systems in Goldsboro NC (Melissa Bell, Nancy Creamer, Alan Franzluebbers, Tomas Moreno, Paul Mueller, Chris Reberg-Horton), and C.S. Tan, T.W. Welacky, D. Lawrence, M.R. Reeb, M. Soultani, and K. Rinas from Harrow Research and Development Center, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. Support for the sampling by Michigan State University was provided by the U.S. National Science Foundation's Long-term Ecological Research program at the Kellogg Biological Station (DEB 1832042), the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Long-term Agroecosystem Research program, and MSU AgBioResearch. Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Authors. Soil Science Society of America Journal published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Soil Science Society of America.

PY - 2023/7/1

Y1 - 2023/7/1

N2 - Various soil health indicators that measure a chemically defined fraction of nitrogen (N) or a process related to N cycling have been proposed to quantify the potential to supply N to crops, a key soil function. We evaluated five N indicators (total soil N, autoclavable citrate extractable N, water-extractable organic N, potentially mineralizable N, and N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase activity) at 124 sites with long-term experiments across North America evaluating a variety of managements. We found that 59%–81% of the variation in N indicators was among sites, with indicator values decreasing with temperature and increasing with precipitation and clay content. The N indicators increased from 6%–39% in response to decreasing tillage, cover cropping, retaining residue, and applying organic sources of nutrients. Overall, increasing the quantity of organic inputs, whether from increased residue retention, cover cropping, or rotations with higher biomass, resulted in higher values of the N indicators. Although N indicators responded to management in similar ways, the analysis cost and availability of testing laboratories is highly variable. Further, given the strong relationships of the N indicators with carbon (C) indicators, measuring soil organic C along with 24-h potential C mineralization could be used as a proxy for N supply instead of measuring potentially mineralizable N or any other N indicator directly.

AB - Various soil health indicators that measure a chemically defined fraction of nitrogen (N) or a process related to N cycling have been proposed to quantify the potential to supply N to crops, a key soil function. We evaluated five N indicators (total soil N, autoclavable citrate extractable N, water-extractable organic N, potentially mineralizable N, and N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase activity) at 124 sites with long-term experiments across North America evaluating a variety of managements. We found that 59%–81% of the variation in N indicators was among sites, with indicator values decreasing with temperature and increasing with precipitation and clay content. The N indicators increased from 6%–39% in response to decreasing tillage, cover cropping, retaining residue, and applying organic sources of nutrients. Overall, increasing the quantity of organic inputs, whether from increased residue retention, cover cropping, or rotations with higher biomass, resulted in higher values of the N indicators. Although N indicators responded to management in similar ways, the analysis cost and availability of testing laboratories is highly variable. Further, given the strong relationships of the N indicators with carbon (C) indicators, measuring soil organic C along with 24-h potential C mineralization could be used as a proxy for N supply instead of measuring potentially mineralizable N or any other N indicator directly.

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85161624240&partnerID=8YFLogxK

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U2 - 10.1002/saj2.20558

DO - 10.1002/saj2.20558

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85161624240

SN - 0361-5995

VL - 87

SP - 868

EP - 884

JO - Soil Science Society of America Journal

JF - Soil Science Society of America Journal

IS - 4

ER -

An evaluation of nitrogen indicators for soil health in long-term agricultural experiments

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