Soil Science

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Research from the Department of Soil Science. The department is part of the School of Natural Resources, and their website may be found at https://www.ndsu.edu/snrs/

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Now showing 1 - 9 of 9
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    The Biogeochemistry of Soil at Depth Within the Wetland Landscape of the Prairie Pothole Region
    (North Dakota State University, 2021) Werkmeister, Carrie Elaine
    The impact of agricultural practices on wetland ecosystems in the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) has long been recognized but little is understood about impacts on the biogeochemistry of the wetlands at depth. Understanding the relationship of multi-elements within the wetland and surrounding landscape can aid in wetland restoration and provide guidance for wetland management. The objectives of this study were to: 1) identify biogeochemical characteristics of PPR wetlands; 2) identifying differences or similarities in biogeochemical characteristics of the landscape; 3) assess the vertical variation in chemical composition at depth in wetland, wetland and fringe, footslope and backslope soils; and 4) interpret the soil chemistry of undisturbed sites (good quality; prairie vegetation) and disturbed sites (poor quality; cultivated) relative to differences in landscape position locations. A field study was conducted on six disturbed (DW) and 6 undisturbed (UW) wetlands with evaluation of fringe (F), footslope (FS), or backslope (BS) positions. Using redundancy analysis (RDA) with selected environmental variables models of element concentrations at depth in each position were generated. The RDA ordination plots of element concentrations to depth of 1m was constrained by variables sand, silt, clay, depth, bulk density, site, organic matter, electrical conductivity, and pH. Pearson correlation coefficients between soil properties and the five most prominent soil elements differed between landscape positions. Anthropogenic activity likely influenced the subsurface hydrology but differed in physical and chemical properties. These differences appear to be related to the vegetation, levels of soil disturbance of surrounding landscapes and unique chemical and physical characteristics of parent material.
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    Calcium Acetate: An Alternative to Gypsum for Brine Impacted Soils
    (North Dakota State University, 2022) Peterson, Annalie
    With North Dakota being ranked as a leading producer of oil and natural gas in the United States, the possibility of accidental produced water (aka “brine” or “salt water”) spills is a continuous concern. Brine water poses numerous threats to soil properties as it has the potential of causing soil dispersion by increased concentrations of sodium. The goal of this research was to compare the effectiveness of several calcium amendments: calcium acetate, flue gas desulphurization gypsum and pelletized gypsum, on improving the saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks) and removing sodium of three brine impacted soils. Ultimately, increasing rates of calcium acetate had the greatest effect on increasing the Ks but, in general, increasing rates of any amendment increased the Ks and removed sodium. A secondary goal was to produce a resource about the origin of brine water in the Williston basin for those affected by or interested in this topic.
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    Can Soil Microbial Activity Be Improved With the Use of Amendments?
    (North Dakota State University, 2020) Kruger, Matthew Wayne
    Low microbial activity and associated nutrient cycling are concerns in agricultural problem soils. The objectives of this study were to investigate microbial response on problem soils to amendments, drying-wetting cycles, and the interaction of amendments and drying-wetting cycles. In this laboratory study, soil carbon dioxide (CO2) flux was measured from thermal desorption treated soils and saline soils in response to Proganics, spent lime, and composted beef manure applications. Microbial activity was measured through CO2 flux and its rate of change, permanganate oxidizable C, and residual inorganic nitrogen. Proganics had the greatest ability to elevate and sustain microbial activity on problem soils, but spent lime and compost had the greatest potential to improve microbial mediated nitrogen mineralization. In conclusion, spent lime and compost can be effective amendments for improving soil quality of saline and thermal desorption treated problem soils to increase microbial activity and associated nitrogen cycling.
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    The Effect of Salinity on Soil Microbial Community Structure
    (North Dakota State University, 2020) Ries, Mackenzie Lynn
    Soil salinity is a widespread problem that affects crop productivity. We expect that saline soils also have altered microbial community structure, soil food webs and related soil properties. To test this, we sampled field soils across four farms in eastern North Dakota that host salinity gradients. We evaluated microbial biomass carbon, phospholipid fatty acid analysis and nematode counts in moderately saline and low saline soils. Additionally, we measured soil properties that represent potential food sources and habitat characteristics that influence microbial communities. We found higher microbial group abundance in moderately saline soils than in the lower saline soils. In contrast, we found lower nematode abundances in the moderately saline soils. We also observed increased labile carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and water content in the moderately saline soils. Based on our results, saline soils appear to have unique soil biological characteristics, which have implications for overall soil function along salinity gradients.
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    Impacts of Kentucky Bluegrass and Patch-Burn Grazing Management on Soil Properties in the Northern Great Plains
    (North Dakota State University, 2019) Gerhard, Leslie Marie
    Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.; hereafter referred to as bluegrass) has rapidly invaded the northern Great Plains over the past three decades, leading to declines in native plant diversity. A knowledge gap exists regarding the below-ground impacts that bluegrass has on soil properties. To address this knowledge gap, we measured soil physical, chemical, and biological conditions associated with bluegrass dominance resulting from idle management. We compared these results to patch-burn grazed areas with greater native plant species expression. Our results indicate that bluegrass influences soil microclimate, promoting cooler and wetter soil conditions. However, this shift does not appear to alter soil microbial abundance or carbon and nitrogen pools. Additionally, patch-burn grazing has limited impact on measured soil properties. We concluded that patch-burn grazing may be a practical land management technique for controlling bluegrass invasions without negative impacts on soil, and for promoting biological heterogeneity.
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    Seeding Time and Interseeded Cover Crop Species Influence Sugarbeet Yield and Quality
    (North Dakota State University, 2020) Sigdel, Sailesh
    Field experiments were conducted to evaluate cover crop interseeding time and species effect on sugarbeet production during 2018 and 2019 growing seasons. Cover crops were first interseeded in June and second interseeding was done in late June or early July. Four cover crops species, Austrian pea (Pisum sativum L.), winter rye (Secale cereale L.), winter camelina [Camelina sativa (L.) Crantz], and brown mustard (Brassica juncea L.), were examined. First interseeding resulted in significantly higher cover crop biomass than second interseeding. In 2018, the highest recoverable sugar yield was observed with pea (13.9 Mg ha-1) and camelina (6.6 Mg ha-1) first-interseeded, at Ada and Downer, MN, respectively. In 2019, camelina (11.2 Mg ha-1) at Ada, MN, and pea (12.4 Mg ha-1) at Prosper, ND both second-interseeded, had the highest recoverable sugar yield. Cover crops had no negative impacts on sugarbeet, but the selection of species and planting time are critical.
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    Soil Biological Temporal Variability as Functions of Physiochemical States and Soil Disturbance
    (North Dakota State University, 2019) Leitner, Zachary Robert
    Within our ecosystems, soil biota control an array of functions, such as nutrient cycling and decomposition, and have been pursued as a soil quality indicator. Though microbial communities are known to be a reflection of their environment, small scales dynamics within an agricultural system have been overlooked for many years leading to gaps when inferring on relative microbial values. To further asses our current microbial knowledge, two experiments analyzing microbial phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) structures and enzyme activities sought out to determine temporal fluctuations, cycles, and driving force behind simulated daily microbial parameter outputs. Across both studies, temporal effects, cyclical structures, and common driving forces were recorded, but further validation and characterization is needed to solidify the temporal dynamics of the microbial community. Overall, this information serves as a valuable step towards determining the most viable tillage systems based on environmental conditions, and physical proof of small scale microbial fluctuations.
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    Soil Moisture Prediction Using Meteorological Data, Satellite Imagery, and Machine Learning in the Red River Valley of the North
    (North Dakota State University, 2021) Acharya, Umesh
    Weather stations provide key information related to soil moisture and have been used by farmers to decide various field operations. We first evaluated the discrepancies in soil moisture between a weather stations and nearby field; due to soil texture, crop residue cover, crop type, growth stage and duration of temporal dependency to recent rainfall and evaporation rates using regression analysis. The regression analysis showed strong relationship between soil moisture at the weather station and the nearby field at the late vegetative and early reproductive stages. The correlation thereafter declines at later growth stages for corn and wheat. We can adduce that the regression coefficient of soil moisture with four-day cumulative rainfall slightly increased with an increase in the crop residue resulting in a low root mean square error (RMSE) value. We then investigated the effectiveness of machine learning techniques such as random forest regression (RFR), boosted regression trees (BRT), support vector regression, and artificial neural network to predict soil moisture in nearby fields based on RMSE of a 30% validation dataset and to determine the relative importance of predictor variables. The RFR and BRT performed best over other machine learning algorithms based on the lower RMSE values of 0.045 and 0.048 m3 m-3, respectively. The Classification and Regression Trees (CART), RFR and BRT models showed soil moisture at nearby weather stations had the highest relative influence for moisture prediction, followed by the four-day cumulative rainfall and Potential Evapotranspiration (PET), and subsequently followed by bulk density and Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity (Ksat). We then evaluated the integration of weather station data, RFR machine learning, and remotely sensed satellite imagery to predict soil moisture in nearby fields. Soil moisture predicted with an RFR algorithm using OPtical TRApezoidal Model (OPTRAM) moisture values, rainfall, standardized precipitation index (SPI) and percent clay showed high goodness of fit (r2=0.69) and low RMSE (0.053 m3 m-3). This research shows that the integration of weather station data, machine learning, and remote sensing tools can be used to effectively predict soil moisture in the Red River Valley of the North among a large diversity of cropping systems.
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    Superabsorbent Polymer Effects on Soil Physical Properties and Use as a Compaction Alleviation Amendment in Surface Coal Mine Reclamation
    (North Dakota State University, 2019) Ostrand, Megan Sue
    Surface coal mine reclamation is challenged by alterations in soil characteristics, compaction being the most plant-yield reducing. Superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) ability to retain large volumes of water gives them the potential to alter soil properties. Laboratory objectives were to determine how SAPs alter water retention, liquid limit (LL), evaporation, saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat), and compression across five soil series. Increasing SAP application rates to 0.2% significantly increased plant available water (PAW), stage one evaporation duration, LL, stage two evaporative water loss, and significantly decreased stage one evaporative water loss, Ksat, and compression for various soil series. Field study investigated how SAP, deep ripping (R) and mulch (M) impacted penetration resistance and spring wheat yield (Triticum aestivum). Application of 0.04% SAP improved yields similar to R. Penetration resistance decreased with R, and SAP application showed reduction similar to R. While SAPs show potential as a reclamation tool, application longevity needs evaluation.