1 EFFECT OF SOIL COMPACTION ON MUNG BEAN ROOT BIOMASS

Effect of Soil Compaction on Mung Bean (Vigna Radiata) Root Biomass

HYPOTHETICAL DATA INCLUDED Data for this research was based on results from similar studies but did not produce primary data.

Christa Shier* McCall Outdoor Science School, University of Idaho McCall Field Campus 1800 University Lane, McCall, ID 86368

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Summary 1. Soil compaction can have negative effects on plant productivity, particularly in agriculture crop management. Soil compaction reduces the pore size and ability of soil to transport water and nutrients. 2. Soil composition is negatively affected by reduced pore space which results in reduced air in the soil. Reduced pore space decreases water infiltration capacity and hinders soil fauna and microbiological activity. Over time the combined effect of these impacts on the soil can create anaerobic conditions. 3. Other factors work in conjunction with soil compaction to reduce plant productivity including temperature, water availability, nutrient content and fauna in the soil. 4. Plant species react differently to soil compaction in different environments and some studies have found positive relationships with moderate soil compaction and plant growth and biomass potentially due to increased soil to seed contact. Synthesis: Soil compaction varies by plant species and the environment in which it is studied (pot experiments, agricultural fields or forest). This study found that increased compaction levels of soil are inversely related to Mung bean (Vigna Radiata) root biomass in a potted study with mechanical soil compaction. Because of the hypothetical data used in this paper, and the variances in the research results found in the literature review, more studies should be conducted in this field.

Introduction Soil is a complex natural resource, the quality of which affects the anatomy and physiology of the organisms that live within the soil (Whalley & Dumitrub 1995). With improved soil management in agriculture comes increased agricultural productivity (Chapman, Miller, Lindsey, & Whalley, 2012). Soil as part of the Soil-Plant- Atmosphere Continuum (SPAC), is altered by the physical characteristics of the soil, such as compaction levels, which affects the water budget for the plants and can also affect many seemingly unrelated factors (Norman & Anderson 2005). Many studies have looked at the effects of soil compaction in relation to agriculture in attempts to find better ways to manage agricultural fields and find better tillage systems to ensure higher crop yields.

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Soil compaction has many complex effects on the plants within that soil.

Typically the

effects of soil compaction are negative and reduce plant productivity in a variety of ways (Whalley et al., 1995). Many studies, e.g. (Alameda & Villar, 2009), (Kim, Anderson, Motavalli, & Gantzer, 2010) and (Weisskopf, Reiser, Rek, & Oberholzer, 2010) have looked at various effects of soil compaction in relation with other variables including different plant species, weather conditions and the biological conditions of the soil under different levels of compaction. Soil Compaction Effects on Roots The effect of soil compaction on plants is typically a negative contributing force on plant growth both above and below ground (Whalley et al., 1995). When soil is compacted, the amount of pore space decreases. With decreased pore space comes decreased water infiltration which in turn affects the ability of plants to absorb nutrients as well as the amount of pressure needed by roots to penetrate the soil (Chapman et al., 2012). Chapman et al. (2012) also discuss the importance of root proliferation in regards to acquiring nutrient ions which can only move small distances in soil, hence the importance for roots to be able to penetrate deep into the soil. Because of the importance of soil compaction in agriculture and food acquisition, many studies compare soil compaction effects on crops such as triticale and maize (Grzesiak, Grzesiak, Hura, Marciska, & Rzepka, 2012) and also in barley (Bingham, Bengough, & Rees, 2010) and rice varieties . Studies about soil compaction have found that depending on the plant species, different levels of soil compaction have different effects. Alameda & Villar (2009) note that moderate compaction can even be beneficial in some woody plant species, possibly due to increased root to soil contact. Similar results were documented in well watered and high fertility soil that was moderately compacted (Lipiec & Stcpniewski, 1995). A study by Ponder et al.,

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(2012) found that seedling establishment was typically improved by moderate soil compaction in the forest, but that benefits did not continue with increased compaction or over long periods of time. They also note that moderate soil compaction is more beneficial on coarser soil textures with larger particles as they are more resistant to compaction and maintain more porosity than finer soil types. Root length is impeded by increased soil compaction. Roots exude mucilage which lubricates the penetration of the root into the soil, however the production of mucilage is dependent on soil moisture which tends to be lower or go through cycles of drying in compacted soils (Bengough, Croser, & Pritchard, 1997). A decrease in root length may not only be due to compaction levels. A study by Clark, Whalley, & Barraclough (2003) found that mechanical impedance stimulates the production of the hormone ethylene which signaled the plant to decrease root elongation and shoot growth. It was unclear whether the production of hormones that signal a plant to decrease root elongation and shoot growth was due solely to mechanical compaction, or if the lack of moisture in the compacted soil played a role in the reduction of these two factors. Hormonal messages that decrease root and shoot growth were also mentioned by Whalley et al., (1995), however they also note that this is a function of both soil type and climate because different soils will have different relationships between soil strength and bulk density, and, given appropriate water supply and nutrition, it is soil strength which determines root elongation rate. Effects of Compaction on Soil Structure Increased soil compaction has been shown to have both short term affects such as lower crop yield, and longer term affects contributing to the loss of soil structure due to loss of air pore

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space and the effects of less water infiltration which over long periods of time can create anaerobic conditions in the soil (Whalley et al., 1995). The implications of soil compaction are not limited to plant growth. Compaction affects the soil fauna and microbial activity based on the soil structure after compaction. With a decrease in soil pore space comes a reduction in soil fauna such as earthworms which decreases the soil fertility. Additionally, there is strong evidence that earthworm activity depends on water content which tends to decline when soil is compacted. The soil dwelling arthropod Collembola (Springtails), commonly found in arable soils, also experienced a decline when exposed to soil compaction. Collembola are dependent upon the air filled pores in soil that are at least the same width of their bodies to penetrate soil layers (Larsen, Schjnning, & Axelsen, 2004). Whalley et al. (1995) conclude that soil compaction reduces biotic activity of earthworms and other fauna, and microbial activity becomes anaerobic in compacted soil conditions. Soil compaction changes the pore space which reduces aeration within the soil. It has been found that limited water infiltration due to compaction affects the concentration of nutrients such as nitrogen which decreases plant shoot and root growth (Lipiec & Stcpniewski, 1995) and (Bingham et al., 2010). Lipiec et. al (1995) also noted that soil compaction had a marked effect on the ability of nitrogen-fixing plants to produce nodules to fix nitrogen in the soil. Both the texture of the soil and history of compaction of a particular soil affect the strength of a soil. The more frequently a soil is exposed to compaction, the deeper the impacts extend. With repetitive compaction events, soil may become anaerobic and become unable to absorb rainfall, increasing erosion (Whalley et al., 1995).

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The aim of this experiment was to study the effects of different soil compaction levels on root biomass of the quick growing legume Mung beans (Vigna Radiata). The hypothesis was that with increasing soil compaction, the root biomass of the plant would decrease. Materials and Methods This study was performed in conjunction with CSS 560 through the University of Idahos Field Campus at the McCall Outdoor Science School (MOSS). The aim of the study was to look at an ecological concept of interest, in this case soil compaction and root biomass, and apply it to local conditions at the MOSS campus. For this reason, soil for this experiment was collected locally from the park and subjected to different levels of compaction in order to observe the effects of different levels of soil compaction on root biomass of Mung beans. Mung beans, although not native, were chosen due to their typical rapid growth and the time limitations of the experiment and are not native to the park. Soil was collected from Ponderosa State Park in McCall, Idaho on October 15, 2012. The soil was sifted using a soil sifter to exclude rocks and root material. The soil texture was loamy sand. The soil pH was 6.0 and was measured using pH strips in a soil slurry of tap water and soil from the sample. Three treatments of soil compaction were prepared: No Compaction, Moderate Compaction and Severe Compaction. There were three replications for each treatment making a total of nine pots. Each pot was filled with 2,000 mL of soil. The first treatment, No Compaction, was poured into the pots and labeled with its treatment name. The second treatment, Moderate Compaction, was compacted using a round log which was placed on top of the soil covering the entirety of the surface area. A rubber mallet was used to hit the top of the round log 10 times for each pot to create Moderate Compaction levels. The third treatment,

7 EFFECT OF SOIL COMPACTION ON MUNG BEAN ROOT BIOMASS

Severe Compaction, underwent the same process using the log but was subjected to 20 hits with the rubber mallet. Twenty sprouted Mung bean seeds were placed in each pot on top of the soil. All treatments were allocated water daily using a spray bottle and spraying each pot with equal amounts of water. At the end of three weeks, the plants were to be separated from the soil with their roots intact. The roots were to be dried for two days and weighed to compare differences in root biomass between the three treatments. This particular experiment was unsuccessful and the seedlings did not grow, likely because they were placed on top of the soil and not a few centimeters below. Due to the limitation of time for this project, hypothetical data was used based on data taken from research on the effects of soil compaction on maize root biomass dried and weighed after 21 days in three levels of soil compaction (Grzesiak et al., 2012). There were nine pots in the experiment, three for each treatment. Within each treatment, five root biomass weights were recorded. Using R 2.xx.xx (R Development Core Team) software, a two-sample t-test was conducted to see if there was a statistically significant difference between the different levels of compaction and the root biomass weights (Figure 1). Results The box plot had no overlap, indicating that there was a statistically significant difference between soil compaction severity and root biomass. The results from the boxplot were confirmed by the two-Samples t-test (p-value <0.05) (Table 1). The No compaction and Moderate compaction samples had a statistically significant difference with a p-value of 0.0007163. The No compaction and Severe compaction treatments had a statistically significant difference with a p-value of 0.0001248. The Moderate compaction

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and Severe compaction treatments also had a statistically significant difference with a p-value of 0.02493. Discussion The discussion of the data will focus mostly on the congruencies of the data within the literature on the effects of soil compaction due to the hypothetical nature of the data. The results of this study confirmed that increased soil compaction decreased root biomass for Mung bean plants. Results in this experiment were similar to results found in studies cited by (Whalley et al., 1995) where increased compaction levels on maize, wheat (Triticum aestivum) and cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) seedlings resulted in decreased root elongation and biomass at the same rates for each species within each compaction level. Whalley et. al. (1995) also cite similar finding for 19 different varieties of rice (Oryza sativa) when exposed to three different soil strengths, although the results of this experiment were difficult to interpret due to variance in responses, they found that the greatest elongation came in the weakest soils. A study looking at the effects of soil compaction and Nitrogen acquisition, (Bingham et al., 2010) found reduced root biomass due to compaction which was intensified with low Nitrogen levels. This data supports the assertion by Whalley et al. (1995) that the effects of soil compaction are intensified by reduced nutrients and soil moisture. This data expands on additional effects caused by soil compaction on root biomass. Bingham et al. (2010) also noted that their data was taken from samples after 14 days and more complex relationships between nutrient uptake and plant biomass may develop over longer periods of time. This information is important because Mung beans are an important agricultural crop and appropriate tillage approaches need to be used to manage the crop for the highest possible yield.

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Limitations noted within studies included the differences between lab settings and field studies as well as the difficulty in measuring actual soil compaction with tools available at present. The challenge with this research is translating results from lab and potted studies to the field where a myriad of factors in addition to compaction can influence root biomass (Chapman et al., 2012). Limitations to this particular study were the short time frame for data collection and with that the failure of the Mung beans to take root and subsequent use of hypothetical data. In conclusion, the effects of soil compaction on root biomass tend to be negative, although more research is needed to isolate the exact reactions, whether they are due solely to compaction, water distribution, porosity, temperature, farm versus forest settings or other factors. Different species of plants react differently to various levels of compaction, with some beneficial effects, thus more research should be conducted on the effects of agricultural crops and appropriate tillage methods to reduce compaction by tractor tires and improve crop yield. Soil compaction is an important issue for plant health and agricultural success and continued research to understand the full effects short and long term compaction on soil physical and chemical properties should be conducted to further understanding on this topic. Acknowledgements The author would like to acknowledge the help of Dr. Jan U.H. Eitel for his support and guidance in the writing of this article.

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Fig. 1. Box plots of different compaction treatments and weight in grams of root biomass.

Table 1. p-values from the Welch Two Sample t-tests between the different compaction treatments. Severe Compaction No Compaction No Compaction 0.0001248 ---------------Moderate Compaction 0.02493 0.0007163

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