Carbon Decomposition in an

Organic Farming System

Alassane Sissoko
Dr. K .Kpomblekou-A
Department of Agriculture and
Environmental Sciences

Tuskegee University

Overview
1- Introduction
2- Literature review
3- Statement of the problem
4-Objectives
5-Materials and Methods
6- Results and Discussion
8-Acknowledgements
9-References

Introduction
. Black oat is used widely in southeastern USA for grazing, grain
production and as cover crop (Derpsch 2002), and because of his dry
matter production it has a lot carbon to nitrogen ratio (C/N ratio).
. Crimson clover is slow to establish and produce biomass, but it is a
legume able to provide additional N (30 to 90 kg ha -1) to subsequent
crops (Wagger et al. 1998) along with food and refuge for beneficial
insects, thus enhancing system diversity (Tillman et al. 2004).
. A first order kinetic model can describe the CO2 evolution in soils
amended with various plants materials (Ajwa and Tabatabai, 1994).

Introduction
. Modeling which represent an attempt of mathematical description of a
natural event is to obtain quantitative data for recommending nitrogen and
carbon addition (Tanji, 1982).
. The soil carbon mineralization potential, Co, has been defined as the quantity of
soil organic C that is susceptible to mineralization according to first order
kinetic (Stanford and Smith 1972).
. A common approach to obtain kinetic data is the long-term incubation of
soil or litter under controlled environmental conditions (Stanford and
Smith 1972). And aerobic incubation allowed the determination of C
mineralization potential via daily titration.

Literature review
. Sustainable management of agricultural ecosystems requires incorporation of
plant residue in soil. Plant residue input can influence soil organic matter as a
result of their quantity and biodegradability (Dick and Gregorich, 2004).
. According to Harry H. Schomberg et al (2005) there is a limited information on
the suitability of black oat as winter crop in the southeastern USA and more
information is needed on the growth potential as well their effects on short and
long term C availability in organic farming systems.

Literature review
. Composting, a biological process of aerobic decomposition that degrades labile
organic matter to water , CO2 , ammonia, inorganic nutrient and stable organic
material confining humic-like substances allow to have an environmentally-safe
and agronomically-advantageous soil organic amendment, but has important
requirement of time and space (Senesi, 1989).
. A study of (Stanford et al 1973) indicated that Co has intrinsic value in
predicting amount of soil carbon mineralized under specified environmental
conditions. However, successful application of the concept will lead on
developing a reliable short-term method for determining Co.

Statement of the problems

Large quantities of organic ameliorants are added each year
to soil under organic managements.
The decomposition rates of the added organic amendments
in the transition period and there after are not well
understood.
Understanding of the decomposition rates will help to predict
contributions of the organic C pools to the global CO2
balance in the environment.

Objectives
The objectives are:
1- To determine the decomposition rate of organic C in an
organic farming system.
2- To investigate the effect of Sweet potato cultivars on the
decomposition rate of the added organic C.
3- Establish relationship between Sweet potato yields and organic C
levels in the soil.

Materials and methods

Description of the site

The research field is located at the George Washington Carver Agricultural

Experimental Station at Tuskegee University, Tuskegee Alabama.The soil is a
Marvyn sandy loam (fine-loamy, kaolinitic, thermic, Typic Kanhapludults).
The experimental design is a Randomized Completely Block Design with four
replicates and four treatments:
Control (without any amendment)
NPK preceded by cover crops
Crimson clover-Black Oat mixture
Broiler litter preceded by cover crops

Materials and Methods (contd)

Each main plot of 5420 was split into three equal subplot of 2012 to test
the three sweet potato cultivars

Beauregard

ASP 12-6

606258
Each main plot was replicated four times to give four blocks containing 48
experimental units

Soil Sampling

Soil samples were collected at incremental depths 0-1, 1-2, 2-3, 3-5, 5-10, 1015 cm depth using an auger.

Soil samples were passed through a sieve (<2mm) and air dried for 48 hrs.

Materials and Methods (Contd)

Incubation studies

A moisture of a 20-g soil sample ( on an oven-dry basis) was adjusted

to 0.03 MPa and incubated in a 250 ml French square bottle at room
temperature for 30 days.

The CO2 evolution apparatus consisted of:

A scrubber connected to a compress air source (JUN AIR
International A/S Denmark) model OF301 DC motor.
A tygon tube connect the incubation tube to the test tube containing
25 ml of known molarity NaOH (0.2 M) to trap the CO2 evolved.
A scrubber to trap any hydrocarbon, particulates and nitrogen from
the compress air.

Control were also established to trap the CO2 evolved from empty bottles.

The CO2 trapped was determined by titrating 20 ml aliquot of the NaOH

solution from the test tube with a standard HCl solution (0.2 M).

Materials and Methods (Contd)

Before titrating excess of 0.375 M BaCl2 (6 ml) was added to precipitate the

sodium bicarbonate. The CO2 evolved from each bottle was calculated.
The non linear regression approach of Smith et al. (1980) for N mineralization
was used to solve the equation for the mineralized organic C pools (Co) and
the first order rate constant (K).
Cm = Co [1-exp(-kt)]
Where Cm is a organic C mineralized (mg kg-1) at a specific time (t). The
statistical analysis system (SAS) computer language was used to calculate Co
and k (Barr et al. 1976).

Fig. 1. Zero Air Generators

Fig. 2. PMD Miniature Air Dryers

Materials and Methods (Contd)

Decomposition rate of (ki) of the organic C pool was calculated

from slopes of the linear segment of curves obtained from
plotting the natural log of organic C remaining against time as
described by (Gilmour et al., 1997).

The ki value of the resistant fraction was used to calculate the

half life ( t ) of the most resistant C fraction in the organic
material
t () =0.693/ki

Results and Discussion

pH

Results

Beauregard
ASP-12.6
606258

Control

BL

Clover

NPK

Treatment

Fig.1. PH under various treatments in organic plot.

Beauregard
ASP-12.6
606258

Bulk density, gcm3

1.5

1.0

0.5

0.0

Control

BL

Clover

NPK

Treatment

Fig. 2. Bulk density under various treatments in organic plot.

Yield of Sweet potato, (t/ha)

30

Beauregard
ASP-12.6
606258

25
20
15
10
5
0

Control

BL

CLover

NPK

Treatment
Fig.3. Yield of sweet potato root under various treatments.

Cumulative CO2 - C evolved g kg-1

Control
Broiler Litter
Clover
NPK

10

15

20

25

Day

Fig. 4. Cumulative CO2 evolved during 28 days incubation period of 0-1 cm

profile depth at the Organic farm under various treatment plots.

L n O rg a n ic C re m a in in g

3.20

k1

Control

3.16

k2

3.12

k3

3.08

k4

k5

3.04

k1

3.28

Broiler Litter

k2

3.24
3.20

k3

3.16

k4

3.12

k5

3.08

k1

2.95

Clover

k2

2.90

k3

2.85

k4

2.80

k5

2.75
2.70

k1

NPK

3.05

k2

3.00

k3

2.95

k4

2.90

k5

2.85
0

10

15

20

25

30

Time (day)

Fig. 5. Natural log of organic C remaining in the control (untreated),

broiler litter, crimson clover, and NPK plots as a function of time.

Conclusion
1. The soil pH was about 5.8 in all plots indicating that the treatments imposed has
contributed very little soil acidity.
2. The bulk density measured in the plots was similar, therefore the treatment
imposed did not change the soil porosity.
3. The rate of decomposition followed the following order Control > NPK > Broiler
litter > Crimson clover.
4. Addition of crimson clover slightly increased the organic C pool in the 0-1 cm
depth.

Acknowledgments
Project supported by G.W.C.E.S
Dr. Kpomblekou-A.

References
. Ajwa, H.A., Tabatabai, M.A., 1994. Decomposition of different organic
materials in soils. Biology and fertility of soils, 18(3):175-182.
. Blake, G.R., Hartge, K.H., 1986. Bulk density. In: Klute A. (Ed.), Methods of
Soil Analysis. Part 1. Agronomy second ed. American Society of Agronomy,
Madison, WI, USA, pp. 363-375.
. Caamal-Maldonado, J.A., Jimenez-Osornio, J.J., Torres-Barragan, A., Anaya,
AL., 2001. The use of allelopathic legume cover and mulch species for weed
control in cropping systems. Agron. J. 93:27-36.
. Derpsch, R., 2002 German researcher reflects on 30 years of conservation tillage
outreach.
. Lal, R., 2004.Soil carbon sequestration to mitigate climate change. Geoderma
123:1485-1498.

References
. Stanford, G., and S. J. Smith. 1972. Nitrogen mineralization potentials of soils.
Soil Science Society of America Proceedings 36: 465-472.
. Tanji, K.K., 1982. Economic implication of control on nitrogen fertilizer use. In:
Stevenson, F.J Nitrogen in agricultural soils. Madison: ASA/SSSA, p.721-772.
. Terry, R.E., Nelson, D.W., Sommers, L.E., 1979. Carbon cycling during sewage
sludge decomposition in soils. Soil Sc Soc Am J. 43:494-499.
. Tillman, G., Schomberg, H., Phatak, S., Mullinix., B, Lachnicht, S., Timper, P.,
Olson, D., 2004. Influence of cover crops on insect pests and predators in
conservation tillage cotton. J Econ Entomol 97:1217-1232.
. Wagger., MG, Cabrera., ML, Ranells, NN. (1998). Nitrogen and carbon cycling
in relation to cover crop residue quality. J Soil Water Consv 53:214-218.

THANKS