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Management and Soil-Quality Effects on

Fertilizer-Use Efficiency and Leaching

Article in Soil Science Society of America Journal · September 2003

Impact Factor: 1.72 · DOI: 10.2136/sssaj2003.1524

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 Management and Soil-Quality Effects on Fertilizer-Use Efficiency and Leaching
Todd M. Nissen and Michelle M. Wander*
ABSTRACT
We tested the hypothesis that particulate organic matter (POM)
and aggregate dry mean weight diameter (DMWD) are related to
fertilizer-use efficiency (FUE) and leaching susceptibility. Soil cores
(15 cm diam. by 50 cm depth) were collected from 12 farm fields
representing three cropping systems: conventional (CT) and no-tillage
(NT) management of corn (Zea mays L.)–soybean [Glycine max (L.)
Merr.] rotations, and CT applied to more diversified corn–soybean-
based rotations (R-CT). Three of the four R-CT farms were organi-
cally managed. In a 95-d greenhouse trial, cores were seeded with
corn, amended with 15N-labeled urea applied at four rates (0, 75, 150,
225 kg N ha⫺1), and subjected to a stressful moisture regime. Aggre-
gate DMWD, which serves as a rough index of pore-size distribution,
was greater in NT cores. Although total leached N was similar in all
cropping systems, increased macropore flow in NT cores led to greater
leaching of fertilizer N and less leaching of soil-derived N, as well as
greater moisture stress and decreased plant N uptake. The R-CT cores
had more POM and organic C in the top 30 cm of soil and higher
crop biomass and biomass-N content. However, FUE in R-CT cores
was relatively low since FUE does not account for contributions of
indigenous N. For the same reason, FUE remained relatively high in
CT systems despite less labile organic matter. Both FUE and SOM
conservation declined with increasing N application rates. Increasing
labile sources of N, reflected in POM pools, through crop diversifica-
tion can substitute for incremental increases in fertilizer N and im-
prove long-term productivity on Illinois Mollisols.
C ropping practices alter soil properties that may
influence soils’ susceptibility to degradation, its
ability to conserve and supply water and nutrients, de-
toxify materials, and recover from perturbation. Ideally,
a set of these properties that can be practically and
reliably measured will be related to outcomes of re-
gional importance. In the Midwest, where highly pro-
ductive but poorly drained soils are typically tile-
drained, N leaching is an important concern (David and
Gentry, 2000; Randall and Goss, 2001). Jaynes et al.
(2001) recently concluded that economically competi-
tive corn production cannot be sustained on an Iowa
field without degrading both water (by producing
NO3⫺ in excess of 10 mg L⫺1) and soil (by mining soil
organic matter [SOM]). That conclusion was based on
a study of corn yield and NO3 leaching response to
fertilizer inputs. In this region, it is vital to determine
whether and how the adoption of practices like NT and
the diversification of cash-grain based rotations that are
reputed to improve soil quality will enhance FUE, re-
duce N leaching losses, and conserve SOM. By relating
T.M. Nissen and M.M. Wander, Dep. of Natural Resources and Envi-
ronmental Sciences, Univ. of Illinois, 1102 S. Goodwin Ave., Urbana,
IL 61801. Received 26 Aug. 2002. *Corresponding author (mwander@
uiuc.edu).
Published in Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 67:1524–1532 (2003).
 Soil Science Society of America
677 S. Segoe Rd., Madison, WI 53711 USA
1524
outcomes to readily measurable parameters, we should
be able to better optimize management within different
regions and cropping systems.
This work follows up on previous findings suggesting
measures of POM and aggregation are particularly good
indicators of management practices’ influence on soil
quality (Carter, 2002). Both indicators have been found
to be sensitive to management practices in Illinois (Wan-
der and Bollero, 1999), and both are likely to be related
to crop nutrient acquisition, N leaching, and organic
matter dynamics. Measures of POM, which represent
relatively young (5–25 yr) biologically and physically
active organic matter, are thought to be predictive of
N mineralization potential (Boone, 1994; Yakovchenko
et al., 1998).
The influence of management on SOM and SOM-
related outcomes is complex, soil specific, and cropping-
system dependent. In the corn–soybean-based cropping
systems studied here, increases in surface-soil POM con-
tents reported for soils under NT management had come
at the expense of POM in subsoil, and total POM levels
in the profile were similar in NT and CT systems
(Needelman et al., 1999). Aggregate DMWD, which
may be inversely related to soil physical condition in
the Midwest, was not found to vary consistently between
NT and CT soils but was greater in cultivated than
uncultivated soils (Wander and Bollero, 1999). Labile
SOM and associated aggregate characteristics may be
less stratified by depth in diversified cropping systems
that are tilled. Such systems are frequently reported to
be more N conserving than their conventional counter-
parts (Poudel et al., 2001). Using Century, a simulation
model of long-term soil C dynamics, Yiridoe et al. (1997)
found that crop rotations have a greater effect on N
leaching than tillage, and that long crop rotations had
less N leaching than continuous corn, due to fewer N
inputs and to the uptake of spring and fall nitrate by
wheat. Enhanced physical protection of SOM associated
with aggregation may also explain N conservation in
such soils (Besnard et al., 1996; Wander et al., 1994).
The relationship between dry-aggregate size, which
is likely to be reduced in soils in diversified cropping
systems compared with those supporting mono- or bicul-
ture production, and N dynamics is probably a function
of soil water relations (Perfect and Kay, 1995). Interac-
tions between tillage, structure, and soil moisture status
influence the quantity and dynamics of labile SOM re-
tained in soils (Biederbeck et al., 1994; Franzluebbers
Abbreviations: CT, conventional tillage; DMWD, dry mean weight
diameter; FUE, fertilizer-use efficiency; FUE–15N, fertilizer-use effi-
ciency derived with 15N; FUE-diff, fertilizer-use efficiency derived by
difference method; NT, no tillage; POM, particulate organic matter;
PVC, polyvinyl chloride; R-CT, CT applied to more diversified corn–
soybean-based rotations; SOC, soil organic C; SOM, soil organic mat-
ter; Sys-FUE, system fertilizer-use efficiency.
 NISSEN & WANDER: MANAGEMENT AND SOIL QUALITY EFFECTS
et al., 1995). In non-irrigated soils, nutrient uptake and
leaching results must be considered in context with soils’
ability to provide adequate moisture in dry periods.
Bypass flow has been shown to distribute rainfall more
deeply in the profile, where evaporative loss is greatly
reduced (Shipitalo et al., 2000). This, combined with
greater soil-surface cover, is why the use of NT practices
under dry conditions can increase soil moisture com-
pared with CT soils (Ghaffarzadeh et al., 1997; Peterson
et al., 1996). However, if bypass flow goes directly to
tile lines, NT systems may suffer aggravated drought
effects. Use of NT practices has been shown to promote
and protect the macropores and pore connectivity that
facilitate infiltration (Drees et al., 1994; Roseberg and
McCoy, 1992). Fleming and Butters (1995) estimated
that tilling an untilled clay loam slowed solute velocity
by 35%. While abating runoff losses, rapid drainage to
ground water or shallow tile drainage may exacerbate
leaching problems and offset gains in nutrient use effi-
ciency (Kladivko et al., 1991; Tyler and Thomas, 1977)
unless bypass flow is less concentrated in soil nitrate N
than is matrix flow (Heathman et al., 1995; Shipitalo et
al., 2000).
The objective of this study was to evaluate the rela-
tionship between N leaching, FUE, and SOM conserva-
tion and soil properties thought to be useful predictors
of those outcomes, using soil from different cropping
systems subject to four N treatments. The presence of
relatively elevated labile N stocks in NT and diversified
cropping systems may make them vulnerable to N leach-
ing losses if they are subject to mismanagement (Berg-
ström, 1987; Randall et al., 1997), and high rates of N
application may prime labile organic matter (Liang et
al., 1998). Alternatively, a greater abundance of labile
SOM may enhance soils’ capacity to provide ecological
services and resist degradation under stress conditions
(Herrick and Wander, 1997). Enhanced water holding
capacity, for example, may diminish drought effects and
improve nutrient capture. We tested the hypotheses that
FUE is correlated positively with POM and negatively
with DMWD, and that leaching susceptibility is corre-
lated positively with DMWD but negatively with POM.
Our study design built on a tradition of on-farm research
common in soil quality work by using cores obtained
from working farms to ensure that influences of manage-
ment on soil properties and outcomes were robust
(Wander and Drinkwater, 2000). We used 15N to follow
the fate and transport of fertilizer N. By conducting our
study on intact cores in the greenhouse, we eliminated
climate and runoff as variables. Our imposition of a
moisture regime that emulated a wet early season fol-
lowed by drought and then a very wet postharvest period
was intended to maximize the importance of soil-water
supply and transport. The use of fiberglass wicks as
passive capillary samplers allowed us to generate and
collect leachate under appropriate drainage conditions
(Brandi-Dohrn et al., 1996).
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The experimental design was a split-plot in a randomized
complete block. Eight soil cores were taken from 12 different
1525
farms in central and western Illinois in May 1999. The privately
managed farms were blocked by four geographical locations
according to soil and climate characteristics, with farms consid-
ered random within a block. Each block contained three farms,
one for each of three tillage-rotation systems: conventional
tillage (moldboard and chisel plow) of a corn–soybean rotation
(CT); no-tillage of a corn–soybean rotation (NT); or conven-
tional tillage of a long rotation, in which at least one green
manure or cover crop (and typically an additional cash grain)
was in the rotation in addition to corn and soybean (R-CT).
All farms within a block contained soils of the same associa-
tion. Soils are mapped as Virden silty clay loams (Argiaquolls)
or Herrick silt loams (Argiudolls) in Blocks 1 and 2, Drummer
silty clay loams (Endoaquolls) in Block 3, and Muscatine silty
clay loams (Hapludolls) or Sable silty clay loams (Endoa-
quolls) in Block 4. Three of the four R-CT systems were
organically managed, relying exclusively on non-synthetic
sources for inputs and using biologically and culturally based
practices for weed and pest control. These cropping systems
had been in place a minimum of 5 yr, and all had been in the
corn phase in 1998.
Intact soil cores to a 50-cm depth were collected in 55-cm
long sections of 15-cm diam. polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipe,
beveled on one edge and fitted with a steel cap on the other.
Pipe sections were inserted and pulled from the ground with
a Giddings hydraulic probe. Four cores were pulled from each
of two locations within a farm for a total of 96 cores. These
locations had been sampled in the spring and fall of 1998 as
part of the second phase of the Illinois Soil Quality Initiative.
On the same day, soils were collected from each farm from
areas adjacent to the cores. Samples were taken to a depth
of 50 cm and divided into 0- to 5-, 5- to 15-, 15- to 30-, and 30-
to 50-cm increments. Cores were hung on racks in randomized
order in a University of Illinois greenhouse. A 50-cm length
of braided fiberglass was attached to the bottom of each core
to allow the collection of leachate samples from unsaturated
soils without applying suction. The wicks acted as hanging
water columns and supplied tension comparable to an addi-
tional 50 cm soil depth (Brandi-Dohrn et al., 1996). At the
soil interface, an additional 6 cm of the braid was frayed and
placed in contact with soil and kept in place with rubber PVC
caps. The bottom of the wick dripped into a sealed container.
All cores were saturated by watering in hourly 250-mL
increments until leaching just commenced, which was consid-
ered Day 0. All watering was done with a solution of 0.0001M
CaCl2 and 0.0001M MgSO4. Water was slowly dripped onto
the central area of the core (6 cm diameter) through pinholes
on the bottom of a plastic cup set on the soil surface of each
core. Water remaining in the cup because of insufficient pres-
sure was poured onto the core manually. Except for seven
problem cores, infiltration exceeded water application rate
and no water ran off the surface to the edge of the cores. One
day after the first watering, three seeds of sweet corn (Zea
mays L.‘Eagle’) were planted in each core just beyond the
perimeter of the watering area. At 3 wk, all but the best plant
in each core were pulled up and left on the soil surface to
decompose. Vegetative- and reproductive-growth stages were
recorded five times during the growing season. All standing
biomass was harvested after 88 d (10 d before the final rainfall
event), dried at 65⬚C for 48 h, weighed, and ground for analysis.
On Day 3, a watering regime was instituted that repre-
sented, based on the Illinois Agronomy Handbook (1998), a
typical wet early growing season (2.5 cm H2O wk⫺1 for 5 wk),
a dry mid-season (0.25 cm wk⫺1 for 5 wk), a wet late growing
season (1.9 cm wk⫺1 for 2 wk), and a wet postharvest season
1526 SOIL SCI. SOC. AM. J., VOL. 67, SEPTEMBER–OCTOBER 2003
condensed into a single event of 10 cm (Fig. 1a). No leaching
events occurred during the dry mid-season regime. On Day
6, a mixture of labeled and unlabeled urea dissolved in water
was applied with an auto-pipette to the soil surface in each
core receiving one of four N treatments: 0, 7.5, 15.0, and 22.5 g
N cm⫺2. This method was intended to minimize volatilization
and simulate a broadcast application incorporated through
rainfall. Final atom% excess 15N was 1.034.
Leaching volumes were measured 24 h after watering. Ni-
trate and 15N concentrations in leachate were determined with
a rapid diffusion method followed by analysis on a mass spec-
trometer (Khan et al., 1997). Two days after the last leachate
was collected, cores were split vertically with a circular saw.
Soils were split into four depths (0–5, 5–15, 15–30, and
30–50 cm), passed through a 25-mm sieve, weighed, and air-
dried. Subsamples for all C and N determinations were oven-
dried at 105⬚C for 24 h and finely ground in a Spex disk
mill (Spex Industries, Inc., Edison, NJ). Attempts to minimize
Fig. 1. Cropping-system influence on (a) cumulative amount of water
leached and water applied (bars), (b) leachate N concentration,
and (c) cumulative amount of 15N recovered in leachate. Cropping
systems are conventional tillage, corn–soybean (CT), no-tillage,
corn–soybean (NT) and conventional tillage in corn–soybean-
based systems in a minimum 3-yr rotation (R-CT). Error bars are
standard error.
cross-contamination of isotopic samples were taken by pro-
cessing samples in likely ascending order of atom% 15N con-
centrations. Total C, total N, and 15N in soil and plant samples
were measured on a Europa Scientific Integrated 13C–15N ana-
lyzer (PDZ Europa Ltd., Crewe, UK). Aggregate DMWD
was determined by placing 300 to 400 g of air-dried soil on a
stack of two sieves with 4- and 1-mm openings, shaking the
soil for 1 min with a Ro-tap sieve (W.S. Tylor, Inc., Mentor,
OH), and calculating after Youker and McGuiness (1957).
We elected to use dry-sieved rather than wet-sieved aggregates
because their characteristics have been related to seedbed
quality, erodibility, and solute transport in structured soils
(Perfect et al., 1997). Additionally, unlike measures of wet-
aggregate stability, which are difficult to causally link to func-
tionality in intact soils (Young et al., 2001), aggregate DMWD
is likely to be a useful structural surrogate, providing insight
into water storage and transport as well as physical protection
of organic matter in intact soil. Methods for determining POM-
C and POM-N are found in Wander and Bollero (1999). Fertil-
izer-use efficiency was assessed both as the percent of applied
15
N recovered in the biomass (FUE–15N) and as the difference
(FUE-Diff) in N uptake between fertilized plants and non-
fertilized controls, divided by the rate of N application. We
also measured total fertilizer-N capture by plant and soil (Cass-
man et al., 2002) as an indicator of system fertilizer-use effi-
ciency (Sys-FUE). These methods allowed us to examine la-
beled and unlabeled N fractions to account for the influences
of priming (Rao et al., 1991) and N pool substitution (Jenkin-
son et al., 1985). Total biomass is used as a measure of produc-
tivity because drought stress applied during the experiment
was severe enough to inhibit grain filling in many plants. Statis-
tical analyses were performed with the SAS Univariate,
Mixed, and Correlation procedures (SAS Institute Inc., 1994).
Seven of the cores ponded water on the surface and did not
drain. These seven were removed from the analyses.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Cropping Systems
Leachate volume was significantly greater from NT
cores than from cores collected from the two tilled treat-
ments (Fig. 1a). However, because N concentrations in
leachate were lowest from NT cores (Fig. 1b), the total
amount of N leached during the study was similar in all
treatments (Fig. 2a). Based on 15N recovery, approxi-
mately half of the N leached from NT cores was derived
from fertilizer compared with only one quarter of the
leached N from tilled cores (Fig. 2a). The greater leach-
ate volume and quantity of fertilizer-derived N leached
from NT cores suggest that bypass flow was greater in
the NT than the tilled treatments. In bypass flow, rainfall
and fertilizer-N still in inorganic form mix at the soil
surface and move rapidly through the profile in mac-
ropores, limiting opportunity for retention or transfor-
mation within the soil matrix. Reduced matrix flow in
NT soils accounts for the comparatively low losses of
soil-derived N from those cores (Fig. 2a) and mitigated
the potential for elevated N leaching under NT manage-
ment. These results support previous findings that sug-
gest that bypass flow in NT, combined with appropriate
N management, may deliver similar quantities of N to
ground water, but in reduced concentrations (Heathman
et al., 1995; Kumar et al., 1999).
Relatively reduced losses of soil N from NT cores
 NISSEN & WANDER: MANAGEMENT AND SOIL QUALITY EFFECTS 1527

Fig. 3. Influence of N application rate on (a) plant dry matter and

(b) N in dry matter at plant harvest in three cropping systems.
Cropping systems are conventional tillage, corn–soybean (CT), no-
tillage, corn–soybean (NT), and conventional tillage in corn–
soybean-based systems in a minimum 3-yr rotation (R-CT). The
lines connect experimental data points and do not represent a
function.
Fig. 2. Contributions of fertilizer-derived N and soil-derived N to (a)
total leached N from cores and (b) total N uptake in plant biomass.
Within each graph, column segments labeled with the same lower- mass-N content was less than that in tilled treatments
case letter, and whole columns labeled with the same uppercase regardless of N application rate (Fig. 3b).
letter, are not significantly different at P ⬍ 0.05. For biomass N Greater 15N leaching losses and moisture stress in the
uptake, R-CT is greater than CT at P ⬍ 0.054. NT cores may explain why uptake of fertilizer-derived
N (Fig. 2b) and FUE–15N (Table 1) were greater in CT
might be due in part to reduced N availability in that than in NT cores. The POM-N and initial total soil N
treatment. Differences in leachate-N concentrations of contents of soils (0–30 cm) were similar in NT and CT
tilled and NT cores were greatest during the first wetting soils (Fig. 4); thus, differences in soil N supply potential
event, which took place before fertilizer was applied alone do not explain differences in FUE–15N. Estimates
(Fig. 1b). Comparatively low N availability in NT cores of FUE-diff were higher than FUE–15N, but means did
is consistent with observations that N limitation in the not differ among cropping systems (Table 1). These
region may be greater under NT management (Illinois results highlight issues associated with the interpretation
Agronomy Handbook, 1998). Spring tillage likely stimu- of estimates of FUE. Estimates of fertilizer recovery
lated mineralization and enhanced N availability in the obtained with the difference method are often higher
CT treatments. By comparison, NT cores had relatively than those obtained with isotopic labels due to added
low crop growth without fertilization and the largest Table 1. Fertilizer fate as determined though percentage recovery
increase with N additions (Fig. 3). For NT cores, the of labeled fertilizer (FUE–15N) and the difference between fer-
first 7.5 g N m⫺2 added to unfertilized cores significantly tilized and unfertilized cores (FUE-diff). System fertilizer-use
increased the amount of soil-derived N taken up in the efficiency (Sys-FUE) is the sum of labeled fertilizer recovered
in biomass and soil.
plant, which suggests that in the absence of tillage, fertil-
ization may substantially increase mineralization rates. FUE–15N FUE-diff
Also, reduced crop development-stage means in unfer- Treatment Biomass Soil Sys-FUE Biomass
tilized NT cores were noted before the onset of the %
drought, although drought-induced stress likely contrib- Cropping System
uted to their greatly reduced biomass growth. Soil water CT 46.4a† 28.6ab 74.7a 53.8a
NT 36.1b 26.0b 62.7b 51.0a
that drains directly to shallow tile drains via bypass flow R-CT 40.6b 32.5a 73.4a 50.8a
does not contribute to moisture recharge and may leave N Rate, g m⫺2
7.5 43.4a 31.6a 76.8a 63.2a
NT soils more prone to drought where water losses 15.0 42.3ab 29.6ab 71.9a 52.0ab
are not offset by reduced evaporation from NT soils 22.5 37.4b 26.0b 63.6b 40.5b
(Shipitalo et al., 2000). Greater moisture stress in NT † Values in the same column and section followed by the same letter are
cores may have also limited crop N acquisition, as bio- not significantly different at P ⬍ 0.05.
1528 SOIL SCI. SOC. AM. J., VOL. 67, SEPTEMBER–OCTOBER 2003

Fig. 4. Depth distribution of (a) initial total N and (c) final POM-N in conventional tillage, corn–soybean (CT), no-tillage, corn–soybean (NT)
and conventional tillage in a three crop-minimum rotation (R-CT). Plots (b) and (d) are the depth-weighted means of these fractions. Values
at the same depth followed by the same letter are not significantly different from each other at P ⬍ 0.05.

N interactions (ANI) (Jenkinson et al., 1985; Rao et al.,
1991). As Olk et al. (1999) indicate, increases in FUE-
diff do not reveal whether they result from improved
fertilizer uptake efficiencies or from declines in indige-
nous soil N supply. Our work shows that estimates of
FUE based on either method do not provide sufficient
information about indigenous soil N supply. Despite
differences in net crop N uptake, similar estimates of
FUE-diff were obtained because crops responded simi-
larly to N additions. The greater FUE–15N of the CT
system was achieved despite declines in SOC and POM
contents in that system. In this experiment, pool substi-
tution, in which labeled N may be disproportionately
immobilized or denitrified, may contribute not only to
decreased recovery in biomass with the 15N method, but
also to the increased soil 15N recovery at the expense
of biomass 15N recovery in R-CT cores (Table 1). Even
if a comparable portion of the soil-derived N in R-CT
cores is suspected to have resulted from pool substitu-
tion, contributions of soil-derived N to R-CT biomass
were still higher than in the other treatments (Fig. 2).
This is consistent with the findings of Harris et al. (1994)
and Kramer et al. (2002), who compared 15N uptake in
organic and conventionally managed soils. System FUE
(Sys-FUE), which removes pool substitution as a factor
to the extent that 15N replaces unlabeled N that was to
be immobilized and not denitrified, was lowest in the
NT and similar in the two tilled treatments (Table 1).
In our study, enhanced soil N supply potential in
the R-CT treatments is suggested by relatively elevated
organic matter and POM-C and POM-N contents in the
surface depth (Fig. 4) and by greater biomass N uptake
in 0-N treatments (Fig. 3b). Greater fertilizer retention
and greater POM stocks in the R-CT treatment indicate
that enhanced soil N supply is not the result of net
organic matter loss. Harris et al. (1994) and Kramer et
al. (2002) also found greater retention of added N in the
organic production systems they studied. In our work,
unlike those cited, 15N was added as urea to all systems
instead of added as organic N in the diversified system.
Accordingly, our results demonstrate the influence of
indigenous soil N supply on N dynamics by removing the
separate influence of amendment quality on N turnover.
In all treatments, POM was enriched in 15N compared
with the bulk soil. While accounting for ⬍3% of total
N, POM in the top 30 cm contained approximately 10%
of all 15N retained in the soil. This is consistent with
findings of Balabane and Balesdent (1992) who found
fertilizer-derived N was concentrated in fine-clay and
particle-size fractions ⬎200 ␮m after one season of
maize culture. They equated 15N in the coarse fraction
with root N assimilation. It is also likely that microbial
degradation of resident POM may act as a sink for
fertilizer-derived N, at least initially, facilitating incor-
poration of 15N into new SOM (Vanlauwe et al., 1998).
Even though the amount of 15N recovered in POM was
 NISSEN & WANDER: MANAGEMENT AND SOIL QUALITY EFFECTS
Fig. 5. Influence of N-fertilizer rate on (a) cumulative water leached
and applied (bars), (b) leachate N concentration, and (c) cumulative
amount of 15N recovered in leachate. Nitrogen rates are 0, 7.5, 15,
and 22.5 g N m⫺2 soil. Error bars are standard error.
similar in all farming system treatments, the 2.44% of
POM-N derived from fertilizer in the R-CT cores was
less than the 3.97% of CT cores and 3.58% of NT cores.
This result, which was due to the high POM-N contents
in the R-CT treatment (Fig. 4d), indicates that enhanced
conservation of fertilizer-N in the R-CT treatment was
due to 15N-assimilation into non-particulate humic or
microbial materials.
Nitrogen Rate
Leaching volume was greatest from the non-fertilized
control, where poorer plant growth may have limited
water uptake (Fig. 5a). Trends in leached total N
(Fig. 5b) and leached fertilizer-derived N (Fig. 5c) were
consistent with fertilizer application rates. Higher N ap-
plication rates resulted in higher and delayed peak con-
centrations of leached N (Fig. 5b). In all treatments,
more than 75% of all leached fertilizer-derived N did
so during the first 3 wk after application. At the end of
the season, after mean N concentrations had diminished
to below 4 mg L⫺1, the single application of 10 cm of
1529
Table 2. End-of-season C and N contents in total soil and the
particulate organic matter (POM) fraction. Total soil measure-
ments are to 50cm; POM measurements are to 30 cm.
Total Soil POM
N fert C† N‡ C/N C N C/N
g m⫺ 2 g m⫺ 2
0 12 419ab§ 1 022ab 12.15b 285.1a 15.7a 18.3c
7.5 12 727a 1 052a 12.10b 283.6a 14.3ab 20.1b
15 12 771a 1 058a 12.07b 253.6a 13.8ab 18.6c
22.5 12 286b 981b 12.52a 272.4a 12.3b 22.5a
† Mean initial amount was 12853 g m⫺2, with no differences between
treatments.
‡ Mean initial amount was 1059 g m⫺2, with no differences between
treatments.
§ Values in the same column and section followed by the same letter are
not significantly different at P ⬍ 0.05.
water to simulate heavy fall rains again stimulated N
losses that reflected N fertilization rates. Even though
the amount of 15N recovered in leachate increased with
N rate, the percentage of fertilizer-N leached was consis-
tently 2.3%. Total leaching losses of 12 kg N ha⫺1 from
treatments receiving the highest N rate were only 4 kg
N ha⫺1 higher than losses from 0-N treatments. Given
that these differences are exceeded by an order of mag-
nitude the differences between N uptake in the biomass
(Fig. 2b), leaching outcomes provide less economic in-
centive for reducing fertilization rates than considera-
tions of FUE.
All measures of FUE declined with increasing fertil-
ization rate (Table 1). Increased N losses were ostensibly
to the atmosphere. The amount of N remaining in soil
was lowest in the cores receiving the most N fertilizer
(Table 2), and the magnitude of this difference in soil
N content cannot be accounted for by biomass N uptake.
The significant losses of N occurring at the highest N
rate were accompanied by declines in SOC (Table 2).
These losses, in addition to diminished POM-N contents
and reduced recovery of 15N, suggests ‘real’ priming
occurred whereby fertilizer-N stimulated mineralization
of SOM (Kuzyakov et al., 2000). Conditions applied in
this experiment are likely to have amplified trends that
might not appear in the field where priming of native
SOC and N might be compensated for by residue return.
Others have noted similar within-season losses of SOC
when, as was true in our study, crop growth is poor or
stover is not returned to the soil (Clapp et al., 2000;
Grant et al., 2001). Stimulated mineralization was ex-
pected to disproportionately affect labile organic matter
such as POM-C and POM-N (Gregorich and Ellert,
1993). However, POM-C did not appear to be primed
by fertilizer addition (Table 2). The magnitude of N
loss from POM was quite small compared with losses
from whole soil, indicating that mineral-associated SOM
was primed. Particulate organic matter-C and POM-N
losses from priming may have occurred but offset within
the season by fertilizer-stimulated root growth.
The percentage of fertilizer-N that leached was small
relative to unaccounted-for losses of 23 to 34%. This
supports Raun et al.’s (1998) caution that unaccounted-
for N losses should not be assumed to have leached
when leaching is not directly measured. Although urea
fertilizers are susceptible to volatilization losses, the
1530 SOIL SCI. SOC. AM. J., VOL. 67, SEPTEMBER–OCTOBER 2003

moist and sometimes water-saturated conditions during
this experiment likely made denitrification the major
path of N loss in the high N treatments (Aulakh et al.,
1992). Given the loss risks associated with incremental
increases of fertilizer N, and considered with the obser-
vation that POM-enriched R-CT cores had the greatest
uptake of total N, it is reasonable to assume that in-
creases in efficiency can be achieved through replace-
ment of a portion of fertilizer-derived N with indigenous
N. In-field N dynamics may differ from those observed
in this column study since soils would experience crop-
ping-system based differences in water partitioning be-
tween infiltration and runoff that would affect leaching
rates (Brye et al., 2001). In field soils, the residence time
of N percolating through the soil matrix would likely
be longer than it was in the 50-cm cores; this should
increase the chances of N recovery by expanding roots
and reduce losses from leaching. No cropping system ⫻
N-rate interactions were significant in the reported
results.
Soil Quality Parameters Associated with Nutrient
Fate, Leaching, and SOM Conservation
Soil POM-C concentration was positively correlated
with total biomass N and the amount of soil-derived N
in the biomass, which is consistent with the thesis that
POM is positively related to soil N supply capacity
(Table 3). Despite the fact that there was no correlation
between POM-C and any measure of FUE, including
Sys-FUE, 15N recovery in soil was positively related to
POM-C. We used POM-C instead of POM-N as an
index of the status of labile organic matter because its
greater range and abundance in soils allows this measure
to better integrate management-induced changes in or-
ganic matter. Soil POM-N contents are frequently corre-
lated with, but do not typically provide a direct measure
of, plant available N (Boone, 1994; Wander and Bidart,
2000), which is expected to be associated with microbial
residues typically recovered in non-particulate fractions.
Unlike POM, clay content and bulk density—parameters
often used as coefficients in predictive models—were
negatively correlated with measures of FUE. Plant 15N
uptake declined with increasing clay content while in-
creased bulk density was weakly related to reduced
FUE-diff. This likely reflects incorporation of fertilizer-
derived N into SOM affiliated with clay and/or protected
by aggregates (Beare et al., 1994; Hassink, 1996). Collec-
tively these findings support Hassink’s (1996) assertion
that the protective capacity of soil has more influence
on N availability than the amount of N contained in
POM. Aggregate DMWD of the top 5 cm of soil was
negatively correlated with biomass acquisition of total
and soil-derived N; this is consistent with N uptake
trends noted in the NT treatment, in which DMWD
(0–5 cm) was greater than in the tilled treatments
(P ⬍ 0.03).
Given the interplay between physical, biological, and
chemical processes that result in tradeoffs between N
losses in bypass flow and matrix flow, estimating leach-
ing risk through soil quality parameters is not likely
to be straightforward. While SOC concentration was
correlated with the amount of total and soil-derived N
leached (Table 3), it did not adequately capture the
dynamics of fertilizer movement to ground water. In
this experiment, DMWD of the top 5 cm soil, which
itself was correlated to clay content and bulk density,
provided better correlations with leaching volume, leached
total N, and leached 15N than any of the other parame-
ters. Based on hierarchical theory of aggregation (Dex-
ter, 1988), an increase in DMWD for soils of the same
bulk density probably represents an increased percent-
age of macropores at the expense of water-storage mes-
opores, especially at higher DMWD values. This is con-
sistent with the evidence of increased macropore flow
in NT cores and suggests that DMWD may serve as a
rough index of surface pore-size distribution and sup-
ports our assertion that dry-sieved aggregates may pro-
vide a more useful index of structure-dependent pro-
cesses than aggregates obtained by wet-sieving. In an
effort to relate aggregate stability parameters to runoff

Table 3. Pearson correlation coefficients (and P values) for soil quality and leaching parameters. All parameters are for 0 to 50 cm,
except where indicated.
DMWD† BD Clay‡ Total C POM-C§
g cm⫺3 g kg⫺1
Nutrient Use
Biomass N ⫺0.28 (0.009) ⫺.004 ⫺.08 ⫺.06 0.24 (.029)
FUE: 15N method ⫺0.10 .05 ⫺.26 (.0309) ⫺.09 ⫺.08
FUE: Difference method 0.02 ⫺.21 (.086) .02 .16 ⫺.06
Soil-derived N in Biomass ⫺0.26 (.024) ⫺.09 .02 .08 .55 (⬍.0001)
System FUE ⫺0.05 .10 ⫺.29 (.018) ⫺.22 (.07) .14
Leaching outcomes
Leachate, mL 0.63 (⬍.0001) 0.17 0.34 (0.0012) 0.23 (0.0326) ⫺0.21 (0.0513)
Leached N, mg 0.27 (0.0241) ⫺0.05 0.03 0.25 (0.02) 0.15
15
N Recovery, % 0.59 (⬍.0001) 0.29 (0.016) 0.16 0.08 0.02
Soil-derived N in leachate 0.09 ⫺.27 (.012) ⫺.09 0.32 (.0025) 0.23 (.039)
DMWD – 0.34 (.001) 0.30 (0.0038) ⫺0.01 ⫺0.10
SOM Conservation
C Loss ⫺0.21 (0.046) ⫺.39 (.0002) ⫺.57 (⬍.0001) .18 (.09) ⫺.20 (.07)
15
N Recovery in soil ⫺0.14 .05 ⫺.16 ⫺.16 .33 (.0074)
† Dry mean weight diameter to 5 cm.
‡ Percentage of clay to 15 cm.
§ POM-C to 30 cm.
 NISSEN & WANDER: MANAGEMENT AND SOIL QUALITY EFFECTS
and soil loss, Rasiah and Kay (1995) found wet aggre-
gate stability could only be related to soil loss though
its indirect influences on time to ponding.
The relationship between indicators and conservation
of organic matter was investigated by relating parame-
ters to organic matter loss (SOC initial ⫺ SOC final)
and to 15N retained in soil. Both POM-C and DMWD
were negatively related to losses, but neither was a bet-
ter predictor of SOC balance than were clay content
or bulk density (Table 3). The negative relationship
between POM-C and C losses likely reflects previously
mentioned root offsets to losses plus the positive role
of aggregate protection, while the negative relationships
between DMWD, clay content, and bulk density with
C losses is explained by physical protection alone. The
importance of organic matter assimilation to SOM bal-
ance and its association with POM dynamics and soil
N supply is further suggested by the correlation between
15
N retention in soil and POM-C content (Table 3).
Cropping-system based differences in fertilizer reten-
tion in soil and POM contents may better reflect the
nuanced differences in N economy than does FUE or
Sys-FUE. Neither FUE nor Sys-FUE appropriately
credit additions to system efficiency derived from in-
creased indigenous N supply that result from use of
diversified and, in this instance, predominately organic
cropping systems.
CONCLUSION
Differences in the leaching, FUE, system FUE and
SOM conservation performance of the three farming
systems were related to soil structure and SOM status.
Dry aggregate stability appeared to reflect differences
in pore-size distribution and macropore-flow potential,
providing good correlations with leaching volume and
leached fertilizer-N. The NT systems had greater DMWD,
but increased bypass flow and leached fertilizer-N in
NT did not result in elevated total N leaching because
soil N was less available in NT soils during the early
season when the bulk of N leaching occurred. Greater
leachate losses from NT cores likely aggravated their
water stress and limited their N acquisition, thereby
lowering their FUE compared with CT cores. In tilled
soils, greater moisture and spring-tillage-induced N
availability resulted in greater crop growth in control
soils and in reduced crop response to added N. In the
same way that DMWD reflected differences in solute
transport dynamics, measures of POM-C appeared to
capture some of the short-term C and N assimilation
and mineralization dynamics. Elevated levels of POM
were positively correlated with soil-derived leachate-N,
soil-derived plant-uptake N, and retention of 15N in the
soil. Soil POM contents, along with total plant N uptake,
were higher in the R-CT than in either of the 2-yr rota-
tions. Despite this, FUE was not higher in R-CT cores
because FUE does not credit additions to system effi-
ciency derived from increased indigenous N supply. The
influence of indigenous soil N supply on N dynamics
was highlighted by using inorganic fertilizer and remov-
ing the separate influence of amendment quality on N
1531
turnover. Both POM and DMWD may serve useful in
indices of soil quality or models of soil performance, in
that each integrate to some extent the physical, chemi-
cal, and biological status of the soil but with different
emphases. Fertilization rates had a strong influence on
FUE and C conservation, with high rates reducing FUE,
increasing N losses, and priming SOC. Results suggest
improvement in N economy could likely be gained by
increasing pools of POM-N through cropping system
diversification to replace marginal increases in fertil-
izer-N.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Appreciation is expressed to Airiazran Ahadi, L. Art
Spomer, Germán Bollero, and Charles Boast for their assis-
tance. Support for this research was obtained from the Illinois
Department of Agriculture Council for Food and Agricultural
Research: IDA CFAR 98E-47 and the Illinois Department of
Agriculture Conservation 2000: IDOA SA 97-62.
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