How Does Specialization in Agricultural Production Affect Soil Health?

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dc.contributor.authorSzymańska, Magdalena
dc.contributor.authorGubiec, Wiktoria
dc.contributor.authorSmreczak, Bożena
dc.contributor.authorUkalska-Jaruga, Aleksandra
dc.contributor.authorSosulski, Tomasz
dc.date.accessioned2024-04-05T09:37:52Z
dc.date.available2024-04-05T09:37:52Z
dc.date.issued2024
dc.description.abstractThe aim of the study was to assess the impact of the specialization of agricultural production on selected parameters of soil health, i.e., soil organic carbon content (SOC), soil acidification, soil nutrient status, i.e., total nitrogen content (NT), available forms of phosphorus, potassium, and magnesium, and microelements content, as well as the content of selected potentially toxic metals (PTMs). For the study, 18 farms located in the Masovian Voivodeship in Central Poland were selected. They were grouped into six types, and each type was represented by three farms. The study included organic farms; farms specializing in: crop, vegetable, poultry, dairy cattle, and pigs production. A total of 144 soil samples were analyzed. The results showed that the specialization of agricultural production and fertilizer management had a significant impact on most of the tested soil health parameters, except SOC and NT content. Despite the high organic fertilizer doses introduced into soils in poultry (170 kg N per hectare as poultry manure) and pig farms (150 kg N per hectare as pig manure), there was no significant influence of these amendments on SOC content. This may indicate low organic carbon sequestration potential in some Polish agricultural soils. Organic farms had the lowest levels of plant nutrients in the tested soil samples, which may limit soil productivity. All the tested soils were strongly acidified, which could restrict both production and regulatory soil functions. Based on the synthetic index of soil fertility (SSFI), vegetable and poultry farms were characterized by very high fertility, while crop, dairy cattle, and pig farms fell into the medium fertility class. Organic farms were in the lowest fertility class. However, the study suggests that the SSFI may not be the best indicator for assessing soil fertility and health; therefore, further research is needed.
dc.description.sponsorshipThis research was funded by Warsaw University of Life Sciences within the System of Financial Support for Scientists and Research Teams No. 853-2-80-45-700400-S23014. The publication was financed under Task 7.0 of the targeted subsidy granted to IUNG-PIB by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Republic of Poland, in 2023.
dc.identifier.citationSzymańska, M.; Gubiec,W.; Smreczak, B.; Ukalska-Jaruga, A.; Sosulski, T. How Does Specialization in Agricultural Production Affect Soil Health? Agriculture 2024, 14, 424. https://doi.org/10.3390/ agriculture14030424
dc.identifier.citationAgriculture, 2024, Vol. 14, nr 3
dc.identifier.doi10.3390/agriculture14030424
dc.identifier.issn2077-0472
dc.identifier.urihttps://bc.iung.pl/handle/123456789/1089
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherMDPI, Basel, Switzerland
dc.titleHow Does Specialization in Agricultural Production Affect Soil Health?
dc.typeArticle
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