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Inclusion of cover crops (CCs) may be a potential strategy to boost no-till performance by improving soil physicalproperties. To assess this potential, we utilized a winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)–grain sorghum [Sorghumbicolor (L.) Moench] rotation, four N rates, and a hairy vetch (HV; Vicia villosa Roth) CC aft er wheat duringthe fi rst rotation cycles, which was replaced in subsequent cycles with sunn hemp (SH; Crotalaria juncea L.) andlate-maturing soybean [LMS; Glycine max (L.) Merr.] CCs in no-till on a silt loam. At the end of 15 yr, we studiedthe cumulative impacts of CCs on soil physical properties and assessed relationships between soil propertiesand soil organic C (SOC) concentration. Across N rates, SH reduced near-surface bulk density (ρb) by 4% andincreased cumulative infi ltration by three times relative to no-CC plots. Without N application, SH and LMSreduced Proctor maximum ρb, a parameter of soil compactibility, by 5%, indicating that soils under CCs may be lesssusceptible to compaction. Cover crops also increased mean weight diameter of aggregates (MWDA) by 80% inthe 0- to 7.5-cm depth. Th e SOC concentration was 30% greater for SH and 20% greater for LMS than for no-CCplots in the 0- to 7.5-cm depth. Th e CC-induced increase in SOC concentration was negatively correlated withProctor maximum ρb and positively with MWDA and cumulative infi ltration. Overall, addition of CCs to no-tillsystems improved soil physical properties, and the CC-induced change in SOC concentration was correlated with
soil physical properties.
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