In Indiana, a joint Purdue University and U.S. Department of Agriculture study found that including pasture and small grains in crop rotations can be good for soil health. The highest-rated soils were in land converted to perennial grasses, followed by soils that included small grains, such as wheat, in their rotations. Crop rotations that included corn were the least healthy, with scores dropping as corn was planted more often.
While growing fields have nitrogen and phosphorus applied to improve crop growth, grasslands that aren’t fertilized had the same nutrient profiles as agricultural land. Fields that include rotations of small grains did well in terms of macroaggregate stability, which impacts how well water can infiltrate soil rather than run off it.
The findings, reported in Soil Science Society of America Journal, give researchers a soil health baseline so that changes in management practices –and their effects on soil – can be measured.