TY - JOUR T1 - Effects of artificial topsoil removal on sorghum, peanut, and cassava yield JF - Journal of Soil and Water Conservation SP - 334 LP - 339 VL - 55 IS - 3 AU - F. A. Flörchinger AU - D. E. Leihner AU - N. Steinmüller AU - K. Müller-Sämann AU - M. A. El-Sharkawy Y1 - 2000/07/01 UR - http://www.jswconline.org/content/55/3/334.abstract N2 - Topsoil loss by soil erosion frequently results in crop productivity decline. This study evaluated the impact of 5, 10, 13, and 40 cm topsoil removal on the productivity of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.), peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.), and cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz). The trial was conducted on the Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical (CIAT) experimental station at Santander de Quilichao, Colombia. The soil was a well drained, kaolinitic-amorphous, isohyperthermic Oxic Dystropept. Organic matter was a key factor for productivity and the yields of these three crops were dramatically reduced by topsoil loss. Fertilizer could not restore lost productivity. The most important constraint to plant growth was aluminum saturation which increased sharply with topsoil loss. ER -