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Calibration of the soil conditioning index (SCI) to soil organic carbon in the southeastern USA

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Abstract

Prediction of soil organic C sequestration with adoption of various conservation agricultural management approaches is needed to meet the emerging market for environmental services provided by agricultural land stewardship. The soil conditioning index (SCI) is a relatively simple model used by the USDA–Natural Resources Conservation Service to predict qualitative changes in soil organic matter. Our objective was to develop a quantitative relationship between soil organic C derived from published field studies in the southeastern USA and SCI scores predicted from matching management conditions. We found that soil organic C sequestration (at 20 ± 5 cm depth) could be reliably related to SCI across a diversity of studies in the region using the regression slope: 1.65 Mg C ha−1 SCI−1 [which translated into a rate of 0.25 ± 0.04 Mg C ha−1 yr−1 SCI−1 (mean±standard error of 31 slope estimates)]. The calibration of soil organic C on SCI scores will allow SCI to become a quantitative tool for natural resource professionals to predict soil organic C sequestration for farmers wanting to adopt conservation practices.

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Abbreviations

CT:

conventional tillage

NT:

no tillage

SCI:

soil conditioning index

SOC:

soil organic carbon

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Acknowledgements

Financial support was provided in part by Cotton Incorporated (Agr. No. 05-712) and USDA-ARS GRACEnet Cross-Location Research Project. We appreciate the assistance of Deborah Beese (Abrahamson) early in the project

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. USDA – Agricultural Research Service, 1420 Experiment Station Road, Watkinsville, GA, 30677, USA

    Alan J. Franzluebbers

  2. National University of Asuncion, San Lorenzo, Paraguay

    Hector J. Causarano

  3. USDA – Natural Resources Conservation Service, 808 E. Blackland Road, Temple, TX, 76502, USA

    M. Lee Norfleet

Authors
  1. Alan J. Franzluebbers
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  2. Hector J. Causarano
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  3. M. Lee Norfleet
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Correspondence to Alan J. Franzluebbers.

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Responsible Editor: M. Francesca Cotrufo.

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Franzluebbers, A.J., Causarano, H.J. & Norfleet, M.L. Calibration of the soil conditioning index (SCI) to soil organic carbon in the southeastern USA. Plant Soil 338, 223–232 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-010-0310-9

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