Summary
This multi-year strip–split–plot field trial (2017–2021) in northeastern Poland investigated how preceding crop type (grassland versus maize monoculture), artificial soil packing simulating heavy machinery traffic, and tillage method interact to affect soil physical and chemical properties and maize productivity. The study provides field-scale evidence on the relative contributions of crop rotation history and mechanical soil disturbance to compaction at different soil depths across key maize growth stages. Findings are likely to highlight that grassland as a preceding crop and conventional tillage can mitigate compaction-related yield penalties compared with monoculture systems under simplified tillage regimes.
UK applicability
Although conducted under the continental climate and soil conditions of northeastern Poland, the findings are broadly relevant to UK arable systems where soil compaction from heavy machinery is a recognised problem; the principles around rotation benefits and tillage choice for managing compaction apply to UK clay and loam soils, and are pertinent to UK policy discussions on sustainable tillage and soil health indicators under post-CAP domestic agricultural schemes.
Key measures
Soil penetration resistance (MPa) at 0–10, 10–20, 20–30 cm depth; soil organic carbon content (%); maize grain yield (t/ha)
Outcomes reported
The study measured soil compaction at three depth layers and three crop growth stages, soil organic carbon content, and maize grain yield under different tillage systems and preceding crops (grassland versus monoculture maize), with and without soil packing by heavy machinery.
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