A FINAL REPORT FOR THE LEOPOLD CENTER

FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE

DATE OF REPORT: October 30, 1996

PROJECT TITLE: Effect of Tillage, Crop Rotation, and Innovative Nitrogen and
Pesticide Management Practices on Productivity, Sustainability, and Water
Quality.

LEOPOLD CENTER GRANT NUMBER: 93-14

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Dr. Rameshwar S. Kanwar, Professor

Department of Agricultural & Biosystems Engineering
Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa

CO-INVESTIGATORS:

Dr. D.L. Karlen, USDA - Soil Scientist, NSTL (4-3336)

Dr. C.A. Cambardella, USDA - Soil Scientist, NSTL (4-2921)
Dr. T.B. Moorman, USDA - Microbiologist, NSTL (4-2308)
Dr. T.R. Steinheimer, USDA - Microbiologist, NSTL (4-2952)
Dr. T.S. Colvin, USDA - Agricultural Engineer, NSTL (4-5724)
Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50010

DURATION OF PROJECT: July 1, 1993 to June 30, 1996

Funds Received for 1993-94: $26,714

Funds Received for 1994-95: $28,050
Funds Received for 1995-96: $29,460

SIGNATURES OF INVESTIGATORS

R.S. Kanwar D.L Karlen

C.A. Cambardella T.B. Moorman

T.R. Steinheimer T.S. Colvin

 II. TABLE OF CONTENTS

Item Page Number

Nontechnical Summary 1

Technical Report 2

Abstract 2

Introduction 2

Project Objectives 6

Study design, methods, and materials 6

Results and Discussion 12

· Effect of farming systems on subsurface drain flow 12

· Impacts of liquid swine manure on NO3-N leaching 15

· Effect of N management practices on NO3-N leaching 27

- Effect of LSNT on water quality 34

- Effect of strip crops and forage on water quality 34

- Summary of N management systems on water quality 48

· Effect of Pesticide Management Systems on Water Quality 48

· Effect of Swine Manure on fecal coliform leaching 59

· Effect of N management systems on crop yields, N mineralization and N-uptake 59

Conclusions 64

Impacts of the Results 66

Publications 67

Education and Outreach 68

Cooperative Efforts 69

Bibliography 70

Budget Report 73
III. NONTECHNICAL SUMMARY

Title: Effects of tillage, crop rotation, and innovative nitrogen and pesticide management practices
on productivity, sustainability, and water quality.

Principal Investigator: Rameshwar S. Kanwar, Department of Agricultural and

Biosystems Engineering, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50010
Office Phone: (515) 294-4913

In 1945, less than 0.2 lb/ac of nitrogen was applied to Iowa's cropland as a commercial fertilizer.
That figure jumped to 144 lb/ac by 1985. In 1990, almost 100 percent of 12.4 million acres of corn
grown in Iowa received N fertilizer. Therefore, N management is the key factor for controlling NO3-
N leaching from cropland to ground water sources. Better nitrogen management practices can
improve N uptake and could possibly reduce N leaching to ground water. Also in 1988, essentially
100 percent of the 11.3 million acres of corn and 99 percent of 8 million acres of soybeans grown in
Iowa received herbicide treatment. The off-site losses of these field applied herbicides to surface and
ground water sources are an environmental concern. The approach to decrease or eliminate the
herbicide leaching losses to water sources is to reduce herbicide use through banding, use lower
application rates, and evaluate the use of some of the newly emerging herbicides. In this project we
evaluated the effects of seven N management practices on water quality and three years of data
from this study are reported in this final report

Currently, this study is in the fourth year and is being conducted at the Iowa State University's
Northeast-Research Center at Nashua on 40 experimental plots that are instrumented with
individual sumps and subsurface drainage metering and monitoring devices for collecting water
samples for NO3-N and pesticides analysis. Four plots are equipped with H-flumes to collect surface
runoff samples for water quality. Beginning 1993, we established new farming systems on 36, one-
acre plots. New farming systems included two tillage systems (chisel plow and no-till), two crop
rotations (continuous corn, corn-soybean), seven nitrogen management systems (late spring N test,
reduced application of N at a rate of 100 and 120 lbs/acre from commercial fertilizer and swine
manure, strip cropping and hay crop), and a comparison between broadcast and banding of
herbicides. This report gives data on the effects of these farming systems on water quality for a
period of three years. Three years of data from this study indicated that with lower rates of N
application (at a rate of 100 lbs/acre) and strip and hay cropping systems, lower concentrations of
NO3-N were observed in the shallow groundwater in comparison with the higher rate of N
application (120 lb/ac). Also, banding of herbicides has resulted in lower herbicide losses to shallow
groundwater. The results of this study show a great degree of promise on the use of late spring
NO3-N test (LSNT) and strip cropping practice to protect water quality.

The average NO3-N concentrations in the tile water from (LSNT) plots were lower in comparison
with the single N applications under both no-till and chisel plow systems. Also, LSNT resulted in
higher corn yields under both tillage systems in comparison with the single N application. Because
of difficulties in applying the exact amount of N from manure applications, higher NO 3-N
concentrations were observed from the manure plots. Strip cropping and forage crop resulted in the
lowest NO3-N concentrations in the tile water.
IV. TECHNICAL REPORT

A. ABSTRACT

Field studies were initiated in the fall of 1993, to evaluate the effects of nine alternative
nitrogen (N), tillage, and crop management strategies on N loss to the shallow groundwater.
The tillage and N management treatments included the use of the late-spring nitrate-nitrogen
(NO3-N) test and a reduced N fertilizer application rate of 100 lb/ac applied to corn grown
in a corn and soybean rotation with either no-till or chisel plowing as the primary tillage
practice (Treatments 1 to 4); and the use of swine manure as the N source for corn grown in
rotation with no-till soybean (Treatment 5). Alternate crop management strategies included
continuous corn fertilized with either swine manure or 120 lb N/ac (Treatments 6 and 7), a
narrow-stripping cropping configuration that included corn, soybean, and oat followed by a
N-fixing berseem clover cover crop (Treatment 8), and alfalfa (Treatment 9). Experiments
were conducted on 40 one-acre plots in north central Iowa. The first three years(1993-
1995) of data clearly indicate that lower NO3-N concentrations can be obtained in the
shallow groundwater by reducing N application rates to 100 lb/ac. Use of the late-spring N
test (LSNT) and differential N fertilization rates based on that test resulted in the lowest
NO3-N concentrations in subsurface drainage water under both no-till and chisel plow
treatments when compared with manure application or single N application rates of 100
lb/ac in 1995 (the third year of the study). The results of this study indicate that with LSNT
and single N applications of 100 lb/ac it is quite possible to bring NO 3-N concentrations in
the drainage water close to or even below 10 mg/l (a drinking water standard). The alfalfa
and narrow-strip crop plots had the lowest NO3-N concentrations (< 10 ppm) in the
subsurface drainage water at this research site.

The difficulty in applying swine manure affected the NO3-N leaching to subsurface drainage
water. The NO3-N concentrations in the manure plots increased from 11 mg/l in 1993 to 29
mg/l in 1995 under continuous corn production whereas similar concentrations increased
from 11.6 mg/l to 14.6 mg/l under corn-soybean rotation. Corn following soybean on plots
fertilized with swine manure had an average yield that was 3 bu/ac lower than with the
LSNT, but because of the difficulty in applying the intended amount of N with manure, NO3-
N concentrations in the tile drainage water were higher. When averaged for the three years,
no-till yield was slightly lower, but for both tillage practices, use of the LSNT resulted in
equal or better yields than either preplant fertilization or application of swine manure.

B. INTRODUCTION

Pesticides and nitrate from fertilizers and manure application have been detected in the
surface and ground water in many agricultural regions of the country including Iowa. The
current practices of fertilizer and pesticide application methods and rates are believed to be
contributing significantly in the contamination of ground water. Therefore, it is imperative
that tillage and planting systems, regarded as best management practices for agricultural
sustainability, minimize the potential for chemical runoff and leaching losses to ground water
with alternative chemical management systems. If the potential for contamination is not
reduced by developing and successfully demonstrating the innovative nitrogen and pesticide
management practices, the potential for contamination will remain and could result in
additional regulations. Because of these concerns, researchers must develop alternative
farming practices with the goals of reducing the input costs, and preserving the resource
base for the sustainability of our agriculture and protecting the environment.

The incidence of agricultural chemicals being found in Iowa ground and surface waters is
increasing. Groundwater contamination by agricultural chemicals has also been reported by
over 800 of the 1437 counties in the U.S. (National Research Council, 1989). Nitrate-
nitrogen is the most common agricultural chemical found in groundwater (Hallberg et al.,
1985). Nitrogen from manure or fertilizers and pesticides applied to the soil surface prior to
and immediately following the planting operation are particularly susceptible to loss through
surface runoff or leaching to groundwater through the soil profile. While the mechanisms for
these losses are becoming better understood, farm operators require information that will
allow them to select a combination of farming practices (in terms of tillage, crop rotations,
manure application, and chemical management) that will minimize the movement of soil
applied chemicals into Iowa’s water sources. Farm operators employ a broad range of tillage
and cropping practices, and manure and chemical application methods. The need for more
research on integrated management systems which combine tillage, crop, manure and
chemical application methods into recommendations that can result in profitable yields while
minimizing environmental contamination is great.

The efficient use of livestock manure can be a sustainable practice for many Iowa farmers,
since an average of 73% of Iowa farms have livestock (Duffy and Thompson, 1991).
Although, only 49% of these farmers reported taking fertilizer credit for the manure they
applied to their fields, on-farm research (Chase et al., 1991) showed that liquid swine
manure could provide all the nutrients needed for continuos corn for at least 6 years. This
shows the need for more educational and demonstration projects in this area. Economically,
the use of liquid swine manure compares well with commercial fertilizer (Chase et al.,
1991).

Swine production in Iowa has changed significantly in recent years. Today’s animal
production systems are becoming larger and the public is concerned about the impacts of
animal production facilities on surface and groundwater quality. Of particular concern are
the surface runoff losses of nitrogen (in the forms of ammonium-nitrogen, nitrate-nitrogen,
and organic-nitrogen) and phosphorus (phosphate-phosphorus and organic-phosphorus),
and the leaching losses of nitrogen as nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N). Ammonium-nitrogen can
result in fish kills, NO3-N has a drinking water standard of 10 ppm, and phosphate-
phosphorus can promote the growth of algae and speed up the process of eutrophication in
lakes and reservoirs. Organic forms of nitrogen and phosphorus can reduce oxygen levels in
surface water resources and further “enrich” the supply of nutrients causing nuisance aquatic
plant growth. Another water quality issue is the potential of pathogenic bacteria being
transported from land receiving animal manure to water resources used for human
consumption and recreation.

In order to develop an understanding of the complete system, both surface and subsurface
transport of nutrients and bacteria must be considered. In the past, quite often only one
phase of the manure management question was considered at a time, and bacteria issues
were often neglected. Because of these water quality concerns, research is urgently needed
to determine the extent of water quality effects of manure application and to develop
practices of safe application of animal manure on croplands without the danger of degrading
the quality of surface and groundwater sources.

A few studies have been conducted in the USA and Canada to study the impact of swine
manure on surface and groundwater contamination (Angle et al., 1993; Foran et al., 1993;
Hocking et al., 1993; Kanwar et al., 1995). However, only limited field data are available in
Iowa on the environmental effects of using swine manure as a nutrient (Kanwar et al.,
1995). The monitoring of surface runoff and groundwater quality are needed to compare the
nitrogen losses from liquid swine manure with the losses from commercial nitrogen. This
study evaluated the potential of manure application on surface and groundwater
contamination.

Many studies have documented nitrate-N concentrations exceeding 10 mg/L in subsurface

drain effluent from cropland (Baker et al., 1975; Drury et al., 1993; Kladivko et al., 1991,
Milburn et al., 1990). The mass of nitrate-N lost in drain effluent tends to increase as
fertilization rates increase (Angle et al., 1993; Baker and Johnson, 1981; Bergstrom and
Brink, 1986). Losses often exceeded 30 kg/ha/yr when fertilizer was applied in excess of
crop needs (Logan et al., 1980). Bergstrom and Brink (1986) and Gast et al. (1978)
measured annual nitrate-N losses of 91 kg/ha and 120 kg/ha from 200 kg N/ha and 448 kg
N/ha application rates, respectively. With lower application rates (<100 kg N/ha), Milburn
and Richards (1994) measured nitrate-N losses of 10 to 30 kg/ha and annual flow-weighted
nitrate-N concentrations of 2 to 5 mg/L.

Although nitrate-N loss in drain effluent tends to increase with nitrogen fertilization rate,
Chichester and Smith (1978) found that applied nitrogen accounted for only 25% of nitrate-
N leached from lysimeters. Mineralized nitrogen accounts for a large percentage of nitrogen
leached from soil or used by crops. Less than 50% of fertilizer nitrogen is typically
recovered by corn grain (Timmons and Cruse, 1990). Corn may use three to six times more
soil nitrogen than fertilizer nitrogen (Reddy and Reddy, 1993).

Nitrate-N loss through subsurface drains depends primarily on the volume of water drained
(Bolton et al., 1970; Devitt et al., 1976). Other than controlled drainage, little can be done
to alter drainage volume. A more cost effective method of reducing nitrate-N loss may be
nitrogen management. Ideally, nitrogen should be managed so nitrogen release and crop
uptake are synchronized.

Splitting fertilizer applications is one strategy for reducing the amount of nitrate-N in the soil
at a given time. Four smaller fertilizer applications throughout the growing season on a
sandy soil resulted in lower nitrate-N concentrations in soil solution and a shallow aquifer
than a single spring application (Gerwing et al., 1979). Split fertilizer applications may also
reduce nitrate-N loss through subsurface drains (Kanwar et al., 1988) , lower residual soil
nitrate-N (Varshney et al., 1993) and increase nitrogen use efficiency by corn (Fox et al.,
1986). Nitrogen fertilizer split applied with a point injector was also shown to increase
nitrogen use efficiently by no-till corn compared to knifed-in or surface-banded single,
spring applications (Timmons and Baker, 1992).
Another strategy for potentially reducing nitrate-N leaching losses is applying manure.
Greater downward movement of nitrate-N in soil has been documented under commercial
fertilizer applications compared to manure applications (Comfort et al., 1987; Sutton et al.,
1978). Higher nitrate-N concentrations in soil water have also been found with inorganic
fertilizer compared to annual and biennial manure applications (Joshi et al., 1994). However,
nitrate-N may be released when crops are not growing since organic nitrogen is mineralized
throughout the year (McCormick et al., 1984). Also, higher soil nitrate-N concentrations
have be measured with high manure application rates compared to fertilizer (Evans et al.,
1977).

Surface tillage alters the soil hydraulic characteristics (Blevins et al., 1983; Kanwar, 1989,
Chang and Lindwell, 1989). In Iowa, surface tillage includes several different practices: a)
conventional tillage - consisting of plowing and disking or chiseling operations; b) reduced
tillage - comprised of one or more disking or chiseling operations; and c) “no-till” which can
range from zero disturbance of the soil surface to some disturbance with cultivation.
Reduced and no-till practices are often regarded as best management practices for erosion
control. However, research has indicated that such management practices could have
negative ground water quality implications. Currently there is insufficient information
available to enable farmers to confidently select the most appropriate chemical management
schemes to match their tillage, crop rotations, and planting practices that will maximize crop
yields and minimize risk for soil erosion and groundwater contamination. Thus, a list of
tillage and chemical application practice combinations, proven to minimize the potential for
environmental contamination, would be beneficial. This study was not all inclusive, but
several combinations of tillage, cropping systems, manure and chemical management
practices were evaluated in a system approach.

In the past twenty plus years, agricultural scientists have made important contributions to
various components of alternative agricultural systems and many innovative farmers have
already adopted some of these practices. Farmers can reduce pesticide use through
rotations, banding, and by using newly emerging herbicides and decrease the negative
impact on the environment. By altering the timings and placement of nitrogen fertilizers,
farmers can reduce the per acre application rate of N with little or no sacrifice in crop yields.
Some studies have shown that banding of herbicides and split use of N will not reduce yields
if properly managed (Kanwar et al., 1988; Baker et al., 1995). This results in more profit for
the farmer with less chemicals applied. The low percentage of farmers using banding and
split N practices means that we need to examine the economic and environmental benefits of
these alternative practices, and work with cooperators to determine why these practices are
not being adopted.

Project Objectives:

This study determined the effects of nine alternative nitrogen, tillage and crop management
strategies on productivity, water quality and sustainability of agricultural production
systems. The specific objectives of the research area were:

1. to determine the effects of five N management practices (late spring nitrate-nitrogen test,
a reduced N application rate of 100 lb/ac, and swine manure application giving a total N
 rate of 100 lb/ac) on shallow groundwater quality under corn-soybean rotation with
either no-till or chisel plowing as the primary tillage practice; plots receiving swine
manure were chisel plowed for corn in rotation with no-till soybeans(treatments 1
through 5).

2. to determine the effects of two alternate N management practices (N application of 120

lb/ac with either swine manure or UAN fertilizer) on water quality under continuous
corn with only chisel plow as the primary tillage practice (treatments 6 and 7).

3. to determine the effect of alternate crop management systems, a) strip cropping: narrow
strips of corn, soybeans, oats followed by a N-fixing berseam clover cover crop; and b)
N free cropping system: six year rotation of alfalfa-alfalfa-alfalfa-corn-soybean-oats on
shallow groundwater quality and sustainability (treatments 8 and 9).

C. STUDY DESIGN, METHODS, AND MATERIALS

The experimental site for this study is located at Iowa State University’s Northeast Research
Center, Nashua, Iowa. This field site is intensively monitored as part of the ongoing
Leopold Center Project and the USDA-CSREES MSEA project within Iowa. This study
site is on a predominantly Kenyon silty-clay loam soil with 3 to 4% organic matter. These
soils have seasonally high water tables and benefit from subsurface drainage. Pre-Illinoian
glacial till units of 200 feet overlie a carbonate aquifer used for water supply. However, in
some areas, bedrock is almost near the surface.

The study site has 40, one-acre experimental plots with fully documented tillage and
cropping records for the past seventeen years. Figure 1 illustrates 36 of the one-acre plots
which were used for treatments 1 through 7, while the remaining 4 plots are located nearby
which were used for treatments 8 (strip crop) and 9 (forage). The subsurface drainage
system has been in place at this site for more than sixteen years. Tile drainage was installed
in 1979 into all of the 40, about one-acre blocks (190’ x220’). The tile lines were installed
about four feet deep at 95 ft spacing. Each one acre plot has one tile line passing through the
middle of the plot another tile line at each of the two borders. The tile lines at the borders
help in picking up any cross contamination from the surrounding plots. There are a
maximum of ten one-acre plots in a row and plot rows are separated by an uncultivated area
of 30 ft width. The tile line installed in the middle of the plot drains about half an acre area.
The middle tile lines of all the plots were intercepted and connected to individual sumps in
December 1988 for measuring subsurface drainage (tile flow) and collecting water samples
for chemical analyses. To monitor tile flow on a continuous basis, each tile sump has a 110
volt effluent pump, water flow meter, and an orifice tube to collect water samples for water
quality analysis. The water flow meters were connected to dataloggers for recording tile
flow monitoring data. For water quality sampling, an orifice tube was designed to deliver
about 0.2% of the tile water into a sampling bottle each time effluent is pumped from the
sump. This way, we do not miss any drainage water from sampling and an accurate count on
the loss of chemicals with drainage water can be made.

Two piezometers (1.5 inch diameter plastic pipe with an open bottom) were installed in each
plot 50 ft apart at depths of 6 and 8 ft. Piezometers are used to measure hydraulic gradients
and to obtain water samples for nitrate and pesticides analyses. Also, four H-flumes were
installed to collect surface runoff samples for water quality analyses and estimate soil loss
from the tillage plots.

Data on water quality and crop yields were collected at this site from 1993 to 1995 as a part
of this ongoing study. The following treatments of various combination of tillage, crop
rotation, and N management systems never been established on these 40, one-acre plots at
the Nashua site.

1. No-till system with a single application of UAN at a rate of 100 lb-N/ac applied to corn
at planting time under corn-soybean rotation and surface broadcast of herbicides.
(treatment 1)

2. Chisel-plow system with a single UAN application rate of 100 lb-N/ac applied to corn
under corn-soybean rotation with surface broadcast and banding of herbicides.
(treatment 2 for N nitrogen management and treatment 2i is for herbicide management).

3. Chisel-plow system with swine manure application (equivalent to 100 lb-N/ac applied to
corn under corn-soybean rotation and surface broadcast of herbicides. (treatment 3)

4. No-till and chisel-plow systems with late spring NO3-N test (LSNT) (25 lb/ac of UAN at
planting time and additional application of UAN if needed at 6th leaf stage based on soil
samples analyses) under corn-soybean rotation and surface broadcast of herbicides.
(treatments 4 & 5)

5. Chisel-plow system corn fertilized either with swine manure or 120 lb/ac of UAN and
broadcast application of herbicides under continuous-corn. (treatments 6 & 7)

6. Alternative crop management practices of narrow strip cropping (that included corn,
soybean, and oats followed by N-fixing berseam clover cover crop) and N-free rotation
of alfalfa-alfalfa-alfalfa-corn-soybean-oats (treatments 8 & 9). UAN was applied to corn
strip at 100 lb-N/ac rate.

Before 1993, treatments were arranged in a random complete block design with four tillage
systems. Beginning in 1993, tillage practices were reduced to chisel plow and no-till and N
fertilizer applications were changed to new farming systems. Table 1 lists the current and
previous farming systems at the site.

Each treatment was replicated three times except treatments 8 and 9 which were replicated
only two times. The N fertilizer (UAN) was applied in spring and swine manure was applied
in the fall. The UAN (urea-ammonium nitrate) was applied with a spoke injector (Baker et
al., 1989) for single spring and summer side dress applications for late spring N test. Liquid
swine manure was injected in the fall and then plots were chisel plowed within a week to
mix manure in the top 4-6 inches of soil.

This study was used to make comparisons between no-till and chisel plow, between late
spring N test and single N applications of 100 and 120 lb/ac, between banding vs. broadcast
 of herbicides, between 100 lb/ac of N from inorganic fertilizer and swine manure, between
crop rotations of continuous corn and corn-soybean, and their impacts on water quality. We
used liquid nitrogen (UAN) as N fertilizer and about 3,500 gallons/ac of liquid swine
manure (giving equivalent to 100 lbs N/ac) Also, we used atrazine and lasso as corn
herbicides and lasso and pursuit as soybean herbicides at recommended rates but under
banding practice the herbicide rate was reduced to two thirds of the recommended rate.
Proper credit for P and K were given to the plots receiving manure. Table 4 gives data on
actual application rates of N,P, and K from swine manure in 1993, 1994 and 1995.

The amount of sidedress nitrogen applied on LSNT treatments was determined by a late
spring soil nitrate test (Blackmer et al., 1989). Sixteen, 1-foot deep soil samples were taken
from each plot when corn was at the 6th leaf stage. Nitrogen fertilizer was added, if needed,
to increase soil nitrate-N to 25 ppm. The amount of nitrogen added ranged from 45 to 150
lb-N/ac (Table 2). The no-till system typically required more nitrogen than the chisel plow
system.

Swine manure was obtained from a manure pit under a growing/finishing building. Applying
proper amounts of swine manure to reach target nitrogen levels was difficult. Fall 1992
application rates of 3500 gal/ac for CP-Manure and 4000 gal/ac for CC-Manure were based
on published nutrient values of swine manure and assuming all ammonia and 50% of the
organic nitrogen would be available for crop use the first year. Analysis of applied manure
indicated that only 72 and 75 lb-N/ac were applied when target values were 100 and 120 lb-
N/ac. Manure application in the fall of 1993 was increased to 7200 gal/ac for CP-Manure
and 8500 gal/ac for CC-Manure based on manure samples collected from an agitated
manure pit approximately one month prior to application. However, analysis of applied
manure showed that application rates were two to three times greater than target levels.
Manure application rates in the fall 1994 were based on average nutrient values of manure
applied the two previous years. Unfortunately application rates were 249 to 448 lb-N/ac,
primarily because ammonia concentrations in the manure were extremely high at 5000 to
7000 mg/L. Dates for farming operations and other activities are given in Table 3.

D. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The research initiated during 1993 at the Iowa State University Northeast Center near
Nashua, Iowa on the use of seven nitrogen management and two cropping systems for corn
and soybean production was continued through 1996, but this report presents data for three
years (1993-1995). Results are presented in metric measurements (1 inch = 2.54 cm, 1 lb/ac
= 1.12 kg/ha).

This section summarizes three years of data (1993 through 1995) for comparison purposes.
The first year (1993) of the experiment was an extremely wet year with more than 100 cm
of rainfall compared to a normal precipitation of 75 cm at the experimental site. Figure 2
gives the monthly rainfall amounts for 1993, 1994 and 1995 at the experimental site. This
kind of rainfall activity caused all tile lines to flow during most part of the growing season of
1993. In 1994 and 1995, rainfall was near normal which resulted in many of the tile lines not
to flow during the large part of the growing season. On the average, a total of 6 to 11 cm of
tile flow occurred in 1994 and 1995 compared to a total of 25 to 38 cm of tile flow in 1993.
These data on tile flow show that during years of normal precipitation, total tile flow was
about 1/4 to 1/5 of the 1993 tile flow. These differences in precipitation patterns had
significant impact on NO3-N leaching to shallow groundwater and corn yields. Near normal
rainfall resulted in less NO3-N leaching to shallow groundwater and higher N uptake by
corn.

Effects of farming systems on subsurface drain flow volumes

Table 5 gives the monthly and yearly summary of total subsurface drain flows for 1993.
Subsurface drain flows observed in Systems 1-5 for odd year corn rotation showed that
drainage volumes ranged from 26 to 50 cm for the year. However, the drainage volumes
observed in the no-till plots (Systems 1 and 2) were significantly different; which may reflect
past tillage and cropping practices. During 1992, systems 1, 3, and 5 in the odd year corn
rotation were planted to soybean while systems 2 and 4 were planted to corn. Additionally,
systems 1 and 2 were managed as no-till, system 3 was moldboard plow and systems 4 and
5 were ridge till. Even though system 4 was chisel plowed prior to planting in 1993, the
existing corn rooting system from 1992 in systems 2 and 4 may have created a different
macropore flow system in these plots when compared to existing soybean rooting systems.

The observed subsurface drain flows for odd year soybean rotation showed a similar
response. Although systems 1 through 5 were no till during soybean crop years, observed
drain flows ranged from 30 to 60 cm even though there was no significant difference.
However, similar to odd year corn plots, the lowest observed drain flow was in system 4
which was planted to soybean in 1992. Subsurface drain flows were almost identical under
continuous corn (Systems 6 and 7); with both systems planted to corn in 1992. It appeared
that for 1993, subsurface drainage volumes were the greatest in plots where corn was
planted the previous year.

Similarly, monthly and yearly summaries of total subsurface drain flows for 1994 and 1995
are given in Tables 6 and 7, respectively. Although observed flows were not significantly
different for corn or soybean rotation during 1994, the greatest values were again observed
in system 2. The relatively high Least Significant Difference (LSD) for the yearly totals may
reflect that the field site was in transition from tillage and crop management practices prior
to 1993.

Average subsurface drainage flows for years 1993 through 1995 are summarized in Table 8.
Similar to the yearly summaries, System 2 (no-till) had the greatest drainage volume during
years when corn was planted while no significant difference was noted during years when
soybean was planted. Generally, total drain flows were higher in the soybean plots when
compared to the corn plots which may be due to the corn rooting system from the previous
year.

Impact of liquid swine manure on NO3-N leaching

Although there was relatively large variability observed with subsurface drainage volumes,
nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N) concentrations were less variable during the three years of study.
Tables 9, 10, and 11 summarize monthly and yearly average concentrations observed during
1993, 1994, and 1995, respectively. Note that LSD values were not included for corn plots
because of interaction between tillage and nitrogen management practices. However, LSD
values were included for soybean plots (no-till and no nitrogen was added) to illustrate
residual effects from the previous year.

Achieving the desired N application rates with the liquid swine manure continues to be one
of the most challenging problems for not only the farmers, but also for the researchers. In
the fall of 1992, we used two different sources of swine manure for land application on
experimental plots. Manure samples were collected at the time of application to determine
the N, P, and K contents. After the results were obtained from the laboratory, it was found
that actual nitrogen application rates were equivalent to 72.9 lb-N/ac for continuous-corn
plots and 74.5 lb-N/ac for corn plots under corn-soybean rotation. To correct this problem
on manure application rates, in 1993 we collected manure samples directly from the lagoon
(after stirring the manure lagoon thoroughly) and calculated manure application rates of
7250 and 8500 gallons/ac to result application rates equivalent to 100 and 120 lb/ac of
actual available nitrogen for rotation and continuous-corn plots, respectively. Liquid manure
samples were also taken in 1993 at the time of application in the field to make an estimate of
actual application rates (liquid manure was injected in 1993 to all plots.) On the basis of
laboratory analysis we determined later that actual nitrogen application rates in 1993 from
manure application were equivalent to 250 lb-N/ac for continuous-corn plots and 212 lb-
N/ac for corn plots under corn-soybean rotation. The same procedure was used to estimate
manure application rates in 1994 but resulted in 448 lb-N/ac for continuous corn plots and
349 lb-N/ac for corn plots under corn-soybean rotation. This difficulty in applying the
intended rates of N with swine manure had some impact on NO 3-N concentrations in tile
water and corn yields.

The difficulty in applying swine manure affected the NO3-N leaching through subsurface
drainage. In order to evaluate the effect of swine manure on NO 3-N leaching, comparisons
were made using systems 6 and 7 (continuous corn, chisel plow, 120# of N), systems 4 and
5 (corn plots, chisel plow, 100# of N), and systems 4 and 5 (soybean plots, no-till when
soybeans were planted, 0# of N). Since the actual nitrogen applied to the manure plots was
much higher than fertilizer plots during 1994 and 1995, the following comparisons do not
provide a good test, but do demonstrate the results of problems associated with using swine
manure as a nitrogen source. Although no nitrogen was applied to the soybean plots, the
observed data illustrate the residual effect of manure and fertilizer applied from the previous
years.

Subsurface drainage volumes were similar for systems 6 and 7 (continuous corn, chisel
plow, manure and non manure plots) during the three years of study (Figure 3). Yearly
average NO3-N concentrations were near 10 ppm for the liquid fertilizer plots even though
the drainage volume was four times greater in 1993. Concentrations in the manure plots
increased from 10 ppm in 1993 to near 30 ppm in 1995 under continuous corn production
(Figure 4). However, this large increase in average concentration was most likely due to the
high manure application rates in 1994 and 1995. Annual nitrate-nitrogen loss was near 50
kg/ha for both manure and liquid fertilizer plots during 1993 due to the large drainage
volume (Figure 5). In 1995, total NO3-N loss was near 40 kg/ha for the manure plots and
20 kg/ha for the liquid fertilizer plots; but the total applied N was almost four times greater
on the manure plots. This shows that there is a potential for manure management practices
for crop production and water quality benefits if right application rates could be applied for
corn production

Similarly, subsurface drainage volumes were the greatest during 1993 for corn plots under
rotation (Figure 6). However, concentrations were more constant with time when compared
to continuous corn, with yearly average concentrations ranging from 9 to 13 ppm for
fertilizer plots and from 9 to 15 ppm for manure plots (Figure 7). Similar to continuous corn
plots, nitrate-nitrogen losses were greatest in 1993 due to the large drainage volume (Figure
8). Although concentrations and losses were less for corn under rotation when compared to
continuous corn, the plots planted to corn received manure and fertilizer application every
other year. For example, the 1995 data reflect that manure and fertilizer was applied to these
plots in 1993 and 1995, but not in 1994. Whereas, manure and fertilizer was applied to
continuous corn plots every year. The data in figure 7 and 10 show that NO 3-N
concentrations in the drainage water can be brought below 10 ppm when manure is applied
under corn-soybean rotation.

Yearly average subsurface drainage flows, NO3-N concentrations, and nitrate-nitrogen losses
are given in Figures 9, 10 and 11 to illustrate the residual effects of fertilizer and manure
application when the plots were planted to soybean. Data for 1993 reflect practices prior to
initiation of this study and do not provide a direct comparison of manure and fertilizer
application practices. Drainage volume, concentration, and losses during 1994 were low for
both manure and fertilizer plots. However, in 1995 the manure plots had higher average
concentration and nitrate-nitrogen loss which may illustrate the effects of the high manure
application rate in 1994.

The problems encountered when applying liquid swine manure as a nitrogen source made it
difficult to compare to fertilizer application practices. However, the difficulty in applying
intended rates is a problem for farmers and the data illustrate that high application rates of
manure can result in higher NO3-N concentrations in drainage water. Generally, the highest
NO3-N concentrations occurred under continuous corn practices and the cumulative effect
of high manure application rates was apparent in these plots. But the high drainage volume
observed during 1993 resulted in the greatest nitrate-nitrogen losses for both continuous
corn and rotation practices which showed that precipitation is a major factor in nitrogen
losses from the field.

Effect of Nitrogen management practices on NO3-N Leaching

Average yearly concentrations observed in 1993 corn plots ranged from 8.85 to 11.64 ppm
but showed no specific trend; which may reflect past management practices. Concentrations
observed in 1993 soybean plots were lower and ranged from 5.67 to 11.12 ppm, most likely
because no nitrogen was added to these plots in 1993. Average yearly concentrations were
similar for 1994 corn plots while no significant difference was observed in the soybean plots.
However, in 1995, concentrations were lowest in the no-till plots (9.45 and 10.77 ppm)
when compared to chisel plow (11.91 and 13.08 ppm), which was consistent with what was
observed in the past at the research site. Concentrations in the rotation manure plots (system
5) increased from 11.64 ppm in 1993 to 14.59 ppm in 1995 while continuous corn plots
(system 6) increased from 11.10 ppm in 1993 to 29.31 ppm in 1995. This large increase in
concentration was most likely due to higher manure application rates in 1994 and 1995.
Difficulties encountered with manure application will be discussed in detail later in this
report. Three year average concentrations (Table 12) show that concentrations were lowest
during years when soybean was planted and were highest under continuous corn. These data
suggest that crop rotation can be used to lower NO3-N concentrations in subsurface
drainage water.

Nitrate-nitrogen losses through subsurface drainage were similar to drainage volumes

observed for each plot (Tables 13 - 15). Generally, losses were greatest during 1993 due to
higher precipitation and lesser during 1994 and 1995 when precipitation was near normal.
However, three year average losses (Table 16) were higher under continuous corn when
compared to rotation practices except when compared to No-till 100 #N (system 2).
Manure plots under continuous corn showed the greatest loss but was most likely due to the
high application rate of manure during 1994 and 1995. The following paragraphs give the
effects of specific N management practice on drain water quality.

Effect of late spring NO3-N test (LSNT) on water quality under no-till system: Figures
12, 13, and 14 show differences in annual subsurface drain flows, NO3-N concentrations and
NO3-N losses with drain water for three years under no-tillage for corn-soybean production
system. Figure 13 shows that both LSNT and single N application rate of 112 kg/ha
resulted in over all average NO3-N concentrations of less than 10 ppm in subsurface
drainage water. In 1995 (third year old study), the LSNT resulted in lower NO 3-N
concentrations in comparison with single N application under no-till system.

This shows that LSNT plots (in spite of higher total N applications) resulted in NO 3-N
concentrations in drainage water quite similar to plots with single N application rate of 112
kg/ha. Figure 4 shows that LSNT plots resulted in significantly lower NO 3-N losses with
drainage water in comparison with single N application plots receiving 112 kg/ha under no-
tillage system.

Effect of LSNT on water quality under chisel plow system: Figures 15, 16, and 17 show
the effect of LSNT on subsurface drainage flows, NO3-N concentrations and NO3-N losses
with drainage water under chisel plow system. Figure 16 shows that LSNT plots resulted in
lower NO3-N concentration in drainage water in 1994 and 1995 in comparison with the
single N application rate of 112 kg/ha chisel plow plots although three years average NO3-N
concentrations of 10.3 ppm under LSNT was significantly higher in comparison with the 9.6
ppm under single N application. These results indicate that with LSNT and single N
applications. These results indicate that a with LSNT and single N applications of 112 kg/ha
it is quite possible to bring the NO3-N concentrations in the drainage water quite close to or
even below 10 ppm (a drinking water standard).

Effect of strip crops and forage cropping system on water quality: Figures 18, 19, and
20 show the effects of strip cropping and alfalfa crop on subsurface drainage flows, NO 3-N
concentrations and NO3-N losses with drainage water. Figure 19 shows that the average
yearly NO3-N concentrations in the drainage water were always less than 7.1 ppm under
both production systems. These results indicate clearly that forage and strip cropping
systems could reduce the NO3-N concentrations in the drainage water well below the
drinking water standard of 10 mg/l.

Overall summary of nitrogen management systems on water quality: Figure 21 gives

the three year average NO3-N concentrations in the subsurface drainage water as a function
of different N management systems studied in this project. Highest average NO 3-N
concentration of 19.8 mg/l in the drainage water was observed from manure plots under
continuous-corn production and the lowest average NO3-N concentration of 2.5 mg/l was
observed from plots under alfalfa (forage). Manured plots under corn-soybean rotation
resulted in average NO3-N concentration of 13.4 mg/l. Chisel plow plots resulted in higher
NO3-N concentrations in drainage water compared with no-till plots under similar
treatments (LSNT and single N application of 100 lb/ac or 112 kg/ha). Also, although no-
till plots received higher amounts of N application (a total of 140 lb/ac) under LSNT in
comparison to chisel plow plots (which received a total of 119 lb/ac) the average NO 3-N
concentrations in drain water from no-till plots was 9.0 mg/l in comparison to 11.3 mg/l
from chisel plow plots. These results indicate that several N management systems (LSNT,
strip cropping, alfalfa crop, single N application at 100 lb/ac) could be used successfully to
reduce the leaching of NO3-N to shallow groundwater.

Effect of Pesticide Management Systems on Water Quality

Table 17 through 24 give atrazine and metolachlor losses to subsurface drain water for three
years (1993-1995) as a function of various management systems. These tables do not show
data on alachlor losses as most of the water samples did not show any detects for alachlor.
These data show that atrazine losses varied from 0.01 to 4.53 g/ha whereas metolachlor
losses varied from 0.00 to 1.15 g/ha. Also, these data indicate that herbicide losses are more
affected by the amount of rainfall rather than N management system.

Effect of banding vs. broadcast on herbicide leaching: Table 25 gives herbicide leaching
losses to subsurface drainage as affected by N management and banding vs broadcast
practice. The effect of banding appears to be highly significant in reducing the overall yearly
atrazine and metolachlor losses with the subsurface drainage water. Data in Table 25 also
indicate that banding of herbicides could reduce herbicide leaching losses to less than one-
tenth compared to the surface broadcast practice. Also, these data indicate that herbicide
leaching losses were much lower from manure plots compared to the non-manure plots.
This shows that swine manure may have a positive effect in reducing the leaching of atrazine
to groundwater because of two reasons. One reason could be the increased microbial
activity in the manure plots which may increase the microbial degradation of atrazine making
it less available for leaching to groundwater. The second reason could be the greater degree
of adsorption of atrazine to organic matter supplied by swine manure which also makes
atrazine less available for leaching. We do not have much data in the literature to
demonstrate the positive effects of manure application on pesticide contamination of
groundwater. Therefore, continued support of this project is extremely important to
determine the role of swine manure in reducing pesticide leaching to groundwater. Table 26
gives data on herbicide losses with surface runoff In 1993, banding practices reduced
herbicide losses with runoff water significantly but in 1995 broadcast practice resulted in
higher losses. This shows that amount of rainfall and resulting runoff volume also play a
significant role on herbicide losses with runoff water.

Effect of Swine Manure on Fecal Coliform in the Drainage Water

Table 27 gives data on fecal coliform in the drainage water as affected by manure
applications. Only two sets of data were collected from 12 experimental plots (9 manured
and 3 non-manured plots). This table gives the average fecal coliform counts for three plots
within one treatment. The numbers inside the parenthesis give the maximum fecal coliform
count found in the drainage water from any one of the three plots. The average fecal
coliform count in the drainage water was less than 10, which indicates that manure plots
have not significantly increased the fecal coliform count in the groundwater (although one
count of 14 shows elevated levels). In 1995, drainage water samples were taken for fecal
coliform analysis in the early part of spring to determine if elevated levels of bacteria are
found in spring. The 1995 data were not very conclusive in the presence of fecal coliform in
the drainage water.

Effect of N management systems on crop yields, N Mineralization and N-Uptake

Compared to natural systems, agricultural systems are extremely leaky, especially with
regard to N. Recoveries of fertilizer N by corn plants may derive up to 75% of their N from
the N-pool created by mineralization of soil organic matter. Therefore, soil organic matter
must be considered an important resource in agriecosystems that is capable of providing
substantial amounts of N for crop growth. This may be especially true for agricultural
systems where manure is applied as a source of N. Understanding the dynamics of soil
organic matter first requires the knowledge that all soil organic matter fractions are not the
same. Researchers believe that only the most reactive (i.e. labile) forms of soil organic
matter are involved in supplying nutrients for plant growth. One way to quantify the amount
of labile organic N for a given soil is to estimate its mineralization potential. In addition, the
synchrony of mineral N availability, relative to plant requirements, must be determined so
that N is present both WHEN and WHERE the plant needs it. The corn plant’s need for N is
greatest from about the middle of June to the middle of August in Iowa. Since corn is
obtaining up to three-quarters of its N from the mineralization of soil organic matter, then
the change in mineralization potential between mid-June and mid-August should be
correlated with observed crop N uptake. Figure 22 gives the three year average of corn and
soybean yields as a function of N management system. This figure shows that higher corn
yields were observed under the LSNT treatments for both no-till and chisel plow systems in
comparison to the single N applications at 100 lb/ac (112 kg/ha). Second highest corn yield
was obtained from manure plots under corn-soybean rotation. The lowest corn yields were
observed under continuous-corn production for both liquid UAN and manure applications.
Soybean yields were similar and were not affected by N applications in corn years.

Corn Response: Average crop yield, total above-ground accumulation of N, and the
amount of N removed by corn grain are presented in Tables 28, 29, and 30. The reader will
note that least significant difference (LSD) values have not been included in these tables.
The reason for this is that the current treatments were imposed on plots that had been in a
distinct set of randomized treatments from 1978 through 1992. An organized attempt was
made to place the new treatments on similar areas, but true randomization was not possible
since the moldboard plow and ridge-tillage treatments were terminated. It must therefore be
accepted that this study area is in transition and data collected may partially reflect prior
management practices as well as current treatments. General trends in the mean values can
be discussed and since the coefficients of variation (CV's) were relatively low, this indicates
that there was reasonable consistency among the three replicates for each treatment.

Yield data in Table 28 show that both rotated and continuous corn yields have been lower
than the previous long-term average of 144 and 130 bu/acre, respectively. Several factors
are undoubtedly contributing to this. The first year of transition was 1993, when excessive
rainfall and unexpectedly low levels of N from the swine manure resulted in extremely low
yields. The 1994 yields for systems 3 and 4 were closer to the long-term chisel-plow mean
(139 bu/acre) but no-till yields for systems 1 and 2 lagged behind the long-term average of
133 bu/acre (1992 Nashua farm report). This may suggest that 100 lb/acre preplant N is not
sufficient for no-till corn production on these soils, but it may also reflect a high loss of
residual mineralizable N because of the extremely high rainfall in 1993. The 1995 yields
were quite low for all systems because of a severe hailstorm that occurred during pollination
and early grain-fill. Yields for System 7 (continuous corn, chisel plowed with 120 lb/acre
preplant N) have been as high as those for other treatments. Previously, the continuous corn
received preplant fertilizer at a rate of 180 lb/acre, but at that rate of fertilization there was
substantial NO3-N loss in the tile drainage water. Obviously, additional data are going to be
needed to fully understand the crop production impact of the new management practices,
but as stated in prior reports, growing continuous corn on the Kenyon-Clyde-Floyd soil
association and similar soils should be discouraged.

Total N accumulation and removal by the corn grain for 1994 were quite similar to that
observed in other studies throughout the state. The removal of approximately 100
lb/acre/year by the better treatments suggests that if residual N pools can be maintained by
biological processes, nutrient use efficiency for corn production can be improved. This is
one of the reasons for the N mineralization studies that are discussed later in this report.

Comparisons made using data from only systems 1 to 4 (Tables 29 and 30) show a slight
yield advantage from preplant tillage with a field cultivator when compared with no-till
production following soybean. As stated previously, this may reflect inadequate N since the
100 lb/acre N fertilizer rate (system 2) is well below the 150 lb/acre rate that resulted in a
15-year average of 142 bu/acre for no-till corn grown in a corn-soybean rotation.
Furthermore, the late-spring soil nitrate test (LSNT) being used for system 1 has not been
adequately calibrated for no-till production practices (personal communication, Alfred
Blackmer, ISU).

When averaged for both chisel and no-till practices (Table 30), the LSNT approach has
consistently resulted in higher corn grain yields than a preplant application of 100 lb/acre N.
However, the LSNT predicted an average fertilizer requirement of 115 lb/acre with some
variation among years and between tillage treatments (118, 124, and 146 lb N/acre for no-
till and 67, 116, and 116 lb N/acre for chisel plow in 1993, 1994, and 1995, respectively).
 Soybean Response: Average soybean yield and total above-ground N accumulation for
soybean are shown in Tables 31, 32, and 33. Three-year average yields for all five
management systems ranged from 42 to 45 bu/acre. These were similar to the 15-year
averages of 42 and 41 bu/acre for chisel-plow and no-till soybean (1992 Nashua Farm
Report). The average yield for systems 1 to 4 was 44 bu/acre for both chisel and no-till
practices. This suggests that changing from row beans to drilled beans may not result in
major soybean yield differences on the Kenyon-Clyde-Floyd soils at this site. Yields were
also similar for both herbicide treatments.

Nitrogen Mineralization Potential: The capacity of a soil to supply plant-available N can

be described by quantifying the N mineralization potential of that soil. We measured
potentially mineralizable N to a depth of 1 foot across the growing season for all plots
during 1993, 1994 and 1995. In May 1993, the top foot of soil contained about 220 lb/ac of
mineralizable N averaged across all treatments (Table 34). This was reduced to less than 88
lb/ac by late June of 1993. Concurrently, we observed a large increase in the concentration
of dissolved organic N in tile drain water. Potentially mineralizable N remained low for the
remainder of 1993, and was still less that 88 lb/ac during most of 1994. There was a slight
increase in mineralization potential in the fall of 1994 that carried over to 1995, indicating
the soil was beginning to recover from the flushing that occurred during the summer of
1993. These data suggest that a portion of the potentially mineralizable N pool in soil may
be vulnerable to leaching if the conditions are appropriate, as they were in 1993. Since a
growing corn crop derives up to 80% of its N from the mineralization of soil organic N, loss
of mineralization capacity could result in below-average yields until soil organic N pools
return to former levels.

E. CONCLUSIONS

This study resulted in the following conclusions.

1. Use of lower N application rates at 100 lb/ac (112 kg/ha) resulted in the lowest NO 3-N
concentrations in subsurface drainage water in comparison to other six N management
systems studied at this site like LSNT, manure applications, and higher N applications rates
at 120 lb/ac.

2. Use of the late spring nitrate test (LSNT) resulted in the second lowest NO3-N
concentrations in the shallow groundwater under both no-till and chisel plow systems.

3. Different cropping systems like strip cropping and alfalfa resulted in the lowest
NO3-N concentrations (<7 mg/l) in subsurface drainage water in comparison to all the
practices evaluated at this research site.

4. Continuous corn plots receiving swine manure applications resulted in significantly

higher NO3-N concentrations in subsurface drain water in comparison with manure applied
corn plots rotated with soybeans. The use of swine manure under corn-soybean rotation has
the potential to reduce negative water quality impacts with proper manure management.
 5. The highest corn yields were obtained with the LSNT under chisel plow system. The
second highest corn yield was obtained from manure plots rotated soybeans .

6. Reduced herbicide inputs through banding (a factor of three) resulted in significantly

reduced herbicide leaching losses to subsurface drainage water in comparison with
herbicide broadcast practice.

F. IMPACTS OF THE RESULTS

Nitrogen management is the key factor for controlling groundwater contamination from
nitrogen fertilizers and manure applications. The potential negative water quality impacts
due to the excessive use of N fertilization and animal manure have been recognized and
accepted by farmers and the chemical and livestock industry. The results of this study
indicate that we should put increased emphasis on the use of soil tests (like late spring
nitrate test) to determine appropriate N application rates and give proper credit to N sources
such as animal manure, soil residual nitrogen, and crop residue. Manure and fertilizer
applications should be based on manure nutrient test and soil N test information to reduce
NO3-N leaching and increase plant N uptake for better yields. Animal manure should be
applied to avoid excessive amounts of nutrients based on manure analysis.

The results of this study have clearly shown that the use of different cropping systems like
strip crops and alfalfa can significantly reduce NO 3-N leaching to groundwater while
increasing N self-sufficiency in sustainable cropping system. These cropping systems reduce
N fertilizer costs for farmers and provide long-term N 2 fixation for N self-sufficiency.
Increased use of forage legumes will help in maintaining long-term sustainable farming
systems.
G. PUBLICATIONS

Following is a list of publications originating from this project.

1. Kanwar, R. S., J. L. Baker, D. L. Karlen, C. Cambardella and R. M. Cruse. 1995.

Nitrogen management systems for sustainable crop production and water quality
enhancement. In: Proceedings of the International Conference on Sustainable
Agriculture and Environment, Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, India (In
Press).

2. Kanwar, R. S., D. L. Karlen, C. Camberdalla and R. M. Cruse. 1995. Swine manure and
N-management systems: Impact on Groundwater quality. In: Proceedings of the
National Conference on Water Quality: Clean Water-Clean Environment -21st
Century, ASAE Publication 2-95(2):91-94.

3. Bjorneberg, D.L., R.S. Kanwar, and S.W. Melvin. 1996. Preferential flow effects on
subsurface drainage response to rainfall. TRANSACTIONS of the American
Society of Agricultural Engineers 39(6): Nov.-Dec. issue.

4. Bjorneberg, D.L., R.S. Kanwar, and S.W. Melvin. 1996. Seasonal changes in flow and
nitrate-N loss from subsurface drains. TRANSACTIONS of the American Society
of Agricultural Engineers 39(3): 961-976.

5. Kanwar, R.S., T.S. Colvin, D.Karlen, C.Cambardella, R.Cruse, and C. Pederson . 1996.
Quality of subsurface drainage water under different agricultural production systems.
In: Proceedings of the 6th ICID Drainage Workshop on Drainage and Environment.
The Slovenian committee of the ICID, Ljubljana, Slovenia, pp. 681-687.
6. Kanwar, R.S., D.Karlen, C.Cambardella, T.B Mooreman. 1995. Farming systems for
sustainable agriculture and environmental quality. In: Proceedings of the
International Symposium on Systems Approaches for Agricultural Development.
International Rice Research Institute, Manila, Phiippines, December 6-8, 1995. (In
press).
7. Weed, D.A.J and R.S.Kanwar. 1996. Nitrate and water present in and leaching from
root-zone soil. Journal of Environmental Quality 25(4):709-719
H. EDUCATION AND OUTREACH

The following educational and outreach related presentations were made at the experimental
site in 1993, 1994, and 1995. These programs were coordinated with the assistance of Carl
Pederson and Vince McFadden.

Date Program Location Speaker Attendance

Year 1993
6/9/93 Weed Commissioners Nashua Ken Ross 20
6/22/93 Field Day Nashua M. Smith 150
8/26/93 Extension Educ. Nashua D. Bjorneberg/ 50
M. Smith
9/9/93 Field Day Nashua Ken Ross 175

Year 1994
3/28/94 Int. Seminar on Envir. and Katmandu, R.S. Kanwar 200
Water Nepal
6/27/94 Uzbekistan and Kyrgystan Ames, IA R.S. Kanwar 17
Faculty and students tour
7/19/94 Water Quality Seminar Ames, IA R.S. Kanwar 85
7/20/94 Field Day Ames, IA R.S. Kanwar 50
8/20/94 American Chem.Society Washington, R.S. Kanwar 80
Seminar D.C.
8/31/94 Visitors from Argentina Ames,IA R.S. Kanwar 42
9/8/94 Field Day Nashua,IA R.S. Kanwar 100
9/13/94 Bolvian Ag. Officers Ames, IA R.S. Kanwar 15
10/2/94 Ag. & Biosy. Engr. Ames, IA R.S. Kanwar 15
Faculty
10/12/94 Area Extension Engrs. Ames, IA R.S. Kanwar 10

Year 1995
1/11/95 Int. Conf. on Sustainability Hisar, India R.S. Kanwar 60
and Environment
3/5/95 National Water Quality Kansas City, R.S. Kanwar 120
Conference MO
3/8/95 Nashua Farm Annual Meeting Nashua R.S. Kanwar 80

4/1/95 International Conferance on Orlando, FL R.S. Kanwar 80

Environment and Sustainablity,

4/5/95 ISU Extension Workshop Ames IA R.S. Kanwar 16

8/8/95 World Bank Conference on Tashkent, R.S. Kanwar 50
Evironment and Water Quality Uzbekistan
Standards,
 9/15/95 Agonomy Field Day, Ames IA R.S. Kanwar 400
12/6/95 Systems for Sustainable Los Banos, R.S. Kanwar 60
Agriculture Conferance, Philippines

Year 1996
8/16/96 International Conferance on Beijing, R.S. Kanwar 120
Eviromentaland Biological China
Engineering
9/5/96 Agronomy Field Day R.S. Kanwar 247
C. Pederson
9/10/96 Nashua Farm Field Day Nashua, IA K. Pecinovsky 100

I. COOPERATIVE EFFORTS

Various tasks of this research were accomplished by an interagency research team consisting
of engineers and scientists from Iowa State University, Iowa Cooperative Extension Service,
and USDA National Soil Tilth Lab. The continuing MSEA project provided support for
chemical analyses. Dr. Ramesh Kanwar was responsible for implementing new treatments,
collecting data on soil samples, surface and subsurface drainage flows, ground water quality,
and interpreting water quality results. Dick Pfeiffer was responsible for soil and water
analyses in the lab. Vince McFadden and Carl Pederson met the extension and educational
requirements of the project. Dr. Doug Karlen studied the movement of nutrients and N-
uptake by plants. Drs. T.B. Moorman and T.R. Steinheimer studied the degradation of
herbicides. C.A. Cambardella studied the N-mineralization rates in the soil as a function of
tillage, rotation, and manure application. Dr. T.S. Colvin helped establish tillage plots and
maintain equipment for chemical and manure applications. Dr. S.W. Melvin, an agricultural
engineer, was a cooperator on this project, and helped us in deciding the manure application
rates. Mr. Jean Neuman, a farmer from Nashua, was a cooperator on this project and
supplied us swine manure and his applicator to apply manure on our experimental plots. Carl
Pederson was the Research Associate on this project and was resonsible for day to day
tasks, data handling and analysis. Iowa Pork Producers Association and National Pork
Council provided some funds to conduct part of this study on environmental impacts of
swine manure application.
J. BIBLIOGRAPHY

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under corn as affected by tillage, manure, and fertilizer applications. J. Environ.
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Baker, J.L.; K.L. Campbell, H.P. Johnson and J.J. Hanway. 1975. Nitrate, phosphorous,
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Baker, J.L.; T.S. Colvin, S.J. Marley and M. Dawelbeit. 1989. A point-injector applicator
to improve fertilizer management. J. Appl. Engr. Agric. 5:334-338.

Baker, J.L. and H.P. Johnson. 1981. Nitrate-nitrogen in tile drainage as affected by
fertilization. J. Environ. Qual. 10(4):519-522.

Bergstrom, L and N. Brink. 1986. Effects of differentiated application of fertilizer N on

leaching losses and distribution of inorganic N in the soil. Plant and Soil 93(3):333-
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Blackmer, A.M.; D. Pottker, M.E. Cerrato and J. Webb. 1989. Correlations between soil
nitrate concentrations in later spring and corn yields in Iowa. J. Prod. Agric. 2(2):
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Bolton, E.F.; J.W. Aylesworth and F.R. Hore. 1970. Nurtient losses through tile drains
under three cropping systems and two fertility levels on a brookston clay soil. Can.
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Chichester, F.W. and S.J. Smith. 1978. Disposition of 15N-labeled fertilizer nitrate applied
during corn culture in field lysimeters. J. Environ. Qual. 7(2):227-233.

Comfort, S.D.; P.P. Motavalli, K.A. Kelling and J.C. Converse. 1987. Soil profile N, P,
and K changes from injected liquid dairy manure or broadcast fertilizer. Trans.
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Dean, D.M. and M.E. Foran. 1992. The effect of farm liquid waste application on tile
drainage. J. Soil Water Con. 47(5):368-369.

Devitt, D; J. Letey, L.J. Lund and J.W. Blair. 1976. Nitrate-nitrogen movement through
soil as affected by soil profile characteristics. J. Environ. Qual. 5(3):283-288.

Drury, C.F.; D.J. McKenney, W.I. Findlay and J.D. Gaynor. 193. Influence of tillage on
nitrate loss in surface runoff and tile drainage. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 57(3):797-802.

Evans, S.D.; P.R. Goodrich, R.C. Munter and R.E. Smith. 1977. Effects of solid and liquid
beef manure and liquid hog manure on soil characteristics and on growth, yield and
composition of corn J. Environ. Qual. 6(4):361-368.
Fox, R.H.; J.M. Kern and W.P. Piekielek. 1986. Nitrogen fertilizer source, and method and
time of application effects on no-till corn yields and nitrogen uptakes. Agron. J.
78(4):741-746.

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in tile drainage following nitrogen applications to continuous corn. J. Environ.
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under irrigation between soil, plant, and aquifer. J. Environ. Qual. 8(3):281-284.

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461.

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1993. Transport of nitrate an pesticides to shallow groundwater system as affected
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V. BUDGET REPORT
A. Budget for FY 1993

In-Kind Additional
Category Leopold Center Contribution Grants Total

Salary/wage
R.S. Kanwar 7,300 7,300
D.L. Karlen 7,000 7,000
T.S. Colvin 6,500 6,500
T.A. Cambardella 5,500 5,500
T.B. Moorman 6,000 6,000
T.R. Steinheimer 7,000 7,000
V. McFadden 3,000 3,000
Technician (100%) 19,160 19,160
Research Associate 24,7201 24,720
_______ _______ _______ ______
19,160 42,300 24,720 86,180

Fringe Benefits
24.55% of Acad. Salary 10,385 10,385
39.45% of Tech. Salary 7,554 7,554
30.80% of RA Salary 7,6141 7,614

Travel
Local & Professional 5,0001 5,000

Supplies
Chemical Analysis 10,0001 10,000

Publications 500

________ ________ ________ ______

Total Direct Cost $26,714 $52,685 $47,3341 $127,233

1
Funds were provided by the MSEA project. Soil and Water samples for nitrate and herbicides were analyzed at the
National Soil Tilth Lab as a part of the MSEA project.

B. Budget Explanation

The funds from the Leopold Center were used primarily to support a full-time technician at Nashua site. Funds for
other research activities were taken from MSEA project and other grants.

C. Personnel

Mr. Randy Boggess worked as a Research Technician at the research site and was supported from funds from the
Leopold Center grant.
 Budget for FY 1994

In-Kind Additional
Category Leopold Center Contribution Grants Total

Salary/wage
R.S. Kanwar 7,300 7,300
D.L. Karlen 7,000 7,000
T.S. Colvin 6,500 6,500
T.A. Cambardella 5,500 5,500
T.B. Moorman 6,000 6,000
T.R. Steinheimer 7,000 7,000
V. McFadden 3,000 3,000
Technician (100%) 20,115 20,115
Research Associate 24,7201 24,720
_______ _______ _______ ______
20,115 42,300 24,720 87,135

Fringe Benefits
24.55% of Acad. Salary 10,385 10,385
39.45% of Tech. Salary 7,935 7,935
30.80% of RA Salary 7,6141 7,614

Travel
Local & Professional 5,0001 5,000

Supplies
Chemical Analysis 10,0001 10,000

Publications 500

________ ________ ________ ______

Total Direct Cost $28,050 $52,685 $47,3341 $128,569

1
Funds were provided by the MSEA project. Soil and Water samples for nitrate and herbicides were analyzed at the
National Soil Tilth Lab as a part of the MSEA project.

B. Budget Explanation

The funds from the Leopold Center were used primarily to support a full-time technician at Nashua site. Funds for
other research activities were taken from MSEA project and other grants.

C. Personnel

Mr. Randy Boggess worked as a Research Technician at the research site and was supported from funds from the
Leopold Center grant.
Budget for FY 1995

In-Kind Additional
Category Leopold Center Contribution Grants Total

Salary/wage
R.S. Kanwar 7,300 7,300
D.L. Karlen 7,000 7,000
T.S. Colvin 6,500 6,500
T.A. Cambardella 5,500 5,500
T.B. Moorman 6,000 6,000
T.R. Steinheimer 7,000 7,000
V. McFadden 3,000 3,000
Technician (100%) 21,126 21,126
Research Associate 24,7201 24,720
_______ _______ _______ ______
21,126 42,300 24,720 88,146

Fringe Benefits
24.55% of Acad. Salary 10,385 10,385
39.45% of Tech. Salary 8,334 8,334
30.80% of RA Salary 7,6141 7,614

Travel
Local & Professional 5,0001 5,000

Supplies
Chemical Analysis 10,0001 10,000

Publications 500

________ ________ ________ ______

Total Direct Cost $29,460 $52,685 $47,3341 $129,479

1
Funds were provided by the MSEA project. Soil and Water samples for nitrate and herbicides were analyzed at the
National Soil Tilth Lab as a part of the MSEA project.

B. Budget Explanation

The funds from the Leopold Center were used primarily to support a full-time technician at Nashua site. Funds for
other research activities were taken from MSEA project and other grants.

C. Personnel

Mr. Randy Boggess worked as a Research Technician at the research site and was supported from funds from the
Leopold Center grant.
Table 1. Management systems being evaluated at the Nashua water-quality site

System Crop Tillage N-practice Herbicides

1 Soybean No-tillage, drilled None Broadcast, 2.5 lb/A
beans Lasso; 50-100 g/A
Pursuit
1 Corn No-tillage 25 lb/A preplant + UAN Band 2.5 lb/A Dual
row cleaners based on LSNT + 2 lb/A Extrazine

2 Soybean No-tillage, drilled None Post-emergence

beans Pursuit only
2 Corn No-tillage, row 100 lb N/A preplant Broadcast Dual +
cleaners Extrazine
3 Soybean Chisel stover None Broadcast Lasso +
drilled beans Pursuit
3 Corn Field cultivate soy 25 lb/A preplant + UAN Band Dual +
residue based on LSNT Extrazine

4 Soybean Chisel stover None Post emergence

drilled beans Pursuit only

4 Corn Field cultivate soy 100 lb N/A preplant Broadcast Dual +

residue Extrazine

5 Soybean Chisel stover None Broadcast Lasso +

drilled beans Pursuit
5 Corn Chisel plow soy Swine manure‡, Band Dual +
residue ~120 lb, 3500 gal Extrazine
6 Corn Chisel plow, cont. Swine manure, Broadcast Dual +
corn ~140 lb, 4000 gal Extrazine
7 Corn Chisel plow, cont. 120 lb N/A preplant Band Dual +
corn Extrazine
 Table 2. Applied nitrogen and corn yield by plot for 1993 through 1995.
Applied Nitrogen (kg N/ha) Corn Yield (Mg/ha)
System 1993 1994 1995 1993 1994 1995
NT-LSNT1 144 169 193 6.6 7.3 4.8
NT-single 110 110 110 4.1 6.3 4.5
CP-LSNT1 93 160 160 6.8 8.2 5.2
CP-single 110 110 110 5.0 8.0 5.2
CP-manure2 82 240 338 5.6 8.4 5.6
CC-manure2 84 280 487 2.8 7.3 4.8
CC-single 135 135 135 4.2 5.8 4.1
1 Amount for late spring soil nitrate test includes 30 kg N/ha applied with planter.
2 Assumed all ammonia and 50% of organic nitrogen was available in the first year.

Table 3. Dates for seasonal stages.

Field Operation 1993 1994 1995
began monitoring March 26 March 14 March 13
spring fertilizer application1 May 14 April 24 May 12
corn planting May 17 May 2 May 16
soybean planting May 26 May 17 May 22
sidedress fertilizer application2 July 7 June 17 June 22
corn cultivation July 21 June 2 June 14
approximate maturity Sept. 1 Sept. 2 Sept 7
corn harvest Oct. 25 Sept. 28 Sept. 22
soybean harvest Oct. 7 Oct. 6 Oct. 11
ended monitoring Dec. 1 Dec. 8 Dec 15
1
Farming systems 2, 4 and 7.
2
Farming systems 1 and 3.

Table 4. Actual application rates of N, P, K from swine manure applications for the
three years of study.
Application Rate 1993 1994 1995
CS CC CS CC CS CC
N, lb/ac 75 73 212 250 349 448
P (as P2O5) lb/ac 115 143 349 410 92 140
K (as K2O) lb/ac 62 76 261 306 122 138

CC=continuous-corn CS=corn-soybean rotation.

Table 25. Effect of banding and broadcast practice on herbicide loss (g/ha) with subsurface drainage water for three years
(1993-1995).
 Atrazine Banding loss Broadcast loss
1993 1.102 3.273
1994 0.245 0.241
1995 0.168 0.761
Avg 0.505 1.425
Metolachlor
1993 0.178 0.768
1994 0.219 0.302
1995 0.030 0.468
Avg 0.142 0.513

Table 26. Effect of banding and broadcast practice on herbicide loss (g/ha) with surface runoff water for three years
(1993-1995).
Atrazine Banding loss Broadcast loss
1993 0.048 0.248
1994 0 0.039
1995 0.511 0.050
Avg 0.186 0.112
Metolachlor
1993 0.108 0.484
1994 0 0.030
1995 1.438 0.095
Avg 0.515 0.203

Table 27. Effect of swine manure on the average fecal coliform concentrations in the subsurface drainage water in
organisms/100 ml.
Sampling Date Treatments
Non-manured plots Continuous-Corn Corn-Soybean
1993 manure plots 1994 manure plots
7/19/94 0.3 (1) 1.3 (2) 4.5 (7) 2.3 (4)
8/1/94 0.7 (2) 1.3 (4) 5.0 (14) 1.7 (3)
4/5/95 0 0 0 0
Table 28. Average corn yield, N uptake and N removal by corn as a function of N management
system.

System
1993 1994 1995 1993 1994 1993 1994
1 104 116 77 118 194 72 88
2 66 101 72 61 133 38 62
3 107 130 83 116 238 65 104
4 78 127 82 67 201 45 94
5 88 134 89 90 245 49 112
6 44 117 76 53 206 26 95
7 66 92 66 54 89 35 56
CV (%) 8 4 9 32 20 14 4

Table 29. Tillage effects on corn yield, N uptake, and N removal.

Tillage practice
1993 1994 1995 1993 1994 1993 1994
No-tillage 84 108 75 91 164 55 75
Field-cultivator 93 128 83 84 219 55 99
CV (%) 7 3 9 30 17 14 8
Table 30. N-management effects on corn yield, N uptake, and N removal.

N-management
1993 1994 1995 1993 1994 1993 1994
25 lb N/acre + 105 123 80 117 216 68 96
LSNT (UAN)
100 lb N/acre 72 114 77 64 167 42 78
preplant (UAN)
CV (%) 7 3 9 30 17 14 8

Table 31. Soybean yield and aerial N accumulation.

System
1993 1994 1995 1993 1994
1 38 46 42 242 250
2 40 52 43 263 302
3 40 47 43 249 282
4 39 53 43 287 314
5 39 48 45 214 221

CV (%) 3 3 3 16 41
 Table 32. Tillage effects on soybean yield and N uptake.

Tillage practice
1993 1994 1995 1993 1994
No-tillage 39 49 43 252 276
Chisel plow 40 50 43 268 298
CV (%) 3 3 2 17 30

Table 33. Herbicide treatment effects on soybean yield and N uptake.

Herbicide practices
1993 1994 1995 1993 1994
Broadcast 2 lb/ac 39 47 42 245 266
Lasso; 100 g/ac Pursuit

Post-emergence Pursuit 39 52 43 275 308

only
CV (%) 3 3 2 17 30

Table 34. Nitrogen mineralization potential averaged across all treatments

(lb N/acre in the surface 12")
Year May June August November

1993 213 67 85 92
1994 77 67 70 103
1995 90 77 92 *

*analysis not complete to date