A Novel Evaluation of Soil Health in Semi-Arid Texas Cotton Production

The purpose of this study was to assess a proposed set of soil health metrics in cotton production on the semi-arid Texas High Plains. The proposed metrics included soil C pools (soil organic C and permanganate oxidizable C), microbial biomass (phospholipid fatty acids), and microbial activity (mineralizable C, β-glucosidase and β-glucosaminidase). The metrics were evaluated at two locations: a native rangeland (NAT) near Wellman, TX and the Agricultural Complex for Advanced Research and Extension System (AG-CARES) near Lamesa, TX. The AG-CARES location included three continuous cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) cropping systems: 1) continuous cotton with fallow during winter (CT); 2) no-tillage with rye cover (R-NT); and 3) no-tillage with mixed species cover (M-NT). Results indicated most soil health metrics were reduced in the CT treatment compared to the NAT, M-NT and R-NT treatments. Mineralizable C was not impacted by treatment. There was no relationship between cotton yield and biological indicators of soil health. Conservation management practices in cotton monocultures exhibited characteristics similar to a native rangeland, indicating intensive conservation can yield similar ecosystem services to native sites when compared to conventional cotton cropping. Further research is necessary to understand the relationship between cotton lint yield and biological indicators of soil health.