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Agronomy
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Effects of Cover Crop, Intercropping and Crop Rotation on Soil...
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Effects of Cover Crop, Intercropping and Crop Rotation on Soil Properties

A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Farming Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 June 2026 | Viewed by 1241

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Petr Novák

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural Machines, Faculty of Engineering, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129 st., Prague 165 21, Czech Republic
Interests: soil problems; erosion; soil tillage
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Milan Kroulík

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agricultural Machines, Faculty of Engineering, Czech University of Life Sciences, 165 00 Prague, Czech Republic
Interests: precision agriculture; agriculture 4.0 or even new plant establishment technologies

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Soil properties and their interactions with crops remain a key issue for global agriculture. Only by continuously improving our understanding of these issues can we move agriculture towards safe food production for 8 billion people while reducing energy inputs. The aim of this Special Issue is to gather new information from around the world and contribute to the development of global agriculture and food security. Submissions should contain new data and findings, especially in the areas of soil protection from damage, appropriate crop rotation principles, and related topics. New and unexpected connections are also welcome, as are other beneficial effects on soil, which remains one of the most valuable resources on earth.

Dr. Petr Novák
Dr. Milan Kroulík
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agronomy is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • soil erosion
  • physical and chemical properties of soil
  • interaction between crops

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

20 pages, 1991 KB  
Article
Effect of Soil Tillage Practises on Soil Properties and Water Infiltration in Maize (Zea mays L.) Monoculture
by František Horejš, Martin Císler, Josef Hůla and Milan Kroulík
Agronomy 2026, 16(5), 551; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy16050551 - 28 Feb 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 520
Abstract
Soil tillage practices play a key role in controlling soil’s physical properties, water infiltration, and runoff generation, particularly in erosion-prone cropping systems such as maize monocultures. The cultivation of wide-row crops is restricted on erosion-prone land; however, these crops constitute a fundamental basis [...] Read more.
Soil tillage practices play a key role in controlling soil’s physical properties, water infiltration, and runoff generation, particularly in erosion-prone cropping systems such as maize monocultures. The cultivation of wide-row crops is restricted on erosion-prone land; however, these crops constitute a fundamental basis for livestock feed and represent a key input raw material for biogas plants. This 4-year study evaluated the effects of three tillage practices—conventional ploughing, shallow tillage, and no tillage—on selected soil’s physical and chemical properties and on water infiltration processes in a maize (Zea mays L.) monoculture. Experimental maize stands were established in a field with a silty clay Luvic Chernozem. Field measurements were performed over multiple years and included soil bulk density, macroporosity, cone index, soil organic carbon, soil pH, soil aggregate stability, and water infiltration. Infiltration processes were assessed using a combination of double-ring infiltrometers, rainfall simulation, and dye tracer experiments to characterize water flow patterns under controlled conditions. The results demonstrated that soil tillage significantly influenced the vertical distribution of soil organic carbon and pH, soil aggregate stability, soil compaction, and pore characteristics, with the most pronounced differences observed in the upper soil layers. Soil aggregate stability in the 0–0.10 m layer showed a clear numerical trend, with the highest mean value under ST (0.42) compared with PL (0.28) and no tillage (NT) (0.26). Topsoil Cox was the highest under ST (3.591%) compared with PL (2.838%) and NT (2.634%). Differences among tillage practices were particularly evident during simulated rainfall events, affecting infiltration rates, runoff initiation, and preferential flow patterns. Ring infiltrometer measurements indicated higher infiltration in PL (e.g., 21.1 mm min−1 at minute 1 in PL vs. 11.1/11.9 mm min−1 in ST/NT; 10.9 mm min−1 at minute 10 in PL vs. 5.3/7.6 mm min−1 in ST/NT). However, rainfall simulation showed the highest runoff in PL, including the earliest runoff onset (4.5 min). Despite the soil’s high infiltration capacity due to low bulk density and higher porosity, the decisive factor promoting water infiltration into the soil is the condition of the soil surface, which is influenced by the stability of soil aggregates; this stability was enhanced by the input of organic matter from plant residues. The findings confirm that long-term soil tillage management substantially modifies soil hydraulic behaviour and highlight the importance of tillage system selection for improving soil water infiltration and reducing runoff risk in maize monoculture systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Cover Crop, Intercropping and Crop Rotation on Soil Properties)
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