Effect of tillage, fertilizer and green manure cropping on soil quality at an abandoned brick making site

Soils at abandoned brick production sites are inherently low in fertility and have poor physical conditions. In order to develop efficient soil management practices for rapid restoration of these seriously degraded soils, a field experiment was conducted on an abandoned brick production site in Shaoxing county, Zhejiang province, southeast China. Amelioration methods, including tillage, fertilization and green manure (GM) cropping, were compared for their effects on improving selected soil quality indicators. Both fertilization and tillage improved chemical, biological and physical properties of the soils. Deep tillage significantly decreased soil bulk density and significantly increased infiltration rate. Use of organic manure and chemical fertilization increased soil nutrients and microbial biomass. Application of organic manure significantly increased levels of organic C and N and the formation of water-stable aggregates, as compared with application of chemical fertilizers. Deep tillage combined with application of organic manure and green manure cropping was the most efficient method for increasing quality of the soil.