Chilean Journal of Agricultural & Animal Sciences · 2026
LIQUID DAIRY MANURE IMPROVED THE SHORT-TERM PHYSICAL QUALITY OF AN ARGIUDOLL
Martineli Batista, A., Oggero, E., Imhoff, S., Ghiberto, P.
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LIQUID DAIRY MANURE IMPROVED THE SHORT-TERM PHYSICAL QUALITY…
Abstract
The application of liquid dairy manure (LDM), which is an effluent generated in dairy production facilities from a mixture of feces, urine, milking-parlor wash water, and feed residues, can be a sustainable alternative to improve soil quality. This study aimed to determine the effect of different LDM doses on chemical and physical fertility indicators and overall quality of a silt loam Typic Argiudoll cultivated under no-till. The experiment was conducted using a randomized block design with three blocks and four treatments (LDM doses): D0, no application; D1, 60 m3 ha?1; D2, 120 m3 ha?1; and D3, 180 m3 ha?1. LDM was applied five days before sorghum planting, in November 2019. Chemical properties were evaluated 10 days later. Physical properties and aboveground biomass were assessed in March 2020. Global index of soil physical quality (GISPQ) and least limiting water range (LLWR) were also obtained as indicators of overall quality. Increasing LDM dose resulted in progressively lower soil bulk density (from 1.40 in D0 to 1.37 g cm?3 in D3), penetration resistance, effective stress, and higher organic matter (+29% from D0 to D3), biomass (up to +26%), nutrient concentrations and electrical conductivity (from 0.6 to 2.0 dS m?1), while pH remained unaltered. GISPQ and LLWR reflected significant differences between D0 and D1 compared to D2 and D3. LDM doses D2 and D3 improved short-term soil structural quality, mainly due to their greater contribution of organic matter, supporting the hypothesis that appropriate LDM application rates can enhance soil physical quality in the short term despite the associated increase in soluble salts. The results suggest that LDM is a viable alternative for the sustainable management of agricultural systems and for reducing their negative environmental impact. However, the observed increase in electrical conductivity indicates that soil salinity should be monitored to prevent potential long-term risks to crop yield.
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The application of liquid dairy manure (LDM), which is an effluent generated in dairy production facilities from a mixture of feces, urine, milking-parlor wash water, and feed residues, can be a sustainable alternative to improve soil quality. This study aimed to determine the effect of different LDM doses on chemical and physical fertility indicators and overall quality of a silt loam Typic Argiudoll cultivated under no-till. The experiment was conducted using a randomized block design with three blocks and four treatments (LDM doses): D0, no application; D1, 60 m3 ha?1; D2, 120 m3 ha?1; and D3, 180 m3 ha?1. LDM was applied five days before sorghum planting, in November 2019. Chemical properties were evaluated 10 days later. Physical properties and aboveground biomass were assessed in March 2020. Global index of soil physical quality (GISPQ) and least limiting water range (LLWR) were also obtained as indicators of overall quality. Increasing LDM dose resulted in progressively lower soil bulk density (from 1.40 in D0 to 1.37 g cm?3 in D3), penetration resistance, effective stress, and higher organic matter (+29% from D0 to D3), biomass (up to +26%), nutrient concentrations and electrical conductivity (from 0.6 to 2.0 dS m?1), while pH remained unaltered. GISPQ and LLWR reflected significant differences between D0 and D1 compared to D2 and D3. LDM doses D2 and D3 improved short-term soil structural quality, mainly due to their greater contribution of organic matter, supporting the hypothesis that appropriate LDM application rates can enhance soil physical quality in the short term despite the associated increase in soluble salts. The results suggest that LDM is a viable alternative for the sustainable management of agricultural systems and for reducing their negative environmental impact. However, the observed increase in electrical conductivity indicates that soil salinity should be monitored to prevent potential long-term risks to crop yield.
The application of liquid dairy manure (LDM), which is an effluent generated in dairy production facilities from a mixture of feces, urine, milking-parlor wash water, and feed residues, can be a sustainable alternative to improve soil quality. This study aimed to determine the effect of different LDM doses on chemical and physical fertility indicators and overall quality of a silt loam Typic Argiudoll cultivated under no-till. The experiment was conducted using a randomized block design with three blocks and four treatments (LDM doses): D0, no application; D1, 60 m3 ha?1; D2, 120 m3 ha?1; and D3, 180 m3 ha?1. LDM was applied five days before sorghum planting, in November 2019. Chemical properties were evaluated 10 days later. Physical properties and aboveground biomass were assessed in March 2020. Global index of soil physical quality (GISPQ) and least limiting water range (LLWR) were also obtained as indicators of overall quality. Increasing LDM dose resulted in progressively lower soil bulk density (from 1.40 in D0 to 1.37 g cm?3 in D3), penetration resistance, effective stress, and higher organic matter (+29% from D0 to D3), biomass (up to +26%), nutrient concentrations and electrical conductivity (from 0.6 to 2.0 dS m?1), while pH remained unaltered. GISPQ and LLWR reflected significant differences between D0 and D1 compared to D2 and D3. LDM doses D2 and D3 improved short-term soil structural quality, mainly due to their greater contribution of organic matter, supporting the hypothesis that appropriate LDM application rates can enhance soil physical quality in the short term despite the associated increase in soluble salts. The results suggest that LDM is a viable alternative for the sustainable management of agricultural systems and for reducing their negative environmental impact. However, the observed increase in electrical conductivity indicates that soil salinity should be monitored to prevent potential long-term risks to crop yield.
Findings
What changed what, as the paper reports it. Grouped by the measured property. The largest groups are open; open the others as you need them.
macropore domain porosity
↑ 1↓ 12
- increase
D3, high LDM dose vs. D0, no LDMsignificant · 0–15 cm · March 2020 · dairy farm near Cavour · Table5 scope 0–15 cm; methods cores 5–10 cm; D3 a vs D0 b.
Numbers
- treatment 0.039 vs. control 0.035 m3/m3 (+11.43 %)
Source · p. 9 “its increase in D3 indicates an early positive trend”
- decrease
D1 and D2, agreeing low and medium LDM variants vs. D0, no LDMsignificant · 0–15 cm · March 2020 · dairy farm near Cavour · D1/D2 individually c vs D0 b, Tukey .05. Table5 scope differs from methods 5–10 cm cores.
Source · p. 9 “D0 31.0 c 1.40 a 0.035 b 0.061 b 0.233 b 0.9 a 3.5 c 0.038 c 31.9 b D1 32.3 c 1.40 a 0.030 c 0.050 c 0.249 a 1.0 a 3.6 c 0.040 b 31.6 b D2 35.0 b 1.39 a 0.026 c 0.053 c 0.248 a 0.9 a 3.8 b 0.041 ab 35.2 ab”
total soil air capacity
↑ 1↓ 12
- increase
D3, high LDM dose vs. D0, no LDMsignificant · 0–15 cm · March 2020 · dairy farm near Cavour · D3 vs D0; Table5 scope, physical cores 5–10 cm.
Source · p. 9 “ACt increased (p\<0.05) in D3 compared to D0”
- decrease
D1 and D2, agreeing low and medium LDM variants vs. D0, no LDMsignificant · 0–15 cm · March 2020 · dairy farm near Cavour · D1/D2 individually c vs D0 b, Tukey .05. Table5 scope; physical cores 5–10 cm.
Source · p. 9 “D0 31.0 c 1.40 a 0.035 b 0.061 b 0.233 b 0.9 a 3.5 c 0.038 c 31.9 b D1 32.3 c 1.40 a 0.030 c 0.050 c 0.249 a 1.0 a 3.6 c 0.040 b 31.6 b D2 35.0 b 1.39 a 0.026 c 0.053 c 0.248 a 0.9 a 3.8 b 0.041 ab 35.2 ab”
dry aboveground biomass
1
- increase
D3, high LDM dose vs. D0, no LDMsignificance not stated · 118 days after sowing · dairy farm near Cavour · D3 (180 m3/ha) vs D0. Figure 1 has no pairwise letters despite its caption; overall significance does not test this pair.
Numbers
- percent_change 26
Source · p. 5 “Compared with the control (D0), doses D1, D2 and D3 increased production by 5%, 20% and 26%, respectively”
organic matter
1
- increase
D3, high LDM dose vs. D0, no LDMsignificance not stated · 0–15 cm · 10 days after LDM application · dairy farm near Cavour · D3 vs D0; single composite chemical sample per treatment, no formal test (methods and Table3). Table5 reprints these values with letters inconsistently.
Numbers
- treatment 39.7 vs. control 31 g/kg (+28.06 %)
Source · p. 6 “LDM application increased OM by 29% from D0 to D3 (Table 3)”
extractable P
1
- increase
D3, high LDM dose vs. D0, no LDMsignificance not stated · 0–15 cm · 10 days after application · dairy farm near Cavour · D3 vs D0; untested composite chemical samples; Table3 prints g/kg for P.
Numbers
- percent_change 79
Source · p. 11 “LDM increased soil organic matter (+29%), extractable P (+79%), and total N (+41%) (D0 to D3)”
total nitrogen
1
- increase
D3, high LDM dose vs. D0, no LDMsignificance not stated · 0–15 cm · 10 days after application · dairy farm near Cavour · D3 vs D0; untested composite chemical samples.
Numbers
- percent_change 41
Source · p. 11 “LDM increased soil organic matter (+29%), extractable P (+79%), and total N (+41%) (D0 to D3)”
electrical conductivity
1
- increase
D3, high LDM dose vs. D0, no LDMsignificance not stated · 0–15 cm · 10 days after application · dairy farm near Cavour · D3 vs D0; no chemical statistical tests.
Numbers
- treatment 2 vs. control 0.6 dS/m (+233.3 %)
Source · p. 11 “Electrical conductivity also increased (0.6 to 2.0 dS m‑1)”
pH
= 11
- no effect
D1, D2 and D3, agreeing LDM variants vs. D0, no LDMsignificance not stated · 0–15 cm · 10 days after application · dairy farm near Cavour · D1–D3 (60–180 m3/ha); paper reports unchanged pH descriptively, no chemical statistical test.
Source · p. 6 “EC increased with LDM dose, while pH remained unchanged due to the soil's buffering capacity”
soil water retention curve
= 11
- no effect
D1, D2 and D3, agreeing LDM variants vs. D0, no LDMnot significant · 5–10 cm · March 2020 · dairy farm near Cavour · D1–D3 vs D0; Table4 all fitting parameters share a at Tukey .05.
Source · p. 7 “LDM did not alter soil water retention capacity during the evaluated sorghum crop cycle.”
Source · p. 8 “D0 0.0044 a 1.3279 a 0.2462 a D1 0.0032 a 1.3563 a 0.2620 a D2 0.0042 a 1.3516 a 0.2591 a D3 0.0046 a 1.3348 a 0.2499 a”
bulk density
↓ 11
- decrease
D3, high LDM dose vs. D0, no LDMsignificant · 0–15 cm · March 2020 · dairy farm near Cavour · Table5 states 0–15 cm; physical cores in methods sampled at 5–10 cm. D3 vs D0.
Numbers
- treatment 1.37 vs. control 1.4 g/cm3 (-2.143 %)
Source · p. 11 “while reducing bulk density (from 1.40 to 1.37 g cm ‑3 in D3)”
available water capacity
↑ 11
- increase
D1, D2 and D3, agreeing LDM variants vs. D0, no LDMsignificant · 0–15 cm · March 2020 · dairy farm near Cavour · D1–D3 individually a vs D0 b, Tukey .05. Table5 scope; physical cores 5–10 cm.
Source · p. 9 “D0 31.0 c 1.40 a 0.035 b 0.061 b 0.233 b 0.9 a 3.5 c 0.038 c 31.9 b D1 32.3 c 1.40 a 0.030 c 0.050 c 0.249 a 1.0 a 3.6 c 0.040 b 31.6 b D2 35.0 b 1.39 a 0.026 c 0.053 c 0.248 a 0.9 a 3.8 b 0.041 ab 35.2 ab D3 39.7 a 1.37 b 0.039 a 0.065 a 0.243 a 0.9 a 4.3 a 0.042 a 38.9 a”
structural stability index
↑ 11
- increase
D2 and D3, agreeing higher-dose LDM variants vs. D0, no LDMsignificant · 0–15 cm · March 2020 · dairy farm near Cavour · D2/D3 individually b/a vs D0 c, Tukey .05. Chemical-composite input to calculated index limits interpretation.
Source · p. 9 “SI increased with LDM dose (Table 5)”
S index (Sgi)
↑ 11
- increase
D1, D2 and D3, agreeing LDM variants vs. D0, no LDMsignificant · 0–15 cm · March 2020 · dairy farm near Cavour · D1/D2/D3 individually b/ab/a vs D0 c, Tukey .05. Table5 depth; methods cores 5–10 cm.
Source · p. 9 “Sgi also increased with LDM dose (Table 5).”
global index of soil physical quality (GISPQ)
↑ 11
- increase
D3, high LDM dose vs. D0, no LDMsignificant · 0–15 cm · March 2020 · dairy farm near Cavour · D3 a vs D0 b, Tukey .05; D2 ab shares b with D0 despite broad abstract improvement claim.
Numbers
- treatment 38.9 vs. control 31.9 % (+21.94 %)
Source · p. 9 “Based on GISPQ values, the overall soil physical quality increased with LDM dose (Table 5).”
least limiting water range
1
- increase
D2 and D3, agreeing higher-dose LDM variants vs. D0, no LDMsignificance not stated · 5–10 cm · March 2020 · dairy farm near Cavour · D2/D3 vs D0; no pairwise test. Values termed averages are defined as medians; no mean observations entered.
Source · p. 10 “Average LLWR values (i.e., 50% of the calculated LLWR values fall above and below these values) were 0.03, 0.06, 0.09, and 0.10 cm3 cm ‑3 for D0, D1, D2, and D3, respectively, with D0 showing the poorest condition, and D2 and D3 the best.”
penetration resistance
1
- decrease
D2 and D3, agreeing higher-dose LDM variants vs. D0, no LDMsignificance not stated · 5–10 cm · March 2020 · dairy farm near Cavour · D2/D3 compared with D0/D1 at higher effective stress; fitted lines cross D0 at low stress (higher intercepts). Response curves, no pairwise significance.
Source · p. 11 “As a result, roots in D2 and D3 would face less mechanical resistance at a given σ”
Set-up
Treatments
Measured
- dry aboveground biomassAboveground biomass
- Unit
- kg/ha
- organic matterSoil organic matter
- Unit
- g/kg
- Method
- Walkley-Black organic carbon subsequently converted to OM
- extractable PAvailable phosphorus
- Unit
- g/kg (printed Table 3)
- total nitrogen
- Unit
- g/kg
- S-SO4SO4 2-/Sulfate
- Unit
- g/kg (printed Table 3)
- CECCation exchange capacity
- Unit
- cmolc/kg
- electrical conductivity
- Unit
- dS/m
- pH
- Method
- 1:2.5 ratio; solution not specified
- soil water retention curveWater retention curve
- bulk density
- Unit
- g/cm3
- macropore domain porosityMacroporosity
- Unit
- m3/m3
- total soil air capacityAir capacity
- Unit
- m3/m3
- available water capacity
- Unit
- m3/m3
- structural stability indexAggregate stability index
- Unit
- %
- Method
- Reynolds 2009 OM/(silt+clay) index
- S index (Sgi)S index
- global index of soil physical quality (GISPQ)Soil quality index
- Unit
- %
- Method
- Ghiberto 2015 eight-attribute soil physical quality index
- least limiting water range
- Unit
- cm3/cm3
- penetration resistance
- Unit
- MPa
Sites
dairy farm near Cavour
- Location
- Cavour, Santa Fe Province, Argentina31.37° S, 61.01° W
- Climate
- 18.05 °C mean annual temperature967 mm annual precipitation
- Soil
- Argiudoll (Typic) · USDA
- Land use
- cultivated under no-tillArable land
- Management on the whole site
- no-tillZero tillage, ryegrass/sorghum-alfalfa rotationCrop rotation, sorghumSorghum/Great millet/Sorghum bicolor
| Depth | Texture | Clay | pH | Organic C | Bulk density |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–20 cm | silt loam | – | – | – | – |
| 20–30 cm | silty clay loam | – | – | – | – |
| 30–55 cm | silty clay | – | – | – | – |
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