Soil carbon response to above- and below-ground biomass inputs from cover crops in diverse soil types and agricultural production systems

Lead Applicant: Laura Van Eerd

Research Priority: Soil Health Projects

Program Type: Tier 1

Funding Cycle: 2022/2023

Research Centre: NA

Research Summary: Although cover crops increase soil carbon (C) storage, the mechanism through which this occurs is not clearly understood. Most soil C models use above-ground cover crop biomass to predict the amount of soil C stored. This research will use long-term experiments to quantify the below-ground biomass and soil C (stable and labile) pools and contribute to the changing understanding of soil C dynamics by providing and building a cover crop database for the soil C models. This will lead to improved cover crops recommendations and could increase adoption of cover crop use for enhancing soil health in Ontario.