Stabilization of organic C in an Indo-Gangetic alluvial soil under long-term manure and compost management in a rice–wheat system

The nature of carbon input to soil, its transformation to soil organic matter (SOM), and the degree of protection from decomposition are important for long-term persistence of SOM. The effect of exogenous addition of organic matter on SOM build-up is well known; however, changes in quality vis-à-vis composition of added organic matter have been less investigated. It is necessary to ascertain the form under which C accumulates and how the composition of added organic matter influences the stabilization of soil organic C (SOC). Changes in composition of SOM were studied by fractionating the soil into coarse (cPOC; >250 µm) and fine particulate organic C (fPOC; 53–250 µm) and mineral-associated organic C (MinOC; <53 µm) and measuring the acid non-hydrolyzable C (NHC) as well as mineralizable C following repeated applications of farmyard manure (FYM), rice straw compost (RSC) and vermicompost (VC) in a rice (Oryza sativa L.)–wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) system field experiment. Addition of organic amendments for 10 years significantly increased SOC stocks and the increase was greatest with RSC (12.2 t ha−1) followed by FYM (9.1 t ha−1), and lowest with VC (8.5 t ha−1), compared with solitary application of NPK. The C accumulation in separated pools was influenced by the chemical composition of the organic source. Compost applications accumulated C preferentially in the MinOC pool, whereas the FYM accumulated a greater proportion of C as POC, particularly as fPOC. The differences were attributed to the lower C/N ratio and higher lignin content of RSC than FYM. The RSC application increased NHC stocks to a significantly greater extent than FYM and VC, indicating recalcitrance of the accumulated C. This was substantiated by the significantly lower C mineralization potential of RSC-amended soils compared to the FYM- and VC-amended soils. The results showed that addition of compost, besides leading to C build-up, improved C stabilization by imparting recalcitrance to SOC.