ABSTRACT
The experimental program was quite massive because on each soil type the researchers investigated the effect on soil loss of different degrees of cover as well as a suite of land management practices of interest at the time. Maintaining an adequately high level of surface contact cover may be all that is necessary to provide an adequate level of protection against soil erosion a high level of cover also maintains high rates of infiltration, and therefore less runoff. Erosion due to rainfall impact can dominate that due to overland flow in interrill regions of limited extent, or in shallow sheet flow of limited length over gentle slopes. A supportive technique of soil conservation is then to provide a strip on the contour with a high level of contact cover provided, for example, by a strip of grass, or a densely-planted leguminous hedgerow.
