ABSTRACT

The Horseshoe Bend (HSB) Agroecosystem Project began in 1978 with the establishment of a set of no-tillage and intensively plowed research plots. A variety of crop rotation and ecosystem process studies has been conducted within these plots over the past 15 years but the tillage management has been maintained continuously. The HSB site is located in the Southern Appalachian Piedmont Plateau physiographic region. Data from a long-term agroecosystem research site and from available literature were used to assess patterns in plant production and soil organic matter dynamics under different types of agricultural management on the Southern Appalachian Piedmont of Georgia. The study focused on effects of tillage, residue management, and cropping systems on above-ground net primary production and soil organic carbon concentrations and standing stocks over a 12-year period.