ABSTRACT
Soil fertility is fundamental to crop production and depends in part on soil and crop management strategies that improve soil organic carbon (SOC) and enhance the supply of nutrients to crops. Poor soil fertility is a major constraint to crop productivity. Hence, investment in practices that improve and conserve soil resources, such as soil organic matter (SOM), is likely to provide a large economic return to farmers with minimal impact on the environment. The appropriate management of crop residues is an example of one practice that can help maintain soil quality and provide carbon (C) and nutrients in soils. In this chapter, crop residue is defined as any aboveground plant biomass that is generated after crop harvesting in agricultural fields.
