Control of Soil pH, Its Ecological and Agronomic Assessment in an Agroecosystem

Lithuania is located in the humid zone, where mean annual precipitation exceeds mean evapotranspiration and soil acidification is an ongoing natural process encouraged by anthropogenic activities. Traditionally, the process may be controlled by different intensity liming. The chapter summarizes the data on long-term liming and fertilization experiments made in Western Lithuania. The object of the investigation is the naturally acid soil, Bathygleyic Dystric Glossic Retisol (texture: moraine loam with clay-sized particles content of 12–14%), and the same soil exposed for more than half a century to different liming and fertilization intensity. Our systematic analysis shows that it is impossible to reach appropriate moraine loam soil conditions for organic matter decomposition, carbon sequestration, soil aggregation, nitrogen fixation, nutrient accumulation, and plant growth by using intensive liming only. It is necessary to co-ordinate proper liming and organic fertilizing. The soil acidity was neutralized (pHKCl 5.9 ± 0.1) and mobile aluminum abolished in the topsoil and subsoil to a 60 cm depth; moreover, the highest amount of soil organic carbon (1.91%), water stable aggregates (59%), intense nitrogen fixation, and highest grain yield was established in the periodically limed (with 1.0 rate CaCO3 every 7 years) soil with 60 t ha−1 farmyard manure (FYM) application.