Assessing plant soil water availability in drought conditions : a comparative analysis of conventional and minimum tillage, example from Slovenia

Noč, Matic (author), Pečan, Urša (author), Zupanc, Vesna (author), Pintar, Marina (author), Glavan, Matjaž (author)

Tillage systems, such as conventional tillage (CT) and minimum tillage (MT), with reduced tillage and incorporation of surface crop residues, lead to changes in soil properties, including organic matter content and soil structure, and can alter water infiltration and water retention. This study aimed to assess plant soil water availability by observing soil water status and soil penetration resistance (SPR) in fields under CT and MT in two climate zones (Temperate Mediterranean and Humid Continental) and pedologically diverse river basins in Slovenia. Soil water content and matric potential were continuously measured throughout one growing season and SPR twice at all CT and MT fields with an identical crop rotation (maise - winter wheat - rapeseed/clover grass mixture) and tillage practice. Measurement indicates that, on average, matric potential between CT and MT in the study sites is not statistically different. The mean SPR was higher under MT in the first 30 cm soil layer. Soil matric potential categorised into four categories of plant-available water indicated severe drought conditions lasting for several months in most CT and MT fields. The findings suggest no statistically significant differences in plant soil water availability between the two evaluated tillage methods. Results indicate that a change in the tillage method alone did not substantially enhance plant water availability. Consequently, additional strategies, such as education, training, and support for farmers, alongside technological and technical measures advancements like irrigation and decision support systems, are necessary to adapt to climate change effectively and enhance plant water availability in agricultural soils.

• Language: English
• Keywords: soil matric potential, soil water availability, drought, minimum agriculture, minimum tillage, conventional tillage, soil penetration resistance
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: BF - Biotechnical Faculty
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2026
• Number of pages: 18 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 14, iss. 1, art. 100547
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-181034
• UDC: 631.4
• ISSN on article: 2095-6339
• DOI: 10.1016/j.iswcr.2025.07.003
• COBISS.SI-ID: 241986307
• Publication date in RUL: 23.03.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: International Soil and Water Conservation Research
• Shortened title: Int. Soil Water Conserv. Res.
• Publisher: China Water & Power Press (CWPP)
• ISSN: 2095-6339
• COBISS.SI-ID: 525912089

Licences

• License: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
• Description: The most restrictive Creative Commons license. This only allows people to download and share the work for no commercial gain and for no other purposes.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: voda, tla, suša, kmetijstvo, minimalna obdelava tal, konvencionalna obdelava tal

Projects

• Funder: ARIS - Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency
• Project number: L4-2625
• Name: Celovito upravljanje malih ukrepov za zadrževanje vode in preprečevanje erozije tal v kmetijskih povodjih - CeVoTak

• Funder: EC - European Commission
• Project number: 862756
• Name: OPtimal strategies to retAIN and re-use water and nutrients in small agricultural catchments across different soil-climatic regions in Europe
• Acronym: OPTAIN