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WASTE MANAGEMENT

Paper Pellets as a Mulch for Dryland Grain Sorghum Production

USDA-ARS, Conservation and Production Research Laboratory, P.O. Drawer 10, Bushland, TX 79012

Corresponding author (pwunger{at}tcac.net)

Some landfills no longer accept waste paper for disposal; thus, alternative means are needed. One would be to apply pelleted paper to cropland as a mulch. This field study was conducted to determine effects of a paper pellet mulch on soil water storage and grain sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] yield. Mulch rates were 0 (check), 5, 10, and 15 Mg ha^-1. Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) residue condition (retained or removed) and tillage (sweep or no-tillage) treatments were included. Pellet applications did not affect water storage or sorghum yields, apparently because pellets absorbed precipitation, which resulted in similar evaporation from bare and mulched soils. Residue and tillage treatments had little effect on water storage and sorghum yield. Soil C concentrations were greater in mulched than bare soil in one case, but some pellet material remained, suggesting further decomposition could increase soil C. Pellet applications resulted in greater aggregate mean weight diameters and lower percentages of small aggregates. These improved conditions could improve the soil's long-term productivity. Because crop productivity was not harmed, waste paper (e.g., pellets as used in this study) can be disposed of on cropland. However, shallow paper incorporation may be a better practice than surface applications because it should hasten its decomposition and, thereby, more rapidly improve soil conditions.

Abbreviations: LSD, protected least significant difference • MWD, mean weight diameter • NT, no-tillage • R+, residue retained • R-, residue removed • ST, sweep tillage • WSF, wheat–fallow–sorghum–fallow rotation

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