Soil Quality Assessment for Environmentally Sound Agriculture in the Mountainous Soils; Analysis of Sediment Data and Suggestion of Best Management Practices

Eleven runoff were built on a sloping field of a high plateau in Kangwon Province, Korea. The plots were treated with different tillage, residue covers and fertilizers, corn and potato were cultivated, and sediment discharge was measured from the plots for 3 years. Agricultural management practices were monitored around the plots to develop adequate best management practices. The least sediment occurred from the plots with no-till and 100% residue cover and with contour tillage and vinyl sheet cover plots . The largest sediment was measured from the plots with up-and-down till and no cover ( and from corn and potato plots, respectively). The type of organic and commercial fertilizers seemed not to affect sediment discharge. Sediment discharge from contour plots were largely dependent on the collapse of ridges due to the flush of water stored in furrows. The sediment discharge from contour corn and potato plots with no residue cover was and , respectively. No-till with residue cover, vinyl cover for tuber crops, construction of furrow dam, frost heave research, furrow and ridge tillage with furrow dam after tuber crop harvest, limited stalk harvest of row crops, use of winter cover crops, and other common best management practices were recommended to minimize the sediment discharge from a high plateau sloping land culture.