Soil quality is the basis of agricultural production in each country. Conservation tillage systems and cover cropping methods have an immensely positive effect on physical and chemical soil characteristics which maintain
the sustainable agriculture. This study aimed to assess the impact of different tillage practices on soils physical,
chemical, and biological characteristics. This research was conducted in growing season 2017-2018 in the field station
in College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran. Furthermore, three files with different soil
management were chosen, and some physical, chemical, and biological soil properties were determined. Different tillage systems included traditional soil management, no-tillage & cover cropping for six years, and no-tillage & cover cropping for one year. Results showed that no-tillage management had higher aggregate stability compared to traditional soil management. The quantity of organic carbon and soil microbial respiration was significantly higher in “notillage & cover cropping (for six years) management compared to other soil management systems. Due to soil moisture and nitrogen content, no significant differences were observed among different tillage systems. Managing cover crops in conservation tillage systems has a key role to improve soil water holding capacity in addition to soil erosion reduction.However, socioeconomic and environmental factors are needed to consider when making soil management decisions.
Key Words: no-tillage, soil properties, sustainable agriculture.