Soil-dwelling springtails as indicators of the efficiency of No-till technologies with different amounts of mineral fertilizers in the crop rotation on chernozem soils

Conventional management negatively affects natural fertility of land resources. An alternative system of tillage associated with the absence of mechanical influence may be one of the solutions of the issue of preserving "healthy soil". It is especially relevant for agroecosystems of steppe chernozems with strong wind erosion. A long-term field experiment has been carried out to study the effects of environment-friendly agricultural technologies, such as No-till technologies with different amounts of mineral fertilizers, in the steppe zone. The influence of several factors on soil fauna has been assessed in a 4-field crop rotation (pea –– winter wheat –– sunflower –– corn). Collembola or springtails, small soil-dwelling arthropods, actively participating in soil formation processes, were considered as a model taxonomic group. Both high abundance and diversity are characteristic of "healthy soils". Total abundance of Collembola increased by 20 times, species richness by 1.5––2.0 times when using No-till technology. However, the absence of mineral fertilizers on the plots subject to No-till technology was accompanied by a decrease in the Collembola abundance. The type of crop influenced only the total abundance of Collembola. The species structure of communities under different crops were similar, but the plots with conventional and No-till technology differed significantly with respect to the dominance of Collembola species. The effect of No-till technology is as much stronger than that of other factors (mineral fertilizers and type of crop), having been achieved for at least the 9-year period of the experiment. As a total, Collembola communities responded positively when No-till technology was applied in the agroecosystem of steppe chernozems. •A 9-year field experiment was performed to study the effects of No-till technology in chernozem soil.•Abundance and species richness of Collembola increased when No-till technology was applied.•The effect of No-till is as much stronger than the effect of mineral fertilizers and type of crop.