Farm management practices such as no-tillage, stubble retention, and nitrogen (N) application have a substantial potential to enhance soil aggregation in agricultural soils. This is especially important for Vertisols, which may experience extended waterlogging due to low infiltration rates and low hydraulic conductivity. We evaluated the long-term impacts of the tillage method (no tillage, NT, and conventional tillage, CT), stubble management practices (stubble retention, SR, or stubble burning, SB) and N-fertilization on aggregate size distribution, and distribution of total C and N within different aggregate-size fractions in a Vertisol. Soil samples were collected from 0–0.1 m depth at the Hermitage Research Station in Queensland, Australia, after 50 years of management. We found that the soil under NT with SR and 90 kg N fertilizer application (NTSRN₉₀) contained the highest proportion of large macro-aggregates (31.0 %), the greatest mean weight diameter (MWD) (1.79 mm), and the highest percentage of water stable aggregates (WSA, 90.2 %), whilst the lowest values (3.15 %, 0.71 mm and 72.7 %, respectively) were found in the CTSBN₀ treatment. Therefore, reducing soil disturbance by primary tillage operations (NT) and the retention of crop residues (SR) and fertilizer application stimulated the formation of soil macro-aggregates from micro-aggregates. Retention of higher amounts of residues to the system in the SR and N fertilized treatments increased the macro-aggregate occluded particulate organic C (POC) and N (PON), which likely provided loci for aggregate formation and binding agents for stabilisation. Larger aggregates stored more organic C and N, and had lower water retention at saturation (−10 kPa), than smaller aggregates or the silt + clay fraction, thus having the potential to reduce the frequency of waterlogging in the soil under NT, SR, and N fertilization. Therefore, long-term practice of no-tillage along with stubble retention and N fertilisation could significantly enhance the macro-aggregation of fine-textured Vertisols, with this then ensuring the sustainability of the agricultural production system by creating favourable water retention and movement, and porosity for better management for crop production.

免耕、留茬和施氮 (N) 等农场管理实践具有增强农业土壤中土壤团聚的巨大潜力。这对于 Vertisols 尤其重要，由于低渗透率和低水力传导率，Vertisols 可能会经历长时间的淹水。我们评估了耕作方法（免耕，NT 和常规耕作，CT）、茬管理做法（留茬，SR 或烧茬，SB）和施氮肥对骨料粒度分布和分布的长期影响Vertisol 中不同聚集体尺寸部分的总 C 和 N。经过 50 年的管理，在澳大利亚昆士兰的 Hermitage 研究站从 0-0.1 m 深度收集土壤样品。₉₀ ) 含有最高比例的大型宏观聚集体 (31.0 %)、最大的平均重量直径 (MWD) (1.79 毫米) 和最高百分比的水稳定聚集体 (WSA, 90.2 %)，而最低值 (3.15 %、0.71 毫米和 72.7 %）分别在 CTSBN ₀中发现治疗。因此，通过初级耕作操作（NT）减少土壤扰动以及保留作物残留物（SR）和施肥刺激了土壤大团聚体由微团聚体的形成。在 SR 和 N 施肥处理中，在系统中保留更多的残留物增加了宏观聚集体封闭的颗粒有机 C (POC) 和 N (PON)，这可能为聚集体形成和稳定结合剂提供了位点。与较小的团聚体或粉砂 + 粘土部分相比，较大的团聚体储存更多的有机碳和氮，并且在饱和状态 (-10 kPa) 下的保水率较低，因此有可能减少 NT、SR、和施氮肥。因此，