Surprising minimisation of CO emissions from a sandy loam soil over a rye growing period achieved by liming (CaCO).

Agricultural liming improves acidic soils productivity and is considered a lever for mitigating nitrous oxide (NO) emissions from soils. However, the benefit of liming in reducing soil greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions depends on the evolution of carbon from the calcium carbonate (CaCO), and on the evolution of soil organic carbon (SOC) after CaCO application. The literature, based on limited field data, presents contrasting effects of liming on inorganic- and SOC-derived CO emissions, raising concerns that the reduction in NO emissions could be offset by increased CO emissions.