Multivariate lattice deformation: A spatially explicit framework for assessing crop rotation impacts on soil nutrient dynamics

Abstract

Crop rotation impacts on soil nutrients are typically assessed using field-averaged or single-nutrient analyses that ignore spatial heterogeneity and multivariate interactions. We propose a multivariate lattice model treating soil as a 4D tensor (space, time, and N, P, K channels). Crop rotations are represented as force vectors, with soil buffering capacity (&#34;stiffness&#34;) varying spatially with texture. Lateral nutrient movement is introduced via kernel smoothing. Cumulative impact is quantified by Euclidean distance in N-P-K space, with significance assessed via Cramer-von Mises permutation tests. Simulating a three-year corn-soybean-wheat rotation on a 20 x 20 heterogeneous grid shows mean stress of 0.63 after one cycle, with maximum 0.91 in sandy areas. Phosphorus depletion (17.9%) exceeds nitrogen (10.8%), dominating stress in 19% of cells - obscured by single-nutrient analyses. Continuous corn increases mean stress by 41%. Cramer-von Mises tests detect significant deviation (p <= 0.002), and Moran&#39;s I (0.29-0.30) confirms spatial autocorrelation. Our framework identifies risk zones and guides site-specific management, bridging geostatistics with mechanistic crop models.