A field experiment was conducted in 2000–2002, at the agricultural experimental station of Agricultural University of Wrocław. The examined treatment comprised 5 specific crop rotations: potato++ - oats – field pea – rye; potato+ - oats – rye; potato+ - oats – rye and stubble
crop; potato+ - rye; potato+ - rye and stubble crop. The objective of the study was to examine changes in the main physical properties of light soil in simplified crop rotations and their assessment after plowing down of stubble crop. Different rotations affected soil moisture, total and capillary porosity and bulk density of the soil little. Including stubble crop also had an insignificant effect on changes in the assessed soil properties. Nevertheless in rotations with stubble crop there was a tendency to increase capillary porosity and soil moisture particularly in a 15–20 cm soil layer. Soil compaction was also insignificantly changed under different types of rotation. Including stubble crop into simplified crop rotations had a profitable effect on soil compaction mainly in the deeper soil layer. In three-course rotation plowing down of white mustard slightly decreased compaction of the soil, and in two-course rotation with potato and rye the practice decreased soil compaction (by 7.9% in deeper layer) a compared to the rotation without stubble crop.