Influence of aggregate architecture and minerals on living habitats and soil organic matter

1997 ◽  
Vol 77 (3) ◽  
pp. 367-377 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. M. Monreal ◽  
H. Kodama
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Ammonium Oxalate ◽  
Clay Content ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Soil Particle ◽  
Organic C ◽  
Equivalent Spherical Diameter ◽  
Primary Particles ◽  
Spherical Diameter

We used an integrated approach to determine the effects of soil particle architecture and minerals on living habitats and soil organic matter (SOM). Macroaggregate (> 250 µm), microaggregate 1 (50–250 µm), and microaggregate 2 (< 50 µm) fractions of adjacent forested and cultivated Gleysolic soil were obtained by wet sieving. The forested site was used as a reference to evaluate the effects of cultivation on soil particle architecture. Aggregates and respective clay fractions were characterized using optical, chemical, physical and microbial methods. Microaggregates 1 had primary particles with the largest mean equivalent spherical diameter (ESD) and void volume of all aggregate fractions. These physical characteristics were paralleled by the highest SOM and microbial biomass content, and number of microorganisms. Cultivation increased the weathering of primary particles and SOM loss, and decreased the content of microbial pools, suggesting deteriorated living habitats. Soil organic C content in aggregates correlated significantly with the amount of ammonium oxalate extractable Al, chloritized vermiculite, and vermiculite, and was inversely associated with the total clay content. The mean ESD of primary particles and expandable phyllosilicates of aggregates influenced living habitats by supplying substrates, and providing different void and protective space for soil microorganisms. Key words: Aggregate, mean equivalent spherical diameter, bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes, microbial biomasss, organic carbon, vermiculite, non-crystalline inorganic soil components

Influence of soil organic matter on sulfate retention in two Podzols in Quebec, Canada

1999 ◽  
Vol 79 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Courchesne ◽  
J.-F. Laberge ◽  
A. Dufresne
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Ammonium Oxalate ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
Weighted Mean ◽  
Fine Silt ◽  
Mineral Horizon ◽  
Organic C ◽  
X Ray

The role of soil organic matter (OM) on SO4 retention was investigated by comparing OM content, SO4 retention, and the distribution of Fe, Al and Si compounds in OM-poor (Grands-Jardins, PGJ) and OM-rich (Hermine, HER) Podzols from Québec, Canada. At both sites, four pedons were sampled by horizon; soil pH in H2O, organic C, phosphate-extractable SO4 and, sodium pyrophosphate, acid ammonium oxalate and dithionite-citrate-bicarbonate (DCB) extractable Fe, Al and Si were measured for each mineral horizon. The mineralogy of the clay (<2 µm) and fine silt (2–20 µm) fractions of selected horizons was determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and infrared spectroscopy (IR). Weighted mean organic C and pyrophosphate extractable Fe and Al contents were significantly higher in the HER than in the PGJ sola, while the PGJ soils were richer in amorphous inorganic Al. No trends were observed for inorganic Fe compounds. Chemical dissolution and IR allowed the identification of short-range ordered aluminosilicates, probably allophane, in the OM-poor and slightly acidic to neutral PGJ soils. These materials were absent from the OM-rich and acidic HER soils. Phosphate extractions showed that the weighted mean native SO4 content was five times higher in the PGJ than in the HER soil. Finally, native SO4 was strongly related to inorganic Fe, Al and Si (associated with allophane) at PGJ but only to inorganic Fe at HER. These results indicate that OM indirectly affects SO4 sorption through the influence organic substances exerts on the nature and distribution of pedogenic Fe, Al and Si compounds, such as allophane, in Podzolic profiles. Key words: Organic matter, sulfate, imogolite, allophane, silica, Podzol

Soil stripping and replacement for the rehabilitation of bauxite-mined land at Weipa. I. Initial changes to soil organic matter and related parameters

Soil Research ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 345 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. D. Schwenke ◽  
D. R. Mulligan ◽  
L. C. Bell
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Field Experiments ◽  
Surface Soil ◽  
Soil Disturbance ◽  
Microbial Biomass C ◽  
Low Grade ◽  
Double Pass ◽  
Organic C ◽  
The Difference

At Weipa, in Queensland, Australia, sown tree and shrub species sometimes fail to establish on bauxite-mined land, possibly because surface-soil organic matter declines during soil stripping and replacement. We devised 2 field experiments to investigate the links between soil rehabilitation operations, organic matter decline, and revegetation failure. Experiment 1 compared two routinely practiced operations, dual-strip (DS) and stockpile soil, with double-pass (DP), an alternative method, and subsoil only, an occasional result of the DS operation. Other treatments included variations in stripping-time, ripping-time, fertiliser rate, and cultivation. Dilution of topsoil with subsoil, low-grade bauxite, and ironstone accounted for the 46% decline of surface-soil (0–10 cm) organic C in DS compared with pre-strip soil. In contrast, organic C in the surface-soil (0–10 cm) of DP plots (25.0 t/ha) closely resembled the pre-strip area (28.6 t/ha). However, profile (0–60 cm) organic C did not differ between DS (91.5 t/ha), DP (107 t/ha), and pre-strip soil (89.9 t/ha). Eighteen months after plots were sown with native vegetation, surface-soil (0–10 cm) organic C had declined by an average of 9% across all plots. In Experiment 2, we measured the potential for post-rehabilitation decline of organic matter in hand-stripped and replaced soil columns that simulated the DS operation. Soils were incubated in situ without organic inputs. After 1 year’s incubation, organic C had declined by up to 26% and microbial biomass C by up to 61%. The difference in organic C decline between vegetated replaced soils (Expt 1) and bare replaced soils (Expt 2) showed that organic inputs affect levels of organic matter more than soil disturbance. Where topsoil was replaced at the top of the profile (DP) and not ploughed, inputs from volunteer native grasses balanced oxidation losses and organic C levels did not decline.

Predicting soil particle density from clay and soil organic matter contents

Geoderma ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 286 ◽  
pp. 83-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Schjønning ◽  
R.A. McBride ◽  
T. Keller ◽  
P.B. Obour
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Particle Density ◽  
Soil Particle

scholarly journals Growing Food with Garbage: Effects of Six Waste Amendments on Soil and Vegetable Crops

HortScience ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 52 (6) ◽  
pp. 896-904 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca J. Long ◽  
Rebecca N. Brown ◽  
José A. Amador
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Organic Waste ◽  
Sweet Corn ◽  
Mineral Fertilizer ◽  
Plant Nutrients ◽  
Chicken Manure ◽  
Organic C ◽  
Yard Waste

Using organic wastes as agricultural amendments is a productive alternative to disposal in landfills, providing nutrients for plant growth and carbon to build soil organic matter. Despite these benefits, a large fraction of organic waste is sent to landfills. Obstacles to the adoption of wastes as sources of plant nutrients include questions about harmful effects to crops or soils and the wastes’ ability to produce satisfactory yields. We compared six organic waste amendments with a mineral fertilizer control (CN) to determine effects on soil quality, soil fertility, crop quality, and crop yield in 2013 and 2014. Waste amendments were applied at a rate sufficient to supply 10,000 kg organic C/ha over two seasons, and mineral fertilizer was applied to control plots to provide 112 kg-N/ha/yr. The experiment was laid out in a randomized block design with four replicates and three crops: sweet corn (Zea mays L. cv. Applause, Brocade, and Montauk), butternut squash (Cucurbita moschata Duchesne cv. JWS 6823), and potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L. cv. Eva). Amendment with biosolids/yard waste cocompost (BS), dehydrated restaurant food waste (FW), gelatin manufacturing waste (GW), multisource compost (MS), paper fiber/chicken manure blend (PF), and yard waste compost (YW) did not have a negative impact on soil moisture, bulk density, electrical conductivity (EC), or the concentration of heavy metals in soil or plant tissue. Our results indicate potential uses for waste amendments including significantly raising soil pH (MS) and increasing soil organic matter [OM (YW and BS)]. The carbon-to-nitrogen ratio (C:N) of waste amendments was not a reliable predictor of soil inorganic N levels, and only some wastes increased potentially mineralizable nitrogen (PMN) levels relative to the control. Plots amended with BS, FW, and GW produced yields of sweet corn, butternut squash, and potatoes comparable with the control, whereas plots amended with YW, PF, and MS produced lower yields of sweet corn, squash, or both, although yields for potatoes were comparable with the control. In addition, the marketability of potatoes from PF plots was significantly better than that of the control in 2014. None of the wastes evaluated in this study had negative impacts on soil properties, some provided benefits to soil quality, and all produced comparable yields for at least one crop. Our results suggest that all six wastes have potential to be used as sources of plant nutrients.

Impact of long-term cultivation on the status of organic matter and cadmium in soil

2001 ◽  
Vol 81 (3) ◽  
pp. 349-355 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. F. E. McArthur ◽  
P M Huang ◽  
L M Kozak
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Significant Positive Correlation ◽  
Soil Organic C ◽  
Organic C ◽  
Total Soil ◽  
Total Organic C ◽  
Soil Cd ◽  
Cultivated Soils

Research has suggested a link between the bioavailability of soil Cd and total soil organic matter. However, some research suggested a negative relationship between total soil organic matter and bioavailable soil Cd while other research suggested a positive relationship. This study investigated the relationship between soil Cd and both the quantity and quality of soil organic matter as influenced by long-term cultivation. Two Orthic Chernozemic surface soil samples, one from a virgin prairie and the other from an adjacent cultivated prairie, were collected from each of 12 different sites throughout southern Saskatchewan, Canada. The samples were analyzed for total organic C, total Cd, Cd availability index (CAI), and pH. The nature of the soil organic matter was investigated with 13C Cross Polarization Magic Angle Spinning Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopy (13C CPMAS NMR). The total soil Cd, CAI, and total soil organic C of the cultivated soils were significantly lower than those of the virgin soils whereas the opposite trend was observed for the soil pH and the aromaticity of the organic C. The reduced CAI in the cultivated soils was related to the increase in both the soil pH and the aromaticity of the organic C. No relationship was found between the CAI and the soil organic C content, but a significant positive correlation was found between total organic C and total Cd in both the virgin and the cultivated soils. As well, a significant positive correlation was found between the fraction of total Cd removed from the soil after long-term cultivation and the corresponding fraction of organic C removed. Key words: Long-term cultivation, soil organic matter, 13C CPMAS NMR, cadmium

Changes in soil carbon under long-term maize in monoculture and legume-based rotation

2001 ◽  
Vol 81 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
E G Gregorich ◽  
C F Drury ◽  
J A Baldock
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Soil Carbon ◽  
Crop Residues ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Natural Abundance ◽  
Organic C ◽  
Soil C

Legume-based cropping systems could help to increase crop productivity and soil organic matter levels, thereby enhancing soil quality, as well as having the additional benefit of sequestering atmospheric C. To evaluate the effects of 35 yr of maize monoculture and legume-based cropping on soil C levels and residue retention, we measured organic C and 13C natural abundance in soils under: fertilized and unfertilized maize (Zea mays L.), both in monoculture and legume-based [maize-oat (Avena sativa L.)-alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.)-alfalfa] rotations; fertilized and unfertilized systems of continuous grass (Poa pratensis L.); and under forest. Solid state 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) was used to chemically characterize the organic matter in plant residues and soils. Soils (70-cm depth) under maize cropping had about 30-40% less C, and those under continuous grass had about 16% less C, than those under adjacent forest. Qualitative differences in crop residues were important in these systems, because quantitative differences in net primary productivity and C inputs in the different agroecosystems did not account for observed differences in total soil C. Cropping sequence (i.e., rotation or monoculture) had a greater effect on soil C levels than application of fertilizer. The difference in soil C levels between rotation and monoculture maize systems was about 20 Mg C ha-1. The effects of fertilization on soil C were small (~6 Mg C ha-1), and differences were observed only in the monoculture system. The NMR results suggest that the chemical composition of organic matter was little affected by the nature of crop residues returned to the soil. The total quantity of maize-derived soil C was different in each system, because the quantity of maize residue returned to the soil was different; hence the maize-derived soil C ranged from 23 Mg ha-1 in the fertilized and 14 Mg ha-1 in the unfertilized monoculture soils (i.e., after 35 maize crops) to 6-7 Mg ha-1 in both the fertilized and unfertilized legume-based rotation soils (i.e., after eight maize crops). The proportion of maize residue C returned to the soil and retained as soil organic C (i.e., Mg maize-derived soil C/Mg maize residue) was about 14% for all maize cropping systems. The quantity of C3-C below the plow layer in legume-based rotation was 40% greater than that in monoculture and about the same as that under either continuous grass or forest. The soil organic matter below the plow layer in soil under the legume-based rotation appeared to be in a more biologically resistant form (i.e., higher aromatic C content) compared with that under monoculture. The retention of maize residue C as soil organic matter was four to five times greater below the plow layer than that within the plow layer. We conclude that residue quality plays a key role in increasing the retention of soil C in agroecosystems and that soils under legume-based rotation tend to be more “preservative” of residue C inputs, particularly from root inputs, than soils under monoculture. Key words: Soil carbon, 13C natural abundance, 13C nuclear magnetic resonance, maize cropping, legumes, root carbon

scholarly journals Twenty-Five Years of Radiocarbon Dating Soils: Paradigm of Erring and Learning

Radiocarbon ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 541-549 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. W. Scharpenseel ◽  
Peter Becker-Heidmann
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Formation ◽  
Clay Content ◽  
Solvent System ◽  
Total Carbon ◽  
Earthworm Casts ◽  
Initiation Point ◽  
Organic Matter Fractions ◽  
Soil Dating

Soil organic matter sequesters close to three times the carbon existing totally in the living biomass and nearly the same for the total carbon in the atmosphere. Models, such as Jenkinson's or Parton's Century model, help to define soil organic matter fractions of different functions, based on residence time/14C age. Rejuvenation of soil carbon was felt to be the principal impediment to absolute soil dating, in addition to the ambiguity of the initiation point of soil formation and soil age. Recent studies, for example, of Becker-Heidmann (1989), indicate that a soil 14C age of >1000 yr cannot have >0.1% rejuvenation in the total soil organic matter compartments/fractions to be possible and sustainable. Always problematic in earlier observations were age vs. depth increases, in 14C profile curves showing an inflection of reduced age in the deepest samples, i.e., from the rim of the organic matter containing epipedon. We attribute this phenomenon, in mollic horizons, to earthworm casts in the terminal part of the escape tube. Becker-Heidmann (1989) has shown, in thin layer soil profile dating, a highly significant correlation between the highest 14C ages and the highest clay content. Thus, optimization of soil dating is, to a lesser degree, related to the applied extracting solvent system than to soil texture fractions. Such observations allow us to mitigate error ranges inherent in dating dynamic soil systems.

scholarly journals Relationship of soil properties to fractionation, bioavailability and mobility of lead and zinc in soil

2008 ◽  
Vol 53 (No. 5) ◽  
pp. 225-238 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Finžgar ◽  
P. Tlustoš ◽  
D. Leštan
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Regression Analysis ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Properties ◽  
Multiple Regression ◽  
Contaminated Soils ◽  
Organic Matter Content ◽  
Clay Content ◽  
Exchange Capacity ◽  
Matter Content

Sequential extractions, metal uptake by <i>Taraxacum officinale</i>, Ruby&rsquo;s physiologically based extraction test (PBET) and toxicity characteristic leaching procedure (TCLP), were used to assess the risk of Pb and Zn in contaminated soils, and to determine relationships among soil characteristics, heavy metals soil fractionation, bioavailability and leachability. Regression analysis using linear and 2nd order polynomial models indicated relationships between Pb and Zn contamination and soil properties, although of small significance (<i>P</i> < 0.05). Statistically highly significant correlations (<i>P</i> < 0.001) were obtained using multiple regression analysis. A correlation between soil cation exchange capacity (CEC) and soil organic matter and clay content was expected. The proportion of Pb in the PBET intestinal phase correlated with total soil Pb and Pb bound to soil oxides and the organic matter fraction. The leachable Pb, extracted with TCLP, correlated with the Pb bound to carbonates and soil organic matter content (<i>R</i><sup>2</sup> = 69%). No highly significant correlations (<i>P</i> < 0.001) for Zn with soil properties or Zn fractionation were obtained using multiple regression.

scholarly journals Spatial patterns in soil organic matter dynamics are shaped by mycorrhizosphere interactions in a treeline forest

2019 ◽  
Vol 447 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 521-535
Author(s):  
Nina L. Friggens ◽  
Thomas J. Aspray ◽  
Thomas C. Parker ◽  
Jens-Arne Subke ◽  
Philip A. Wookey
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Mountain Birch ◽  
Organic C ◽  
Soil C ◽  
Soil Organic Matter Dynamics ◽  
C Stocks ◽  
Organic Matter Dynamics ◽  
Individual Trees

Abstract Aims In the Swedish sub-Arctic, mountain birch (Betula pubescens ssp. czerepanovii) forests mediate rapid soil C cycling relative to adjacent tundra heaths, but little is known about the role of individual trees within forests. Here we investigate the spatial extent over which trees influence soil processes. Methods We measured respiration, soil C stocks, root and mycorrhizal productivity and fungi:bacteria ratios at fine spatial scales along 3 m transects extending radially from mountain birch trees in a sub-Arctic ecotone forest. Root and mycorrhizal productivity was quantified using in-growth techniques and fungi:bacteria ratios were determined by qPCR. Results Neither respiration, nor root and mycorrhizal production, varied along transects. Fungi:bacteria ratios, soil organic C stocks and standing litter declined with increasing distance from trees. Conclusions As 3 m is half the average size of forest gaps, these findings suggest that forest soil environments are efficiently explored by roots and associated mycorrhizal networks of B. pubescens. Individual trees exert influence substantially away from their base, creating more uniform distributions of root, mycorrhizal and bacterial activity than expected. However, overall rates of soil C accumulation do vary with distance from trees, with potential implications for spatio-temporal soil organic matter dynamics and net ecosystem C sequestration.

Soil organic matter in rainfed cropping systems of the Australian cereal belt

Soil Research ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 435 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. C. Dalal ◽  
K. Y. Chan
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Performance Indicator ◽  
Annual Rainfall ◽  
Soil Productivity ◽  
Organic C ◽  
Soil C ◽  
Eastern Australia

The Australian cereal belt stretches as an arc from north-eastern Australia to south-western Australia (24˚S–40˚S and 125˚E–147˚E), with mean annual temperatures from 14˚C (temperate) to 26˚C (subtropical), and with annual rainfall ranging from 250 mm to 1500 mm. The predominant soil types of the cereal belt include Chromosols, Kandosols, Sodosols, and Vertosols, with significant areas of Ferrosols, Kurosols, Podosols, and Dermosols, covering approximately 20 Mha of arable cropping and 21 Mha of ley pastures. Cultivation and cropping has led to a substantial loss of soil organic matter (SOM) from the Australian cereal belt; the long-term SOM loss often exceeds 60% from the top 0–0.1 m depth after 50 years of cereal cropping. Loss of labile components of SOM such as sand-size or particulate SOM, microbial biomass, and mineralisable nitrogen has been even higher, thus resulting in greater loss in soil productivity than that assessed from the loss of total SOM alone. Since SOM is heterogeneous in nature, the significance and functions of its various components are ambiguous. It is essential that the relationship between levels of total SOM or its identif iable components and the most affected soil properties be established and then quantif ied before the concentrations or amounts of SOM and/or its components can be used as a performance indicator. There is also a need for experimentally verifiable soil organic C pools in modelling the dynamics and management of SOM. Furthermore, the interaction of environmental pollutants added to soil, soil microbial biodiversity, and SOM is poorly understood and therefore requires further study. Biophysically appropriate and cost-effective management practices for cereal cropping lands are required for restoring and maintaining organic matter for sustainable agriculture and restoration of degraded lands. The additional benefit of SOM restoration will be an increase in the long-term greenhouse C sink, which has the potentialto reduce greenhouse emissions by about 50 Mt CO2 equivalents/year over a 20-year period, although current improved agricultural practices can only sequester an estimated 23% of the potential soil C sink.

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