Response of soil microbial biomass and enzymatic activity to biochar amendment in the organic carbon deficient arid soil: a 2-year field study

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Irfan ◽  
Qaiser Hussain ◽  
Khalid Saifullah Khan ◽  
Muhammad Akmal ◽  
Shahzada Sohail Ijaz ◽  
...  
Forests ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 508 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhiwei Ge ◽  
Shuiyuan Fang ◽  
Han Chen ◽  
Rongwei Zhu ◽  
Sili Peng ◽  
...  

Soil resident water-stable macroaggregates (diameter (Ø) > 0.25 mm) play a critical role in organic carbon conservation and fertility. However, limited studies have investigated the direct effects of stand development on soil aggregation and its associated mechanisms. Here, we examined the dynamics of soil organic carbon, water-stable macroaggregates, litterfall production, fine-root (Ø < 1 mm) biomass, and soil microbial biomass carbon with stand development in poplar plantations (Populus deltoides L. ‘35’) in Eastern Coastal China, using an age sequence (i.e., five, nine, and 16 years since plantation establishment). We found that the quantity of water-stable macroaggregates and organic carbon content in topsoil (0–10 cm depth) increased significantly with stand age. With increasing stand age, annual aboveground litterfall production did not differ, while fine-root biomass sampled in June, August, and October increased. Further, microbial biomass carbon in the soil increased in June but decreased when sampled in October. Ridge regression analysis revealed that the weighted percentage of small (0.25 mm ≤ Ø < 2 mm) increased with soil microbial biomass carbon, while that of large aggregates (Ø ≥ 2 mm) increased with fine-root biomass as well as microbial biomass carbon. Our results reveal that soil microbial biomass carbon plays a critical role in the formation of both small and large aggregates, while fine roots enhance the formation of large aggregates.


2020 ◽  
Vol 54 (3 (253)) ◽  
pp. 235-245
Author(s):  
K.A. Ghazaryan ◽  
H.S. Movsesyan

The aim of this study was to define a relationship between heavy metal (Cu, Mo) pollution of soil and various extracellular enzyme activities. Six enzymatic activities involved in cycles of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and sulfur (β-glucosidase, chitinase, leucine-aminopeptidase, acid phosphomonoesterase, alkaline phosphomonoesterase, and arylsulphatase) as well as microbial biomass were determined in soil samples collected in the surroundings of Zangezur Copper and Molybdenum Combine. The investigations showed that pollution of soil with copper and molybdenum led to a decrease in microbial biomass and soil enzymatic activity, which in turn had a negative impact on cycles of chemical elements, in particular C, P, N and S. This gives reason to conclude that the changes in soil microbial biomass and enzymatic activity may act as indicators of soil biological activity and quality.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 96-101
Author(s):  
Dil Kumar Limbu ◽  
Madan Koirala

The soil microbial biomass carbon to soil organic carbon ratio is a useful measure to monitor soil organic matter and serves as a sensitive index than soil organic carbon alone. Thus, the objective of this study is to identify and quantify the present status of ratio of soil microbial biomass carbon to soil organic carbon in Himalayan rangeland and to make recommendations for enhancing balance between microbial carbon and organic carbon of the soil. To meet the aforementioned objective, a field study was conducted from 2011 to 2013 following the Walkley-Black, Chromic acid wet oxidation method, and chloroform fumigation method for analysis of microbial carbon and organic carbon respectively. The study showed that the heavily grazed plot had significantly less value of ratio than occasionally grazed and ungrazed plots. The ratio was significantly high on legume seeding plot compared to nonlegume plot, but the ratio was independent of soil depth. Soil microbial biomass appeared to be more responsive than soil organic matter.


1994 ◽  
Vol 26 (8) ◽  
pp. 987-994 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rainer Georg Joergensen ◽  
Brunk Meyer ◽  
Torsten Mueller

2010 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 671-682 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Guicharnaud ◽  
O. Arnalds ◽  
G. I. Paton

Abstract. Temperature change is acknowledged to have a significant effect on soil biological processes and the corresponding sequestration of carbon and cycling of nutrients. Soils at high latitudes are likely to be particularly impacted by increases in temperature. Icelandic soils experience unusually frequent freeze and thaw cycles compare to other Arctic regions, which are increasing due to a warming climate. As a consequence these soils are frequently affected by short term temperature fluctuations. In this study, the short term response of a range of soil microbial parameters (respiration, nutrient availability, microbial biomass carbon, arylphosphatase and dehydrogenase activity) to temperature changes was measured in sub-arctic soils collected from across Iceland. Sample sites reflected two soil temperature regimes (cryic and frigid) and two land uses (pasture and arable). The soils were sampled from the field frozen, equilibrated at −20 °C and then incubated for two weeks at −10 °C, −2 °C, +2 °C and +10 °. Respiration and enzymatic activity were temperature dependent. The soil temperature regime affected the soil microbial biomass carbon sensitivity to temperatures. When soils where sampled from the cryic temperature regime a decreasing soil microbial biomass was detected when temperatures rose above the freezing point. Frigid soils, sampled from milder climatic conditions, where unaffected by difference in temperatures. Nitrogen mineralisation did not change with temperature. At −10 °C, dissolved organic carbon accounted for 88% of the fraction of labile carbon which was significantly greater than that recorded at +10 °C when dissolved organic carbon accounted for as low as 42% of the labile carbon fraction.


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