Structural changes of soil organic matter and the linkage to rhizosphere bacterial communities with biochar amendment in manure fertilized soils

Abstract. The roles of microorganisms in enhancing crop production have been demonstrated for a range of cropping systems. Most studies to date, however, have been confined to a limited number of locations, making it difficult to identify general soil biotic and abiotic characteristics underpinning the yield-promotion across various locations. This knowledge gap limits our capacity to harness soil microbiome to improve crop production. Here we used high-throughput amplicon sequencing to investigate the common features of bacterial community composition, ecological networks and physicochemical properties in six yield-invigorating and adjacent yield-debilitating orchards. We found that yield-invigorating soils exhibited higher contents of organic matter than yield-debilitating soils and harboured unique bacterial communities. Greater alpha diversity and higher relative abundances of Planctomycetes and Chloroflexi were observed in yield-debilitating soils. Co-occurrence network analysis revealed that yield-invigorating soils displayed a greater number of meta-modules and a higher proportion of negative links to positive links. Chloroflexi was recognized as a keystone taxon in manipulating the interaction of bacterial communities in yield-invigorating soils. Structural equation modelling showed that soil organic matter, beta diversity of bacterial community, and network connector (Chloroflexi) were key factors supporting high-yield pear production. Altogether, we provide evidence that yield-invigorating soils across a range of locations appear to share common features, including accumulation of soil organic matter, higher microbial diversity, enrichment of key taxa like Chloroflexi, and maintaining a competitive network. These findings have implications for science-based guidance for sustainable food production.

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Soil organic matter alteration under biochar amendment: study in the incubation experiment on the Podzol soils of the Leningrad region (Russia)

Journal of Soils and Sediments ◽

10.1007/s11368-019-02256-z ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 19 (6) ◽

pp. 2708-2716 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Nataliya Orlova ◽

Evgeny Abakumov ◽

Elena Orlova ◽

Kirill Yakkonen ◽

Vlada Shahnazarova

Keyword(s):

Organic Matter ◽

Soil Organic Matter ◽

Leningrad Region ◽

Incubation Experiment ◽

Biochar Amendment ◽

Podzol Soils

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Biochar amendment altered the molecular-level composition of native soil organic matter in a temperate forest soil

Environmental Chemistry ◽

10.1071/en16001 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 13 (5) ◽

pp. 854 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Perry J. Mitchell ◽

André J. Simpson ◽

Ronald Soong ◽

Myrna J. Simpson

Keyword(s):

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance ◽

Organic Matter ◽

Soil Organic Matter ◽

Magnetic Resonance ◽

Forest Soil ◽

Microbial Activity ◽

Temperate Forest ◽

Molecular Level ◽

Native Soil ◽

Biochar Amendment

Environmental contextBiochar amendment in soil can sequester carbon but may also stimulate microbial activity, potentially enhancing soil organic matter degradation. We incubated biochar in a temperate forest soil and characterised the soil organic matter composition using molecular-level biomarker and nuclear magnetic resonance techniques. Biochar amendment altered the native soil organic matter composition and decreased the concentration of easily degradable soil organic matter components. AbstractBiochar amendment in soil can sequester carbon and improve soil water and nutrient retention, fertility and plant productivity. However, biochar may stimulate microbial activity, leading to priming or accelerated soil organic matter (OM) degradation, which could alter the native soil OM molecular composition. To investigate this, we amended sugar maple wood biochar (pyrolysed at 500°C) at four concentrations (0, 5, 10 and 20 metric tons per hectare) in a temperate forest soil for 32 weeks. Solvent extraction and CuO oxidation were used to characterise free compounds and lignin-derived phenols respectively at 8 week intervals, while base hydrolysis was used to examine plant wax, cutin and suberin components at the end of the incubation. Stimulated soil microbial activity following an adaptation period (16 weeks) resulted in increased inputs of microbial- and plant-derived soil OM components including solvent-extractable short-chain n-alkanols and n-alkanoic acids, long-chain n-alkanes and n-alkanols, and sugars. Degradation parameters for base-hydrolysable cutin- and suberin-derived compounds did not show any significant degradation of these plant biopolymers. Analysis of lignin-derived phenols revealed lower concentrations of extractable phenols and progressive oxidation of syringyl and vanillyl phenols at higher biochar application rates over time. Solution-state 1H nuclear magnetic resonance analysis of base-extractable soil OM after 32 weeks showed a decrease in the proportion of labile OM components such as carbohydrates and peptides and a relative increase in more recalcitrant polymethylene OM constituents in the amended soils. The biochar-mediated shifts in soil OM composition and reduction in labile carbon may reduce soil fertility in biochar-amended systems with long-term amendment.

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Sustainability of Urban Soil Management: Analysis of Soil Physicochemical Properties and Bacterial Community Structure under Different Green Space Types

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11051395 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (5) ◽

pp. 1395 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Junda Zhang ◽

Suyan Li ◽

Xiangyang Sun ◽

Jing Tong ◽

Zhen Fu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Organic Matter ◽

Soil Moisture ◽

Soil Organic Matter ◽

Bacterial Community ◽

Physicochemical Properties ◽

Total Nitrogen ◽

Bacterial Communities ◽

Green Space ◽

Soil Physicochemical Properties ◽

Soil Bacterial Communities

Soil bacterial communities play a key role in nutrient cycling and ecosystem functioning. This study aims to reveal how green space type impacts soil quality and the bacterial community, which finally contributes to suggesting strategies for managing sustainable environments in urban areas. For this purpose, urban green space soils in this study are divided into four different types; park green space (PARK), street green space (STREET), attached green space (ATTACH) and residential green space (RESID). Results showed that significant differences were observed for soil physicochemical properties. Soil organic matter, total nitrogen, soil moisture content and available nitrogen in the ATTACH and PARK soils were significantly higher than in the STREET and RESID soils. Across the four green space types, the structure of bacterial communities was dominated by Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria and Chloroflexi at the phylum level. The diversity and richness of bacteria were significantly higher in the PARK and ATTACH soils than in the RESID and STREET soils. Results of principal component analysis (PCoA) showed that soil bacterial communities could be clustered into four different groups according to different green space types. In addition, analysis of similarities (ANOSIM) also implied that soil samples differed significantly from others. Redundancy analysis (RDA) and Spearman correlation analysis both showed that the contents of soil organic matter, total nitrogen, soil moisture and pH had great influence on the structures of bacterial communities. In summary, these results suggest that soil physicochemical properties and bacterial communities can be strongly affected by green space types, and thus, objective assessment of a particular measure can be provided to land managers and policy makers for informed decision-making in urban development and sustainability.

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Impact of biochar amendment on soil organic matter composition in a heavy-metals polluted soil

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-865 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Arturo Santa-Olalla ◽

Elena Fernandez-Boy ◽

Paloma Campos ◽

Heike Knicker ◽

Rafael Lopez ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Trace Elements ◽

Organic Matter ◽

Soil Organic Matter ◽

Carbonaceous Material ◽

Water Holding Capacity ◽

The European Union ◽

European Environmental Agency ◽

Water Holding ◽

Biochar Amendment

It is estimated that over 37 % of degraded soils in the European Union are polluted by heavy metals [1], which are non-biodegradable and persistent pollutants in soils. The application of organic amendments to soils for their remediation has been worldwide used [2]. Several studies have shown that biochar, the carbonaceous material produced by pyrolysis of organic residues, has a high potential to stabilize trace elements in soils [3]. Biochars usually have an alkaline pH and high water holding capacity (WHC), large specific surface area and cation exchange capacity, which are appropriate characteristics to reduce the availability of heavy metals in the environment [4]. Nevertheless, recent studies exhibited that biochar recalcitrance could be much lower than assumed [5]. &#160;Beside this, the effects of the addition of biochar as a soil amendment on the composition of soil organic matter (SOM) are largely unknown. Thus, the aim of this study is to investigate the effects of the application of biochars from rice husk (RHB) and olive pit (OPB) in a Typic Xerofluvent polluted with trace-elements after 24 months at field in 12 plots installed at the surroundings of the Guadiamar Green Corridor (37&#176; 23' 7.152"N, 6&#176; 13' 43.175"; Southwest Spain). Specifically, for this study the effects of biochar amendment on soil physical properties (pH, water holding capacity-WHC, moisture, etc), elemental composition, total SOM, the content of oxidizable SOM as well as the content and composition of humic acids (HAs) have been assessed.Biochar application caused an increase in soil pH (around 0.4 units), soil moisture (from 6-7% to 10-18 %) and WHC. In addition, the total organic carbon and HAs content increased slightly. Preliminary results show that biochar could become part of the humified SOM in a shorter time than initially expected. Nevertheless, the spectroscopic analyses (FT-IR and 13C NMR spectroscopy) documented that the qualitative composition of soil HAs was not altered due to the biochar amendment.&#160;References:[1] EEA; 2007. CSI 015. Copenhagen, Denmark: European Environmental Agency.[2] Madej&#243;n, E.; P&#233;rez de Mora, A.; Burgos, P.; Cabrera, F.; 2006. Environ. Pollut. 139, 40-52.[3] Campos, P., De la Rosa, J.M., 2020. Sustainability 12, 6025.Uchimiya, M.; Klasson, K.T.; Wartelle, L.H.; Lima, I.M.; 2011. Chemosphere 82, 1438-1447.[4] Campos, P., Miller, A.Z., Knicker, H., Costa-Pereira, M.F., Merino, A., De la Rosa, J.M., 2020. Waste Manag. 105, 256-267.[5] De la Rosa, J.M.; Rosado, M.; Paneque, M.; Miller, A.Z.; Knicker, H.; 2018. Sci. Tot Environ. 613-614, 969-976.Acknowledgements: The Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness (MINEICO), CSIC and AEI/FEDER are thanked for funding the project CGL2016-76498-R. P. Campos thanks the &#8220;Fundaci&#243;n Tatiana P&#233;rez de Guzm&#225;n el Bueno&#8221; for funding her PhD.

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Microbial responses to drying and rewetting in soils across a European climate transect

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-11260 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Sara Winterfeldt ◽

Ainara Leizeaga ◽

Johannes Rousk

Keyword(s):

Organic Matter ◽

Soil Organic Matter ◽

Soil Properties ◽

Microbial Communities ◽

Bacterial Growth ◽

Bacterial Communities ◽

Recovery Time ◽

Soil Microbial Communities ◽

Drying And Rewetting ◽

Microbial Responses

Climate change results in more frequent and intensified drought and rainfall events. The environment exerts a strong control on microbial communities, where drying and rewetting disturbances act as an additional stress that can alter soil processes driving the carbon cycle. Therefore, understanding the environmental control of microbial responses to drying and rewetting events is important to understand the microbial mechanisms controlling the soil C cycle. This study investigated how climate along with soil physiochemical factors affected microbial responses to drying and rewetting. A total of 40 soils across Europe presenting a comprehensive gradient from arctic (N Sweden) to southern Mediterranean (S Greece) climates and wide range of soil properties (SOM: 2-82%, pH: 3.9-7.4, Clay: 8-79%) were exposed to four days of drying followed by rewetting. The microbial growth and respiration responses after rewetting were monitored in high time resolution during 32h. The recovery time of bacterial growth to rates of 50% in undisturbed soil was used as a measure of how resilient microbial communities were to drying and rewetting.&#160;The bacterial recovery time after rewetting ranged between 0.6-40h. We found that soils in arid climates had faster bacterial recovery times, suggesting that bacterial communities were more resilient and better adapted to drying and rewetting than those in humid climates, rendering microbial C-use during drying and rewetting more efficient. Furthermore, pH and soil organic matter also had pronounced effects on the resilience of bacterial growth, where acid pH and high soil organic matter resulted in bacterial communities that were slower to recover. In contrast, clay did not have an influence on the resilience of bacterial growth. Our findings suggest that both climate and soil properties are important when determine how soil microbial communities will respond to a drying and rewetting disturbance.

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Soil Organic Matter

10.1016/s0166-2481(08)x7002-3 ◽

1978 ◽

Keyword(s):

Organic Matter ◽

Soil Organic Matter

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