Proximal sensing of soil biological activity for precision agriculture

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 406-411 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Adamchuk ◽  
F. Reumont ◽  
J. Kaur ◽  
J. Whalen ◽  
N. Adamchuk-Chala

There is growing interest in monitoring soil biological health to complement the traditional evaluation of soil physical and chemical characteristics in agricultural fields. Activity of soil microorganisms mediates many essential soil processes that affect fertility, and, therefore, essential to the successful adoption of precision agriculture. However, there are technical limitations to cost-effective monitoring of spatial and temporal dynamics of soil biological activity across agricultural landscapes. This paper summarizes three consecutive studies on in situ measurement of soil biological activity. The first study reveals spatial heterogeneity of microbial population growth in three agricultural fields using bio-films. In the second study, microbiological activity was analyzed using a substrate-induced respiration technique. This technique was evaluated through a series of soil toxicity experiments that involved a comparison of fresh and autoclaved soil samples. Finally, the aim of the third study was to develop a portable instrumented system to evaluate carbon dioxide concentrations in soil by extracting air stored within the soil pores. This instrument was tested under various conditions to quantify the effects of soil moisture, compaction and presence of glucose (artificially increased microbial respiration). Optimization of the discussed techniques will allow for detailed mapping of these indices of soil biological health and their interactions with the physical and chemical environment at any specific point in time.

2019 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
pp. 259
Author(s):  
Karolina Furtak ◽  
Anna Gałązka

<p>All over the world, including Poland, interest in the organic farming is growing. It is based on an attempt to minimize human impact on the environment while maintaining the natural functionality and productivity of the agricultural system. At the same time, every human activity in the natural environment results in greater or lesser changes in the soil ecosystem. Organic farming also has an impact on physical and chemical parameters and soil biological activity. These changes should be monitored and considered in the context of long-term land management. This review focuses on the impact of the organic farming system on soil biological activity and diversity of soil microorganisms.</p>


2010 ◽  
Vol 56 (No. 4) ◽  
pp. 183-196 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Libus ◽  
O. Mauer ◽  
D. Vavříček

The paper analyzes the effect of whole-area site preparation by ploughing and of alternate field and forest crops on the understorey, soil biological activity and physical and chemical characteristics in the commercial forest. Another factor of the study was to assess the effect of the clearcut size on forest stands. Analyzed were 20-years-old stands of pedunculate oak (Quercus robur [L.]) on alluvial sites 1L9 (Fraxino pannonicae-Ulmetum). It can be deduced from the conducted analyses that after twenty years neither different site preparation nor clearcut size affected the understorey and soil biological activity. Field crops and forestry in alternation had a significantly adverse effect on porosity and water-retention capacity in the lower layer of top-soil (25&ndash;30 cm). Whole-area ploughing had a negative influence on the loss of organic substances due to accelerated mineralization. Nevertheless, the observed differences are not significant; the values did not fall below critical limits and in no case did they affect other studied site parameters or the development of root systems and aboveground parts of oak trees.


2010 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 29-38
Author(s):  
Ha Bich Phan ◽  
Thach Ngoc Le

Coriandrum sativum L. belongs to the Apiaceae family, which is cultivated in Dong Nai province, in this paper its seed oil of was studied. The essential oil was extracted by hydrodistillation. We used two methods for activating of hydrodistillation: conventional heating and microwave irradiating. Its physical and chemical indexes were measured. The chemical composition of this oil was identified by GC/MS and quantified by GC/FID. Linalool (75.51-77.21 %), and geranyl acetate (15.64-12.79 %) were the main constituents of the oil which were obtained in 0,32-0.39 % yield. The biological activity of this oil was reported.


2018 ◽  
Vol 69 (10) ◽  
pp. 2608-1612 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alina Dora Samuel ◽  
Simona Bungau ◽  
Delia Mirela Tit ◽  
Carmen Elena Melinte (Frunzulica) ◽  
Lavinia Purza ◽  
...  

Long term productivity and conservation of soils is critical for sustaining agricultural ecosystems. The specific objective of the work reported was to determine the effects of long term application of organic and mineral fertilizers on soil enzyme activity as an index of soil biology and biochemistry. Three key soil enzymes involved in intracellular metabolism of microorganisms and two soil enzymes involved in phosphorus metabolism were selected. Actual and potential dehydrogenase, catalase, acid and alkaline phosphatase activities were determined in the 0-20 cm layer of an eroded soil submitted to a complex fertilization experiment. Results showed that addition of mineral fertilizers to organic (green manure and farmyard manure) fertilizers led to a significant increase in each activity because of increased plant biomass production which upon incorporation stimulates soil biological activity. The enzymatic indicators of soil quality calculated from the values of enzymatic activities depending on the kind of fertilizers showed that by the determination of enzymatic activities valuable information can be obtained regarding fertility status of soils. A weak positive correlation between enzymatic indicators of soil quality and maize yield was established. The yield data demonstrate the superiority of farmyard manure which provided greater stability in crop production. Substantial improvement in soil biological activity due to application of organic fertilizers with mineral fertilizers contribute in maintaining the productivity and soil health.


2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 377-391 ◽  
Author(s):  
B.S. Jayashree ◽  
H. Venkatachalam ◽  
Sanchari Basu Mallik

Flavonoids constitute a large group of polyphenolic compounds that are known to have antioxidant properties, through their free radical scavenging abilities. They possess a chromone (γ- benzopyrone) moiety, responsible for eliciting many pharmacological activities. Even though, natural flavonoids are highly potent, owing to their poor solubility, they are less used. Therefore, attempts have been made to improve their stability, solubility, efficacy and kinetics by introducing various substituents on the flavone ring. For nearly the last two decades, flavones were synthesized in our laboratory by simple, convenient and cost-effective methods, with the knowledge of both synthetic and semi-synthetic chemistry. In this direction, it was considered worthwhile to present an overview on the synthesized flavonoids. This review creates a platform for highlighting various modifications done on the flavone system along with their biological activity.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 1997
Author(s):  
Joan Grau ◽  
Kang Liang ◽  
Jae Ogilvie ◽  
Paul Arp ◽  
Sheng Li ◽  
...  

In agriculture-dominant watersheds, riparian ecosystems provide a wide array of benefits such as reducing soil erosion, filtering chemical compounds, and retaining sediments. Traditionally, the boundaries of riparian zones could be estimated from Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) or field surveys. In this study, we used an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and photogrammetry method to map the boundaries of riparian zones. We first obtained the 3D digital surface model with a UAV. We applied the Vertical Distance to Channel Network (VDTCN) as a classifier to delineate the boundaries of the riparian area in an agricultural watershed. The same method was also used with a low-resolution DEM obtained with traditional photogrammetry and two more LiDAR-derived DEMs, and the results of different methods were compared. Results indicated that higher resolution UAV-derived DEM achieved a high agreement with the field-measured riparian zone. The accuracy achieved (Kappa Coefficient, KC = 63%) with the UAV-derived DEM was comparable with high-resolution LiDAR-derived DEMs and significantly higher than the prediction accuracy based on traditional low-resolution DEMs obtained with high altitude aerial photos (KC = 25%). We also found that the presence of a dense herbaceous layer on the ground could cause errors in riparian zone delineation with VDTCN for both low altitude UAV and LiDAR data. Nevertheless, the study indicated that using the VDTCN as a classifier combined with a UAV-derived DEM is a suitable approach for mapping riparian zones and can be used for precision agriculture and environmental protection over agricultural landscapes.


Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 1939
Author(s):  
Helyati Abu Hassan Shaari ◽  
Muhammad Mahyiddin Ramli ◽  
Mohd Nazim Mohtar ◽  
Norizah Abdul Rahman ◽  
Azizan Ahmad

Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) is a lightweight insulating polymer that possesses good mechanical stability. On the other hand, polyaniline (PANi) is one of the most favorable conducting materials to be used, as it is easily synthesized, cost-effective, and has good conductivity. However, most organic solvents have restricted potential applications due to poor mechanical properties and dispersibility. Compared to PANi, PMMA has more outstanding physical and chemical properties, such as good dimensional stability and better molecular interactions between the monomers. To date, many research studies have focused on incorporating PANi into PMMA. In this review, the properties and suitability of PANi as a conducting material are briefly reviewed. The major parts of this paper reviewed different approaches to incorporating PANi into PMMA, as well as evaluating the modifications to improve its conductivity. Finally, the polymerization condition to prepare PMMA/PANi copolymer to improve its conductivity is also discussed.


2007 ◽  
Vol 122 (4) ◽  
pp. 461-470 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.A. Bolinder ◽  
O. Andrén ◽  
T. Kätterer ◽  
R. de Jong ◽  
A.J. VandenBygaart ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahdi Hosseini Bafghi ◽  
Razieh Nazari ◽  
Majid Darroudi ◽  
Mohsen Zargar ◽  
Hossein Zarrinfar

Abstract Biosynthesis of nanoparticles can stand as a replacement for the available chemical and physical methods by offering new procedures as green syntheses that have proved to be simple, biocompatible, safe, and cost-effective. Considering how nanoparticles with a size of 1 to 100 nanometers contain unique physical and chemical properties, recent reports are indicative of observing the antifungal qualities of selenium nanoparticles (Se-NPs). Recently, the observance of antifungal resistance towards different species of these fungi is often reported. Therefore, due to the antifungal effects of biological nanoparticles, this study aimed to investigate the exertion of these nanoparticles and evaluate their effects on the growth of fungal pathogens. Se-NPs were biosynthesized by the application of wet reduction method, which included specific concentrations of Aspergillus flavus and Candida albicans. The presence of nanoparticles was confirmed by methods such as UV-Vis spectroscopy, FT-IR analysis, and FESEM electron microscope that involved FESEM and EDAX diagram. The fungal strains were cultured in sabouraud dextrose agar medium to perform the sensitivity test based on the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) method in duplicate. The utilization of Se-NPs at concentrations of 1 µg/ ml and below resulted in zero growth of fungal agents. However, their growth was inhibited by antifungal drugs at concentrations of 2 µg/ ml and higher. Based on the obtained results, biological nanoparticles produced by fungal agents at different concentrations exhibited favorable inhibitory effects on the growth of fungal strains.


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