scholarly journals Investigations of the effect of the amount of biochar on soil porosity and aggregation and crop yields on fertilized black soil in northern China

PLoS ONE ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (11) ◽  
pp. e0238883
Author(s):  
Liang Jin ◽  
Dan Wei ◽  
Dawei Yin ◽  
Baoku Zhou ◽  
JianLi Ding ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Crop Yields ◽  
Black Soil ◽  
Soil Aggregate ◽  
Soil Aggregation ◽  
Chemical Fertilizer ◽  
Relative Reduction ◽  
Aggregate Formation ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Maize Straw

The combination of chemical fertilizer and biochar is regarded as a useful soil supplement for improving the properties of soil and crop yields, and this study describes how the biochar of maize straw can be used to improve the quality of the degraded black soil. This has been achieved by examining the effects of combining different amounts of biochar with chemical fertilizer on the porosities and aggregate formation of soil and exploring how these changes positively impact on crop yields. A field trial design combining different amounts of maize straw biochar [0 (NPK), 15.75 (BC1), 31.5 (BC2), and 47.25 t ha−1 (BC3)] with a chemical fertilizer (NPK) has been used to investigate changes in the formation of soil aggregate, clay content, soil organic carbon (SOC), and crop yields in Chinese black soil over a three year period from 2013 to 2015. The results of this study show that the addition of fertilizer and biochar in 2013 to black soil results in an increased soybean and maize yields from 2013 to 2015 for all the treatments, with BC1/BC2 affording improved crop yields in 2015, while BC3 gave a lower soybean yield in 2015. Total porosities and pore volumes were increased for BC1 and BC2 treatments but relatively decreased for BC3, which could be attributed to increased soil capillary caused by the presence of higher numbers of fine soil particles. The addition of biochar had a positive influence on the numbers and mean weight diameters (MWD) of soil macroaggregates (>0.25 mm) that were present, with the ratio of SOC to TN in soil macroaggregates found to be greater than in the microaggregates. The most significant amount of carbon present in macroaggregates (>2 mm and 0.25–2 mm) was observed when BC2 was applied as a soil additive. Increasing the levels of maze straw biochar to 47.25 t ha−1 led to an increase in the total organic carbon of soil, however, the overall amount of macroaggregates and MWD were decreased, which is possibly due to localized changes in microbial habitat. The supplementation of biochar increased in the amount of aromatic C present (most significant effect observed for BC2), with the ratio of aliphatic C to aromatic C found to be enhanced due to a relative reduction in the aliphatic C content with >2 mm particle fraction. These changes in organic carbon content and soil stability were analyzed using univariate quadratic equations to explain the relationship between the type of functional groups (polysaccharide C, aliphatic C, aromatic C, aliphatic C/aromatic C) present in the soil aggregates and their MWDs, which were found to vary significantly. Overall, the results of this study indicate that the use of controlled amounts of maize-straw biochar in black soil is beneficial for improving crop yields and levels of soil aggregation, however, the use of excessive amounts of biochar results in unfavorable aggregate formation which negatively impacts the yields of crop growth. The data produced suggest that aromatic C content can be used as a single independent variable to characterize the stability of soil aggregate when biochar/fertilizer mixtures are used as soil additives to boost growth yields. Analysis of soil and crop performance in black soil revealed that the application of maize-straw biochar at a rate of 15.75 and 31.5 t ha−1 had positive effects on crop yields, soil aggregation and accumulation of aromatic C in the aggregate fractions when a soybean-maize rotation system was followed over three years.

Water-stable aggregates and their organic carbon distribution after five years of chemical fertilizer and manure treatments on eroded farmland of Chinese Mollisols

2012 ◽  
Vol 92 (3) ◽  
pp. 551-557 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yue-yu Sui ◽  
Xiao-guang Jiao ◽  
Xiao-bing Liu ◽  
Xing-yi Zhang ◽  
Guang-wei Ding
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Soil Removal ◽  
Nutrient Release ◽  
Distribution Patterns ◽  
Black Soil ◽  
Chemical Fertilizer ◽  
Aggregate Formation ◽  
Carbon Distribution ◽  
Manure Application ◽  
Water Stable Aggregates

Sui, Y.-y., Jiao, X.-g., Liu, X.-b., Zhang, X.-y. and Ding, G.-w. 2012. Water-stable aggregates and their organic carbon distribution after five years of chemical fertilizer and manure treatments on eroded farmland of Chinese Mollisols. Can. J. Soil Sci. 92: 551–557. Water-stable aggregates are the foundation for both water and fertility conservation and nutrient release in the soil. We investigated the effects of 5 yr of different fertilizer treatments (chemical fertilizer and fertilizer+manure) on water-stable aggregates and their organic carbon distribution patterns within five different simulated erosion levels (removal of 0, 5, 10, 20, and 30 cm of topsoil) in an eroded Black soil of northeast China. Water-stable aggregates greater than 0.25 mm in size and aggregate-associated-carbon (AAC) contents in the aggregates were greater in the soils with fertilizer+manure application than those with chemical fertilizers alone. Both water-stable aggregates and AAC contents declined (P<0.05) gradually as soil removal depth increased. The decline in aggregates larger than 1 mm with increased erosion depth was greater in the fertilizer-only application than that in the fertilizer+manure application. The minimum value was found in the case of 30 cm topsoil removal under the fertilizer-only application. Significant correlations (P<0.05) between water-stable aggregates greater than 1 mm and soil organic carbon (SOC) were observed in the soil with fertilizer+manure application. A significant positive correlation was observed between SOC and all different aggregate classes with both chemical fertilizer and fertilizer+manure applications. AAC within large aggregates and SOC contents were significantly higher in the fertilizer+manure treatment than in the fertilizer-only treatment. The study shows that water-stable aggregates (>1 mm) can be used as an indicator in evaluating the influence of carbon transformation on soil quality. The increases in SOC by cattle manure application to eroded Black soil might be responsible for the larger size aggregate formation.

scholarly journals Dynamics of Soil Organic Carbon and Labile Carbon Fractions in Soil Aggregates Affected by Different Tillage Managements

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1541
Author(s):  
Xiaolin Shen ◽  
Lili Wang ◽  
Qichen Yang ◽  
Weiming Xiu ◽  
Gang Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Soil Organic Carbon ◽  
Soil Aggregates ◽  
Aggregate Stability ◽  
Soil Aggregate ◽  
No Tillage ◽  
Labile Carbon ◽  
Carbon Fractions ◽  
Soil Aggregate Stability ◽  
Positive Effects

Our study aimed to provide a scientific basis for an appropriate tillage management of wheat-maize rotation system, which is beneficial to the sustainable development of agriculture in the fluvo-aquic soil areas in China. Four tillage treatments were investigated after maize harvest, including rotary tillage with straw returning (RT), deep ploughing with straw returning (DP), subsoiling with straw returning (SS), and no tillage with straw mulching (NT). We evaluated soil organic carbon (SOC), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), permanganate oxidizable carbon (POXC), microbial biomass carbon (MBC), and particulate organic carbon (POC) in bulk soil and soil aggregates with five particle sizes (>5 mm, 5–2 mm, 2–1 mm, 1–0.25 mm, and <0.25 mm) under different tillage managements. Results showed that compared with RT treatment, NT treatment not only increased soil aggregate stability, but also enhanced SOC, DOC, and POC contents, especially those in large size macroaggregates. DP treatment also showed positive effects on soil aggregate stability and labile carbon fractions (DOC and POXC). Consequently, we suggest that no tillage or deep ploughing, rather than rotary tillage, could be better tillage management considering carbon storage. Meanwhile, we implied that mass fractal dimension (Dm) and POXC could be effective indicators of soil quality, as affected by tillage managements.

scholarly journals Fungal traits important for soil aggregation

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anika Lehmann ◽  
Weishuang Zheng ◽  
Masahiro Ryo ◽  
Katharina Soutschek ◽  
Rebecca Rongstock ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Systematic Investigation ◽  
Fungal Species ◽  
Soil Aggregation ◽  
Aminopeptidase Activity ◽  
Aggregate Formation ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Saprobic Fungi ◽  
Positive Effects

AbstractSoil health and sustainability is essential for ecosystem functioning and human well-being. Soil structure, the complex arrangement of soil into aggregates and pore spaces, is a key feature of soils under the influence of soil life. Soil biota, and among them filamentous saprobic fungi, have well-documented effects on soil aggregation. However, it is unclear what fungal properties, or traits, contribute to the overall positive effect on soil aggregation. So far, we lack a systematic investigation of a broad suite of fungal species for their trait expression and the relation of these traits to their soil aggregation capability.Here, we apply a trait-based approach to a set of 15 traits measured under standardized conditions on 31 fungal strains including Ascomycota, Basidiomycota and Mucoromycota, all isolated from the same soil.We found a spectrum of soil aggregate formation capability ranging from neutral to positive and large differences in trait expression among strains. We identified biomass density (positive effects), leucine aminopeptidase activity (negative effects) and phylogeny as important modulators of fungal aggregate formation capability. Our results point to a typical suite of traits characterizing fungi that are good soil aggregators; this could inform screening for fungi to be used in biotechnological applications, and illustrates the power of employing a trait-based approach to unravel biological mechanisms of soil aggregation, which could now be extended to other organism groups.

scholarly journals Bacterial and fungal predator – prey interactions modulate soil aggregation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amandine Erktan ◽  
Matthias C. Rillig ◽  
Andrea Carminati ◽  
Alexandre Jousset ◽  
Stefan Scheu
Keyword(s):  
Soil Aggregates ◽  
Food Resource ◽  
Soil Microbial Communities ◽  
Acanthamoeba Castellanii ◽  
Soil Aggregate ◽  
Soil Aggregation ◽  
Aggregate Formation ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Saprotrophic Fungi ◽  
Predator Prey

Abstract. The formation and stabilisation of soil macro-aggregates protects soils from erosion, a major worldwide threat on soils. While the role of bacteria and fungi in soil aggregation is well established, how predators feeding on microbes modify soil aggregation has hardly been tested. Here, we studied how predators modulate the effect of microbial prey on soil aggregation. We focused on two predator – prey interactions: bacterial-based interactions comprising amoebae (Acanthamoeba castellanii) grazing on free-living bacteria (Pseudomonas fluorescens), and fungal-based interactions comprising collembolans (Heteromurus nitidus) grazing on saprotrophic fungi (Chaetomium globosum). We conducted a microcosm experiment lasting six weeks and assessed changes in soil aggregate formation and stabilisation, together with modifications in soil microbial communities (PLFAs). We further traced the food resource consumed by microbes using δ13C isotopic tracing. The protist A. castellanii increased the formation of soil aggregates but decreased their stability, without affecting bacterial abundance and community composition, suggesting that the changes were due to amoebae-mediated changes in the production of bacterial mucilage. Saprotrophic fungi showed the highest positive effect on soil aggregate formation and stabilisation, associated with a more efficient use of particulate organic carbon (chopped litter) added to the microcosms. Adding collembolans decreased the abundance of fungi and their ability to capture carbon of litter origin, with negative consequences on soil aggregation. Our work here has demonstrated that trophic interactions are important for achieving a mechanistic understanding of biological contributions to soil aggregation.

scholarly journals Effects of Straw-Return Method for the Maize–Rice Rotation System on Soil Properties and Crop Yields

Agronomy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 461
Author(s):  
Yuling Han ◽  
Wei Ma ◽  
Baoyuan Zhou ◽  
Xiaolong Yang ◽  
Akram Salah ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Community ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Rice Straw ◽  
Soil Microbial Community ◽  
Crop Yields ◽  
Microbial Community Composition ◽  
Soil Layer ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
Maize Straw ◽  
Straw Return

Exploring suitable maize straw-return measures is essential for the new double-cropping system of maize (Zea mays L.)–rice (Oryza sativa L.) rotation in the middle reaches of Yangtze River in China, which can increase crop yield by improving soil quality. In this study, four straw-return measures were evaluated by investigating the soil bulk density (BD), organic matter (OM), microbial community, and nutrients from 2016 to 2018. The four straw-return treatments were as follows: (1) no straw-return (CK), (2) only rice straw incorporated into the field (M0Ri), (3) both maize and rice straw incorporated to field (MiRi), and (4) maize straw mulched and rice straw incorporated into the field (MmRi). Compared to CK, two-season crop straw-return treatments changed soil microbial community composition, and increased soil total organic carbon (TOC) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC), microbial biomass carbon (MBC), mineralized nitrogen (Nmin), available phosphorus (P) and exchangeable potassium (K) in the 0–20 cm soil layer by 3.6%, 63.4%, 38.8%, 12.4%, 39.7%, and 21.6%, respectively, averaged across MmRi and MiRi treatments. In addition, MmRi and MiRi increased annual yield by 9.1% and 15.2% in 2017 and 11.7% and 12.9% compared to CK in 2018, respectively. MmRi exhibited superiority in the soil microbial community, enzyme activities, DOC, MBC, Nmin, available P, and exchangeable K in contrast to MiRi. We concluded that MmRi is the best measure to implement for straw-return in maize–rice rotation systems.

Colloidal iron and organic carbon control soil aggregate formation and stability in arable Luvisols

Geoderma ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 374 ◽  
pp. 114421 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lars Krause ◽  
Erwin Klumpp ◽  
Ines Nofz ◽  
Anna Missong ◽  
Wulf Amelung ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Soil Aggregate ◽  
Control Soil ◽  
Aggregate Formation ◽  
Colloidal Iron ◽  
Carbon Control

scholarly journals The Effect of Fulvic Acids Derived from Different Materials on Changing Properties of Albic Black Soil in the Northeast Plain of China

Molecules ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (8) ◽  
pp. 1535 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahendar Kumar Sootahar ◽  
Xibai Zeng ◽  
Shiming Su ◽  
Yanan Wang ◽  
Lingyu Bai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Plant Growth ◽  
Fulvic Acid ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Fulvic Acids ◽  
Black Soil ◽  
Low Fertility ◽  
Liquid Form ◽  
Available N ◽  
Positive Effects

Despite low fertility and content of organic carbon in albic black soil, grains are grown in this type of soil in the northeast plain of China in order to find ways to improve the soil’s fertility and crop production. We carried out pot experiments of maize applied with one of three different treatments of fulvic acids (FA) derived from different parent materials: Plant-derived solid (PDSF), mineral-derived liquid (MDLF), and plant-derived liquid (PDLF) applied at respective rates of 2.5, 5, and 5 g kg−1 as well as a control applied at 0 g kg−1. The results showed that soil organic carbon and light fraction C was greater by 29% to 21% and 38% to 21%, respectively, among the treatments compared to that of the control. Similarly, available N content was significantly greater in the PDLF treatment, and P content was also significantly greater in the PDSF treatment. In contrast, available K and extractable Mg contents were lower, as well as organic–inorganic degree complexes and organic–inorganic composites in the PDSF, MDLF, and PDLF treatments compared with those of the control. Further results showed that MDLF and PDLF Fulvic acids (FA) accelerated plant growth, while PDSF limited plant growth. Our study provides empirical evidence that addition of fulvic acid from MDLF and PDLF had more positive effects on soil properties and plant growth than fulvic acid from PDSF. This investigation suggests that application of fulvic acid in liquid form can improve nutrient availability and affect other important chemical, biological, and physical properties of soils.

HOW CLIMATE CHANGE CAN INFLUENCE THE AGRICULTURE IN UKRAINE: A REVIEW

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Maidanovych ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Crop Yields ◽  
Soil Surface ◽  
Winter Period ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Resource Saving ◽  
Impact Of Climate Change ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Average Annual Temperature ◽  
The Impact

The purpose of this work is to review and analyze the main results of modern research on the impact of climate change on the agro-sphere of Ukraine. Results. Analysis of research has shown that the effects of climate change on the agro-sphere are already being felt today and will continue in the future. The observed climate changes in recent decades have already significantly affected the shift in the northern direction of all agro-climatic zones of Europe, including Ukraine. From the point of view of productivity of the agro-sphere of Ukraine, climate change will have both positive and negative consequences. The positives include: improving the conditions of formation and reducing the harvesting time of crop yields; the possibility of effective introduction of late varieties (hybrids), which require more thermal resources; improving the conditions for overwintering crops; increase the efficiency of fertilizer application. Model estimates of the impact of climate change on wheat yields in Ukraine mainly indicate the positive effects of global warming on yields in the medium term, but with an increase in the average annual temperature by 2 ° C above normal, grain yields are expected to decrease. The negative consequences of the impact of climate change on the agrosphere include: increased drought during the growing season; acceleration of humus decomposition in soils; deterioration of soil moisture in the southern regions; deterioration of grain quality and failure to ensure full vernalization of grain; increase in the number of pests, the spread of pathogens of plants and weeds due to favorable conditions for their overwintering; increase in wind and water erosion of the soil caused by an increase in droughts and extreme rainfall; increasing risks of freezing of winter crops due to lack of stable snow cover. Conclusions. Resource-saving agricultural technologies are of particular importance in the context of climate change. They include technologies such as no-till, strip-till, ridge-till, which make it possible to partially store and accumulate mulch on the soil surface, reduce the speed of the surface layer of air and contribute to better preservation of moisture accumulated during the autumn-winter period. And in determining the most effective ways and mechanisms to reduce weather risks for Ukrainian farmers, it is necessary to take into account the world practice of climate-smart technologies.

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