scholarly journals Bentonite-Based Organic Amendment Enriches Microbial Activity in Agricultural Soils

Land ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 258
Author(s):  
Rahul Datta ◽  
Jiri Holatko ◽  
Oldrich Latal ◽  
Tereza Hammerschmiedt ◽  
Jakub Elbl ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fatty Acid ◽  
Microbial Biomass ◽  
Acid Content ◽  
18S Rdna ◽  
Phospholipid Fatty Acid ◽  
Fatty Acid Content ◽  
Ammonia Oxidizing Bacteria ◽  
Microbial Properties ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
Soil Microbial Properties

Bentonite-based organic amendments may have the potential to enhance soil microbial properties. The experiment was carried out from 2014 to 2017 comprising four treatments: NPK fertilizer (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium mineral fertilizer as a control), NPK + cattle manure, NPK + bentonite, and NPK + combination of manure with bentonite (MB) to verify this hypothesis. The effect of treatments on seven different soil microbial properties was measured: dehydrogenase activity (DHA), bacterial phospholipid fatty acid content, fungal phospholipid fatty acid content, microbial biomass carbon (Cmic), 16S rDNA, 18S rDNA, and ammonia-oxidizing bacteria in soil. The results showed that solely bentonite treatment increases the bacterial and fungal biomass, which was further confirmed by the increased 16S rDNA and 18s rDNA gene copy numbers. The only significantly decreased values upon treatment with solely bentonite were recorded for DHA and Cmic. The ammonia-oxidizing bacteria population increased with the sole application of bentonite and reached its maximum value when bentonite was applied with manure. The MB treatment showed the highest value for all seven measured properties. In summary, the application of bentonite solely might increase or decrease the soil activity, but its addition, along with manure, always promotes an abundance of soil microorganisms and their activity. The co-application of bentonite with manure altered the soil microbial properties in a 3-year field experiment in favor of increased microbial biomass, which is beneficial for agriculture and environment and reveals the potential for the restoration of polluted lands.

Changes in soil microbial properties and phospholipid fatty acid fractions after chloroform fumigation

1997 ◽  
Vol 29 (9-10) ◽  
pp. 1325-1336 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Zelles ◽  
A. Palojärvi ◽  
E. Kandeler ◽  
M. von Lützow ◽  
K. Winter ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fatty Acid ◽  
Phospholipid Fatty Acid ◽  
Microbial Properties ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
Soil Microbial Properties ◽  
Chloroform Fumigation

scholarly journals Ester Linked Fatty Acid (ELFA) method should be used with caution for interpretating soil microbial communities and their relationships with environmental variables in forest soils

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (5) ◽  
pp. e0251501
Author(s):  
Wenjuan Yu ◽  
Huanhuan Gao ◽  
Hongzhang Kang
Keyword(s):  
Fatty Acid ◽  
Microbial Biomass ◽  
Microbial Communities ◽  
Forest Soils ◽  
Environmental Variables ◽  
Phospholipid Fatty Acid ◽  
Soil Microbial Communities ◽  
Environmental Drivers ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
Forest Sites

As an alternative for phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) analysis, a simpler ester linked fatty acid (ELFA) analysis has been developed to characterize soil microbial communities. However, few studies have compared the two methods in forest soils where the contribution of nonmicrobial sources may be larger than that of microbial sources. Moreover, it remains unclear whether the two methods yield similar relationships of microbial biomass and composition with environmental variables. Here, we compared PLFA and ELFA methods with respect to microbial biomass and composition and their relationships with environmental variables in six oriental oak (Quercus variabilis) forest sites along a 1500-km latitudinal gradient in East China. We found that both methods had a low sample-to-sample variability and successfully separated overall community composition of sites. However, total, bacterial, and fungal biomass, the fungal-to-bacterial ratio, and the gram-positive to gram-negative bacteria ratio were not significantly or strongly correlated between the two methods. The relationships of these microbial properties with environmental variables (pH, precipitation, and clay) greatly differed between the two methods. Our study indicates that despite its simplicity, the ELFA method may not be as feasible as the PLFA method for investigating microbial biomass and composition and for identifying their dominant environmental drivers, at least in forest soils.

scholarly journals Linking Soil Microbial Properties with Plant Performance in Acidic Tropical Soil Amended with Biochar

Agronomy ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (11) ◽  
pp. 255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Azlan Halmi ◽  
Siti Hasenan ◽  
Khanom Simarani ◽  
Rosazlin Abdullah
Keyword(s):  
Enzyme Activity ◽  
Microbial Biomass ◽  
Humid Tropics ◽  
Microbial Biomass N ◽  
Strong Positive Correlation ◽  
Soil C ◽  
Microbial Properties ◽  
Gene Abundance ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
Soil Microbial Properties

Soil microbial properties are frequently used as indicators of soil fertility. However, the linkage of these properties with crop biomass is poorly documented especially in biochar amended soil with high carbon:nitrogen (C:N). A short-term field trial was conducted to observe the growth response of maize to biochar treatment in a highly weathered Ultisol of humid tropics and to observe the possible linkage of the measured microbial properties with maize biomass. Soil microbial biomass (carbon (C), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P)), enzyme activity (β-glucosidase, urease, phosphodiesterase) and gene abundance (bacterial 16S rRNA, fungal ITS) were analyzed. For comparison, total soil C, N, and P were also analyzed. The data revealed no significant linkage of soil C, N, and P with maize biomass. A significant association of enzyme activity and gene abundance with maize biomass was not recorded. Strong positive correlation between maize above ground biomass with microbial biomass N was found (r = 0.9186, p < 0.01). Significant negative correlation was recorded between microbial biomass C:N with maize biomass (r = −0.8297, p < 0.05). These statistically significant linkages observed between microbial biomass and maize biomass suggests that microbial biomass can reflect the soil nutrient status, and possibly plant nutrient uptake. Estimation of microbial biomass can be used as a fertility indicator in soil amended with high C:N organic matter in the humid tropics.

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