scholarly journals Interrelationships of Chemical, Physical and Biological Soil Health Indicators in Beef-Pastures of Southern Piedmont, Georgia

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 4844
Author(s):  
Subash Dahal ◽  
Dorcas H. Franklin ◽  
Anish Subedi ◽  
Miguel L. Cabrera ◽  
Laura Ney ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Health ◽  
Health Assessment ◽  
Health Indicators ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
N Fertilizer ◽  
Broiler Litter ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
Fertilizer Recommendation ◽  
Soil Variables ◽  
System Sustainability

The study of interrelationships among soil health indicators is important for (i) achieving better understanding of nutrient cycling, (ii) making soil health assessment cost-effective by eliminating redundant indicators, and (iii) improving nitrogen (N) fertilizer recommendation models. The objectives of this study were to (i) decipher complex interrelationships of selected chemical, physical, and biological soil health indicators in pastures with history of inorganic or broiler litter fertilization, and (ii) establish associations among inorganic N, potentially mineralizable N (PMN), and soil microbial biomass (SMBC), and other soil health indicators. In situ soil respiration was measured and soil samples were collected from six beef farms in 2017 and 2018 to measure selected soil health indicators. We were able to establish associations between easy-to-measure active carbon (POXC) vs. PMN (R2 = 0.52), and N (R2 = 0.43). POXC had a noteworthy quadratic relationship with N and nitrate, where we found dramatic increase of N and nitrate beyond an inflection point of 500 mg kg−1 POXC. This point may serve as threshold for soil health assessment. The relationships of loss-on-ignition (LOI) carbon with other soil health indicators were discernable between inorganic- and broiler litter-fertilized pastures. We were able to establish association of SMBC with other soil variables (R2 = 0.76) and there was detectable difference in SMBC between inorganic-fertilized and broiler litter-fertilized pastures. These results could be useful for cost-effective soil health assessment and optimization of N fertilizer recommendation models to improve N use efficiency and grazing system sustainability.

scholarly journals Soil Health Assessment and Management: Recent Development in Science and Practices

Soil Systems ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 61
Author(s):  
Mingxin Guo
Keyword(s):  
Cover Crops ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Conservation Tillage ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Health Assessment ◽  
Health Indicators ◽  
Assessment Methods ◽  
Scientific Validity ◽  
Health Card ◽  
Research Education

In the past decade soil health has been intensively studied as a science and practiced as a means to help improve the global social, environmental, and economic sustainability. This paper reviews the recent advances of the scientific soil health system. The current understanding and interpretation of soil health from the perspectives of soil functions, processes, and properties is summarized. Multi-tier soil health indicators were selected from relevant soil physical, chemical, and biological parameters. A suite of soil health assessment methods have been developed, such as soil health card, Solvita soil health tests, Haney soil health test, and comprehensive assessment of soil health. An array of soil health management practices have been recommended, including proper land use, crop rotation, cover crops, conservation tillage, soil organic amendment, crop-range-livestock integration, and rotational grazing. Overall, the recommended soil health indicators and assessment methods need further validation and improvement in relevance, scientific validity, practicality, and local adaptation. Continuous research, education, and outreach efforts are warranted to promote localized development, adoption, and implementation of soil health assessment and management.

scholarly journals Grass-Legume Mixtures for Improved Soil Health in Cultivated Agroecosystem

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 2718 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dhruba Dhakal ◽  
M. Islam
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Biomass ◽  
Production System ◽  
Soil Microbial Biomass ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Soil Samples ◽  
N Fertilizer ◽  
Entire Study ◽  
Soil C ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
C And N

Planting grass-legume mixtures may be a good option to improve soil health in addition to increased forage productivity, improved forage nutritive value, and net farm profit in a hay production system. A field experiment was conducted from 2011 to 2014 at Lingle, Wyoming to evaluate soil microbial biomass under different seeding proportions of two forage grasses (meadow bromegrass, Bromus biebersteinii Roem. & Schult.; and orchardgrass, Dactylis glomerata L.) and one legume (alfalfa, Medicago sativa L.). Nine treatments included monoculture grass, monoculture legume, one grass and one legume mixture, two grasses and one legume mixture, and a control (not seeded with grass or legume). Monoculture grass received either no nitrogen (N) or N fertilizer (150 kg N ha−1 year−1 as urea) whereas monoculture legume, grass-legume mixtures, and control plots received no N fertilizer. The study was laid out as a randomized complete block design with three replications. The plots were harvested 3–4 times each year after the establishment year. Soil samples were collected and analyzed for microbial biomass using phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) analysis at the end of May in 2013 and 2014. Soil samples were also analyzed for mineralizable carbon (C) and N in 2013 and 2014. The total above-ground plant biomass was higher in 50–50% mixture of grass and alfalfa than monoculture alfalfa and monoculture grass (with and without N fertilizer) during the entire study period. The application of N fertilizer to the grass hay production system had little effect on improving mineralizable soil C, N, and soil microbial biomass. However, grass-legume mixture without N fertilizer had great effect on improvement of mineralizable soil C and N, and total, bacterial, and actinomycetes microbial biomass in soil. The 50–50% mixture of grass and alfalfa performed consistently well and can be considered to use in Wyoming conditions for improving soil health and forage productivity.

scholarly journals Nematodes and Soil Health Indicators

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-25
Author(s):  
Suresh P. Tiwari
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Health Indicators ◽  
Soil Surface ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Rooting Depth ◽  
Carbon And Nitrogen ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
Key Indicators ◽  
Selection Of

Understanding soil health impacts in relation to climate change is possible through the use of indicators which relate soil physical, chemical and biological. Major soil health indicators are governed by climate change. Selection of indicators within a minimum data depends on their sensitivity to management and climate changes, capacity to integrate and relate to other soil functions, ease of use, repeatability and cost of measurement. In this paper impact of soil health indicators including drivers for climate change; Carbon dioxide, nitrogen deposition, temperature, rainfall, soil structure, bulk density, rooting depth, soil surface cover, soil pH, electrical conductivity, available nutrients to plants, soil organic matter, soil carbon, potentially mineralisable Carbon and Nitrogen, soil respiration, soil microbial biomass, soil enzyme activities, genetic and functional biodiversity of soils on nematodes and selection of soil health key indicators are briefly discussed.

scholarly journals Long term crop rotation effect on soybean yield explained by soil- and root-associated microbiome and soil health indicators

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Achal Neupane ◽  
Izzet Bulbul ◽  
Ziyi Wang ◽  
R. Michael Lehman ◽  
Emerson Nafziger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Crop Rotation ◽  
Crop Yield ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Health Indicators ◽  
The Other ◽  
Microbial Populations ◽  
Soybean Yield ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
One Year

Abstract Background Crop rotation is an important management tactic that farmers use to manage crop production and reduce pests and diseases. Long-term crop rotations may select groups of microbes that form beneficial or pathogenic associations with the following crops, which could explain observed crop yield differences with different crop sequences. To test this hypothesis, we used two locations each with three long-term (14 year), replicated, crop rotation treatments: continuous corn ( Zea mays ) (CCC), corn/corn/soybean (SCC), and corn/soybean (CSC); both CSC and SCC had each phase present each year. In Year 15, we grew soybean ( Glycine max ) in each plot, so that soybean replaced corn in CCC and in the CSC phase where soybean grew in Year 14, and took data from soybeans following CCC (14 years of corn), SCC (two years of corn), CSC (one year of corn), and SCS (one year of soybean). Soybean yield and soil health indicators were measured, along with the bulk soil microbiome and soybean root-associated microbiome.Results Soybean yields were significantly higher following CCC than in the other three treatments at both locations. Soil protein as a soil health indicator was also higher following CCC than in the other treatments. Differential abundances of bacterial and fungal taxa were related to yield differences in a site-specific manner. Uncultured bacterial taxa in family JG30-KF-AS9 was enriched in the high-yielding CCC plots in Monmouth, whereas Microvirga , Rhodomicrobium , and Micromonosporaceae were enriched in the low-yielding SCS plots. Members of the fungal phylum Ascomycota were informative in explaining yield differences among treatments mostly as pathogens, but Tumularia , Pyrenochaetopsis and Schizothecium were enriched in the CCC plots, suggesting a role as either corn pathogens or beneficial fungal taxa for soybean. Multivariate analysis associated soil health indicators with the rotation regimes and some of the differentially abundant microbial taxa.Conclusions Our finding of associations between soil health indicators related to soil microbial populations and soybean yield following different cropping sequences has wide-ranging implications, opening the possibility of both monitoring and manipulating soil microbial populations as a way to improve crop yield potential.

scholarly journals The Role of Citizen Science in Meeting SDG Targets around Soil Health

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (24) ◽  
pp. 10254
Author(s):  
Josephine S. Head ◽  
Martha E. Crockatt ◽  
Zahra Didarali ◽  
Mary-Jane Woodward ◽  
Bridget A. Emmett
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Health Indicators ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Science Methods ◽  
Monitoring Methods ◽  
Soil Monitoring ◽  
Time Requirements ◽  
Development Goals

Healthy soils are vital for sustainable development, yet consistent soil monitoring is scarce, and soils are poorly represented in United Nations Sustainable Development Goals targets and indicators. There is a clear need for specific ambitions on soil health, accompanying metrics, and cost-effective monitoring methodologies. In this paper, we review citizen science methods and platforms which could compliment structured soil monitoring programmes and contribute to filling this knowledge gap. We focussed on soil structure, organic carbon, biodiversity, nutrients, and vegetation cover. Each method was classified as red, amber, or green (RAG) in terms of time requirements, cost, and data reliability. Toolkits were assessed in terms of cost and requirement for specialist kit. We found 32 methods across the five indicators. Three soil monitoring methods scored green on all criteria, and 20 (63%) scored green on two criteria. We found 13 toolkits appropriate for citizen science monitoring of soil health. Three of them are free, easy to use, and do not require specialist equipment. Our review revealed multiple citizen science methods and toolkits for each of the five soil health indicators. This should pave the way towards a cost-effective, joined-up approach on soil health, informing national and international policy and supporting the move towards farmer-led, data-driven decision-making.

Advances in near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy to assess soil health

2021 ◽  
pp. 241-262
Author(s):  
Francisco J. Calderón ◽  
◽  
Andrew J. Margenot ◽  
Scarlett Bailey ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Near Infrared ◽  
Prediction Models ◽  
Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Health Assessment ◽  
Aggregate Stability ◽  
Nir Spectroscopy ◽  
Clay Content ◽  
Health Indicators ◽  
Soil Survey

Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy in the near-infrared (NIR: 350-2500 nm) region offers a relatively rapid, non-destructive, and high throughput alternative to wet chemistry measurements of soil health. Infrared absorbance frequencies of soil constituents such as organic matter and clay minerals form the basis for developing reliable calibrations for predicting soil health indicators (SHI). To demonstrate suggested practices, and potential challenges to the use of NIR for soil health measurements, the chapter describes use of a NIR spectral dataset of diverse United States soils (n=709) from the USDA NRCS National Soil Survey Center to develop chemometric prediction models of representative SHI: total organic C (TOC), aggregate stability, clay content, and β-glucosidase activity. Future directions for NIR prediction of SHI and thus infrared spectroscopy-based soil health assessment and monitoring are also discussed.

scholarly journals Relationship between Soil Health Assessment and the Growth of Lettuce

2013 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-32
Author(s):  
. Riwandi ◽  
Merakati Handajaningsih
Keyword(s):  
Performance Indicators ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Health Indicators ◽  
Total Carbon ◽  
Plant Performance ◽  
Laboratory Evaluation ◽  
Lettuce Plant ◽  
Peat Soils ◽  
Soil Variables ◽  
Lettuce Growth

Soil health is very important point for plant growth which is measured by several indicators. The purposes of the research were to assess and to classify soil health Padang Betuah area of Bengkulu, and to compare between soil health indicators and lettuce plant performance indicators. Soils, consist of mineral and peat soils, were sampled using a soil random sampling technique. Lettuce plants were grown in polybags using sample soils. Both lettuce performance and soil health were assessed by calculating the percentage of total scores of lettuce plant or soil performance indicators which derived from variables observed. Soil variables for field evaluation included color, moisture content, texture, structure, compaction, land slope, organic matter, pH, amount of earthworm, erosion level, LCC (Legume Cover Crop), and vegetation performance. Soil variables for laboratory evaluation were pH, electrical conductivity (EC), total Carbon and Nitrogen, available-Posphorus, cation exchangeable capacity, basesaturation, and aluminum saturation. While, the variables for lettuce growth performance included plant height, numbers of leaf, degree of leaf greenness, plant fresh weight, and relative percentage of shoot : root ratio. The results of field and laboratory evaluation showed that soil health were categoried as a healthy soil and moderate healthy soil both for mineral and peat soils, respectively. Furthermore, similar categories were also obtained for evaluation of plant performance categories. No correlation was found between the soil performance indicatorcategory and the lettuce performance category.Keywords: Field indicator, laboratory indicator, lettuce growth indicator, soil health

scholarly journals Evaluation of Humic Fertilizers Applied at Full and Reduced Nitrogen Rates on Kentucky Bluegrass Quality and Soil Health

Agronomy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 395
Author(s):  
Alex J. Lindsey ◽  
Adam W. Thoms ◽  
Marshall D. McDaniel ◽  
Nick E. Christians
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Biomass ◽  
Humic Substances ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Chemical Properties ◽  
Kentucky Bluegrass ◽  
N Fertilizer ◽  
Turfgrass Quality ◽  
N Rates ◽  
Fertilizer Rates

Soil health and sustainable management practices have garnered much interest within the turfgrass industry. Among the many practices that enhance soil health and sustainability are applying soil additives to enhance soil biological activity and reducing nitrogen (N) inputs—complimentary practices. A two-year study was conducted to investigate if reduced N fertilizer rates applied with humic substances could provide comparable turfgrass quality as full N rates, and whether humic fertilizers would increase biological aspects of soil health (i.e., microbial biomass and activity). Treatments included synthetic fertilizer with black gypsum (SFBG), poly-coated humic-coated urea (PCHCU; two rates), urea + humic dispersing granules (HDG; two rates), urea, stabilized nitrogen, HDG, and a nontreated control. Reduced rates of N with humic substances maintained turfgrass quality and cover, and reduced clipping biomass compared to full N rates. There were no differences in soil physical and chemical properties besides soil sulfur (S) concentration. SFBG resulted in the highest soil S concentration. Fertilizer treatments had minimal effect on microbial biomass and other plant-available nutrients. However, PCHCU (full rate) increased potentially mineralizable carbon (PMC) and N (PMN) by 68% and 59%, respectively, compared to the nontreated control. Meanwhile SFBG and stabilized nitrogen also increased PMC and PMN by 77% and 50%, and 65% and 59%, respectively. Overall, applications of reduced N fertilizer rates with the addition of humic substances could be incorporated into a more sustainable and environmentally friendly turfgrass fertilizer program.

Commonwealth of Soil Health: How Do Earthworms Modify the Soil Microbial Responses to CeO2 Nanoparticles?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wenxing Li ◽  
Peihua Zhang ◽  
Hao Qiu ◽  
Cornelis A. M. Van Gestel ◽  
Willie J. G. M. Peijnenburg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Health ◽  
Ceo2 Nanoparticles ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
Microbial Responses
Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document