Contrasting development of soil microbial community structure under no-tilled perennial and tilled cropping during early pedogenesis of a Mollisol

A range of agricultural practices influence soil microbial communities, such as tillage and organic C inputs, however such effects are largely unknown at the initial stage of soil formation. Using an eight-year field experiment established on exposed parent material (PM) of a Mollisol, our objectives were to: (1) to determine the effects of field management and soil depth on soil microbial community structure; (2) to elucidate shifts in microbial community structure in relation to PM, compared to an arable Mollisol (MO) without organic amendment; and (3) to identify the controlling factors of such changes in microbial community structure. The treatments included two no-tilled soils supporting perennial crops, and four tilled soils under the same cropping system, with or without chemical fertilization and crop residue amendment. Principal component (PC) analysis of phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) profiles demonstrated that microbial community structures were affected by tillage and/or organic and inorganic inputs via PC1 and by land use and/or soil depth via PC2. All the field treatments were separated by PM into two groups via PC1, the tilled and the no-tilled soils, with the tilled soils more developed towards MO. The tilled soils were separated with respect to MO via PC1 associated with the differences in mineral fertilization and the quality of organic amendments, with the soils without organic amendment being more similar to MO. The separations via PC1 were principally driven by bacteria and associated with soil pH and soil C, N and P. The separations via PC2 were driven by fungi, actinomycetes and Gram (−) bacteria, and associated with soil bulk density. The separations via both PC1 and PC2 were associated with soil aggregate stability and exchangeable K, indicating the effects of weathering and soil aggregation. The results suggest that in spite of the importance of mineral fertilization and organic amendments, tillage and land-use type play a significant role in determining the nature of the development of associated soil microbial community structures at the initial stages of soil formation.     

滨海盐碱地棉花秸秆还田对土壤理化性质及棉花产量的影响

在滨海盐碱地定点设置连续3年棉花秸秆还田和未还田2个处理,研究其对0~60 cm土层土壤理化性质和棉花产量的影响。结果表明,连续3年棉花秸秆还田显著降低0~30 cm土层土壤容重和0~10 cm土层0.25 mm土壤微团聚体含量;显著提高0~10 cm土层5 mm土壤大团聚体含量。在0~20 cm土层,3年秸秆还田显著提高棉花播前和各生育阶段土壤有机质、硝态氮、铵态氮和速效钾含量,平均分别比对照提高13.45%、18.57%、22.80%和22.57%;降低土壤速效磷和含盐量,平均分别比对照降低18.29%和16.59%。在20~40 cm土层,3年秸秆还田显著提高土壤硝态氮和铵态氮含量,平均比对照提高37.20%和31.62%;显著降低土壤含盐量,平均比对照降低19.06%。在40~60 cm土层,3年秸秆还田显著提高土壤硝态氮和铵态氮含量,平均分别比对照提高38.26%和24.83%。3年棉花秸秆还田分别比未还田显著提高棉花籽棉产量11.57%、19.01%和13.24%和皮棉产量18.56%、19.78%和18.73%,但对棉花单铃重和衣分无显著影响。     

测墒补灌深度对济麦22冠层光截获和荧光特性及籽粒产量的影响

测墒补灌是近年开发的一种小麦节水栽培新技术,水分管理的土层深度是该技术的关键因素之一。本研究以济麦22为试验品种,于2013—2014和2014—2015年度在山东兖州进行大田试验,设置4个测墒补灌土层深度,补灌至目标土层拔节期相对含水量70%和开花期相对含水量75%,以定量灌溉(拔节期和开花期各灌水60 mm)和全生育期不灌水处理为对照,通过测定花后0~30 d灌浆阶段小麦冠层光截获特性、群体光合速率、旗叶荧光特性,以及最终籽粒产量和水分利用效率,以明确测墒补灌达到增产的光合基础及最佳土层。当补灌土层为0~20 cm时,灌水量为50.1~51.2 mm,小麦叶面积指数、冠层光合有效辐射截获量、冠层光截获率和群体光合速率,以及旗叶实际光化学效率(ΦPSII)和最大光化学效率(Fv/Fm)在各灌水处理中最低;补灌土层为0~40 cm时,灌水量为73.1~93.1 mm,上述前4项指标比补灌深度20 cm时依次提高6.0%~42.4%、8.5%~27.9%、6.7%~14.5%、11.0%~14.6%,同时旗叶ΦPSII和Fv/Fm亦显著提高;补灌深度加大至60 cm(灌水量87.5~105.4 cm)和80 cm(灌水量101.8~115.0 cm)时,这些指标无显著增加。与光合特性相关指标一致,籽粒产量也表现为补灌深度大于40 cm的3个处理间无显著差异,且与定量灌溉对照无显著差异,但都显著高于补灌深度20 cm处理。在本试验条件下,对0~40 cm土层实施测墒补灌,较定量灌溉减少用水26.9~46.9 mm,水分利用效率提高16.2%~16.7%,灌溉效益增加34.0%~68.1%,说明在类似生态条件下,中穗型小麦品种济麦22测墒补灌节水栽培技术的目标土层为0~40 cm。     

Effects of spent mushroom substrates and inorganic fertilizer on the characteristics of a calcareous clayey‐loam soil and lettuce production

We evaluated the effects of the addition of two types of spent mushroom substrate (SMS), SMS from an Agaricus bisporus crop (SMS1) and a mixture of SMSs from an A. bisporus crop and a Pleurotus crop (50% v/v each) (SMS2), on the characteristics of a calcareous clayey‐loam soil and the yield and nutritional status of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.), relative to crops receiving mineral fertilizer (M) and a control (C) without amendment. The application of SMS, especially SMS1, improved soil fertility compared with C and M soils. Moreover, the use of these organic substrates as soil amendments did not harm the plants and gave yields similar to that obtained with mineral fertilizer. The nutritional contents of the lettuce plants were greater than or similar to those of the plants from treatment C or M, except for the plant tissue concentrations of K, Fe and Zn, which were significantly reduced by SMS application. However, this latter fact did not reduce the lettuce yield in the amended soils. Therefore, the use of SMSs as organic amendments contributes to residue utilization, in an environmentally friendly way, and to improved soil fertility and crop yield.     

A calibration method of detecting soil water content based on the information-sharing in wireless sensor network

In agricultural production, there is contradiction between the cost and accuracy of detection during the course of acquiring soil water content (θ) online. This conflict is one of the core issues of automatic water-saving irrigation technology in agriculture. At the same time, capacitive soil moisture sensor (CSMS) has received considerable attention, for it can acquire θ with low cost and high precision, and meet the application requirements of wireless sensor network (WSN). But CSMS is vulnerable to the soil temperature (T_s) and salinity (S_s) in the measurement process. Therefore, this study took EC-5 sensor for example to establish water detection calibration models of soil temperature and salinity for single sensor, using Least Squares Support Vector Machines on MatLAB (LS-SVMlab) as the tool. On this basis, we explored the spatial variability of T_s and S_s, and then a method, which could be used to calibrate the output signals of sensors in multi-point network, was proposed based on the information-sharing (T_s or S_s) technology of WSN. Through laboratory experiment, we effectively reduced the impact of soil temperature and salinity on the single sensor. In example analysis, we investigated the detection precision and costs under different information-sharing radiuses (r). And the results indicated that the method we proposed based on the information-sharing technology of WSN could successfully calibrate the influence of soil temperature and salinity on sensors in multi-point network, and it was an efficacious approach to determine the balance between the calibration accuracy of moisture sensor and the investment of agricultural production. For example, while the calibration precision of soil temperature and salinity is respectively 1%, the costs can be reduced by 30%.     

土壤pH值对极小种群毛枝五针松生理特性的影响

幼苗建成期是毛枝五针松(Pinus wangii)天然更新的关键阶段,为找出影响毛枝五针松幼苗存活的关键生态因子,采用植物生理学方法,研究在7个酸碱度土壤培育下,毛枝五针松松针超氧化物歧化酶(SOD)、过氧化物酶活性(POD)活性和脯氨酸、可溶性糖质量分数及丙二醛(MDA)摩尔质量浓度的变化。结果表明:毛枝五针松在弱碱土壤中抗逆性更强,形态观察得知其在弱碱性土壤中生长更好;生理指标测定结果表明,土壤在p H=7.69~8.42时最适宜毛枝五针松幼苗的生长发育。     

基于GIS的土壤肥力质量综合评价——以天然云冷杉针阔混交林为例

以吉林汪清林业局金沟岭林场中41块天然云冷杉针阔混交林样地为对象,采用主成分-聚类分析,结合GIS技术,对该区域土壤肥力质量进行综合评价。结果表明,按主成分-聚类分析结果将41块样地分为4类:第1类土壤肥力质量综合得分为11.17~18.86(优),包括5块样地;第2类土壤肥力质量综合得分为3.01~7.44(良),包括8块样地;第3类土壤肥力质量综合得分为-6.97~1.27(一般),包括24块样地;第4类土壤肥力质量综合得分为-12.40~-9.63(差),包括4块样地。然后采用Arc GIS软件对综合得分进行普通Kriging插值,其标准均方根预测为0.9544,在1的附近,这基本达到插值精度的要求。从生成的研究区土壤肥力质量综合得分空间分布图来看,森林土壤肥力质量由西向东呈现先降低后升高的趋势;由北向南,森林土壤肥力质量变化幅度逐步减小,表明研究区南部土壤肥力质量变化较北部均匀。就研究区的整体土壤肥力质量而言,土壤肥力质量中等以上(优,良,一般)样地数占所研究区样地总数比例为90.24%,表明所研究区森林土壤肥力质量整体处于良好水平。     

Effects of burning on soil macrofauna in a savanna-woodland under different experimental fuel load treatments

In West African savanna-woodland, the use of prescribed burning as a management tool has ecological implications for the soil biota. Yet, the effects of fire on soil inhabiting organisms are poorly understood. The aim of this study was to examine the responses of soil macro-invertebrates to early fires in a Sudanian savanna-woodland on a set of experimental plots subject to different fuel load treatments. The abundance of major macro-invertebrate taxa and functional groups, and taxon richness were quantified in soil cores collected from three different soil layers before and immediately after burning. The results indicated that, overall, there was substantial spatial and temporal variation in the composition of macro-invertebrate assemblages. The immediate effects of fire were to reduce total invertebrate numbers and numbers of many invertebrate groups dramatically. This is probably due to the fact that many of the surface-dwelling macrofauna perished as a result of less favorable microclimate due to fire, diminished resources, or migrate to safer environments. Fuel load treatment did not affect the community taxonomic richness or abundance of the soil-dwelling fauna. Furthermore, annual changes in community composition were more pronounced at the burnt site than in the control. This could be related to the inter-annual difference in precipitation pattern recorded during the two-year study period at our site. Since soil macrofauna population declines in fire-disturbed areas, increasing fire prevalence may jeopardize the long-term conservation of fire sensitive macrofauna groups. Special fire management attention is therefore recommended with due consideration to the type of burning and fuel properties to avoid the detrimental effects of intense fire affecting the resilience of savanna soil macrofauna species.     

Soil enzyme activities during the 2011 Texas record drought/heat wave and implications to biogeochemical cycling and organic matter dynamics

Extreme droughts and heat waves due to climate change may have permanent consequences on soil quality and functioning in agroecosystems. During November 2010 to August 2011, the Southern High Plains (SHP) region of Texas, U.S., a large cotton producing area, received only 39.6 mm of precipitation (vs. the historical avg. of 373 mm) and experienced the hottest summer since record keeping began in 1911. Several enzyme activities (EAs) important in biogeochemical cycling were evaluated in two soils (a loam and a sandy loam at 0–10 cm) with a management history of monoculture (continuous cotton) or rotation (cotton and sorghum or millet). Samplings occurred under the most extreme drought and heat conditions (July 2011), after precipitation resulted in a reduction in a drought severity index (March 2012), and 12 months after the initial sampling (July 2012; loam only). Eight out of ten EAs, were significantly higher in July 2011 compared to March 2012 for some combinations of soil type and management history. Among these eight EAs, enzymes key to C (β-glucosidase, β-glucosaminidase) and P cycling (phosphodiesterase, acid and alkaline phosphatases) were significantly higher (19–79%) in July 2011 than in March 2012 for both management histories regardless of the soil type (P > 0.05). When comparing all sampling times, the activities of alkaline phosphatase, aspartase and urease (rotation only) showed this trend: July 2011 > March 2012 > July 2012. Activities of phosphodiesterase, acid phosphatase, α-galactosidase, β-glucosidase and β-glucosaminidase were higher in July 2011 than July 2012 in at least one of the two management histories. Total C was reduced significantly from July 2011 to March 2012 in the rotation for both soils. Only the activities of arylsulfatase (avg. 36%) and asparaginase showed an increase from July 2011 to March 2012 for both soil types, which may indicate they have a different origin/location than the other enzymes. EAs continued to be a fingerprint of the soil management history (i.e., higher EAs in the rotation than in monoculture) during the drought/heat wave. This study provided some of the first evidence of the adverse effects of a natural, extreme drought and heat wave on soil quality in agroecosystems as indicated by EAs involved in biogeochemical cycling.     

芦笋种植对冷凉沙化区土壤改良的效果研究

为探索芦笋种植对冷凉沙化区土壤的改良效果,在山西省朔州市右玉县,以未种植芦笋裸沙地为对照（CK）,设置种植芦笋1、2、3和4年共4个处理,通过田间试验测定不同种植年限芦笋田土壤理化特性和芦笋生长发育情况。结果表明,与CK相比,随种植年限增加,土壤黏粒和粉砂粒含量递增,砂粒含量递减,土壤容重递减,土壤田间持水量递增;土壤pH和可溶性盐浓度（EC）递减;土壤有机质、全氮、有效磷和速效钾含量逐年递增。种植芦笋3年的土壤粒级、土壤容重、田间持水量、pH、EC值、土壤肥力发生显著变化;连续种植芦笋4年的土壤黏粒含量较CK增加到29.8%,粉砂粒含量增加到12.6%,砂粒含量降低到57.6%,田间土壤持水量显著提高,土壤容重显著降低,土壤由砂质壤土向砂质黏土转变;土壤pH降低0.75,EC值降低0.08mS/cm;土壤有机质含量增加28.89%,全氮、有效磷和速效钾含量分别增加95.12%、94.92%和45.40%;芦笋产量达6 037.5kg/hm ²。综合分析,连续种植芦笋4年可改善沙化土壤的物理结构,提高土壤养分,降低盐碱程度。芦笋是冷凉沙化区土壤改良的先锋作物之一,可实现生态效益与经济效益并举。