Microbial transformation of alkylpyridines in groundwater

The microbiological degradation of a mixture of alkylpyridines in groundwater maintained under aerobic and anaerobic conditions was examined. A marked difference was observed between the aerobic and anaerobic degradation rates. In the presence of a soil inoculum and under aerobic conditions, the residual alkylpyridine concentrations generally approached zero concentration within 10 to 31 days of incubation, whereas under anaerobic conditions the concentrations of residual alkylpyridines only decreased between 40 and 80% over a 33 day incubation period. Biodegradation rates under aerobic conditions were greatly affected by the specific ring substitution of structural isomers within a given weight class. A similar effect was not observed for anaerobic degradation rates.     

Environmental conditions rather than microbial inoculum composition determine the bacterial composition,microbial biomass and enzymatic activity of reconstructed soil microbial communities

The composition of microbial communities and the level of enzymatic activity in the soil are both important indicators of soil quality, but the mechanisms by which a soil bacterial community is generated and maintained are not yet fully understood. Two soil samples were collected from the same location, but each had been subjected to a different long-term fertilization treatment and was characterized by different microbial diversity, biomass and physicochemical properties. These samples were γ-sterilized and swap inoculated. Non-sterilized soil samples along with sterilized and inoculated soil samples were incubated for eight months before their nutrient content, microbial biomass, enzymatic activity and bacterial composition were analyzed. Total phosphorus, and potassium concentrations along with the overall organic matter content of the non-sterilized soil were all equal to those of the same soil that had been sterilized and self/swap inoculated. Additionally, the microbial biomass carbon concentration was not affected by the specific inoculum and varied only by soil type. The activities of catalase, invertase, urease, protease, acid phosphatase and phytase were smaller in the sterilized soils that had been inoculated with organisms from chemical fertilizer amended soil (NPK) when compared to sterilized soil inoculated with organisms from manure and chemical fertilizer amended soil (NPKM) and non-sterilized soil samples. Bacterial 16S rRNA examined by 454-pyrosequencing revealed that the composition of bacterial community reconstructed by immigrant microbial inoculum in the soil was mainly influenced by its physicochemical properties, although the microbial inoculum contained different abundances of bacterial taxa. For example, the pH of the soil was the dominant factor in reconstructing a new bacterial community. Taken together, these results demonstrated that both soil microbial composition and functionality were primarily determined by soil properties rather than the microbial inoculum, which contributed to our understanding of how soil microbial communities are generated and maintained.     

不同有机肥对采煤塌陷区土壤氮素矿化动态特征研究

为揭示不同有机肥对煤矿复垦土壤氮素矿化特性的影响,以山西省孝义市水峪煤矿采煤塌陷复垦土壤为研究对象,采用室内好气培养法,研究在40%含水量和30℃培养条件下,施用3种有机肥(鸡粪、猪粪、牛粪)后在0~161天的氮素矿化动态特征,以明确不同有机肥对该矿区复垦土壤氮素矿化特征,从而预估不同有机肥的供氮特性,为合理施用有机肥进行低产农田的培肥改造提供科学依据。结果表明:(1)各处理0~14天铵态氮含量均随培养时间的延长迅速下降,与培养时间呈极显著负相关关系(P<0.01),14~161天土壤铵态氮含量维持在较低水平,培养结束时,各处理铵态氮含量均低于1.31mg/kg。(2)各处理土壤硝态氮含量、累积量及矿质氮累积量变化均呈近似的“S”形曲线递增,表现为0~56天缓慢增加,56~84天迅速增加,84天至培养结束(161天)其含量基本不变。培养结束时不同处理间硝态氮含量、累积量及矿质氮累积量整体上均表现为鸡粪>猪粪>牛粪>空白,且鸡粪较猪粪和牛粪处理间存在显著差异,猪粪和牛粪较空白处理间存在显著差异(P<0.05)。(3)不同施肥处理出现氮素净矿化的时间点不同,其中鸡粪处理在第14天时最早出现净矿化现象,而猪粪和牛粪在培养28天后才出现明显的氮素净矿化。(4)不同施肥处理在培养的不同阶段硝态氮和矿质氮累积速率不同,但整体趋势一致,表现为培养0~84天各处理土壤累积矿化波动较大,56~84天达到峰值,培养84~161天各处理矿化速率平稳下降。总体来看,有机肥的施入能有效促进煤矿复垦土壤氮素矿化,从而提高土壤氮素有效性。其中,施鸡粪较猪粪和牛粪对提高矿区复垦土壤有效氮效果更好。4种处理的氮素矿化效果总体表现为鸡粪>猪粪>牛粪>空白。     

红壤微生物学特性(一)浙江省衢县低丘红壤的微生物学分析

浙江省的低丘红壤主要有两种类型,一种是以第四纪初期洪积体-红土层为母质,经长期的自然生物气候条件作用发育而成的红-黄色土壤,农民称为“黄筋泥”。黄筋泥土层深厚,质地一般属粉砂质粘土,呈强酸性反应。另一种是以衢江红砂岩的风化体为母质发育而成的土壤,称为红砂土。第三纪衢江红砂岩地层处在第四纪红土层之下,因此只有在红土层受到侵触,红砂岩暴露出来的地方,红砂土才能形成。在低丘红壤区里,黄筋泥和红砂土交错地分布着,构成复区。     

New developments in the estimation of spores of Pasteuria penetrans

New developments in the estimation of free spores of Pasteuria penetrans, a hyperparasite of plant-parasitic nematodes, including Meloidogyne spp., have been tested in contrasted textured soils. They were dedicated to improving the recovery of spores. Different methods of increasing energy of aggregate dispersion were compared in their efficiency in recovering spores inoculated in a sandy clay soil and a clay soil. The dispersion of the soils by the less energetic method (method A) allowed only 50% and 20% of the spore inoculum to be recovered from the sandy clay soil and clay soil, respectively. For these soils, 76% and 81% of the particle-size fraction (0-20 µm) isolated by this method were still aggregated in coarser structures. With increasing energy (methods B and C), these coarse aggregates disappeared entirely in both soils. At the same time, the recovery of spores increased sharply, representing about 87% and 75% of the inoculum of the sandy clay soil and clay soil, respectively. Therefore, at most 25% of the pool of spores remained undetectable. The formation of artificial aggregates during the enumeration procedure could not be advocated to explain this result, since the dispersion of the fraction collected for the enumeration did not improve spore recovery.     

Some investigations into the behavior of pentabromodiphenyl ether (PeBDE) in soils

Pentabromodiphenyl ethers (PeBDEs) are components of brominated flame retardants which have been detected in various environmental media (waste water, sewage sludge, sediments, and aquatic biota). They are ”?priority pollutants”. Sewage sludge from 20 different sewage treatment plants under summer and winter conditions showed PeBDE levels in primary sludge of up to 70 μg kg^—1 with a dominant range of 5—20 μg kg^—1. To insure a safe sludge use in agriculture, sorption, mobility, and dissipation experiments using soil substrates were conducted. PeBDE was bound strongly to organic matter (K_oc = 125,000) while K_d values after FREUNDLICH of about 90 and 700 were obtained for clay and sand, respectively, and of 45,000 for humus. Less than 0.001 % was found in eluates from laboratory lysimeters, and about 91 % remained at a depth of 0—3 cm. Thus PeBDE has a low mobility. In the indicative dissipation tests, the recovery rate after 3 weeks was about 50 %, and about 20—25 % was still detectable after 8 weeks. PeBDE proved to be less persistent than previously assumed. A formation of bound residues is presumed to be likely. Only a small difference was found between aerobic and anaerobic dissipation. The strong fixation in soil suggests a need to clarify whether PeBDE accumulates in soil.     

Comparative Study on Disturbed and Undisturbed Soil Sample Incubation for Estimating Soil Nitrogen-Supplying Capacity

Application of nitrogen (N) fertilizers without knowing the N-supplying capacity of soils may lead to low N use efficiency, uneconomical crop production, and pollution of the environment. Based on the results from pot experiments treated with soil initial nitrate leaching and native soil, long-term alternate leaching aerobic incubation was conducted to study the disturbed and undisturbed soil N-supplying capacity of surface soil samples in 11 sites with different fertilities on the Loess Plateau. The results indicated that the entire indexes and ryegrass (Lolium perenne) uptake N with soil initial nitrate leaching showed a better correlation than that without soil initial nitrate leaching. Except the correlation coefficients for soil initial nitrate (NO₃ ^?)-N and mineral N extracted by calcium chloride (CaCl₂) before aerobic incubation with ryegrass uptake without soil initial nitrate leaching, the correlation coefficients for soil initial NO₃ ^?-N and mineral N extracted by CaCl₂ before aerobic incubation with ryegrass uptake with soil initial nitrate leaching and those for mineralizable N extracted by aerobic incubation, soil initial mineral N and mineralizable N extracted by aerobic incubation, potentially mineralizable N (N₀) and soil initial mineral N + N₀ with ryegrass uptake N under the two cases in disturbed treatment were all higher than those in undisturbed treatment. We concluded that NO₃ ^?-N in soil extracted by CaCl₂ before aerobic incubation can reflect soil N-supplying capacity but cannot reflect soil potential N-supplying capacity. Without soil initial nitrate leaching, the effect of disturbed and undisturbed soil samples incubated under laboratory conditions for estimating soil N-supplying capacity was not good; however, with soil initial nitrate leaching, this method could give better results for soil N-supplying capacity. Based on the results from pot experiments treated with soil initial nitrate leaching and native soil, the mineralization of disturbed soil samples can give provide better results for predicting soil N-supplying capacity for in situ structure soil conditions on the Loess Plateau than undisturbed soil samples.     

Depth transfer of fecal indicator organisms in an arable clayey soil

In clayey soils, shrinking cracks formed during dry periods in the summer are the most important form of macropores. They may contribute under disadvantageous conditions to the movement of fecal microorganisms and therefore to the contamination of groundwater. For this reason, a field experiment was carried out on a highly clayey arable soil to investigate the effect of the factors slurry addition, sampling date, depth, and season. Under worst case conditions, i.e. a soil at field capacity, irrigated directly after application of fresh cattle slurry with high rates of water, the numbers of spores, total coliforms, fecal coliforms and fecal streptococci were not significantly increased at depths of 15 cm, 45 cm and 75 cm in spring (with less shrinking cracks) or in autumn (with more shrinking cracks). The close correlations between the numbers of spores, total coliforms, aerobic bacteria and microbial biomass C indicate that spore forming organisms and most total coliforms belong to the autochthonous soil microflora and cannot indicate fecal pollution.     

模拟矿区复垦接种丛枝菌根缓解伤根对玉米生长影响

针对煤炭开采过程中地表塌陷造成植物根系损伤问题,通过人为伤根模拟煤炭开采造成植物根系受损的盆栽试验,以玉米为宿主植物,矿区退化土壤为供试基质,研究接种丛枝菌根真菌对根系受损玉米生长的缓解作用。结果表明,玉米根系受损条件下,接种丛枝菌根真菌缓解了伤根对玉米生长造成的不利影响,促进了玉米的生长,接菌组玉米干质量平均每株要比对照组高出9.74 g。强化接种菌根真菌提高了玉米对土壤中矿质元素的吸收,增加了受损玉米根际土壤中球囊霉素和有机质含量,接菌组玉米根际土壤中总球囊霉素和有机质含量分别比对照组高出48.1%和24.5%。接种菌根改善了玉米根际微环境,有利于矿区退化土壤改良和培肥。通过研究菌根真菌对根系受损植物生长效应,为采煤塌陷区土地复垦与生态重建提供技术支撑。     

Studies on soil fumigation—II: Effects on bacteria

In a South Australian wheat-field soil the viable counts of “total” aerobic bacteria and of fluorescent pseudomonads were initially greatly depressed by fumigation with 220 kg·ha^?1 chloropicrin (CP) or with a combined application of 220 kg·ha^?1 of chloropicrin and 220 kg·ha^?1 methyl bromide (F). Bacterial numbers rose sharply within 10 days of the completion of fumigation. For a further 14 days the fluorescent pseudomonads formed the major part of the aerobic bacterial population counted and over 5 months later their numbers in F-treated soil remained about 10 times higher than in untreated soil. Numbers of aerobic spore-formers rose more slowly after CP or F treatment. but then remained significantly higher over the 159 days of the trial. Fumigation with 220 kg·ha^?1 of methyl bromide alone (MB) had little effect on soil bacterial numbers.A check of random isolates revealed a predominance of Gram-negative organisms in soil treated with CP, this dominance decreasing with time, whereas MB treatment did not result in any detectable change.Fluorescent pseudomonads from rhizospheres of wheat plants in soil fumigated with CP contained smaller proportions of strains antagonistic in vitro to Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici than isolates from MB-treated soil or from untreated soil.     

Reclamation problems for the area of a former borehole sulphur mine with particular reference to soil air properties

In order to select appropriate methods of reclamation of anthropogenic soil in the area of the former ‘Jeziórko’ borehole mine, the air capacity and air permeability of the soil were measured. A field covering an area of 6·25 ha in which the former mining boreholes were only eliminated and no other reclamation treatments carried out was chosen for the study. The control stand was located in phytocoenosis Querco‐Fagetea situated in the vicinity of the sulphur mine, but outside the area of direct mining activities on Haplic Gleysol. Samples were collected from 0–10, 10–20 and 20–30 cm layers in 25 equally distributed locations of anthropogenic soil and 1 of natural soil. The soil water‐air properties at the soil water potential of −9·81 kPa and at the potential at the time of soil collection (the so‐called actual state) were determined. Spatial relations in the capacity and air permeability observation series were assessed for post‐industrial soil by geostatistical methods. Kriging with a linear variogram was used. Geostatistical analysis made mapping of the air properties of heterogenic soil cover in the study area possible. Non‐reclaimed soils of the experimental field were characterized by faulty aeration resulting from a relatively low air capacity and, additionally, insufficient air permeability. The important objective of reclamation should be the homogenisation of the reconstructed soil in order to achieve equally good soil structure and air conditions favourable for vegetation within the whole investigated area. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Soil bacterial community responses to cadmium and lead stabilization during ecological restoration of an abandoned mine

Ecological restoration refers to the gradual recovery of damaged ecosystems by utilizing their self-recovery capacity and artificial measures. It is considered as an effective technique to alleviate heavy metal pollution in open-pit mining soils. However, little is known about the stability of heavy metals and soil bacterial responses in artificially restored soil-plant systems. In this study, different vegetation restoration strategies were established in the Dabaoshan mining area, China, and the accumulation and transfer of Cd/Pb in the soil-plant system and the responses of the soil bacterial community were investigated. Results showed that ecological restoration with a combination of trees, shrubs and grasses/herbs could increase soil cation-exchange capacity and organic matter content, but not soil pH. The mixture of trees, shrubs and grasses/herbs was most effective for reducing the available Pb content to 33.7% of the content in the control, and the mixture of trees and grasses/herbs was beneficial in reducing Cd to 60.4% of the content in the control. Data showed that ecological restoration could change the quantity, composition and community structure of soil microorganisms. The soils in which a mixture of trees, shrubs and grasses/herbs were grown had the greatest abundance and diversity of bacteria; the abundances of Proteobacteria increased by 12% and Actinobacteria by 5% from those of the control. Plant coverage, soil available Cd content, and organic matter emerged as major determinants of bacterial community composition. This study demonstrates a promising remediation strategy for limiting Cd/Pb mobility in mining areas.     

Tolerance to cadmium of vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizae spores isolated from a cadmium-polluted and unpolluted soil

We carried out a trial to investigate if vesicular arbuscular (VA) mycorrhizae from a Cd-polluted soil can increase both their Cd tolerance and their influence on the host plant, compared with the same strain from unpolluted soil. Inocula (S0, S1 and S2, respectively), were prepared from soil containing 0, 10, 100 mg/kg Cd (T0, T1 and T2, respectively). Each inoculum was added to each soil giving nine treatments. The percentage infection of barley roots and the spore numbers decreased proportionally with increasing Cd concentration in soil. However, the S2 inoculum showed the highest capacity to colonise the barley roots. This inoculum also created the best biotic barrier against the movement of Cd from the roots to the shoot in the T2 soil. In the T1 soil, the S1 and S2 inocula were less efficient than the S0 inoculum, probably because the level of soil pollution was not sufficiently high for any difference to be seen. We concluded that VA mycorrhizae can adapt to heavy metals and that their performance can influence metal translocation in the plant, providing a biological barrier. This is very important for the use of VA mycorrhizae in the reclamation of polluted soils.     

Unearthing the role of biological diversity in soil health

The soil provides a great variety of microhabitats for myriad organisms of different size, physiological activity, behavior and ecosystem function. Besides abundance of participating soil organisms, their species diversity facilitates maximum exploitation of the resources available in the different habitats. At various levels of resolution, species can be categorized into classes performing ecosystem functions and, within each functional class, into guilds of species with similar life course characteristics. Measurement of the diversity and abundance of species within a functional class provides insights into the nature of ecosystem functions and services and to the health of the soil. At higher resolution, species diversity within guilds of a functional class may infer the degree of exploitation of available resources and the complementarity of an ecosystem service; diversity among the guilds of a functional class may indicate successional complementarity of the services. A diversity of guilds within a functional class expands the range of conditions over which ecosystem services are performed while species diversity within a functional class and its guilds contributes to the magnitude of the services. Consequently, diversity of species within functional classes is a key element of the biological component of soil health. In the context of ecosystem services and soil health, the biomass or metabolic activity of species are more useful measures of their abundance than numbers of individuals. Thus, understanding of soil health and ecosystem function requires, besides knowledge of species diversity within functional classes, assessment of the range of functions currently performed in the system and the abundances of organisms by which they are performed. We propose a diversity-weighted abundance product for comparison of the functional magnitude of different assemblages of like organisms.     

矿山土壤特性及其分类研究进展

矿山土分类是认识矿山土壤的基础,对矿山土壤系统分类研究是进行矿山土壤改良和植被重建的重要基础。本文从物理、化学、生物和污染4个方面阐述了矿山土壤特性的变化及其对矿山土壤系统分类的影响,并对分类名称、依据、指标体系和分类方法的相关研究进展进行了综述。目前,矿山土壤系统分类大多以其特有属性作为分类指标,运用光谱技术、模糊均值法和神经网络模型等方法完成分类。但这些方法都有其自身的优缺点,建议今后因地制宜地选取定量化分类指标,探索将主成分分析等数学模型与光谱等技术相结合的方法进行矿山土壤系统分类,以期为今后矿山土地复垦与利用提供科学依据。     

Long-term consequences of topsoil mining on select biological and physical characteristics of two New Zealand loessial soils under grazed pasture

Soil chemical, biochemical, biological and structural properties were measured in two New Zealand loessial soils that were topsoil-mined 10 and 25 years ago respectively. Measurements at the 10-year site were compared to some earlier measurements made at this site and the data combined in a chronological sequence for analysis. Topsoil mining had a large, detrimental impact on the soil microbial biomass, the earthworm populations, easily mineralizable N and soil enzyme activities. However, most of these properties substantially recovered, to 80-90 per cent of the levels in unmined soils, within 10-25 years of restoration under pasture. In contrast, while total soil C and N were less affected by topsoil mining, their recovery was much slower. Stabilities of macro-aggregates of soil had fully recovered within 10-25 years after topsoil mining. The apparent changes in all the measured properties between 10 and 25 years of restoration were small in comparison with changes between 0-10 years of restoration after topsoil mining. The total C content of both soils under pasture appeared unlikely to attain the levels present in unmined soils. In soils undergoing restoration, the ratio of microbial C/total soil C may be a useful index of soil ‘biological stability’. Sulphatase activity may reflect the recovery of pasture production.     

Phenoxy herbicide degradation in soils: Quantitative studies of 2,4-D- and MCPA-degrading microbial populations

Microbial populations able to degrade 2,4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetate) and MCPA (4-chloro-2-methylphenoxyacetate) were enumerated by means of a most probable number (MPN) procedure in eight Natal soils not previously treated with these herbicides. Estimated 2,4-D-degrading populations ranged from 1.26 to 245.2 and MCPA-degrading populations from 0.34 to 1377 g^?1 dry soil; in seven of the soils the populations of these organisms were less than 40 and 30 g^?1, respectively. Such counts indicate that for the successful isolation of 2,4-D- or MCPA-degrading microorganisms from soil, at least 1 g dry weight of soil should be used for enrichment cultures. The 2,4-D-degrading organisms occurred among the aerobic soil bacteria detectable by plate count, at frequencies of only 1 in 30 × 10³ to 1 in 36 × 10⁶ and the MCPA-degrading organisms at frequencies of 1 in 5 × 10³ to 1 in 133 × 10⁶; the ease with which the herbicide-degrading organisms can be isolated from enriched soil cultures treated with 2,4-D or MCPA is evidence of their massive preferential proliferation in response to the herbicides.Log 2,4-D- and MCPA-degrading populations did not differ significantly in four soil samples, but in the others either the 2,4-D- or the MCPA-degrading population was dominant. The longer persistence of MCPA compared with that of 2,4-D could therefore not be ascribed to quantitative differences in the populations of MCPA- and 2,4-D-degrading soil microorganisms.No relationship was evident between the soil populations of 2,4-D- or MCPA-degrading microorganisms and aerobic soil bacteria, and variations of the three populations among the soil samples were not associated in any obvious way with the soil physical and chemical characteristics, except perhaps an association of the highest counts of herbicide-degrading organisms with a sugar cane soil of sandy texture and high C: N ratio.     

排土场不同复垦方式下砾石对饱和导水率和贮水能力的影响

露天煤矿排土场是由矿井下采出的煤矸石,露天矿剥离的表土、岩石及覆土共同组成的松散土石混合堆积体,其内部含有的砾石对土体导水性能和贮水能力有重要影响,以往关于砾石对土壤水分的影响多集中于自然土壤,缺乏对排土场、弃渣场等土石混合工程堆积体的水文-侵蚀过程研究.以海州露天煤矿排土场为研究对象,基于野外调查采样和室内定水头入渗试验,研究了排土场不同复垦方式下土体砾石分布特征及其对饱和导水率和贮水能力的影响,以期为提高矿区水土资源利用效率提供理论依据.结果表明,不同复垦方式下排土场砾石总量随土层深度呈现增加的趋势,并且土体剖面砾石总量的平均值表现为农用地最小,这可能是由频繁耕作导致,不同土层之间砾石总量无显著差异;排土场土体不同粒径砾石相对含量平均值的大小顺序为(2~10 mm)>(>20 mm)>(10~20 mm),表现为大粒径砾石在各种因素的综合作用下正逐渐变为细粒径;排土场土体饱和导水率均表现为灌木林地最高,农用地和荒草地较低;饱和导水率与各粒径砾石含量之间呈极显著线性正相关,且随着砾石粒径的增大其相关性越强;排土场土体贮水能力各指标均以灌木林地和荒草地最强,乔木林地和农用地最差,并且饱和贮水量与各粒径的砾石含量之间均存在显著或极显著的相关关系,最大滞留贮水量与各粒径的砾石含量之间均呈现显著的幂函数相关关系,最大吸持贮水量与粒径2~10 mm砾石含量之间存在显著抛物线相关关系;对于>20 mm的粒径而言,影响土壤贮水能力的砾石含量阈值为14%.     

The inconsistent effect of soil disturbance on colonization of roots by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi: a test of the inoculum density hypothesis

Reducing the tillage of agricultural soils can increase early-season crop-P uptake. Consistent increases in plant-P have been found in both field- and laboratory-systems with undisturbed (U) compared to disturbed (D) soil. A concomitant stimulatory effect on colonization of roots in U soil by arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi has been found in some cases, but in others the colonization has been similar in U and D treatments. Disruption of the extraradical mycelium that remains from the previous crop is the mechanism by which soil disturbance restricts mycorrhizally mediated P uptake for the subsequent crop, with a tandem change in colonization not necessary, but sometimes seen. Nonetheless, a complete account of these processes will need an understanding of the conditions under which the extent of colonization is affected. Soil-P does not explain when a difference in colonization will appear. Among ecosystems in Western Australia, high inoculum density in a pasture was reported previously to preclude the appearance of a difference in colonization in response to soil disturbance, whereas for other ecosystems with lower inoculum densities a difference in colonization was seen. Here, we determined if a similar mechanism operates for an agricultural soil collected mid-season during the growth of a maize (Zea mays L.) crop in Ontario, Canada. Blending various proportions of pasteurized and non-pasteurized soil gave a range of inoculum densities. Maize was taken through two 3-week growth cycles in pots, and for the D treatment the soil was passed through a 5 mm sieve between cycles. All plants became colonized with AM fungi. Reducing the inoculum density served to limit colonization to similar low levels in both U and D soils. Stimulation of colonization and of shoot-P uptake in the U-compared with the D-treatment was greater for plants under the higher inoculum conditions tested. We conclude that the inoculum density during crop growth of the soil studied here is moderate, and that this density makes it possible, if other conditions are met, for a reduction of colonization of roots in response to soil disturbance. Whether or not a difference in colonization will appear following disturbance of a soil such as the one studied here probably depends on the interaction between the environment and the plant. Possible interactions are discussed. The high inoculum density of ecosystems such as the pasture studied in Australia likely overrides any effect of soil disturbance and ensures roots of all plants become well-colonized by AM fungi.     

Soils of wet valleys in the Larsemann Hills and Vestfold Hills oases (Princess Elizabeth Land,East Antarctica)

The properties and spatial distribution of soils and soil-like bodies in valleys of the coastal Larsemann Hills and Vestfold Hills oases—poorly investigated in terms of the soil areas of East Antarctica—are discussed. In contrast to Dry Valleys—large continental oases of Western Antarctica—the studied territory is characterized by the presence of temporarily waterlogged sites in the valleys. It is argued that the deficit of water rather than the low temperature is the major limiting factor for the development of living organisms and the pedogenesis on loose substrates. The moisture gradients in the surface soil horizons explain the spatial distribution of the different soils and biotic complexes within the studied valleys. Despite the permanent water-logging of the deep suprapermafrost horizons of most of the soils in the valleys, no gley features have been identified in them. The soils of the wet valleys in the Larsemann Hills oasis do not contain carbonates. They have a slightly acid or neutral reaction. The organic carbon and nitrogen contents are mainly controlled by the amount of living and dead biomass rather than by the humic substances proper. The larger part of the biomass is concentrated inside the mineral soil matrix rather than on the soil surface. The stresses caused by surface drying, strong winds, and ultraviolet radiation prevent the development of organisms on the surface of the soil and necessitate the search for shelter within the soil fine earth material (endoedaphic niche) or under the gravelly pavement (hypolithic niche). In the absence of higher plants, humified products of their decomposition, and rainwater that can wash the soil profile and upon the low content of silt and clay particles in the soil material, “classical” soil horizons are not developed. The most distinct (and, often, the only diagnosed) products of pedogenesis in these soils are represented by organomineral films on the surface of mineral particles.