The impact of a low humus level in arable soils on microbial properties, soil organic matter quality and crop yield

 In arable soils in Schleswig-Holstein (Northwest Germany) nearly 30% of the total organic C (TOC) stored in former times in the soil has been mineralized in the last 20 years. Microbial biomass, enzyme activities and the soil organic matter (SOM) composition were investigated in order to elucidate if a low TOC level affects microbial parameters, SOM quality and crop yield. Microbial biomass C (C_mic) and enzyme activities decreased in soils with a low TOC level compared to soils with a typical TOC level. The decrease in the C_mic/TOC ratio suggested low-level, steady-state microbial activity. The SOM quality changed with respect to an enrichment of initial litter compounds in the top soil layers with a low TOC level. Recent management of the soils had not maintained a desirable level of humic compounds. However, we found no significant decrease in crop yield. We suggest that microbial biomass and dehydrogenase and alkaline phosphatase activities are not necessarily indicators of soil fertility in soils with a high fertilization level without forage production and manure application. Received: 12 December 1997     

Influence of inorganic fertilizers and organic amendments on soil organic matter and soil microbial properties under tropical conditions

 Soil organic matter level, mineralizable C and N, microbial biomass C and dehydrogenase, urease and alkaline phosphatase activities were studied in soils from a field experiment under a pearl millet-wheat cropping sequence receiving inorganic fertilizers and a combination of inorganic fertilizers and organic amendments for the last 11 years. The amounts of soil organic matter and mineralizable C and N increased with the application of inorganic fertilizers. However, there were greater increases of these parameters when farmyard manure, wheat straw or Sesbania bispinosa green manure was applied along with inorganic fertilizers. Microbial biomass C increased from 147 mg kg^–1 soil in unfertilized soil to 423 mg kg^–1 soil in soil amended with wheat straw and inorganic fertilizers. The urease and alkaline phosphatase activities of soils increased significantly with a combination of inorganic fertilizers and organic amendments. The results indicate that soil organic matter level and soil microbial activities, vital for the nutrient turnover and long-term productivity of the soil, are enhanced by use of organic amendments along with inorganic fertilizers. Received: 6 May 1998     

Effects of long-term waste water irrigation on soil organic matter, soil microbial biomass and its activities in central Mexico

 The effect of long-term waste water irrigation (up to 80 years) on soil organic matter, soil microbial biomass and its activities was studied in two agricultural soils (Vertisols and Leptosols) irrigated for 25, 65 and 80 years respectively at Irrigation District 03 in the Valley of Mezquital near Mexico City. In the Vertisols, where larger amounts of water have been applied than in the Leptosols, total organic C (TOC) contents increased 2.5-fold after 80 years of irrigation. In the Leptosols, however, the degradability of the organic matter tended to increase with irrigation time. It appears that soil organic matter accumulation was not due to pollutants nor did microbial biomass:TOC ratios and qCO₂ values indicate a pollutant effect. Increases in soil microbial biomass C and activities were presumably due to the larger application of organic matter. However, changes in soil microbial communities occurred, as denitrification capacities increased greatly and adenylate energy charge (AEC) ratios were reduced after long-term irrigation. These changes were supposed to be due to the addition of surfactants, especially alkylbenzene sulfonates (effect on denitrification capacity) and the addition of sodium and salts (effect on AEC) through waste water irrigation. Heavy metals contained in the sewage do not appear to be affecting soil processes yet, due to their low availability. Detrimental effects on soil microbial communities can be expected, however, from further increases in pollutant concentrations due to prolonged application of untreated waste water or an increase in mobility due to higher mineralization rates. Received: 28 April 1999     

Size and activity of the soil microbial biomass under grass and arable management

 The effects of 5 years of continuous grass/clover (Cont grass/clover) or grass (Cont grass) pasture or 5 years of annual grass under conventional (Ann grass CT) or zero tillage (Ann grass ZT) were compared with that of 5 years of continuous barley (LT arable) on a site which had previously been under arable crops for 11 years. For added comparison, a long-term grass/clover pasture site (LT past) nearby was also sampled. Soil organic C (C_org) content followed the order LT arable=Ann grass CT<Ann grass ZT<Cont grass=Cont grass/clover<LTpast. Trends with treatment for microbial biomass C (C_mic), basal respiration, flourescein diacetate (FDA) hydrolytic activity, arginine ammonification rate and the activities of dehydrogenase, protease, histidase, acid phosphatase and arylsulphatase enzymes were broadly similar to those for C_org. For C_mic, FDA hydrolysis, arginine ammonification and the activities of histidase, acid phosphatase and arylsulphatase, the percentage increase caused by 5 years of continuous pasture (in comparison with LT arable) was 100–180%, which was considerably greater than that for organic C (i.e. 60%). The microbial metabolic quotient (qCO₂) was higher for the two treatments which were mouldboard ploughed annually (LT arable and Ann grass CT) than for the undisturbed sites. At the undisturbed sites, C_org declined markedly with depth (0–15 cm) and there was a similar stratification in the size and activity of C_mic and enzyme activity. The microbial quotient (C_mic/C_org) declined with depth whilst qCO₂ tended to increase, reflecting a decrease in the proportion of readily available substrate with depth. Received: 7 July 1998     

Effects of increasing periods under intensive arable vegetable production on biological, chemical and physical indices of soil quality

 The effects on soil condition of increasing periods under intensive cultivation for vegetable production on a Typic Haplohumult were compared with those of pastoral management using soil biological, physical and chemical indices of soil quality. The majority of the soils studied had reasonably high pH, exchangeable cation and extractable P levels reflecting the high fertilizer rates applied to dairy pasture and more particularly vegetable-producing soils. Soil organic C (C_org) content under long-term pasture (>60 years) was in the range of 55 g C kg^–1 to 65 g C kg^–1. With increasing periods under vegetable production soil organic matter declined until a new equilibrium level was attained at about 15–20 g C kg^–1 after 60–80 years. The loss of soil organic matter resulted in a linear decline in microbial biomass C (C_mic) and basal respiratory rate. The microbial quotient (C_mic/C_org) decreased from 2.3% to 1.1% as soil organic matter content declined from 65 g C kg^–1 to 15 g C kg^–1 but the microbial metabolic quotient (basal respiration/C_mic ratio) remained unaffected. With decreasing soil organic matter content, the decline in arginine ammonification rate, fluorescein diacetate hydrolytic activity, earthworm numbers, soil aggregate stability and total clod porosity was curvilinear and little affected until soil organic C content fell below about 45 g C kg^–1. Soils with an organic C content above 45 g C kg^–1 had been under pasture for at least 30 years. At the same C_org content, soil biological activity and soil physical conditions were markedly improved when soils were under grass rather than vegetables. It was concluded that for soils under continuous vegetable production, practices that add organic residues to the soil should be promoted and that extending routine soil testing procedures to include key physical and biological properties will be an important future step in promoting sustainable management practices in the area. Received: 18 November 1997     

Urease activity and its relation to soil organic matter, microbial biomass nitrogen and urea-nitrogen assimilation by maize in a Brazilian Oxisol under no-tillage and tillage systems

 We studied the relationship between urease activity (UA) and soil organic matter (SOM), microbial biomass N (N_biom) content, and urea-N fertilizer assimilation by maize in a Dark Red Latosol (Typic Haplustox) cultivated for 9 years under no-tillage (NT), tillage with a disc plough (DP), and tillage with a moldboard plough (MP). Two soil depths were sampled (0–7.5 cm and 7.5–15 cm) at 4 different times during the crop cycle. Urea was applied at four different rates, ranging from 0 to 240 kg N ha^–1. The levels of fertilizer N did not affect the UA, SOM content, and N_biom content. No significant difference between the treatments (NT, DP, and MP) was observed for SOM during the experiment, probably because the major part of the SOM was in recalcitrant pools, since the area was previously cultivated (conventional tillage) for 20 years. The N_biom content explained 97% and 69% of the variation in UA in the upper and deeper soil layer, respectively. UA and biomass N were significantly higher in the NT system compared to the DP and MP systems. The highest maize productivity and urea-N recovery was also observed for the NT system. We observed that the increase in urea-N losses under NT, possibly as a consequence of a higher UA, was compensated for by the increase in N immobilized in the biomass. Received: 2 July 1999     

Interactions between soil organic matter status, cropping history, method of quantification and sample pretreatment and their effects on measured aggregate stability

 The effects of sample pretreatment (field-moist, air-dried or tension rewetted) on aggregate stability measured by wet sieving or turbidimetry were compared for a group of soil samples ranging in organic C content from 20 to 40 g C kg^–1. Concentrations of total N, total and hot-water-extractable carbohydrate and microbial biomass C were linearly related to those of organic C. Aggregate stability measured by wet sieving using air-dried or field-moist samples and that measured by turbidimetry, regardless of sample pretreatment, increased curvilinearly with increasing soil organic C content. However, when tension-rewetted samples were used for wet sieving, aggregate stability was essentially unaffected by soil organic C content. Measurements of aggregate stability (apart from wet sieving using rewetted soils) were closely correlated with one another and with organic C, total and extractable carbohydrate and microbial biomass C content of the soils. The short-term effects of aggregate stability were also studied. Soils from under long-term arable management and those under long-term arable followed by 1 or 3 years under pasture had similar organic C contents, but aggregate stability measured by turbidimetry and by wet sieving using air-dried or field-moist samples increased with increasing years under pasture. Light fraction C, microbial biomass and hot-water-extractable carbohydrate concentrations also increased. It was concluded that both total and labile soil organic C content are important in relation to water-stable aggregation and that the use of tension-rewetted samples to measure stability by wet sieving is unsatisfactory since little separation of values is achieved. Received: 6 January 1999     

Soil organic matter, microbial biomass and enzyme activities in a tropical agroforestry system

 The effects of growing trees in combination with field crops on soil organic matter, microbial biomass C, basal respiration and dehydrogenase and alkaline phosphatase activities were studied in soils under a 12-year-old Dalbergia sissoo (a N₂-fixing tree) plantation intercropped with a wheat (Triticum aestivum) – cowpea (Vigna sinensis) cropping sequence. The inputs of organic matter through D. sissoo leaf litter increased and crop roots decreased with the increase in tree density. Higher organic C and total N, microbial biomass C, basal soil respiration and activities of dehydrogenase and alkaline phosphatase were observed in treatments with tree-crop combination than in the treatment without trees. Soil organic matter, microbial biomass C and soil enzyme activities increased with the decrease in the spacing of the D. sissoo plantation. The results indicate that adoption of the agroforestry practices led to an improved organic matter status of the soil, which is also reflected in the increased nutrient pool and microbial activities necessary for long-term productivity of the soil. However, tree spacing should be properly maintained to minimize the effects of shading on the intercrops. Received: 21 February 1997     

The quality of exogenous organic matter: short-term effects on soil physical properties and soil organic matter fractions

We examined the short-term effect of five organic amendments and compared them to plots fertilized with inorganic fertilizer and unfertilized plots on aggregate stability and hydraulic conductivity, and on the OC and ON distribution in physically separated SOM fractions. After less than 1 year, the addition of organic amendments significantly increased ( P  <   0.01) the aggregate stability and hydraulic conductivity. The stability index ranged between 0.97 and 1.76 and the hydraulic conductivity between 1.23 and 2.80 × 10⁻³ m/s for the plots receiving organic amendments, compared with 0.34–0.43, and 0.42–0.64 × 10⁻³ m/s, respectively, for the unamended plots. There were significant differences between the organic amendments (P <  0.01), although these results were not unequivocal for both soil physical parameters. The total OC and ON content were significantly increased ( P  <   0.05) by only two applications of organic fertilizers: between 1.10 and 1.51% OC for the amended plots versus 0.98–1.08% for the unamended and between 0.092 and 0.131% ON versus 0.092–0.098% respectively. The amount of OC and ON in the free particulate organic matter fraction was also significantly increased ( P  <   0.05), but there were no significant differences ( P  <   0.05) in the OC and ON content in the POM occluded in micro-aggregates and in the silt + clay-sized organic matter fraction. The results showed that even in less than 1 year pronounced effects on soil physical properties and on the distribution of OC and ON in the SOM fractions occurred.     

Organic matter status and the size,activity and metabolic diversity of the soil microflora as indicators of the success of rehabilitation of mined sand dunes

The effectiveness of the rehabilitation of mined sand dunes on the northern coast of KwaZulu–Natal, South Africa, was assessed based on measurements of the total and labile organic matter content and the size, activity and metabolic diversity of the soil microflora. Soil was sampled (0–10 cm) after 0, 5, 10, 20 and 25 years of rehabilitation and compared with soil under undisturbed native forest and under long-term commercial pine forest. Following topsoil removal, stockpiling and respreading on reformed dunes, there was a massive loss of organic C such that, at time zero, organic C content was only 24% of that present under native forest. Soil organic C content increased progressively during rehabilitation until, after 25 years, it represented 93% of that present under native forest. The pattern of change in light-fraction C, KMnO₄-extractable C, water-soluble C, microbial biomass C, basal respiration and arginine ammonification rate was broadly similar to that for organic C, but the extent of the initial loss and the magnitude of the subsequent increase differed. Microbial biomass C, water-soluble C and KMnO₄-extractable C, expressed as a percentage of organic C, declined during rehabilitation as humic substances progressively accumulated. Principal component (PC) analysis of catabolic response profiles to 36 substrates revealed that the catabolic diversity of microbial communities differed greatly between native forest, commercial pine forest, 0 years and 10 years of rehabilitation. On the PC1 axis, values for soils under native forest and after 25 years rehabilitation were similar, but there was still separation on the PC2 axis. The main factor explaining variation in response profiles on the PC1 axis was organic C content; and the greatest catabolic diversity occurred in soils under native forest and after 25 years of rehabilitation.     

Changes in soil microbial biomass, metabolic quotient, and organic matter turnover under Hieracium (H. pilosella L.)

 In New Zealand Hieracium is an opportunistic plant that invades high country sites more or less depleted of indigenous vegetation. To understand the invasive nature of this weed we assessed the changes in soil C, N and P, soil microbial biomass C, N and P contents, microbial C : N and C : P ratios, the metabolic quotient, and turnover of organic matter in soils beneath Hieracium and its adjacent herbfield resulting from the depletion of tussock vegetation. The amounts of soil organic C and total N were higher under Hieracium by 25 and 11%, respectively, compared to soil under herbfield. This change reflects an improvement in both the quantity and quality of organic matter input to mineral soil under Hieracium, with higher percentage organic C and a lower C : N ratio. The microbial biomass C, N and P contents were also higher under Hieracium. The amount of C respired during the 34-week incubation indicated differences in the nature of soil organic matter under Hieracium, the unvegetated "halo" zone surrounding Hieracium patches, and herbfield (depleted tussock grassland). Decomposition of organic matter in these zones showed that the Hieracium soil had the greatest rate of CO₂ respired, and the halo soil had the lowest. We relate the enhanced organic C turnover to the invasive nature of Hieracium. Net N mineralization was significantly lower from the Hieracium soil (57 mg N g^–1 soil N) than from herbfield and halo soils (74 and 71 mg N g^–1 soil N, respectively), confirming that the nature of organic N in Hieracium soil is different from adjoining halo and herbfield soils. It seems plausible that specific compounds such as polyphenols and lignins released by Hieracium are not only responsible for increased organic N, but also control the form and amount of N released during organic matter transformations. We conclude that the key to the success of Hieracium in the N-deficient South Island high country of New Zealand lies in its ability to control and sequester N supply through modifying the soil organic matter cycle. Received: 1 December 1998     

Soil organic matter and sorption capacity under different soil management practices in a productive vineyard

The effect of soil organic matter (SOM) on sorptive parameters under different soil management practices in Rendzic Leptosol was studied. In 2006, an experiment of different management practices in a productive vineyard was established in the locality of Nitra-Dra?ovce (Slovakia). The following treatments were established: (1) control (grass without fertilization), (2) T (tillage), (3) T + FYM (tillage + farmyard manure), (4) G + NPK3 (grass + 3rd intensity of fertilization for vineyards), (5) G + NPK1 (grass + 1st intensity of fertilization for vineyards). Soil samples were collected every month during the year 2010. Obtained results showed increased hydrolytic acidity (by 23%), sum of basic cations (by 37%) and decreased total cation exchange capacity (CEC) (by 36%) with higher doses of fertilization in comparison to control. Application of farmyard manure had a positive effect on the increase in the SOM cation sorption capacity. Positive correlations between pH and sum of basic cations (SBC) (r = 0.493, p ≤ 0.001), CEC (r = 0.498, p ≤ 0.001) and cation sorption capacity of SOM (r = 0.391, p ≤ 0.01) were observed. Higher values of labile carbon:potentially mineralizable nitrogen (C_L:N_pot) ratio corresponded with lesser CEC, SBC and base saturation values in the soil. With increased humus quality (higher values of humic acid:fulvic acid (C_HA:C_FA) ratio), cation sorption capacity of SOM significantly increased (r = 0.329, p ≤ 0.01). The results of this study proved that the application of farmyard manure had a positive effect on the increase of SOM sorption capacity, but higher doses of mineral fertilizers added to soil had a negative effect.     

不同封育年限草地土壤有机质组分及其碳库管理指数

土壤有机质对草地封育的生态效应具有重要指示作用,本文结合野外调查和室内分析,研究了半干旱区不同封育年限草地土壤有机质组分及其碳库管理指数变化,以分析土壤有机质对草地封育的响应特征,从而为该区土壤质量的改善和植被建设的生态效应评价提供依据。研究结果表明,土壤有机质及不同活性有机质含量均随土层加深而降低,且在各土层基本表现出封育18年、封育23年封育13年未封育封育3年的趋势。除封育3年土壤的3种活性有机质碳库管理指数在090cm土壤剖面均低于100外,封育13年草地060cm土层、封育18和23年草地090cm土层的3种活性有机质碳库管理指数均高于100,表明随年限的延长,封育对土壤有机质的改善深度也在加深。土壤3种活性有机质与有机质及多数土壤性质呈极显著正相关,能更为灵敏和直观地表征土壤管理的长期效应和土壤质量变化。     

长期施肥下黑土活性有机质和碳库管理指数研究

基于东北黑土长期定位试验,研究不同施肥措施对黑土活性有机质及其碳库管理指数的影响。结果表明:在不同施肥措施的影响下土壤有机质得到了不同程度的提高。撂荒处理(CK0)土壤有机质较初始值提高了35.62%;单施化肥处理有机质提高最小,为10%~15%;其次为秸秆还田处理提高了20%;有机肥和化肥配施处理土壤有机质提高效果最显著,为66.38%~92.13%。黑土活性有机质分布规律为高活性有机质、中活性有机质、低活性有机质分别占有机质含量的3.80%~10.28%、1.59%~12.32%、8.71%~27.45%。以撂荒处理为参考土壤,有机肥和化肥配施处理高活性有机质、中活性有机质碳库管理指数高于参考土壤;氮磷钾肥配施处理(NPK)高活性有机质及其高活性有机质碳库管理指数与参考土壤较为接近;单施氮肥处理(N)、施用氮肥和磷肥处理(NP)、施用氮肥和钾肥处理(NK)、施用磷肥和钾肥处理(PK)高活性有机质、中活性有机质及总活性有机质碳库管理指数均低于参考土壤。采用有机肥无机肥配施对提高黑土活性有机质含量,提高土壤碳库管理指数具有比较好的效果。     

Characteristics of microbial biomass and soil organic matter in newly reclaimed wetland rice soils

Microbial biomass C, N, total organic C, N and mineralizable N were measured in newly reclaimed wetland sandy loam rice soil with a very low nutrient status. Microbial biomass C increased 5.4–10.4 times due to application of barnyard manure, but decreased drastically to 24–27% during rice cultivation. Organic C and N contents also decreased during cultivation, but to a lesser extent to 59–76%. At the tillering stage of the rice plant, microbial biomass N was highly correlated with mineralizable N (r=0.986).     

Biochemical analysis of soil organic matter and microbial biomass composition—a pilot study

Biochemical composition of both intracellular (biomass) and extracellular soil organic matter was determined after extraction with 0.5 M K₂SO₄. Extractable carbon, hexoses, pentoses, total reducing sugars, ninhydrin-reactive nitrogen (NRN), proteins and DNA content were colorimetrically determined. The objective of the pilot study was to examine the information potential included in newly measured biochemical characteristics, their environmental variance and the relationships with main soil properties. Correlation analysis and PCA showed independence between biochemical parameters and physico-chemical properties of the soil. Thus, the parameters characterising biochemical composition of the soil biomass and extracellular matter seem to bring new information about the soils beyond the physico-chemical parameters. They also seem to reveal a more detailed view on microbial biomass or extracellular organic matter pool than C_bio or C_ext alone, respectively. The variance, which occurred in biochemical characteristics, also displayed a high discrimination potential between the defined soil categories. Three types of indices were newly proposed: index I (“substrate quantity index”)—the biomass-specific amount of the extracellular organic compounds, index II (“immobilisation ratio”)—the portion of the organic compound immobilised in microbial biomass, and index III (“substrate quality index”)—the extracellular organic compound content related to extracellular organic carbon. The indices displayed a higher potential than both soil biotic and abiotic parameters to discriminate soil characters and soil types.     

The effect of farming system on labile fractions of organic matter in Calcari‐Epileptic Regosols

Total soil organic carbon (TOC) and nitrogen (N_t) and labile soil N and C fractions were investigated in a field experiment in the Swabian Mountains, Germany. The plots used had been farmed conventionally or organically since 1972 and treated with either mineral or organic fertiliser. There were no significant differences between organic and conventional plots in terms of TOC, N_t, C and N mineralisation potentials (C_pot, N_pot) and microbial C/N ratio. Microbial biomass C and N, however, were significantly higher on organic plots in spring. There was only a weak correlation between N_pot and microbial N. It is proposed that limitations in microbial N availability, as reflected in the microbial N/C ratio, control net N mineralisation rates in the incubation experiments, as indicated by the highly significant correlations between both N_pot and N_pot/C_pot ratios and microbial N/C ratios. The conclusion reached is that, under these field conditions, the positive effect of organic farming on the microbial biomass N pool does not contribute to an (relative or absolute) increase in the N available to plants.     

Invertebrate control of soil organic matter stability

 The control of soil organic matter (SOM) stability by soil invertebrates is evaluated in terms of their impact on the inherent recalcitrance, accessibility to microorganisms, and interaction with stabilizing substances of organic compounds. Present knowledge on internal (ingestion and associated transformations) and external (defecation, constructions) control mechanisms of soil invertebrates is also reviewed. Soil animals contribute to the stabilization and destabilization of SOM by simultaneously affecting chemical, physical, and microbial processes over several orders of magnitude. A very important aspect of this is that invertebrates at higher trophic levels create feedback mechanisms that modify the spatio-temporal framework in which the micro-food web affects SOM stability. Quantification of non-trophic and indirect effects is thus essential in order to understand the long-term effects of soil biota on SOM turnover. It is hypothesized that the activities of invertebrates which lead to an increase in SOM stability partly evolved as an adaptation to the need for increasing the suitability of their soil habitat. Several gaps in knowledge are identified: food selection and associated changes in C pools, differential effects on SOM turnover, specific associations with microorganisms, effects on dissolution and desorption reactions, humus-forming and humus-degrading processes in gut and faeces, and the modification of invertebrate effects by environmental variables. Future studies must not be confined merely to a mechanistic analysis of invertebrate control of SOM stability, but also pay considerable attention to the functional and evolutionary aspects of animal diversity in soil. This alone will allow an integration of biological expertise in order to develop new strategies of soil management which can be applied under a variety of environmental conditions. Received: 6 April 1999     

Organic matter status and the size, activity and metabolic diversity of the soil microbial community in the row and inter-row of sugarcane under burning and trash retention

The concentrations of organic C, labile organic fractions and the size and activity of the microbial community were measured to a depth of 30 cm below the plant row and at distances of 30 and 60 cm into the inter-row area under sugarcane under pre-harvest burning or green cane harvesting with retention of a crop residue (trash) mulch. Total root mass was similar under burning and trashing but under trashing there was a redistribution of roots towards the surface 0-10 cm in the inter-row space as roots proliferated beneath the trash mulch. Soil organic C content decreased in response to both increasing distance from the plant row (to a depth of 20 cm) and burning rather than trashing (to a depth of 10 cm). Declines in K₂SO₄-extractable C, light fraction C, microbial biomass C, basal respiration and aggregate stability in response to distance and burning were much more marked than those for organic C and occurred to a depth of 30 cm. Bulk density was greater under burnt than trashed sugarcane and was greater in the inter-row than row, particularly under burning. Heterotrophic functional diversity (measured by analysis of catabolic response profiles to 36 substrates) was also investigated. Principal component analysis of response profiles demonstrated that soils below the row and those under trashing at 30 cm out from this row were separated from the other soils on PC1 and the sample from the inter-row centre (60 cm out) under burning was separated from the others on PC2. Catabolic evenness was least for the latter soil. It was concluded that soil in the inter-row of burnt sugarcane receives few inputs of organic matter and that conversion to green cane harvesting with retention of a trash mulch greatly improves the organic matter, microbial and physical status of the inter-row soil.     

The contribution of biogas residues to soil organic matter formation and CO2 emissions in an arable soil

The biogas production process generates as side-products biogas residues containing microbial biomass which could contribute to soil organic matter formation or induce CO₂ emissions when applied to arable soil as fertilizer. Using an isotope labelling approach, we labelled the microbial biomass in biogas residues, mainly G⁺ bacteria and methanogenic archaea via KH¹³CO₃, and traced the fate of microbial biomass carbon in soil with an incubation experiment lasting 378 days. Within the first seven days, 40% of the carbon was rapidly mineralized and after that point mineralization continued, reaching 65% by the end of the experiment. Carbon mineralization data with 93% recovery could be fitted to a two-pool degradation model which estimated proportions and degradation rate constants of readily and slowly degrading pools. About 49% of the carbon was in the slowly degrading pool with a half-life of 1.9 years, suggesting mid-term contribution to living and non-living soil organic matter formation. Biogas residues caused a priming effect at the beginning, thus their intensive application should be avoided.