Crystalline clay minerals of the soils derived from recent volcanic ashes in Hokkaido,Japan

For the past ten years much work has been carried out on clay minerals of volcanic ash soils. Most investigators have reported that allophane is dominant among clay minerals of volcanic ash soils and crystallizes to halloysite or meta-halloysite with the advance of weathering (1–8). On the other hand, UCHIYAMA, MASUI and ONIKURA (1960) found that montmorillonite predominates in the clay fraction of volcanic ash soil in Kawatabi (9). Furthermore, MASUI, SHOJI and UCHIYAMA (1966) showed that the major crystalline clay minerals of volcanic ash soils in the Tohoku district are montmorillonite, vermiculite, intergradient montmorillonite-vermiculite and chlorite (10). They also showed that these minerals increase with the advance of weathering and that kaolin minerals are minor constituents.     

Mineralogy of gel-like substance in the pumice bed in Kanuma and Kitakami Districts

A characteristic gel-like substance has been noticed around weathered pumice grains in the pumice beds of Kanuma near Utsunomiya and of Kitakami, Iwate prefecture. This substance was first studied by SHIOIRI (6) in 1934, and reported as allophane according to its chemical composition, refractive index, and dye-adsorbing nature similar to the colloid of volcanic ash soils of the Onji-type. Recently, KUWANO and MATSUI (5) remarked that the colloidal film in the Kanuma and Imaichi pumice beds diffracted x-rays at about 8 and 33 Å, and they presumed that this substance might be an early transitional material from allophane to some crystalline clay minerals. KANNO (2) and KANNO et al. (3) examined this gel-like substance from Imaichi and Kitakami districts precisely by the x-ray diffraction, differential thermal, infrared spectroscopical, electron microscopical, and chemical methods, and they concluded that the substance was a mixture of poorly crystallized montmorillonite, allophane in various weathering stages, and free sesquioxide, although there was no positive evidence of montmorillonite. YOSHINAGA and AOMINE (7) noticed that the properties of imogolite designated by themselves bore a striking likeness to those of the gel-like substance reported by KANNO et al. (3), and they considered that both substances were essentially of the same kind irrespective of occurrence.     

Nippon Dojohiryogaku Zasshi (Journal of the Science of Soil and Manure,Japan)

Some allophanic soils in Japan, developed from deposits of volcanic ashes have aggregates, the sizes of which are mostly those of silt and sand, and which are very stable against the ordinary soil dispersion treatment such as decomposition of organic matter with hydrogen peroxide and addition of deflocculants to the suspension, but can be broken to smaller particles by mechanical forces. Oba and Kono (1, 2) reported that there were aggregates stable even against deferration treatment in the soils, especially plenty in ones developed from basic volcanic ashes, and these aggregates could be broken up into clay of allophane mainly by a sonic-wave vibration technique. Miyazawa (3) recognized that the aggregates were only found in Andosols developed under warm-temperate climates, being concentrated in B horizon, but not so much in A horizon and few in gleyey subhorizon, and assumed that they were formed under a specific weathering like seasonal wetting and drying. Yasuo et al. recognized a high correlation between the degree of aggregation and free iron oxide content of the soils in Kanto Plain and suggested that sesquioxide and structure of allophane might associate with the aggregate fonnation. On the other hand, airdrying of volcanic ash soils sometimes reduces their dispersibilities through irreversible formation of aggregates. Kishita (5) found that this effect of drying was remarkable at subsoiLs, and similar results were obtained by TAPA et al. (6). The poor dispersibility and the irreversible change by drying are known also about volcanic ash soils of New Zealand (7, 8), and Latin America (10, 11), Hawaii (9).     

Browning of pyrogallol as affected by clay minerals

One of the authors, Kumada(1), has presented the idea that humification must be regarded as browning phenomena of organic matter in soils. The browning reaction can be accelerated non-enzymatically as well as enzymatically, and it is considered that humification would be conducted under the influence of some catalytic actions of clay fraction, composed of various kinds of clay minerals, free oxides and electrolytes, as well as soil enzymes, under the prevailing hydrothermal conditions. This was well illustrated by Kyuma and Kawaguchi(2), who definitely demonstrated the catalytic effect of allophane on the oxidative polymerization of polyphenols.     

Demerium exchange of hydroxyl groups in allophane

The nature of amorphous silicates, allophane,ö The name allophane is used in this paper in a dual sense; the one stands for a group of amorphous or nearly amorphous aluminum silicates associated with minor amounts of other metals, and the other in some restricted sense for amorphous silicates other than imogolite. The latter term, imogolite, is used for convenience to denote a component that shows broad x-ray diffractions at 14 (strong), 7.6 (medium) and 5.6 (weak) Å, gives an endotherm at 430°C, and appears as thread-like particles of diameter 100 to 200 Å in electronmicrographs (21). as a main clay constituent determines many of the physical and chemical properties of volcanic ash soils. Recent developments in the study of allophane together with other amorphous inorganic materials in relation to their nature and occurrence in soils have been reviewed by MITCHELL et al. (12).     

Occurrence of laminar opaline silica in some Oregon Andosols

Laminar opaline silica was first found in the 0.2 to 5 μ fraction and most abundant in the 0.4 to 2 μ fractions of young Japanese Andosols by Shoji and Masui (1969a, b). It was noted that the A horizon of a profile tends to be relatively rich in opaline silica whereas the B or C horizon, in allophane (Shoji and Masui, 1972a, b). They (I972a) distinguished four types of opaline silica particles such as circular, elliptical, rectangular, and rhombic, of which the circular and elliptical types predominate. It has been suggested that the formation of opaline silica is favored by a plentiful supply of soluble silica in the early weathering stage of Andosols, the supersaturation of silica by surface evaporation of soil solution, and the suppression of aluminum activity in the soil solution by the accumulation of soil organic matter (Shoji and Masui, 1972b; Wada and Harward, 1974). The purpose of the present short communication is to describe the occurrence of laminar opaline silica particles in some Oregon Andosols, U.S.A.     

Identification of imogolite in the filmy gel materials in the imaichi and shichihonzakura purlice beds

In this paper are described the properties of filmy gel substances occurring in the Imaichi (Imaichi-tsuchi) and Shichihonzakura (formerly called Jobukanuma-tsuchi (2,5)) pumice beds. The properties of such filmy materials from the Kanuma (Kanuma-tsuchi) , Imaichi, and Kitakami pumice beds have been described by many investigators (1,8, 9, 10,12, 13, 14, 15, 19, ). KANNO et al. (9) concluded that they were a mixture of poorly crystalline montmorillonite, allophane, and free sesquioxides. However, the presence of montmorillonite as an important constituent has been disproved by MIYAUCHIA nd AOMINE (12), ho concluded that the gel films from the Kitakami and Kanuma pumice beds consist principally of imogolite.     

Allophane in Some Ando Soils

Allophane has been known to occur widely in volcanic ash soils in Japan and New Zealand. However, exact knowledge of its nature has not been well established, mainly because of extreme difficulty to separate it in pure state and of its x-amorphous nature. In the course of the studies on soil allophane, it was noticed that certain Ando soils contained two different mineral colloids together, in addition to crystalline clay minerals and free sesquioxides. X-ray examination revealed that one was x-amorphous colloid which would be called allophane, and the other an unknown colloid of low crystallinity. Imogolite*** Imogolite will be described in a subsequent paper by the present authors. was proposed as the name of the latter colloid by the present authors after imogo in which imogolite was first found. Imogo is a brownish yellow, volcanic ash soil. in the Kuma basin in the Kumamoto Prefecture³⁾. When deferration treatment is applied to the soils, allophane disperses both in an acid and alkaline media, whereas imogolite disperses in an acid medium and flocculates in an alkaline one.     

Humus composition of mountain soils in Central Japan with special reference to the distribution of P type humic acid

The central districts of Japan are mountainous areas rising to 3,000 metres which are predominantly covered with forest vegetation. A comprehensive and systematic classification of the soils in this region has not yet been made, but the following soil types have been reported to occur: - 1. 1. Brown forest soils, podzolic soils, black soils and red soils. [Described by OHMASA (14)]

2. 2. Alpine grassland soils and alpine meadow soils. [Described by KUMADA et al. (9)]

3. 3. A series of randzina-like soils with a very restricted distribution. These are derived mainly from limestone and show various degrees of maturity. [Described by KUMADA et al. (8)]

4. 4. Red-yellow soils. These sometimes show a close resemblance to OHMASA's red soils and are found on diluvial plateaux and hills. [Described by KANNO (1)]

5. 5. Paddy soils.

     

Forms of phosphorus in soils of Rajasthan

Phosphorus in soils is found to be present in organic combinations, inorganic form or in adsorted form on clay complex. Different forms of soil phosphorus have different solubilities and consequent availability in soils. A knowledge about the content and types of soil phosphorus enables one to understand the organic behaviour and predict the response of added phosphatic material to crops (Parker 1953). The form in which phosphorus is present in soil is directly related to pH and CaCO₃ in the soil as well as the intensity of the development of the soil. Williams (1950) has found that in calcareous soils of South Australja most of the phosphorus was in combination with calcium, whereas in acid soils it forms compounds with alumina and iron. Hibbard (1931) concluded that in alkaline and calcareous soils, phosphorus exists mostly in the form of hydroxyapatite, chloroapatite, and the like. Kanwar and Grewal (1959) studied fractionation of phosphorus in Punjab soils and reported that differences in the nature and amounts of the phosphorus present in acid and alkaline soils of the State explain the causes of different phosphatic fertilizer responses to the crops. A similar report has been given by Goel and Agarwal (1959) who studied the fractionation of phosphorus in Kanpur soils and concluded that the mature soils are rich in iron and aluminium bound phosphorus and respond better to phosphatic fertilizer than the immature soils rich in Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺ bound phosphorus. Chai Moo Cnoo and Caldwell (1959) reported that Fe³⁺ and Al³⁺ bound phosphorus was abundant in acid soils while Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺ bound phosphorus content in alkaline soils, and organic phosphorus agreed, in general, with the content of organic matter, with some deviations.     

Method of extracting organic acid from flooded soil

Investigations on the extraction and determination of organic acids in flooded soil have been reported by TAKAI (1) and TAKIJIMA (2). TAKAI applied water to extract acids from soil and determined them by BULLEN's method (3). However, TAKIJIMA reported that organic acid could not be completely extracted by TAKAI's procedure, especially in soil with a high organic matter content such as muck and peaty soils, and proposed an extraction procedure with 0.5 N sulfuric acid. He also discussed the absorption of acids by soil.     

Changes in cation exchange capacity of some Andosols with dithionite-citrate treatment

Andosol is a soil widely distributed throughout Japan and is one of the important soils for the agriculture. The name “Ando soil” was given by THORP and SMITH (19) which means dark soil with an organic matter content ranging up to 30 per cent in the darkest members of the group. In 1964, the Soil Correlation Meeting on Volcanic Ash Soils (8), organized by FAO, adopted “Andosol” for volcanic ash soil of which the active fraction is predominated by amorphous material. Andosol, moreover, has many special properties such as high sorption capacity, high accumulation of organic matter, low bulk density and low stickiness. TAYLOR (18), accordingly, named them “amorphic soils”. The latest soil classification system, 7th Approximation (15) includes andosol under the suborder andepts.     

Influence of sea salts on the soil metabolism

Abstract

Microbial metabolism in reduction process of waterlogged paddy soils has been studied by Takai, Koyama, and Kamura (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6), Koyama (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12), and others. The results indicated that microbial metabolism in waterlogged soils takes place according to the following steps: (1) In the early stage of the incubation period, dissolved O₂, is consumed and the redox potential drops rapidly. (2) NO₂? and NO₂? are reduced to N₂. (3) Mn⁴⁺ is reduced to Mn²⁺. (4) Fe³⁺ is reduced to Fe²⁺. (5) SO₄ ²? is reduced to S^2?. (6) H₂ and CH₄ are produced. Takai and Chiang (13) reported that NH₄₊ and PO₄ ³⁺ in waterlogged paddy soils increase with the incubation period. Chiang and Takai (14) indicated that carbohydrates in the soil solutions almost remain constant throughout the incubation period, however, organic acids change similarly to those reported previously (5, 6).     

Phosphate solubilising bacteria

Most reports of the studies on solubilisatioh of phosphate in liquid culture and soil suggested that organic acids produced by microorganisms are responsible for promoting the dissolution of phosphate. Sperber (11, 12), Louw and Webley (7) and Duff, Webley and Scott (2) studied the production of acids by cultures of some phosphate dissolving fungi. actinomycetes and bacteria and observed that among the acids produced in liquid medium, hydroxy carboxylic acids such as lactic and 2-ketogluconic acids were responsible for solubilisation of phosphates. In the present studies, apart from the culture of Bacillus megaterium var. phosphaticum isolated from phosphobacterin which had been obtained from USSR. Indian strains of Bacillus megaterium, Bacillus circulans and Escherichia freundii isolated and identified by Sundara Rao and Sinha (13) were used. These studies were undertaken to find out different types of nonvolatile acids produced in Pikovskaya's (9) liquid medium.     

Study of Pedo Genesis of soils of Bundi district (Rajasthan)

The soils of Rajasthan vary from desert sand to heavy clay with all intermediate stages like sandy loam, loam and clay loam. The last two textural groups are more prevalant on the eastern, northeastern and southeastern part of the Aravallies which run almost in the middle of the State from southeast to northeast. The latter groups of soils have more potential from the point of agricultural development in the State. These soils are widely termed as alluvial soils which is a general term to indicate the nontaxonomic group of soils that have parent material of alluvial origin, Riecken ¹⁷, Kelloog ⁸ has referred to the soils developed from the alluvium as classified under variety of world soil groups. In our country many of the alluvial soils have not yet been studied from the soil genesis point of view as a measure to classify the soils under taxonomic groups. Ray Chawdhary and Mukerji ¹⁵, concluded that the alluvial soil groups of our country are ill defined and the classification of these soils need more study. Basu ³ was able to distinguish the genetic characteristics of the soils of Deccan. Agrawal and Mukherji ¹⁾ established that distinct genetic soil types have come into expression under Gangetic alluvium. Agarwal ² has concluded about the three types of soils in the toposequence with precipitated calcium throughout, zone of calcium accumulation in the bottom of the profile and soils free of calcium, and suggests that the soils of Gangetic plain be called as derived from alluvium. A process of reclassifying the alluvial soil series into taxonomic groups is a common trend in the United States since the last two decades.     

Suitability of extractant for soil available silicon and silicon response to upland paddy grown on alkaline soils of central India

Abstract

Several silicon (Si) extractants are being employed in different countries mostly for lowland acidic soils. Present investigation was conducted to evaluate suitable extractants for upland paddy grown on alkaline soils. Available Si was extracted by using ten different extractants. Tris buffer pH 7.0 (1:10) in Inceptisols showed positively highest and significant correlation with grain yield (r?=?0.870), grain Si uptake (r?=?0.887), straw yield (r?=?0.852), and straw Si uptake (r?=?0.919). However, 0.5?M acetic acid (1:2.5) in Vertisols showed positively highest and significant correlation with grain yield (r?=?0.810), grain Si uptake (r?=?0.852), straw yield (r?=?0.850), and straw Si uptake (r?=?0.929). The application of Si @ 200?kg ha^?1 along with chemical fertilizers significantly increased yield and nutrient uptake of upland paddy on Vertisols. Tris buffer pH 7.0 (1:10) and 0.5?M acetic acid (1:2.5) were suitable extractant for Inceptisols and Vertisols, respectively based on its correlation with yield and nutrient uptake.     

Evaluation of readily available nonexchangeable potassium in soil by sequential extractions with 0.01 molar hydrochloric acid

Nonexchangeable potassium (K-ne), i.e. 1 M NH₄OAc-nonexchangeable K, often contributes significantly to plant nutrition. However conventional extraction methods often extract much more K-ne than plants even after intensive cropping, suggesting the difficulty in evaluating the amount of readily available soil K-ne. In this study, we used a milder extraction method (0.01 M HCl method) to examine its applicability to evaluate the amount of readily available K-ne in soil. In the first experiment, the concentration of K-ne in twenty surface soils sampled from agricultural fields in Japan and K-bearing minerals was determined by the 0.01 M HCl method, i.e. sequential extraction with 0.01 M HCl over a period of 10 d after removal of exchangeable K, and by conventional methods. The average percentage of the soil K-ne extracted by the 0.01 M HCl method amounted to 0.66% of the total K amount, and was much lower than that by a single extraction with 1 M HNO₃ (2.0%) or with 0.2 M sodium tetraphenylboron for 2 d (22%). In the second experiment, the amount of K-ne removed by chemical extractions was compared with that of K-ne removed by maize plants grown for 29 d in five of the above soils. The amount of the K-ne evaluated by the 0.01 M HCl method gave the highest correlation (p < 0.05) with that of the K-ne utilized by plants among the extraction methods applied. The amount of soil K-ne extracted by the 0.01 M Hel method could therefore become a suitable index of the amount of readily available K-ne in soil. Extraction of K-ne in soils after maize planting further indicated that plants had removed K-ne more intensively than the 0.01 < HCl method probably only from the rhizosphere, although a high correlation was observed between the amount of K-ne removed by the 0.01 M Hel method and that by plants. This implies that the estimation of the amount of K-ne utilized by plants requires not only soil chemical analysis but also the evaluation of the percentage of the soil volume where the plant-induced release of K-ne actually occurs.     

Alleviation of manganese toxicity and manganese-induced iron deficiency in barley by additional potassium supply in nutrient solution

Barley plants were grown hydroponically at two levels of K (3.0 and 30 mm) and Fe (1.0 and 10 μm) in the presence of excess Mn (25 μm) for 14 d in a phytotron. Plants grown under adequate K level (3.0 mm) were characterized by brown spots on old leaves, desiccation of old leaves, interveinal chlorosis on young leaves, browning of roots, and release of phytosiderophores (PS) from roots. These symptoms were more pronounced in the plants grown under suboptimal Fe level (1.0 p,M) than in the plants grown under adequate Fe level (10 μm). Plants grown in 10 μm Fe with additional K (30 mm) produced a larger amount of dry matter and released less PS than the plants grown under adequate K level (3.0 mm), and did not show leaf injury symptoms and root browning. On the other hand, the additional K supply in the presence of 1.0 μM Fe decreased the severity of brown spots, prevented leaf desiccation, and increased the leaf chlorophyll content, which was not sufficient for the regreening of chlorotic leaves. These results suggested that the additional K alleviated the symptoms of Mn toxicity depending on the Fe concentration in the nutrient solution. The concentration (per g dry matter) and accumulation (per plant) of Mn in shoots and roots of plants grown in 10 μm Fe and 30 mm K were much lower than those of the plants grown in 10 μm Fe and 3.0 mm K, indicating that additional K repressed the absorption of Mn. The concentration and accumulation of Fe in the shoots and roots of the plants grown in 10 μm Fe and 30 mm K were higher than those of the plants grown in 10 μm Fe and 3.0 mm K, indicating that the additional K increased the absorption of Fe under excess Mn level in the nutrient solution. The release of PS, chlorophyll content, and shoot Fe concentration were closely correlated.     

Amino acid composition of rice callus tissue grown with different kinds of nitrogen sources

There have been several papers dealing with the difference in chemical composition between callus tissue and normal parent tissue. WEINSTEIN, TULECKE, NICKELL, and LAURENCOT (1–3) revealed, in a series of papers, that the contents of amino acids, sugars, and nucleic acids often differed strikingly between callus and normal tissue of Agave toumeyana Trel. (1), Ginkgo biloba, L. (2), and PAUL's scarlet rose (3). STEWARD, THOMPSON, and POLLARD (4) also reported that the content of some amino acids of rapidly growing and randomly proliferating tissue is outstandingly different from that of normal tissue.     

Occurrence of 4-methyleneglutamine and 2-oxo-4-methyl-3-pentene-1,5-dioic acid in leaves and stem of tulip plants

Abstract

The presence of 4-MeGln in the tulip plant was discovered by ZACHARIUS et al. (1954), and it was found that this amide generally occurred in the leaves of almost all the species of genus Tulipa (FOWDEN and STEWARD 1957a). The 4-MeGln compound has been detected in every part of the tulip plant, i.e., bulb scales, roots, basal plate, young shoots, leaves, stern, and flower (FOWDEN and STEWARD 1957a, b; OHYAMA 1986; OHYAMA et al. 1985, 1988a, b; ZACHARIUS et al. 1954, 1957). Especially 4-MeGln was found to be a major soluble N constituent in the leaves and stem of tulip of the flowering stage (OHYAMA et al. 1985; OHYAMA 1986).