Properties of Urbic Anthrosols from an abandoned shunting yard in the Ruhr area, Germany

The soil conditions of an abandoned shunting yard in the Ruhr area were studied to find the most important factors influencing plant growth and nutrient cycling. The chemical and physical conditions of five Urbic Anthrosols with different development histories were compared with those of a nearby Calcic Cambisol under agricultural use. In the second half of the 19th century, the ground level of the shunting yard site was raised about 2 m. The soils are now mainly Regosols, mostly well drained in the topsoil. The coarse material contents (>2 mm), which are up to 100% in base layers of railway tracks, and the quality of the man-made substrates (crushed rock, slags, ashes, coke) are the most important factors influencing plant growth. Poor physical structure and low contents of fine fraction (<2 mm) lead to low water storage. Together with a low available nutrient stock, these properties lead to poor establishment of vegetation. The burning of coal by steam engines produced highly polluted ashes that fill pore spaces in the railway ballast layers. All the investigated fine substrata of the shunting yard layers exhibit a higher magnetic susceptibility than the rural soil. The ashes still contain unburned coal so that, although the total organic C content of the man-made soils reaches 37%, the wide C:N ratio does not indicate the actual quality of humic substances. The acid neutralization potential of the topsoil layers of the shunting yard will be consumed by acidic atmospheric deposition within a few decades, whereas in the surrounding Calcic Cambisols, it will take more than a thousand years. This may cause further problems of groundwater quality, as the heavy metals will become more soluble. The low soil quality makes such sites suitable for vegetation species that cannot compete in the surrounding very eutrophic agricultural landscape.     

The pattern of flavan-3-ols in relation to scab resistance of apple cultivars

Amounts and types of flavan-3-ols in leaves and fruit skins of scab-resistant and susceptible apple cultivars were determined by the combined use of HPLC and CRD (chemical reaction detection). The latter is necessary because the UV absorption spectra of flavanols are generally uninformative. Resistant cultivars had higher quantities of fla- van-3-ols in leaf tissue and fruit skin than susceptible ones: levels were 6.5 fold higher in leaves and 3 fold higher in fruit skins. Approximately twice the number of different fla- van-3-ols were found in leaves and fruit skin of the resistant group than in the susceptible one.     

Phenolic diterpenes,flavones, and rosmarinic acid distribution during the development of leaves,flowers, stems,and roots of Rosmarinus officinalis. Antioxidant activity

The distribution of six compounds with three different polyphenol skeletons have been studied in Rosmarinus officinalis: phenolic diterpenes (carnosic acid, carnosol, and 12-O-methylcarnosic acid), caffeoyl derivatives (rosmarinic acid), and flavones (isoscutellarein 7-O-glucoside and genkwanin), each showing a characteristic behavior and distribution during the vegetative cycle. Only in leaves were all six compounds present, and the highest accumulation rate was related with the young stages of development. Rosmarinic acid showed the highest concentrations of all the polyphenols in all organs. The distribution of this acid in leaves, flowers, and stems suggests that in the first stages of flower growth, levels were due to in situ biosynthesis, and in the last stages, the contribution of transport phenomena was increased. The antioxidant activity of six extracts with different polyphenolic composition was evaluated in aqueous and lipid systems. The results clearly suggest that rosemary extracts are excellent antioxidants in both aqueous and lipid systems.     

Odor-active alcohols from the fungal transformation of alpha-farnesene

Submerged microbial cultures were screened for their potential to oxifunctionalize alpha-farnesene. The major oxidation product in all transforming cultures, 3,7,11-trimethyldodeca-1,3(E),5(E)10-tetraen-7-ol, showed a pleasant citrus-like odor and peak concentrations of 170 mg L-1. An Aspergillus niger isolate from mango generated another two terpene alcohols identified as diastereomeric menth-1-en-3-[2-methyl-1,3-butadienyl]-8-ol, a new natural compound with an apricot-like odor. The regiospecifity of the oxygen attack with concurrent lack of stereoselectivity suggested that the initial step of the bioconversion resembled the chemical autoxidation starting with the generation of an intermediate resonance-stabilized carbon-centered radical or carbocation.     

Soil nitrogen dynamics after slurry injection in field trials: Evaluation of a soil sampling strategy

Slurry injection below maize seeds is a rather new application technique developed to improve the nitrogen use efficiency of liquid organic manure. To enable the characterization of the spatial and temporal soil mineral nitrogen (SMN) dynamics after slurry injection, the present study aims to develop an appropriate soil sampling strategy. Three consecutive experiments were conducted. The first testing of the soil sampling approach was conducted in an existing field trial where the slurry was injected down to a depth of 12 cm (upper rim) below the soil surface. The soil profile (75 cm wide) centered below the maize row was sampled grid‐like to a depth of 90 cm. Around the injection zone, soil monoliths (SM) were sampled using a purpose‐built soil shovel. Below the SMs and in the interrow space (15 and 30 cm distance to the row) a standardized auger procedure was performed. The second experiment aimed at improving the sampling strategy with a focus on sample homogenization quality and necessary sample sizes per pooled sample. Furthermore, the risk of a carryover of slurry components along the soil core due to drilling an auger through a slurry band was analyzed. In the third experiment this improved sampling strategy was validated. Results from the first testing of the sampling procedure showed that the strategy is suitable, although some problems occurred (especially the high spread in values among the replications causing high coefficients of variation (CV) of mostly 40–60%). The improvement trial revealed that due to the high gradient of SMN concentration in the direct range of the injection zone an intensive homogenization of these samples is required. Suitable sample sizes (twelve auger samples and six soil monolith samples per pooled sample) have to be collected to obtain reliable SMN values. Drilling an auger through a slurry band to sample subjacent soil layers has to be avoided. Following this enhanced sampling strategy, in the final validation trial the spread in values were considerably reduced and resulted in CV values of mostly < 20%. The developed sampling strategy enables the characterization of the spatial and temporal SMN dynamics when slurry has been band‐injected below a maize row. The method can be transferred to other row crops and different slurry injection spacing.     

Einfluss unterschiedlicher grundwasserstandsverla¨ufe auf botanische zusammensetzung,wasserverbrauch und ertrag auf reliefiertem niedermoor bei differenzierter bewirtschaftung

Die Ausformung der Grünlandvegetation wird in entscheidendem Maße von den Grundwasserständen bestimmt. Die Nutzung spielt aber eine außerordentlich große Rolle bei entsprechenden Modifikationen. Ebenso ist wesentlich, welche Arten im Ausgangsbestand etabliert sind oder im Bodensamenvorrat bzw. als Diasporen vorkommen. Der Gesamtwasserverbrauch von Pflanzenbeständen wird durch komplizierte Wechselwirkungen zwischen Artenzusammensetzung und Nutzungsweise bestimmt. Mähbestände mit zweimaliger Nutzung benötigten in allen Versuchsjahren eindeutig mehr Wasser als Weidebestände, die viermal abgeweidet wurden. Im Ertrag gab es nur geringe Unterschiede zu Gunsten der Mähnutzung. Aus qualitativer Sicht ist das physiologisch jüngere Weidefutter überlegen. Im speziellen Wasserverbrauch bestätigte sich die Weide als wassersparende Variante der Niedermoorbewirtschaftung. Hochwüchsige und massereiche Mähbestände benötigen sehr viel Wasser, das in nordostdeutschen Niedermooren nur über Fremdwasserzufuhr bereitgestellt werden kann. Auch aus der Sicht des Bodenschutzes (Verdichtung, besserer kapillarer Wasseraufstieg, Reduktion der NO 3 -Freisetzung usw.) sollte die Weide die bestimmende Form der extensiven Grünlandnutzung sein.