Bacterial numbers in a pine forest soil in relation to environmental factors

Numbers of soil bacteria stained with acridine orange (AO) or fluorescein diacetate (FDA) were studied for 3 and 2 yr respectively. Three pine forest sites were used and both organic and mineral soil layers were included. Different patterns of fluctuation in bacterial numbers were found each year. Significant correlations were demonstrated between AO-stained bacterial numbers and soil moisture content and between FDA-stained bacteria and the accumulated precipitation during a week before the sampling date. In multiple regression analyses 60–80% of the variation in numbers of AO-stained bacteria could be accounted for by soil moisture and numbers of bacterial-feeding nematodes at the sampling dates, and 30–45% of the variation in numbers of FDA-stained bacteria was accounted for by precipitation.