ABSTRACT Soil macrofauna is an important indicator of soil quality, as it is sensitive to changes in the environment as a result of soil management, which includes soil chemical and physical properties and the diversity of cultivated species. This study aimed to evaluate the composition and structure of soil macrofauna under a no-tillage system in different crop sequences, with and without crop rotation, over two growing seasons: a rainy summer and a dry winter. The crop sequences were soybean/corn rotation […]

ABSTRACT Agrosilvopastoral systems have been used as sustainable production models that can promote soil organic carbon (SOC) storage. However, there are no simulation studies with the Century model to estimate the SOC accumulation capacity in the long term, analyzing the effects of management and climate change in integrated crop-livestock-forest (ICLF) systems. This study aimed to simulate soil C dynamics in two chronosequences of land-use composed of native vegetation (NV), degraded pasture (DPA) and ICLF system in the Cerrado of Minas […]

ABSTRACT Paraná State has approximately 74 % of its territory destined for agricultural activities. Several agricultural management practices modify soil quality and biodiversity, including earthworm populations that can contribute to soil health. This study aimed to review the studies carried out in the state of Paraná, Brazil, focusing on earthworm populations (abundance, biomass, richness, proportion of native and exotic species) in different land-use systems. In total, 51 publications were compiled, including peer-reviewed papers, book chapters, dissertations and theses. We used […]

ABSTRACT Adopting land-uses that contribute with a considerable litter input can affect the accumulation, protection, and bioavailability of organic carbon in the edaphic environment, compromising the different compartments of soil organic matter (SOM) and the associated benefits. Moreover, changes in seasons can influence the dynamic of SOM. Notably, the mechanisms involved in SOM stabilization and storage, particularly in agroforestry production areas, are still poorly explored. This study aimed to verify if the contents of soil organic carbon (SOC) and the […]

ABSTRACT Biochar soil amendments are attracting attention as one strategy to improve soil microbially ecological environment and regulate the soil nitrogen cycle. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of biochar application on agricultural soil improvement, nitrogen (N) mineralization and nitrification. The experiment was carried out on a typical farmland containing black soil and saline-alkaline soil in Northeast China. Four treatments were undertaken, including the control-treated black soil farmland (CS), the biochar-treated black soil farmland (BCS), the control-treated saline-alkali soil […]

ABSTRACT No-tillage (NT) has been largely adopted in Brazil as a strategy for soil conservation, but for the last decade, there have been governmental incentives for its adoption arising from its potential for soil C accumulation. Notwithstanding, the soil mulch formed from crop residues favors the maintenance of soil moisture and nutrients in the upper soil layers, which stimulates soil microbial activity and may increase the potential for nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. In addition, double-cropping systems in the same year […]

ABSTRACT Agroforestry systems have the potential to increase soil organic matter, with effects on soil carbon and nitrogen contents, but information on the application of these systems in semi-arid regions is still scarce. This study aimed to analyze soil carbon and nitrogen stocks in the conversion of native forest from the Caatinga Biome into integrated agriculture systems in the Brazilian semi-arid region. We evaluated the following management systems in the Haplic Inceptisol (Cambissolo Háplico eutrófico): (1) Intercropping area, cultivated with […]

ABSTRACT Understanding soil organic matter (SOM) dynamics in production systems on tropical soils is necessary to guide strategies to increase SOM formation. This study aimed to evaluate soil carbon (C) dynamics by combining applications of different plant residues used on tropical soils. An incubation study was carried out with and without adding millet (Pennisetum americanum) residues combined with six crop residues (legumes and non-legumes); and one additional treatment with only millet residue. Higher C-CO2 fluxes recorded in jack bean, sunflower […]

ABSTRACT To reveal the differences between land-use patterns and the changes in soil properties, the changes in soil bacterial microbial communities and functions driven by land-use patterns were studied by 16SrRNA Gene Fragments and its high-throughput sequencing, relying on the wetland, farmland and forestland soils in the Hongxing National Nature Reserve of Heilongjiang Province. The study area was slightly acidic soil, and the water content, soil organic carbon content, total soil nitrogen and phosphorus contents of wetland soil were higher […]

ABSTRACT Soil moisture (SM) plays an important role in regulating the global water cycle, especially in arid areas, and is one of the main indicators of ecological environmental health. Although traditional methods can accurately measure SM at a single sample site, they are limited in large-scale and dynamic SM monitoring. Therefore, we used the Landsat images as the data source and the soil adjusted vegetation index (SAVI) to build the adjusted SAVI (aSAVI) index by modifying the soil adjustment parameter […]