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Soil Quality and Organic Matter Pools in a Temperate Climate (Northern Italy) under Different Land Uses
- Source :
- Agronomy, Vol 11, Iss 1815, p 1815 (2021), Agronomy, Volume 11, Issue 9
- Publication Year :
- 2021
- Publisher :
- MDPI AG, 2021.
-
Abstract
- Temperate soils are threatened by degradation and soil organic matter (SOM) loss due to a combination of geomorphology, soil types, and anthropic pressure. In 54 sites in Northern Italy, characterized by different land uses, climates, geological substrates, and soils, we assessed (i) the soil quality, (ii) the SOM accumulation/degradation patterns, and (iii) whether land use and related soil management practices are sustainable based on changes in soil quality. Soil samples from the 0–15 and 15–30 cm deep layers were collected and analyzed for the soil parameters recommended by the FAO (bulk density, pH, organic and microbial C, total N, and soil respiration rate) and for the chemical SOM pools. Parameters related to the efficient use of soil microbial C were also calculated. The findings showed that agricultural lands where organic material was added had good soil quality and used microbial C efficiently. Reclaimed peaty soils degraded because the conditions were too stressful for the soil microbial biomass as supported by high metabolic quotient and the low values of mineralization quotient, microbial quotient, and soil biofertility index. Conservative management practices carried out in chestnuts were found to have a decreased soil degradation risk. An investigation of the soil parameters recommended by the FAO can be used to evaluate sustainable practices and soil quality on microbial activity and SOM dynamics.
- Subjects :
- Humic substance
soil organic carbon, sustainable land use, ecophysiological data, humic substances, soil quality indicators
Soil test
humic substances
Soil organic matter
Ambientale
PE10_9
Soil classification
Agriculture
Soil carbon
Soil quality
complex mixtures
Soil management
soil organic carbon
Agronomy
Soil retrogression and degradation
sustainable land use
Soil water
Soil quality indicator
Environmental science
ecophysiological data
soil quality indicators
Agronomy and Crop Science
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 20734395
- Volume :
- 11
- Issue :
- 1815
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Agronomy
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....23ee1ee000554de57ed54131b22f5835