Changes in soil microbial biomass, metabolic quotient, and organic matter turnover under Hieracium ( H. pilosella L.)

Antioxidant Activity and Total Phenolic and Flavonoid Contents of Hieracium pilosella L. Extracts

The antioxidant activity of water, ethanol and methanol Hieracium pilosella L. extracts is reported. The antioxidative activity was tested by spectrophotometrically measuring their ability to scavenge a stable DPPH(•) free radical and a reactive hydroxyl radical trapped by DMPO during the Fenton reaction, using the ESR spectroscopy. Total phenolic content and total flavonoid content were evalua...

Does agricultural crop diversity enhance soil microbial biomass and organic matter dynamics? A meta-analysis.

Our increasing dependence on a small number of agricultural crops, such as corn, is leading to reductions in agricultural biodiversity. Reductions in the number of crops in rotation or the replacement of rotations by monocultures are responsible for this loss of biodiversity. The belowground implications of simplifying agricultural plant communities remain unresolved; however, agroecosystem sus...

Changes in microbial community characteristics and soil organic matter with nitrogen additions in two tropical forests.

Microbial communities and their associated enzyme activities affect the amount and chemical quality of carbon (C) in soils. Increasing nitrogen (N) deposition, particularly in N-rich tropical forests, is likely to change the composition and behavior of microbial communities and feed back on ecosystem structure and function. This study presents a novel assessment of mechanistic links between mic...

Rapid changes in microbial biomass and aggregate size distribution in response to changes in organic matter management in grass pasture

Soil Microbial Biomass Determination

Basic Idea: The quantity of microbial biomass in a given soil sample is inherently difficult to measure. To some degree, any measurement of microbial biomass is relative – different methodologies or variations in methodologies will yield microbial biomass estimates that are not directly comparable. For this reason, if you want to measure microbial biomass – choose a method and stick with it exa...