Decaying wood is related to nutrient cycling through its role as either a sink or source of nutrients. However, at micro scales, what is the effect of decaying logs on the physical, chemical, and biotic characteristics of the soil underneath? We took samples from a 0 to 5 cm depth under and a 50 cm distance away from decaying logs (Dacryodes excelsa and Swietenia macrophylla) at 2 stages of dec...

Paddy-upland rotation is an unavoidable cropping system for Asia to meet the increasing demand for food. The reduction in grain yields has increased the research interest on the soil properties of rice-based cropping systems. Paddy-upland rotation fields are unique from other wetland or upland soils, because they are associated with frequent cycling between wetting and drying under anaerobic an...

Most of the upper layer of the earth’s terrestrial crust is or has been influenced by plant roots, so most soil is actually rhizosphere soil at one time or another. Through their physical, chemical, and biological interactions with the soil, roots play a major role in soil formation (Jenny, 1941) and soil function (Wardle et al., 2004). Microbes factor prominently in global nutrient and energy ...

Plant and microbial community composition in connection with soil chemistry determines soil nutrient cycling. The study aimed at demonstrating links between plant and microbial communities and soil chemistry occurring among and within four sites: two pine forests with contrasting soil pH and two grasslands of dissimilar soil chemistry and vegetation. Soil was characterized by C and N content, p...

abstract soil nutrient management with efficient fertilizer use has an important role on maximizing yield and environmental effects. in this study game theory is applied to identify the nutrient proportion for corn production in kooshkak in fars province, iran, in 2008-2009. cost of fertilizer combinations and production of corn are the players of the game. a goal programming was applied to obt...

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) play an essential role in complex ecosystems. However, the species diversity and composition of AMF communities remain unclear in semi-arid mountains. Further, it is not well understood if the characteristics of AMF community assemblies differ for different habitat types, e.g., agricultural arable land, artificial forest land, natural grassland, and bush/wood ...

This study had three main objectives: (1) to evaluate the aboveground biomass and volume yield of three unrelated hybrid poplar clones in 9 year-old riparian buffer strips located on four farms of southern Québec, Canada; (2) to compare yield data at 9 years with previous data (at 6 years); (3) to evaluate how soil fertility, measured using three different soil testing methods (soil nutrient st...

A field study was initiated in 1992 to investigate the long-term impacts of beef feedlot manure application (composted and uncomposted) on nutrient accumulation and movement in soil, corn silage yield, and nutrient uptake. Two application strategies were compared: providing the annual crop nitrogen (N) requirement (N-based rate) or crop phosphorus (P) removal (P-based rate), as well as a compar...

Recent evidence suggests that soil nutrient heterogeneity, a ubiquitous feature of terrestrial ecosystems, modulates plant responses to ongoing global change (GC). However, we know little about the overall trends of such responses, the GC drivers involved, and the plant attributes affected.We synthesized literature to answer the question: Does soil heterogeneity significantly affect plant respo...

This study aims to assess the effect of grazing intensity on vegetation structure, soil nutrient concentrations and soil physical properties. The study was carried out in steppe rangelands of Saveh, Markazi province, Iran. Four sites with four grazing intensities including very high, high, moderate and non-grazed with the same ecological conditions were selected. To study various vegetation and...