The application of fractal geometry to describe soil structure is an increasingly useful tool for better understanding the performance of soil systems. Only a few studies, however, have focused on the structure of rhizospheric zones, where energy flow and nutrient recycling most frequently occur. We used fractal dimensions to investigate the characteristics of particle-size distribution (PSD) i...

Experiences worldwide reveal that degraded lands restoration projects achieve little success or fail. Hence, understanding the underlying causes and accordingly, devising appropriate restoration mechanisms is crucial. In doing so, the ever-increasing aspiration and global commitments in degraded lands restoration could be realized. Here we explain that arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) biotech...

The use of metal-accumulating plants to clean the contaminated soil with toxic metals is the most rapidly developing component of phytoremediation as an environmentally friendly technology. Overcoming harsh soil conditions and accelerating the recovery of degraded soils remain a worldwide restoration challenge. This study evaluated the effect of different concentrations of Pb, Zn, Cu and Fe on ...

The results of field survey, germination and correspondence analysis showed that the soil seed banks density ranged from 900 to 6,467 seeds m at 0-5 cm depth and 117 to 2,467 seeds m at 5-10 cm depth, with species richness of 7-14. Early successional species dominated the soil seed bank, while later successional species occurred only at low density. The similarity between soil seed bank and sta...

Small−holder farming in semi−arid areas is being forced to change to compensate for the needs of more people living under conditions of increasingly variable rainfall. As more land is used for agriculture, rangeland areas are reduced, so limiting the availability of animal fodder. The length of fallow periods where soil fertility may be restored is also reduced. This has forced herders and farm...

Historical reference conditions provide important context for creating ecological restoration and management plans. The U.S. 19th Century Public Land Survey (PLS) records provide extensive ecological information for constructing such reference conditions. We used PLS records to reconstruct pre-Euro-American tree species cover class and vegetation structure types for the Midwest Driftless Area, ...

—Our understanding of long-term fire history in the eastern United States is derived from the interpretation of a variety of archives. While cultural records are available for some sites, biological archives are most frequently used to reconstruct longterm historical fire regimes. The three most commonly used biological archives in eastern oak forests include: the relative abundance of microand...

Landscape in the southern United States changed dramatically during the 1930s and the following decades when massive agricultural and abandoned logging lands were converted to forest lands through natural restoration and silviculture. The impacts of this forest restoration on hydrology were investigated in this study by conducting numerical experiments with a regional climate model. Climatic an...

In order to supply optimum water to restore reed wetlands used for bird habitats, a field investigation and greenhouse experiment were conducted. Three water supplementation stages (early stage at 20 May, middle stage at 20 July and later stage at 20 September, respectively) and five depths (0, 10, 15, 20 and 35 cm over the surface, respectively) were established, with three replicates for each...

Invasion by the non-native tree Tamarix has led to implementation of restoration projects aimed at maintaining the ecological integrity of many riparian communities in the southwestern United States. These restoration efforts may include Tamarix removal, manipulation of hydrologic regimes, and active revegetation of native species. The goal of this study was to determine which site characterist...