A hot topic in recent decades, the application of organic amendments to arid-degraded soils has been shown to benefit microbially-mediated processes. However, despite the importance of soils for global sustainability, a gap has not been addressed yet in soil science: is there any connection between ecosystem-community processes, cellular functionality, and microbial lifestyles (i.e. oligotrophy...

The use of waste materials as organic amendments in soil remediation can affect metal solubility; this interaction will vary with the characteristics of the organic matter that is added to the soil. A pot experiment was carried out in a calcareous, metal-polluted soil, using Beta maritima L. as an indicator species for the treatment effects on metal solubility. The treatments were: fresh solid ...

Biochar amendments to conventional sand filters can remove hydrophilic trace organic contaminants from urban stormwater and are, therefore, a good barrier protect the aquatic environment.

Nematodes are aquatic organisms that depend on thin water films to live and move within existing pathways of soil pores of 25-100 mum diameter. Soil nematodes can be a tool for testing ecological hypotheses and understanding biological mechanisms in soil because of their central role in the soil food web and linkage to ecological processes. Ecological succession is one of the most tested commun...

Diuron desorption and mineralisation were studied on an amended and artificially contaminated soil. The amendments used comprised two different composted organic residues i.e., sewage sludge (SS) mixed with pruning wastes, and urban solid residues (USR), and two different solutions (with inorganic salts as the micronutrients and hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HPBCD)). After applying micronutrien...

The effects of combinations of organic amendments, phytochemicals, and plant-growth promoting rhizobacteria on tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) germination, transplant growth, and infectivity of Meloidogyne incognita were evaluated. Two phytochemicals (citral and benzaldehyde), three organic amendments (pine bark, chitin, and hemicellulose), and three bacteria (Serratia marcescens, Brevibacteri...

Five treatments were compared using two half-highbush blueberry cultivars (cv Chippewa and Polaris) transplanted and grown for their first three growing seasons at a site in Boutiliers Point, N.S., a Gibraltar brown sandy loam (Ferro-Humic Podzol). The five treatments were as follows: Alfalfa meal + rock P + wood ash; NPK fertilizer; Municipal Solid Waste (MSWC) compost; Ruminant compost; food ...

Increasing soil moisture storage capacity is a strategy that can be implemented to minimize the use of water in paddy rice cultivation. Organic materials from different sources have potential increase and nutrient enrichment. An incubation study was conducted evaluate incorporation five selected organic amendments—as follows: husk biochar (RHB), oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFBB), compost (COMP)...

Organic amendments (animal manure and biochar) to agricultural soils may enhance soil organic carbon (SOC) contents, improve fertility crop productivity but also contribute global warming through nitrous oxide (N2O) emission. However, the effects of on N2O emissions from seem variable among numerous research studies remains uncertain. Here, eighty-five publications (peer-reviewed) were selected...

Soils of the lowland tropics in the central Brazilian Amazon are generally highly leached, acidic and nutrient-poor. Charcoal, combined with other soil amendments, might improve fertility but this, in turn, could lead to increased weed problems for agricultural production. This experiment was conducted to assess weed pressure and species composition on plots receiving various inorganic and orga...