The progressive application of new biodegradable plastics in agriculture calls for improved testing approaches to assure their environmental safety. Full biodegradation (≥90%) prevents accumulation in soil, which is the first tier of testing. The application of specific ecotoxicity tests is the second tier of testing needed to show safety for the soil ecosystem. Soil microbial nitrification is ...

Objective: Returning crop residue to the soil exerts favorable effects on physical and chemical properties of soil. In fact, the plant residues can affect soil conditions such as pH and important role in soil fertility and cycling of elements in the soil may have. In addition to the role of the organic matter from decomposition of crop residue in increasing the concentration of micronutrients i...

Sustainable and rational management of agrophytocenoses depends on various bioindices and methods of application, particularly the development and protection of soil resources (Lai et al., 2002). Among other indices, enzyme activity is proposed as a universal index of soil fertility and contamination (Dilly et al., 2003). To ascertain and to make a comparison of bioactivity variation during the...

We studied the heterogeneity of soil weed seed-bank in a rice-wheat rotation system after long-term application of different organic or non-organic fertilizers, and the effects of major nutrients on the characteristics of the weed seed-bank. The soil was sampled in the Taihu area after a 31-year long-term fertilization experiment. Weed seeds were identified and counted in the surface soil of 12...

Effect of the fungicide tetraconazole on microbial community in silt loam soils from orchard with long history of triazole application and from grassland with no known history of fungicide usage was investigated. Triazole tetraconazole that had never been used on these soils before was applied at the field rate and at tenfold the FR. Response of microbial communities to tetraconazole was invest...

sewage sludge can be utilized as one of the best and cheapest organic fertilizer in agriculture due to its organic and plant nutrient contents. however, the presence of potentially toxic heavy metals in some sludges can restrict its use in agricultural lands. a greenhouse study was conducted in the college of agriculture, ferdowsi university of mashhad, to investigate the effects of leaching an...

in recent years, in order to enhance the health of agroecosystems, concerns on ecological inputs especially to produce medicinal plants, has been increased. in order to evaluate the effects of winter cover crops on pgprs activities and soil nitrogen content in simultaneous application of organic manures and biological fertilizer in a low input production system of cucurbita pepo under minimum t...

Six soil amendments including municipal solid waste compost (MSWC), coal fly ash (CFA), rice husk biochar prepared at 300°C (B300) and 600°C (B600), zerovalent iron (Fe0), and zerovalent manganese (Mn0) were evaluated to determine their ability to reduce mobility of chromium (Cr) in a Cr-spiked soil. The Cr-spiked soil samples were separately incubated with selected amendments at 2 and 5% [weig...

Surface-applied chemicals move through the unsaturated zone with complex flow and transport processes due to soil heterogeneity and reach the saturated zone, resulting in groundwater contamination. Such complex processes need to be studied by advanced measurement and modeling techniques to protect soil and water resources from contamination. In this study, the interactive effects of factors lik...