a study on natural radioactivity in virgin and agricultural soil samples collected from sungai petani was conducted using high-purity germanium. the mean activity concentrations of 226ra, 232th, and 40k in virgin soils were 51.06±5.83, 78.44±6.42, and 125.66±7.26 bq kg−1, respectively, while those in agricultural soils were 80.63±5.78, 116.87±7.87, and 200.66±18.24 bq kg−1, respectively. the co...

Sorption and degradation are the primary processes controlling the efficacy and runoff contamination risk of agrochemicals. Considering the longevity of biochar in agroecosystems, biochar soil amendment must be carefully evaluated on the basis of the target agrochemical and soil types to achieve agricultural (minimum impact on efficacy) and environmental (minimum runoff contamination) benefits....

Agricultural crops take up water, but not salt, and evaporation from irrigated land does likewise. The result is increasing salt levels in soils. Just as cities cannot ignore urban wastewater collection and treatment, irrigating farmers and irrigation districts cannot ignore what to do with the salt in agricultural drainage water. Although salt management techniques can seem straightforward, th...

The objective of this study was to develop a method that could be applied to investigations of soil/environmental factors influencing the spatial and temporal variability of carbofuran hydrolysis in field soils. Two factors were considered: (i) soil handling and pesticide application, and (ii) the method of data summarization. Three soil handling/pesticide treatments were evaluated: (i) sieved ...

The activity concentrations of naturally occurring radionuclides 226Ra, 232Th, and 40K were determined in 30 agricultural and virgin soil samples randomly collected from Kedah, north of Malaysia, at a fertile soil depth of 0-30 cm. Gamma-ray spectrometry was applied using high-purity germanium (HPGe) gamma-ray detector and a PC-based MCA. The mean radioactivity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th, a...

Methane (CH4) flux from soil to the atmosphere is the result of two microbial processes, methanogenesis and CH4 oxidation. Land use may have a profound impact on the relative activities of these groups of organisms. In this study, the CH4 production and consumption potentials of soils from agricultural and nonagricultural ecosystems were assessed in laboratory incubations. Methane production po...

abstract the amount of needed fertilizer in agricultural soils depends to the type of crop. absence of enough fertilizer may cause in tensions in plants and consequently result in decrease in amount of product. according to the agricultural literature, soils containing total nitrogen amounts (n %) between 0.1-0.15 percent are considered as soils containing normal amounts of nitrogen. the values...

A field study was conducted in the Taihu Lake region, China in 2004 to reveal the organochlorine pesticide concentrations in soils after the ban of these substances in the year 1983. Thirteen organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) were analyzed in soils from paddy field, tree land and fallow land. Total organochlorine pesticide residues were higher in agricultural soils than in uncultivated fallow la...

Strains of Pseudomonas that produce antimicrobial metabolites and control soilborne plant diseases have often been isolated from soils defined as disease-suppressive, i.e., soils, in which specific plant pathogens are present, but plants show no or reduced disease symptoms. Moreover, it is assumed that pseudomonads producing antimicrobial compounds such as 2,4-diacetylphloroglucinol (DAPG) or p...