Organic By-Product Effects on Soil Chemical Properties And Microbial Communities

Soil management practices that contribute to increased soil productivity and longterm sustainable agricultural production have been neglected over the last four decades. The need to increase soil productivity led to the evaluation of a system of disposing of large quantities of organic by-products and poultry litter on agricultural land. Our objectives were to evaluate the effects of applying noncomposted municipal solid waste (MSW), amended with either poultry litter (PL) or NH4NO3 to adjust C:N ratios in the soil surface in either the spring or fall. Changes in soil chemical properties, bacteria population shifts, changes in species richness and evenness of indigenous soil bacteria, and response by cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) were evaluated. Soil P, K, Ca, and Mg were increased in the surface 0–15 cm by a factor of three or four times by application of organic by-products. After two annual applications, soil Cu increased slightly, Zn doubled, Co and Cr decreased, while Pb increased by a factor of two...