Soil health: looking for suitable indicators. What should be considered to assess the effects of use and management on soil health?
Elke Jurandy Bran Nogueira CardosoRafael Leandro de Figueiredo VasconcellosDaniel BiniMarina Yumi Horta MiyauchiCristiane Alcantara dos SantosPaulo Roger Lopes AlvesAlessandra Monteiro de PaulaAndré Shigueyoshi NakataniJamil de Moraes PereiraMarco Antônio Nogueira
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Abstract:
Soil Health refers to the ecological equilibrium and the functionality of a soil and its capacity to maintain a well balanced ecosystem with high biodiversity above and below surface, and productivity. To understand and use soil health as a tool for sustainability, physical, chemical, and biological properties must be employed to verify which respond to the soil use and management within a desired timescale. Attributes with a rapid response to natural or anthropogenic actions are considered good indicators of soil health. Among the physical indicators, soil texture, aggregation, moisture, porosity, and bulk density have been used, while among chemical indicators total C and N, mineral nutrients, organic matter, cation exchange capacity, among others are well established. However, most of them generally have a slow response, when compared to the biological ones, such as microbial biomass C and N, biodiversity, soil enzymes, soil respiration, etc., in addition to macro and mesofauna. Thus, a systemic approach based on different kinds of indicators (physical, chemical and biological) in assessing soil health would be safer than using only one kind of attribute. Many human activities have caused desertification, loss of biodiversity, disruption of aggregates, loss of organic matter and nutrients, among others. Today, it is imperious to maintain soil health and productivity with increasing emphasis on reforestation and recuperation of degraded areas through the use of organic amendments, reintroduction of plants, soil fauna and microorganisms. This review focused on an integrative view on indicators of soil health to be used as tools for prediction of sustainability in production systems.Keywords:
Soil mesofauna
Soil functions
Soil Quality
Soil Management
Soil Research is an international journal of soil science publishing high quality research on: soil genesis, soil morphology and classification; soil physics and hydrology; soil chemistry and mineralogy; soil fertility and plant nutrition; soil biology and biochemistry; soil and water management and conservation; soil pollution and waste disposal
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Soil mesofauna
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Soil health and soil quality are defined as the capacity of soil to function as a vital living system within land use boundaries. This function which sustains biological productivity of soil also maintains the quality of surrounding environment and human health. Thus the two terms are used interchangeably although it is important to distinguish that, soil quality is related to soil function, whereas soil health presents the soil as a finite non-renewable and dynamic living resource. In this review, we deal with soil health concept which includes interactions between plant inputs and soil in creating a healthy environment. Adverse effects on soil health and soil quality arise from nutrient imbalance in soil, excessive fertilization, soil pollution and soil loss processes that are increasingly becoming common in developing countries. This review will examine the development of soil health approaches as well as the content of soil health and soil quality information and its application to reduce negative impacts on agricultural productivity and long term sustainability.
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Soil bacterial communities play an important role in soil health, carbon (C), and nutrient cycling, as well as in soil-plant relationships in agroecosystems. However, our understanding of the drivers and distribution of soil bacterial communities across landscapes is limited. For example, it is not clear how changes in soil management practices (i.e. Till vs No-till vs cover crop), soil diagnostic units, and their associated physical-chemical properties interact to influence the composition and abundance of soil bacterial communities at a larger scale. Here, using samples collected in a countrywide soil survey in Hungary, we combined soil metagenomic sequencing, soil management practices, and soil geochemical data to develop a mechanistic understanding of the drivers of bacterial communities in contrasting agroecosystems. We found that bacterial community composition and distribution significantly differed between soil management practices. Furthermore, we found that soil geochemical properties influenced soil bacterial composition and abundance under similar soil diagnostic units, suggesting that the effects of soil management practices on bacterial communities outweighed the ones of pedogenic processes. Together, these results suggest that soil management practices influence soil geochemical properties that drive the composition and spatial distribution of soil bacterial communities. Consequently, effects and types of soil management should be taken into account when developing soil health indicators for agroecosystems.
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Soil health is a critical determinant of ecosystem sustainability and agricultural productivity. This review article examines the significance of soil indicators, microbial community dynamics, soil enzymes, and their relationship with essential soil properties, including organic carbon content, bulk density, soil penetration resistance, water holding capacity, temperature, and pH. Traditional agricultural practices, such as conventional tillage, have been shown to significantly alter soil structure and physical properties. Bulk density, a key parameter, is used to gauge the compaction and porosity of soil, which directly influences water and nutrient transfer, as well as aeration. Conservation tillage practices, including the incorporation of crop residues into the soil, play a pivotal role in reducing bulk density. Soil temperature is a significant factor influencing the physical, chemical, and biological processes in soil, ultimately impacting plant growth. Soil pH, often referred to as the 'master soil variable,' has a far-reaching impact on various biological, chemical, and physical characteristics within the soil. It significantly influences biogeochemical processes and the activity of enzymes involved in the degradation of organic materials. Alterations in soil pH can directly affect microbial activity, microbial diversity, and the efficiency of enzyme-driven processes. This comprehensive review synthesizes the current knowledge of these biological indicators, emphasizing their interconnections and implications for soil health and sustainable land management practices. Understanding the multifaceted relationships between these indicators is crucial for the development of effective strategies to enhance soil health and ecosystem resilience.
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This chapter provides examples of the impact of soil fauna on soil health within different ecosystems and how the soil habitat changes in relation to this biodiversity. It focuses specifically on mesofauna in agriculture, grasslands, woodlands and as bioindicators, before concluding with an overview of how the development of mesofauna as bioindicators is important in establishing a healthy soil.
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The capacity of a soil to provide ecosystem services without negative impacts on the environment
is defined as soil health. Healthy soils are a fundamental resource for agricultural
production and our ability to feed a growing global population. We must therefore increase
our understanding of how soil health is affected by soil management. This study investigated
soil health on 20 farms in the south of Sweden, using samples of topsoil from farm fields
and from unmanaged soil adjacent to the sampled field at each site. Soil health was assessed
using the following physical, chemical, and biological indicators: wet aggregate stability,
soil protein content, active carbon, soil respiration, and soil organic matter. We designed a
soil management index based on crop diversity, avoidance of mechanical soil disturbance,
and application of organic amendments, and evaluated its effect on individual soil health
indicators and overall relative soil health. The results of this study showed that soil health
was poorer in agricultural fields than unmanaged soils. Furthermore, a high soil management
index resulted in higher values for individual soil health indicators. However, soil health
indicators differed in how sensitive they were to soil management. We found that wet aggregate
stability and soil protein content had a high sensitivity to soil management. Active
carbon, soil respiration and soil organic matter content were less sensitive to soil management
and more dependent on soil texture. Lastly, the results show that a high soil management
index resulted in an improved overall soil health relative to the potential soil health
represented by the unmanaged soil. Our results show that it is possible to promote soil health
through high crop diversity, avoidance of mechanical soil disturbance, and application of
organic amendments
Agricultural soil science
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Soil Health refers to the ecological equilibrium and the functionality of a soil and its capacity to maintain a well balanced ecosystem with high biodiversity above and below surface, and productivity. To understand and use soil health as a tool for sustainability, physical, chemical, and biological properties must be employed to verify which respond to the soil use and management within a desired timescale. Attributes with a rapid response to natural or anthropogenic actions are considered good indicators of soil health. Among the physical indicators, soil texture, aggregation, moisture, porosity, and bulk density have been used, while among chemical indicators total C and N, mineral nutrients, organic matter, cation exchange capacity, among others are well established. However, most of them generally have a slow response, when compared to the biological ones, such as microbial biomass C and N, biodiversity, soil enzymes, soil respiration, etc., in addition to macro and mesofauna. Thus, a systemic approach based on different kinds of indicators (physical, chemical and biological) in assessing soil health would be safer than using only one kind of attribute. Many human activities have caused desertification, loss of biodiversity, disruption of aggregates, loss of organic matter and nutrients, among others. Today, it is imperious to maintain soil health and productivity with increasing emphasis on reforestation and recuperation of degraded areas through the use of organic amendments, reintroduction of plants, soil fauna and microorganisms. This review focused on an integrative view on indicators of soil health to be used as tools for prediction of sustainability in production systems.
Soil mesofauna
Soil functions
Soil Quality
Soil Management
Cite
Citations (517)
Microfauna
Soil mesofauna
Soil ecology
Soil Quality
Soil Food Web
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Citations (11)
1 SUMMARY The growing interest in low input agricultural practices, coupled with challenges in the agro-ecosystems, which are accelerated by population pressure, poor soil management practices and climate change calls for a holistic approach to soil management and agricultural production as a whole. The holistic approach considers soil management as a way of enhancing agricultural production while not forgetting environmental quality, human and animal health. This leads to the concept of soil health. Changes in soil health are estimated by using physical, chemical and biological indicators. This review is aimed at highlighting some soil management practices that improve soil health by taking into account their effects on the biological indicators. Biological indicators of soil health are mainly dominated by various soil biota, their activities and influences or functions. Critical reviewing of various research papers and books has revealed and confirmed that the following soil management practices improves soil health especially through their influence on soil microflora and fauna: conservation tillage practices or conservation agriculture, crop rotations, intercropping with legumes, cover cropping, agro-forestry, use of organic manure and crop residues, soil liming and inoculation with effective microorganism. These practices have a positive influence on soil microbial and faunal activities and increase soil microbial populations, diversity and functions. Soil biota contribute to soil health and sustainable crop production in a number of ways including nutrient cycling, soil aggregation, soil aeration and bio-control or suppression of plant pathogens.
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Agricultural soil science
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