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Special Issue "Soil Management for Sustainable Agriculture"

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Guest Editor

Department of Biogeochemistry and Soil Science, Faculty of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Bydgoszcz University of Science and Technology, Bernardyńska 6, 85-029 Bydgoszcz, Poland
Interests: soil; enzymes; sulphur; environment; crop rotation; monitoring; irrigation

Dr. Anna Figas

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Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Faculty of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Bydgoszcz University of Science and Technology, Bernardyńska 6, 85-029 Bydgoszcz, Poland
Interests: micropropagation; heavy metal; water need; physiological parameters; irrigation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Soil provides the essential nutrients, water, and root support that food-producing plants need to grow and thrive. The quality of soil can be changed by such factors as climatic conditions, time, and the impact of living organisms and especially human management of soil. The condition of the soil determines the effectiveness of any crop.

In the last century, the use of mineral fertilizers and plant protection products has steadily increased, negatively affecting the condition of soils and the environment. Ineffective use of nutrients applied with fertilizers has resulted in the migration of harmful compounds. The use of mineral fertilizers and intensive cultivation has had a negative impact on biodiversity, significantly worsening the physical and chemical properties of soils. The problem of environmental pollution has become global. Sustainable soil management not only reverses this trend but also improves soil fertility.

The main goal of sustainable agriculture is to meet society’s food needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Specific topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

Articles on agroecology, agroforestry, and landscape ecology;
Applications in conservation ecology and the preservation of biodiversity in agriculture;
Soil as a key component for carbon sequestration;
Use of irrigation and fertigation to relieve water stress;
Transformation of nutrients and their interaction with soil enzymes;
Methods for the effective management of ingredients;
Using intelligent soil monitoring tools;
The sustainable use of useful microorganisms in the rhizosphere;
Reclamation of soils contaminated with metals and pesticides.

Dr. Anetta Siwik-Ziomek
Dr. Anna Figas
Guest Editors

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Keywords

soil
fertilizers
crop
environment
biodiversity
irrigation
enzymes
microorganisms
monitoring
heavy metals

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

Open AccessArticle

Influence of Nitrogen Fertilizer Application on Soil Acidification Characteristics of Tea Plantations in Karst Areas of Southwest China

and

Agriculture 2023, 13(4), 849; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture13040849 - 11 Apr 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1034

Abstract

Nitrogen (N) fertilizer application is one of the causes of soil acidification at tea plantations. However, the effect of N fertilizer application on the soil acidification characteristics of tea plantations with different acidities remains unclear. In this study, field experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of different nitrogen fertilizer application rates on the pH, pH buffer capacity (pHBC), exchangeable total acidity (ETA), exchangeable base cations (EBCs), and cation exchange capacity (CEC) in the topsoil of non-acidified (NA), mildly acidified (MA), and heavily acidified (HA) tea plantations. The results showed that the exchangeable Al³⁺ (E-Al) and CEC were HA > MA > NA in all tea plantations, whereas the EBCs and base saturation percentage (BSP) were HA < MA < NA. In the tea plantations with pH > 4.0, the pH, EBCs, and BSP showed decreasing trends with increasing N fertilizer application, whereas E-Al showed an increasing trend. In the tea plantations with pH < 4.0, the soil pH showed a small increasing trend with the increase in N fertilizer application, whereas the soil exchangeable H⁺ (E-H), E-Al, and CEC showed decreasing trends. Meanwhile, in the pH range of 4–6, the soil acid–base buffer curve rose sharply, and an excessive application of N fertilizer (N900) significantly reduced the pHBC. In addition, a stepwise regression analysis showed that the BSP, EBCs, and exchangeable Mg²⁺ (E-Mg) had significant direct effects on the soil pH, whereas the CEC and N application had significant direct effects on the soil pHBC. In conclusion, a decrease in the BSP and an increase in E-Al were the main mechanisms of acidification at tea plantations, whereas a decrease in the BSP caused by the application of N fertilizer was the main cause of exacerbated soil acidification in non-acidified tea plantations. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soil Management for Sustainable Agriculture)

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Open AccessArticle

Effects of Tillage and Sowing Methods on Soil Physical Properties and Corn Plant Characters

and

Agriculture 2023, 13(3), 600; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture13030600 - 01 Mar 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1306

Abstract

In the northeast plains of China, the intensive utilization of agricultural soils has been a persistent issue, and finding ways to utilize soil resources efficiently and sustainably through a scientifically-driven management system has become a crucial challenge for agricultural production. Conservation tillage is a crucial technology for sustainable agriculture. Currently, plow and rotary tillage are the dominant methods used in Mollisols, but there is limited information on the effects of different conservation tillage practices in this region. The objective of this study was to investigate the short-term impact of tillage and sowing methods on soil physical properties and corn plant growth and to examine the relationship between soil physical properties and plant characteristics during various stages of growth. This study consisted of four tillage and sowing methods: plow tillage and precision seeder sowing (PTS), rotary tillage and precision seeder sowing (RTS), no-tillage and no-tillage seeder sowing (NTS), and no-tillage and precise sowing in stubble field (STS) (all four treatments involved total straw return). The results indicated that the soil penetration resistance (SPR) in the 10–40 cm soil layer under the PTS treatment was significantly lower (by 11.9% to 18%) compared to the other treatments (p < 0.05). On average, the soil moisture content in the NTS treatment was 2.7% and 1.4% higher than that of the PTS and RTS treatments. Additionally, soil temperature was 5.6% to 8.6% lower under the STS treatment compared to the other treatments during late corn growth. The RTS treatment also significantly reduced the bulk density of surface soil. High SPR impeded early crop growth but did not impact mid-crop development, while low soil temperature was one of the main factors affecting late corn growth and development as temperatures decreased. Based on the comparisons, we found that the short-term implementation of conservation tillage did not result in a significant decrease in corn yield. We believe that the short-term implementation of NTS tillage sowing practices in Mollisol regions is a feasible option. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soil Management for Sustainable Agriculture)

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