If a map is constructed through prediction with a statistical or non‐statistical model, the sampling design used for selecting the sample on which the model is fitted plays a key role in the final map accuracy. Several sampling designs are available for selecting these calibration samples. Commonly, sampling designs for mapping are compared in real world case studies by selecting just one sample for

The soil‐water characteristic curve (SWCC) is a key input to many hydrological and water‐quality models that simulate water movement and solute transport in the vadose zone. Over the past four decades a considerable number of pedotransfer functions (PTFs) have been developed to predict SWCC. The goal of this study was to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of 30 PTFs, 11 discrete functions and 19 continuous

Increasing forest soil organic carbon (SOC) storage is important for reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from terrestrial ecosystems and mitigating global climate change. Although the effects of altitude, temperature, and rainfall on organic carbon have been studied extensively, it is difficult to increase SOC storage by changing these factors in actual forest management. This study determined

Understanding differences in the agro‐hydrologic performance of Vertisols under conventional tillage (CT) and direct drill (DD) requires a thorough knowledge of the soil hydraulic properties. We measured water retention on 54 undisturbed topsoil (0–0.05 m) samples collected at the CT and DD plots from a long‐term experiment. Water retention was significantly larger in DD (p < 0.05) for absolute pressure

A major challenge in soil science is to monitor and understand the state and change of soils at a national scale to inform decision making and policy. To address this, there is a need to identify key parameters for soil health and function and determine how they relate to other parameters, including traditional soil surveys. Here we present a national‐scale dataset of topsoil sampled as part of a wider

Acidic soils, occupying ca. 40% of the world's arable soils, often need to be managed, such as to raise their pH, to improve crop productivity; however, the environmental impact of raising soil pH is often difficult to assess. Increasing soil pH stimulates the reduction of N2O to N2 thus lowering N2O emissions associated to denitrification but can also increase autotrophic nitrification rates and related

Microbial immobilization of nitrate (NO3−) is considered as an important process in reducing NO3 − accumulation and regulating nitrogen (N) retention capacity in soils. Accurately quantifying the rate of microbial NO3− immobilization is therefore necessary to predict its role in lowering NO3− accumulation in soils. We compared microbial NO3− immobilization rates using a 15NO3− labelling technique in

Archaeological Dark Earth soil is a category of archaeological anthrosols that has gained much attention as it exhibits higher nutrient content, organic matter stocks, and characteristic dark colour and enables higher crop yields in comparison to neighbouring soil. However, much is unknown about the chemical properties of Archaeological Dark Earth soils in Central Europe. Therefore, we studied a European

Overgrazing has caused serious grassland soil deterioration and significant soil organic carbon (SOC) losses. Controlled grazing is recommended for restoring grassland and enhancing SOC stocks. Studies have suggested that, in particular, labile organic carbon (C) is a sensitive indicator for soil degradation and SOC recovery, but few studies of the effect of different grassland management practices

The soils of the Maritime and sub‐Antarctic experience extreme environmental conditions but nonetheless host biological communities that can survive low temperatures, limited water availability and short day lengths or even the complete absence of solar radiation during the winter. We determined the soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (N), soil microbial biomass (SMB), labile carbon (LC) and

Liming is widely used to alleviate soil acidity in western and central Europe, but its role in the cycling of magnesium (Mg) in arable soil–plant systems is still ambiguous. Here, we systematically analysed Mg concentrations and the natural Mg stable isotope compositions (δ26Mg) of two Mg pools in soil profiles and a major crop (winter rye) in a long‐term German agricultural experimental field that

Biological exudates, such as plant mucilage, can greatly stabilize soils, but as the mechanical and hydrological drivers depend much on soil particle size composition, eroding and depositional areas of a slope may respond differently. Soils from an eroded midslope and a depositional footslope in an arable farm were amended with chia (Salvia hispanica) seed mucilage at concentrations of 0 g C kg−1,

Soil structure is closely linked to biological activities. However, identifying, describing and quantifying soil aggregates remain challenging. X‐ray micro computed tomography (X‐ray μCT) provides a detailed view of the physical structure at a spatial resolution of a few microns. It could be a useful tool to discriminate soil aggregates, their origin and their formation processes for a better comprehension

Farming practices that integrate plastic film mulching and nitrogen (N) fertilization have been extensively used to enhance crop productivity. However, the interactive effects of mulching and N application on soil microbial properties and crop yields have received little attention. A 2‐year field experiment was carried out in the Loess Plateau to investigate the independent and combined effects of

The genesis of hard carbonate nodules in the lowermost horizons (180–200 cm) of arable soils in the southern part of the forest‐steppe region of the Central Russian Upland was associated with a change in soil water regime. The conversion of forest to arable lands was studied in three agro‐chronosequences located on flat interfluves and consisted of undisturbed soils under deciduous forests and arable

Increasing soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks in agricultural soils is currently of special interest because it can help mitigate global warming through atmospheric carbon (C) sequestration. Recommended management practices, such as conservation agriculture (CA) and conventional tillage with cover crops (CC), could have significant implications for C sequestration potential. A field experiment was carried

Soil fertility is the result of interactions between the physical and chemical soil attributes, affecting its biological component, which in turn feeds back to the physical and chemical soil attributes. The No‐Till System (NTS) is the main modality of Conservation Agriculture, essential to achieving farming sustainability and conserving soil fertility. However, farmers often fail to adopt the three

Improvements in management practices can prevent the decline of soil organic carbon (SOC) storage caused by conventional tillage practice in Northeast China. Density and size fractionation can track the transformation of plant residue into SOC and its location in the soil matrix. We used a long‐term field study in China to evaluate these changes as a result of improved management involving tillage

Almost 30 years ago, a distinguished soil physical‐chemist, Grant W. Thomas, voiced serious concern about what he saw in the soil science literature as more a preoccupation with style than with substance. The present article argues that, similarly, there are reasons to be worried at the moment because of a tendency in much of the literature on soils, both within and outwith soil science, to systematically

The impacts of climate change on biodiversity can be modulated by other changing environmental conditions (e.g. induced by land‐use change). The potential interactive effects of climate change and land use have rarely been studied for soil organisms. To test the effects of changing climatic conditions and land use on soil invertebrates, we examined earthworm communities across different seasons in

Monitoring the availability of phosphorus (P) in soil under continuous cropping facilitates finding deficiency in crops and contributes to improving crop growth and nutrient management models. Soil P availability for crops is usually estimated by soil test P (STP), such as Bray‐1. This is widely used in the Americas. The relationship between the decrease of STP Bray‐1 and cumulative removal of P was

The spatial distribution of soil organic carbon is an important factor in land management decision making, climate change mitigation and landscape planning. In Scotland, where approximately one‐quarter of the soils are peat, this information has usually been obtained using field survey and mapping, with digital soil mapping only carried out recently. Here a method is presented that integrates legacy

Sustainable arable cropping relies on repeated liming. Yet, the associated increase in soil pH can reduce the availability of iron (Fe) to plants. We hypothesized that repeated liming, but not pedogenic processes such as lessivage (i.e., translocation of clay particles), alters the Fe cycle in Luvisol soil, thereby affecting Fe isotope composition in soils and crops. Hence, we analysed Fe concentrations

Subsurface soil acidity is a serious constraint to crop production and is inherently difficult to correct through conventional application of lime. Thus, new approaches to ameliorate subsurface soil acidity are needed. A column leaching experiment was established to determine whether the plant residues, when combined with lime, could facilitate lime dissolution and alkalinity movement down soil columns

The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationships among changes in the soil microstructure, soil physicochemical traits and microbial communities during desertification. Soil samples were collected from grasslands at different stages of desertification, from an area of the Tibetan Plateau. Soil aggregate fractionation and soil physicochemical properties were analysed using standard methods, and

The literature of the past couple of decades, related to soils, contains many instances of bypass, that is, the deliberate avoidance of part of the older literature in spite of its direct relevance to the topics being covered, and hyperbole, that is, exaggerated claims that are not supported either by existing knowledge or by experimental observations. Regardless of one's epistemological perspective

A multitude of models for soil organic carbon (SOC) dynamics are available to predict management impacts on SOC dynamics in its interaction with environmental factors. Most models include one SOC pool that has no or a very slow, negligible turnover. For this pool of long‐term stabilized (LTS) organic matter, we assumed a dynamic physical protection, whereby organic matter is protected in micropores

The thermal conductivity of soils is an important parameter in environment, earth science and engineering applications. A new thermal conductivity model based on the Fredlund and Xing model was proposed to mimic the thermal conductivity of fine‐textured soils from dryness to full saturation. However, the use of a measured thermal conductivity value at a certain saturation to calculate the parameter

The adoption of no‐till (NT) has been proposed to recover soil organic carbon (SOC), which will aid the mitigation of climate change. However, studies have questioned the potential of NT soils to deliver SOC sequestration and sustain crop yields. No‐till experiments are relatively recent (<50 years) and very few studies were able to assess SOC dynamics in high‐yield agroecosystems. We used the DSSAT‐CENTURY

To evaluate the effects of type of micaceous mineral and degree of weathering on the ability to adsorb and desorb radiocaesium (RCs) ions, various levels of weathering were induced (K‐depletion) in three types of micaceous minerals: biotite, muscovite and illite. The ability to adsorb RCs was represented by RCs interception potential (RIP) and a desorption ratio was determined by the amount of 137Cs

The fine sand fraction (50–250 μm) of Mediterranean soils from southern Spain provides valuable information on soil genesis and the origin of their parent materials. This study considers the whole fine sand and heavy fine sand (ρ > 2.82 g cm−3) of Luvisols, Calcisols and Fluvisols, which form a chronosequence (ages from 600 to 0.3 ka) of the River Guadalquivir terrace system. Advanced techniques (X‐ray

The development of a theoretical method for estimating the wetting branch of the soil water retention curve (SWRC) is required for knowledge of the soil infiltration process. The aim of this study was to derive the theoretical functions to represent the wetting branch of the SWRC based on the Jensen method, and then compare the Jensen method and Kool & Parker (KP87) model for estimating the wetting

In this paper we demonstrate shifted excitation Raman difference spectroscopy (SERDS) for soil analysis as a proof of concept. Confocal Raman microscopy is performed for sample analysis as well as for qualitative comparison with our SERDS experiments. Raman spectra of a soil sample show huge background signals, which mask weak Raman peaks. SERDS clearly separates the Raman signals from background signals

The practice of co‐incorporating rice straw and leguminous green manure (such as Chinese milk vetch) into paddy soils has become increasingly popular in the last 10 years, although its effect on soil CH4 emissions and microbial community structure is poorly understood. In this study, data from a 2‐year pot experiment were used to reveal the effects of the co‐incorporation of rice straw and Chinese

Soil water repellency, that is, the reduced ability of soils to absorb water, is thought to be caused by organic coatings with predominantly non‐polar properties on soil particle surfaces. Given the important role of particle surface polarity in determining soil water repellency, we explored the use of fluorescent probes as a method for the direct in‐situ determination of the distribution and polarity

The impact of near‐surface hydraulic gradients on interrill erosion is still obscure. The objective of this study is to distinguish the dominant interrill erosion process in areas impacted by near‐surface hydraulic gradients. A series of rainfall simulations were conducted on a clay loam soil subjected to near‐surface hydraulic gradients that shifted from drainage/saturation conditions to seepage conditions

Clematis fruticosa Turcz. is a dominant native shrub with the potential for spontaneous vegetation succession for restoration of the ecologically fragile and arid Daqing Mountains of Inner Mongolia, which represent an important ecological transition zone in northern China. However, knowledge regarding the interactions between native species and their root‐associated arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi

The biogeochemical functioning of soils (e.g., soil carbon stabilization and nutrient cycling) is determined at the interfaces of specific soil structures (e.g., aggregates, particulate organic matter (POM) and organo‐mineral associations). With the growing accessibility of spectromicroscopic techniques, there is an increase in nano‐ to microscale analyses of biogeochemical interfaces at the process

The feedback between plant, soil and climate is partly determined by plant litter turnover time, which is influenced by climate, litter quality and soil properties. However, the spatial patterns of litter turnover time and its interrelation with these variables are rarely quantified. With a database of 1,378 litter turnover times and key associated climate, litter quality and soil properties (total

Over the past few decades the Arctic has warmed up more than the lower latitudes. Soil organic carbon (SOC) in the Arctic is vulnerable to climate change, and carbon dioxide (CO2) produced via SOC decomposition can amplify atmospheric temperature increase. Although SOC composition is relevant to decomposability, studies on its compositional changes with warming are scarce, particularly in the Arctic

Most current microbial studies in paddy soils have focused on the top (0–20 cm) layer where rice roots are concentrated. To better understand the vertical distribution of microorganisms in paddy soils, we investigated the abundances, diversities and community compositions of archaea, bacteria and fungi in six geographically and climatically distinct paddy soil profiles from 0–80‐cm depth. Although

Most common machine learning (ML) algorithms usually work well on balanced training sets, that is, datasets in which all classes are approximately represented equally. Otherwise, the accuracy estimates may be unreliable and classes with only a few values are often misclassified or neglected. This is known as a class imbalance problem in machine learning and datasets that do not meet this criterion

In‐field soil health assessments, including plant nutrients and toxic elements, are needed and could improve the sustainability of agriculture production. Among the available analytical techniques for these analyses, laser‐induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) has become one of the most promising techniques for real‐time soil analysis at low cost and without the need for reagents. The first part of

No‐tillage farming combined with temporary cattle grazing is becoming a common practice in parts of South America. We quantified the effects of no‐tillage and winter grazing of annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) on soil carbon and nitrogen stock, stratification ratio (concentration in 0–5 to 10–20‐cm layer) and lability (based on particulate organic matter, POM), relative to conventional tillage

Tillage activities play a crucial role in impacting soil physical and chemical properties, which in turn alter soil biochemical activities and microbial community structure. In this study, responses of soil biochemical activities and microbial community structure to short‐term (NTS, <5 years) and long‐term (NTL, >10 years) no‐till (NT) systems were studied in comparison with conventional till (CT)

The impacts of five factors (wind speed, crack width, crack distance, crack depth and crack orientation (compared to wind direction)), on evaporation from cracked soil under moist soil conditions were investigated experimentally. Experiments were carried out under laboratory conditions in a wind tunnel with a 1 m × 1 m × 2.5 m test section using large‐scale (50 cm diameter, 25 cm depth) samples of

The spatial and temporal changes in aeolian sand transport are important in modelling wind erosion and parameterizing sand dunes and ripples. In this study, we explored the wind erosion processes that occur in sand beds using a Trimble 3D laser scanner. We found that the erosion intensity varied with distance along the sand bed and that the sand bed surface could be divided into three zones. In the

Ecosystem functional responses such as soil CO2 emissions are constrained by microclimate, available carbon (C) substrates and their effects upon microbial activity. In tropical forests, phosphorus (P) is often considered as a limiting factor for plant growth, but it is still not clear whether P constrains microbial CO2 emissions from soils. In this study, we incubated seven tropical forest soils from

Fertilization is the most common way to supply nutrients to the soil and to maintain crop productivity in agricultural ecosystems, which may also influence soil organic carbon (SOC) accumulation rates. In 1996, we set up a long‐term field experiment to explore the effect of fertilization on soil properties in a winter wheat–summer maize cropping system in the North China Plain. Eight treatments included:

With the increasing demands of livestock production, grasslands are under pressure from over‐intensified grazing. Phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N) fertilization is widely employed to meet the nutrient demands of heavy grazing. Although soil ammonia‐oxidizers play a critical role in determining N dynamics after fertilizer application, their responses to fertilization are still not well understood in

Timely forecasting of crop yield is vital for precision agriculture management practices. This study used on‐the‐go proximal soil sensing using electromagnetic induction (EMI) readings of apparent ground electrical conductivity (ECa) to map ECa and forecast potato tuber yield in four fields across Atlantic Canada. The ECa data, measured in the horizontal co‐planar (HCP) configuration mode of the DualEM‐2

No‐tillage (NT) agriculture represents a great advance in soil conservation in tropical and subtropical zones, occupying more than 32 million ha in Brazil in 2017. No‐tillage systems can promote earthworm populations, which can improve soil physical and chemical properties, thus enhancing the benefits of NT for soil conservation and ecosystem services. Furthermore, earthworms can be used as indicators

The application of plastic film mulch and the return and incorporation of crop straw into topsoil as independent treatments affect soil physicochemical properties, including nutrient balance/cycling. It remains unclear whether combining straw incorporation and plastic film mulch significantly affects soil physicochemical properties and bacterial communities. We conducted a two‐factor (plastic film

Manure application and no‐till management improve soil quality, crop yields and C inputs, but little specific knowledge is available regarding the combined effect of long‐term dairy liquid manure (DLM) application and no‐till management on soil organic matter status and soil structure in topsoils. Here, we assess the impacts of surface‐applied DLM for a 10‐year period on soil total organic carbon (TOC)

Organic contaminants in agricultural soils are widely reported; however, their accumulation patterns are quite different among regions. This study reports the distribution, accumulation and risk assessment of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) in soils from the Corn Belt of northeast China at a regional scale. Concentrations

Lime is a common amendment to overcome soil acidity in agricultural production systems. However, plant root effects on lime and soil carbon (C) dynamics in acidic soils under varied temperature remain largely unknown. We monitored root effects of soybean on the fate of lime applied to an acidic soil at 20 and 30°C in growth chambers. Soil respired CO2 was continuously trapped in columns without and

Agroforestry systems have been much studied for their potential to store soil organic carbon (SOC). However, few data are available on their specific impact on potential SOC mineralization, especially at depth in subsoils. Moreover, many soils of the world, especially in arid and semiarid environments, also contain large stocks of soil inorganic carbon (SIC) as carbonates. Consequently, the organic

Soil microorganisms are critical to soil health and environmental functions; however, the dynamics of microbial communities and their response to soil variables following conversion of desert soils to oasis farmland have not been well documented. We used high‐throughput pyrosequencing to investigate the dynamics of soil microbial communities along an irrigated cultivation chronosequence (cultivated

The soil fertility index (SFI) is an indicator that is commonly used to evaluate the soil fertility in the rice paddy regions of China. However, calculating an SFI requires the laboratory measurement of multiple soil properties, which adds to the costs and complexity of conventional methods. Visible and near‐infrared (vis–NIR, 400–2,500 nm) spectra might offer opportunities to cost‐effectively and