Biological nitrification inhibition is a plant‐mediated rhizosphere process where natural nitrification inhibitors can be produced and released by roots to suppress nitrifier activity in soil. Nitrification is one of the critical soil processes in the nitrogen (N) cycle, but unrestricted and rapid nitrification in agricultural systems can result in major losses of N from the plant–soil system (i.e

Biological soil crusts (biocrusts) play important roles in ecosystem functioning and are considered ecosystem engineers: stabilizing the soil surface, preventing soil erosion, changing soil surface hydrology, and enriching the soil with carbon and nitrogen. The link between geodiversity and biodiversity incorporates physical aspects from geology, geomorphology and pedology. We aimed to assess the effects

Detachment rate in rill erosion is an important indicator of soil erosion speed and serves as the basis for soil erosion estimation using the process‐oriented model. Rill detachment rates on saturated soil slopes were numerically calculated from the dataset of the rill erosion process. The data sets of sediment concentrations were obtained from laboratory experiments, along saturated silt soil rills

Soil aggregate breakdown is the key step of splash erosion. Recent studies have shown that it is the soil internal forces that induce aggregate breakdown and subsequent splash erosion. However, little is known about the size characteristics of soil aggregate breakdown and corresponding effects on splash erosion. In this study, Cinnamon soil and Heilu soil were adopted to investigate the effects of

Cropping practices have a great potential to improve soil quality through changes in soil biota. Yet the effects of these soil‐improving cropping systems on soil fungal communities are not well known. Here, we analysed soil fungal communities using standardized measurements in 12 long‐term experiments and 20 agricultural treatments across Europe. We were interested in whether the same practices (i

Deteriorating soil health, diminishing soil organic carbon (SOC), development of subsurface hard compact layer and declining system productivity are barriers to achieving sustainable production in the traditional rice–wheat cropping system (TA) in the eastern Indo‐Gangetic Plain of India. Conservation agriculture (CA), which favours minimum soil disturbance, crop residue retention and crop diversification

Applying digestate, the residue from anaerobic digestion, to soil as a replacement for inorganic fertiliser is of growing interest in agriculture. However, the impacts of different fractions of digestate on the soil carbon (C) cycle remain unclear and provide the focus for the research reported here. We examined the effects of applying whole digestate (WD) and solid digestate (SD) on carbon dioxide

Rill erosion is considered one of the most important soil processes because of the large amount of soil loss due to the development of a rill network able to promote an efficient transport of both rill flow‐detached particles and those delivered from the inter‐rill areas. Rill flow experiments are useful to overcome the gap in rill hydraulics knowledge and to test the reliability of currently applied

The application of biochar to agricultural soils to increase nutrient availability, crop production and carbon sequestration has gained increasing interest but data from field experiments on temperate, marginal soils are still under‐represented. In the current study, biochar, produced from organic residues (digestates) from a biogas plant, was applied with and without digestates at low (3.4 t ha−1)

Return of crop straw and its biochar to the agricultural field decreases pressure on phosphorus (P) resources and reduces leaching and P runoff. We conducted a five‐year field trial from 2013 to 2017 to study the capability of maize straw and its biochar to retain soil P, which was quantified by investigating the distribution of P fractions in the soil profile (0 – 100 cm) and soil aggregates of different

Airborne imaging spectroscopy data provide soil and vegetation information over relatively large areas at high spatial resolutions (<5 m). We combined airborne hyperspectral data with space‐borne data (LiDAR DEM and Sentinel‐1) to map soil properties and investigate the contributions of the different sensor data to the mapping accuracy. The study was conducted on a 330‐ha farm in south‐central Wisconsin

Permanganate oxidizable carbon (POXC) is a sub‐pool of labile soil organic carbon (SOC) and is defined as the carbon (C) that can be oxidized by potassium permanganate (KMnO4). Determination of the content of POXC has been used as a way to measure labile C and may be related to soil microbial biomass and particulate organic C. Fourier transform mid‐infrared photoacoustic spectroscopy (FTIR‐PAS) has

Assessment of soil organic carbon (SOC) concentration in high‐altitude shrublands is essential for understanding C dynamics in terrestrial ecosystems. Hence, we investigated the SOC concentration and its influencing factors using 198 soil profiles (0–100 cm) from 66 sites between 2011 and 2013 in the north‐eastern Tibetan Plateau shrublands. SOC concentration was different under different shrubland

Optimization of phosphorus (P) fertiliser use is desired to ensure more sustainable use of fertiliser, economic food production and reduction of eutrophication of water bodies. Presently, the Olsen P values on which fertiliser recommendations are based to achieve optimum yield are frequently the same for all soils. The aim of this study was to identify the properties of different soils that affect

The growth of deep‐rooted crops has the potential to increase carbon deposition within deep subsoil layers, thereby contributing to climate change mitigation. Yet, the mechanisms of labile carbon stabilization in deep subsoils remain uncertain. Here we studied the effect of nitrogen, phosphorus and sulphur limitations on the microbial mineralization of added glucose and an artificial root exudate mixture

The return of organic materials to cultivated fields to improve soil quality and to sequester carbon are widely studied, but the effects of combining different types of organic material on soil microbial diversity and community structure are poorly understood, particularly in alkaline soils. An incubation experiment was performed to study the effects of incorporating two straw‐derived materials (fresh

We, the co‐authors of this letter, are an international group of soil scientists at early career stages, from PhD students to postdoctoral researchers, lecturers, and research fellows with permanent positions. Here, we present our collective musings on soil research challenges and opportunities and, in particular, the points raised by Philippe Baveye (Baveye, 2020a, 2020b) and Johan Bouma (Bouma, 2020)

The map published as Figure 1 in Zhao, et al. (2018) is incorrect. The correct map of the study basin is below: FIGURE 1 Open in figure viewerPowerPoint Location of the Loess Plateau and the study basin [Color figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com] The authors would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Soil particle size distribution (PSD) essentially determines the soil's physical characteristics, including aggregate stability and porosity. Evaluating the PSD of sodic soils altered by reclamation is beneficial to the development of strategies for addressing land degradation. However, it remains unclear how to extract the features of PSD of sodic soils sensitively under gypsum reclamation. In this

Soil science is one of the least diverse fields within science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Because demographics of groups and institutions provide a window into the culture, climate, equity and inclusion of minoritized scholars, we discuss how lack of diversity continues to affect our science and the scientific community, and its implications for the welfare of the global population

Water retention and saturated hydraulic conductivity are soil properties that are key determinants in crop growth and hydrological modelling. They are commonly estimated from basic soil characteristics such as bulk density, organic carbon content and texture by means of pedotransfer functions (PTFs). In order to assess and compare the inherent performance and the functional applicability in the Zambezi

This study summarizes a large diverse dataset of methane (CH4) fluxes measured from agricultural sites across the British Isles. A total of 53,976 manual static chamber measurements from 27 different sites were investigated to determine the magnitude of CH4 fluxes from a variety of agricultural fields across the UK and Ireland. Our study shows that contrary to some studies, agricultural soils (both

Suffusion is a grave threat leading to accidents in embankment dams across the world. The process has been widely studied experimentally and numerically with gap‐grading cohesionless soil. One of the direct observations in the studies is the finer particle loss of the soil. However, the movement of the finer particles in the numerical models is commonly predicted with an empirical law. This paper proposes

Soil is a complex system in which biological, chemical and physical interactions take place. The behaviour of these interactions changes in spatial scale from the atomic to the global, and in time. To understand how this system works, soil scientists usually rely on incremental improvements in the knowledge by refinement of theories through hypothesis testing and development using carefully designed

In urban areas, pre‐existing concrete‐based demolition wastes and purposely introduced crushed dolerite have been used to create artificial soils, which capture carbon (C) as carbonate minerals and offset greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can enhance capture of C in artificial soils through production of glomalin‐related soil protein (GRSP), which facilitates soil organic

Knowledge of the rhizosphere and use of quality microbial bioinputs are tools to achieve agricultural sustainability. The impact of management of cover crop–soybean agroecosystems on rhizosphere microbial communities was evaluated. A field experiment in a randomized complete block design with factorial arrangement in sub‐divided plots was performed. Effects of fertilization (0 and 45 kg·ha−1), oats

Temperate forest ecosystems store most of the organic carbon in soils (SOC), and changes in the soil carbon stock due to climate change or land management can potentially have a large influence on carbon balance. The most important factors controlling the SOC pool on a global scale are generally agreed upon; however, estimations of SOC pools differ significantly among studies at regional and local

Computed tomography technology has contributed greatly to the visualization of soil internal structure. Complex topological structure and spatial distribution of pores have become a focal area for studying the spatiotemporal evolution of soil structure. This is significant for understanding soil functions and ecological processes. Image‐processing software, such as ImageJ and Image Pro‐Plus, is widely

Dispersive soils limit crop growth and significantly impact world food production. Although numerous reviews have examined soil dispersion, many focus on irrigated systems and fail to differentiate the approaches required for rainfed agriculture. This review seeks to fill this gap by focusing on the impact, identification and management of dispersive soils in rainfed areas. Dispersive soils can have

The relative uptake by plants of the two ionic nitrogen (N) forms, ammonium (NH4+) and nitrate (NO3−), has been the subject of much interest during the past 50 years, resulting in a considerable scientific literature. The general idea is that plants have choice, resulting in preference for either one mineral N form or the other. Unfortunately, there is no specific definition of preference or agreement

The adsorbed water content is an attractive predictor for estimation of soil specific surface area (SSA) as its measurement is less laborious and more cost effective than standard laboratory techniques. We analysed the effects of total specific surface area (SSAtot), external specific surface area (SSAex) and internal specific surface area (SSAin) on water vapour sorption on 21 soil samples, and proposed

The Loess Plateau has long been considered as a very fragile area that suffers from serious water erosion. With the onset of global climate fluctuations and regional implementation of soil and water conservation measures, it is of great significance to effectively reveal the variations in soil erosion risk and its driving mechanism on the Loess Plateau. Taking the Yanwachuan watershed as a case study

Ratoon rice (RR) is a practice that involves achieving a second crop originating from the stubble left after the previous main rice crop (MR) harvest. There has been little previous study on methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from ratoon paddy fields. A 3‐year field experiment was conducted to simultaneously measure CH4 and N2O emissions from traditional single rice (SR) and MR + RR fields

Forest species control the quantity and chemistry of organic matter input, which in interaction with the soil physicochemical properties, environmental conditions and microbial community associated with a given ecosystem may result in specific patterns of soil organic carbon (SOC) stabilization and chemistry. The objectives of this study were: (a) to characterize the chemistry of soil organic matter

The Brazilian Cerrado is a large and expanding agricultural frontier, representing a hotspot of land‐use change (LUC) from natural vegetation to farmland. It is known that this type of LUC impacts soil organic matter (SOM) dynamics, particularly labile carbon (C) pools (living and non‐living), decreasing soil health and agricultural sustainability, as well as increasing soil greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions

Northern peatlands play an important role in the regulation of the atmospheric greenhouse gas (GHG) balance, functioning as a net carbon sink with low rates of organic decomposition. However, perturbations such as drainage increase peat oxidation, which may lead to enhanced gaseous release of carbon. For this reason, the number of restoration projects that aim to rewet blanket bogs has increased in

Nitrogen (N) fertilization is the major contributor to nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from agricultural soil, especially in post‐harvest seasons. This study was carried out to investigate whether ryegrass serving as cover crop affects soil N2O emissions and denitrifier community size. A microcosm experiment was conducted with soil planted with perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) and bare soil, each

Soil organic carbon (SOC) depletion is a threat for the present and future agricultural production in Ethiopia. Hence, investigation of the influence of land management and climate change on SOC is required to facilitate climate change mitigation practices. For this study, croplands of the Atsela‐Sesat and Ayba sites from the Alaje district and the Tsigea site from the Raya Azebo district in northern

The floodplain ecosystem plays an important role in the mediation or regulation of regional ecological functions, and is the heart of ecosystem functions based on soil microbial communities. In the present study, we investigate the patterns and assembly processes of soil microbial communities along nine profile depths (up to 280 cm in depth) of three stages of floodplain community succession (channel

Soil respiration (Rs) plays an important role in terrestrial–atmospheric carbon exchange but remains one of the least studied components of the carbon cycle. How environmental changes influence Rs, and in turn, how Rs influences terrestrial carbon storage in China is unclear. Here, we estimated spatial patterns and temporal trends in Rs from 1961 to 2014 to determine the influence of the recent warming

Grassed waterways are used to mitigate the offsite transport of sediment generated by soil erosion. This study used a novel trait‐based ranking approach as a method to screen potential candidate grass monocultures and mixes based on their theoretical performance in reducing (a) detachment via rainsplash, (b) detachment via scouring due to concentrated flow and (c) sediment transport and deposition

Although fractal mathematics has been commonly used to quantify particle size distribution (PSD), limited attention has been paid to the fractal dimension of the infiltration curve (DI). Therefore, it is necessary to determine whether the DI and fractal dimensions of PSD (Dm, Dclay, Dsilt and Dsand) can reflect the infiltration process, and soil erodibility and degradation. Accordingly, this study

Soil wettability is important for understanding a wide range of earth system processes, from agricultural productivity to debris flows and sediment fan formation. However, there is limited research considering how soil–water interactions, where the soil grains are naturally hydrophobic, might change in the presence of oil from natural hydrocarbon leakage or oil spills. Here we show how slippery liquid‐infused

Classic soil physics relies heavily on the concept of representative elementary volume (REV), which is necessary to perform upscaling from the studied soil samples and parameterize continuum scale hydrological models (e.g., based on Richards or Darcy equations). In this paper, we explore the boundaries of the classic REV concept and conventional representativity studies that claim REV for any given

Understanding the spatial behaviour of soil nutrients is essential for fertilizer management. Traditionally, comparison of soil testing methods has been performed using simple correlation analysis. The aims of this work were: (a) to characterize patterns of spatial variability of micronutrient concentrations obtained by two different soil testing methods, using single multifractal spectra, and (b)

Although plant canopies are widely recognized to protect the soil and help mitigate soil erosion, recent research has shown that the majority of soil scour prevention can be attributed to the roots. Because roots are more difficult and time‐consuming to measure than shoots, research in this area has largely been limited to understanding the influence of large roots and/or whole root systems, and there

Tropical and subtropical ecosystems are widely affected by the expansion of agriculture over pristine lands. Despite research efforts, knowledge of the impact of land‐use change on soil is still limited by intrinsic variability, inconsistent results and inadequate replication. This study aimed to better understand the consequences of land‐use change by focusing on long‐term effects on both soil biotic

With increasing societal demands for food security and environmental sustainability on land, the question arises: to what extent do synergies and trade‐offs exist between soil functions and how can they be measured across Europe? To address this challenge, we followed the functional land management approach and assessed five soil functions: primary productivity, water regulation and purification, climate

The character of parent material, organic matter and climatic conditions are the crucial factors of pedogenesis. They directly influence the intensity of weathering, transformation processes, elements release and geochemical cycles. The mineral transformation in a profile of the recent soil developed on loess (Haplic Luvisols, Siltic, Epidystric, Ochric) was studied. The land area Litovelské Pomoraví

The sensitivity of peatland carbon (C) fluxes to changes in climate and hydrology are uncertain due to the complex interactions between plants and peat properties. In this study we examine how peat cores taken from under three plant functional types (PFT) (bryophyte, graminoid and ericoid) differ in their biotic and abiotic properties and how this indirectly modulates the response of C fluxes to environmental

Nitrogen (N) addition and precipitation increment can greatly influence soil phosphorus (P) dynamics, with much emphasis on total and available P, yet little is known about their interactive effects on soil mineral‐bound inorganic P (Pi) fractions under different historical land uses of grasslands and old fields. Thus, we compared (i) plant readily available P, (ii) less available Pi (sum of NH4F‐extractable

We explored the suitability of multifractal detrended fluctuation analysis (MFDFA) to characterize the temporal dynamics of soil water content (SWC), we analysed the origin of the multifractality of time series of the dynamic of SWC and we investigated how this dynamic was affected by different soil treatments and depths, through the characterization of long‐range correlations. Temporal data of SWC

Sorption–desorption hysteresis (SDH) may control distributions of chemicals across diverse environmental phases, including soils and sediments. Formation of metastable states caused by pore deformation or inelastic swelling of a sorbent and their persistence during desorption have been considered in the literature as one reason for “true” SDH. Such metastable states may lead to the lack of closure

Electromagnetic induction (EMI) measurements (σb*) are widely used for the survey of several soil attributes, among which basic properties such as salinity (σe), water content (θw), clay (wc), organic matter (wom) and bulk density (ρb) stand out. In usual practice, purely empirical models relating one of these properties to σb* are calibrated at selected sites. However, this calibration is site and

This study explores how chemical and microbial properties of litters can be affected by coastal environments across the Mediterranean basin. A litterbag experiment including Pinus halepensis Mill. and Pistacia lentiscus L., collected from both inland and coastal areas, was set up in France, Greece and Algeria. Control litterbags were left in their sampling sites and a transfer of litterbags from inland

Agricultural practices can have significant effects on the physical and biological properties of soil. The aim of this study was to understand how the physical structure of a compromised soil, arising from long‐term bare‐fallow management, was modified by adopting different field management practices. We hypothesized that changing agricultural practices from bare‐fallow to arable or grassland would

Sulphate‐reducing bacteria (SRB) represent a key biological component of the global sulphur (S) cycle and are common in soils, where they reduce SO42− to H2S during the anaerobic degradation of soil organic matter. The factors that regulate their distribution in soil, however, remain poorly understood. We sought to determine the ecological patterns of SRB richness within a nationwide 16S metabarcoding

There is increasing recognition that soils fulfil many functions for society. Each soil can deliver a range of functions, but some soils are more effective at some functions than others due to their intrinsic properties. In this study we mapped four different soil functions on agricultural lands across the European Union. For each soil function, indicators were developed to evaluate their performance

Numerous lines of evidence have been presented in the literature that show the patterns of pedodiversity and biodiversity are very similar. One of the most corroborated patterns lies in the fits of the relationships between biodiversity and soil diversity to power laws according to the increase in study area. Several authors have analysed the presence of fractal and multifractal features in pedodiversity

In the three last decades, continental Ecuador biosphere reserves (CEBRs) have undergone important land cover transformations because of human‐managed systems such as agriculture, livestock, forestry, and urbanization. Thus, the native landscape structure has been altered, exhibiting a mosaic of patches with varying sizes and shapes. The resulting landscape could shape some patterns over time, reflecting