Identification of soil quality indicators for assessing the effect of different tillage practices through a soil quality index in a semi-arid environment

Tillage is known to potentially affect soil quality in various ways. In this study, a soil quality index (SQI) was developed by quantifying several soil attributes either sensitive or insensitive to physical disturbance, using factor analysis as a dimension reduction technique, in order to discriminate different tillage systems. Soil properties including physical (MWD), chemical (pH, organic C, total N, available P and POM contents) and microbial (MBC, MBN, PCM, PNM and three enzymes) parameters were measured to establish a minimum data set (MDS) for the assessment of overall SQI. The soil attributes were determined on samples (0–20 cm depth) collected under moldboard (MP) and disk (DP) plows as conventional tillage (CT), and rotary (RP) and chisel (CP) plows as reduced tillage (RT) systems with a similar plant C input rate and cover crop over a period of six years (2005–2011) in a semi-arid calcareous soil (Calcixerepts) from Central Iran. Results indicated a clear difference in soil quality among the tillage systems with a significant increase of SQI under RT over time, particularly under CP practices. Although RT improved most soil microbial attributes, not all attributes contributed to SQI because of their close interrelationship. The final SQI consisted only of geometric mean of microbial activity (GMA, the square root of the product of PCM and PNM) and geometric mean of enzyme activity (GME, the cube root of the product of enzyme activities). Soil GME and GMA were found to be as key indicators contributing 55% and 36% to SQI, respectively. Therefore, the GME and GMA were the most important indicators effectively discriminating tillage systems, and could be used to monitor the enhancement of soil quality under RT in this semiarid environment. The influence of tillage year on SQI was greater than that of tillage practices. In conclusion, RT systems were characterized by a higher value of SQI, suggesting a good recovery of soil capacity and functions after abandoning CT in the studied area. Smallholder farmers should therefore be aware of the potential for high soil quality in future as a result of continuing RT systems, especially with surface tillage using CP practices.     

Some New Aspects of 2 × 2 Table Measures and Their Applications

The paper deals with the analysis of 2 × 2 table measures and describes several new possibilities for applying them. An estimate is given for HELLMICH's asymmetric K-measure and a possible extension of the contingency concept in a special 2×2 case is presented. The concept introduced and the recommended computer application of the 2×2 table measures is supported by new results obtained for the relationship between jaw joint pains and noises examined earlier by F. SCHMID and C. ZSCHEGE. With a larger number of observations the opportunity arises for a deeper analysis of this dental problem using path analysis. The plan of evaluation and the conncetion between the variables examined is illustrated by a path-diagram. The association tables determined on the basis of the (C) values introduced during the examination of jaw joint disturbances using association analysis draw attention to the special role of the left side of mastication. The paper raises ideas for further generalisations and indicates where further research is needed.     

A new dissimilarity measure and a new optimality criterion in phytosociological classification

A new dissimilarity measure, Uppsala dissimilarity, is proposed. It is a Manhattan-type measure in between the Canberra and Gower measures, based on the differences between scores in relevés compared, but it also takes both the sums of scores and the difference between maximum and minimum score into account. The measure is considered realistic for phytosociological material.A new optimality criterion has been developed after unsatisfactory results had been obtained with the DOL criterion (Popma et al. 1983) which was developed previously by our group. Problems with DOL were especially met when the criterion was applied to the distribution of only one species over the cluster array obtained. The new criterion takes both internal cluster homogeneity and between-cluster dissimilarity into account. Between-cluster dissimilarity is calculated for all other clusters and not only for the nearest neighbour, as in DOL. The new criterion has both an unweighted form: SOM, and a form with weighting for cluster size: SWOM.This new criterion was successfully applied to the evaluation of the sharpness of distribution of individual species over cluster arrays, under the name of SIM: species indication measure and SWIM, species weighted indication measure.The measures were applied to some test data. Differences between the unweighted and weighted forms were found which could not be easily interpreted.Some remarks are made on the coherence of d-SAHN and h-SAHN approaches in agglomerative clustering within the new strategy proposed.Abbreviations DOL = Detection of Optimal Level - S(W)IM = Species (Weighted) Indication Measure - S(W)OM = Standardized (Weighted) Optimality Measure - UD = Uppsala Dissimilarity measure - WPGMA = Weighted Pair-Group Method Average linking clustering - SAHN = Sequential Agglomerative Hierarchical Non-overlapping clustering     

Influence of compaction from wheel traffic and tillage on arbuscular mycorrhizae infection and nutrient uptake by Zea mays

Interactive effects of seven years of compaction due to wheel traffic and tillage on root density, formation of arbuscular mycorrhizae, above-ground biomass, nutrient uptake and yield of corn (Zea mays L.) were measured on a coastal plain soil in eastern Alabama, USA. Tillage and soil compaction treatments initiated in 1987 were: 1) soil compaction from tractor traffic with conventional tillage (C,CT), 2) no soil compaction from tractor traffic with conventional tillage (NC,CT), 3) soil compaction from tractor traffic with no-tillage (C,NT), and, 4) no soil compaction from tractor traffic with no-tillage (NC,NT). The study was arranged as a split plot design with compaction from wheel traffic as main plots and tillage as subplots. The experiment had four replications. In May (49 days after planting) and June, (79 days after planting), root biomass and root biomass infected with arbuscular mycorrhizae was higher in treatments that received the NC,NT treatment than the other three treatments. In June and July (109 days after planting), corn plants that received C,CT treatment had less above-ground biomass, root biomass and root biomass infected with mycorrhizae than the other three treatments. Within compacted treatments, plants that received no-tillage had greater root biomass and root biomass infected with mycorrhizae in May and June than plants that received conventional tillage. Corn plants in no-tillage treatments had higher root biomass and root biomass infected with mycorrhizae than those in conventional tillage. After 7 years of treatment on a sandy Southeastern soil, the interactive effects of tillage and compaction from wheel traffic reduced root biomass and root biomass infected with mycorrhizae but did not affect plant nutrient concentration and yield. ei]J H Graham     

Dynamics of soil microbial biomass N under zero and shallow tillage for spring wheat,using15N urea

Summary Field studies to determine the effect of zero and shallow (10 cm) cultivation on microbial biomass were conducted on several Chernozemic soils in western Canada. Using the CHCl₃ fumigation method, the distribution of microbial biomass N and the immobilization and subsequent release of added¹⁵N (¹⁵N-urea) from the microbial biomass were determined in the A horizon, at the 0 to 5 and 5 to 10 cm depth, during the growing season for spring wheat.Temporal variation in microbial biomass N, associated with the development of the rhizosphere, was characterized by an increase between Feekes stage 1 and 5 or 10 and decrease at Feekes stage 11.4. Over the long term, the variation in biomass N between tillage systems corresponded with crop residue distribution. Immobilization of fertilizer N was related to the increase in biomass N from Feekes stage 1, which in turn, was associated with the incorporation of recent crop residues or levels of labile organic matter in the surface soil. The study demonstrated the relatively rapid remineralization of immobilized fertilizer N under field conditions and emphasized the role of the microbial biomass N as both a sink and source of mineral N.     

Influence of root diameter on the penetration of seminal roots into a compacted subsoil

A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the influence of root diameter on the ability of roots of eight plant species to penetrate a compacted subsoil below a tilled layer. The soil was a fine sandy loam red-brown earth with a soil strength of about 3.0 MPa (at water content of 0.13 kg kg^-1, corresponding to 0.81 plastic limit) at the base of a tilled layer. Relative root diameter (RRD), which was calculated as the ratio of the mean diameters of roots of plants grown in compacted soil to the mean diameters of those from uncompacted soil, was used to compare the sensitivity of roots to thicken under mechanical stress.Diameters of root tips of plants grown in soil with a compacted layer were consistently larger than those from uncompacted soil. Tap-rooted species generally had bigger diameters and RRDs than fibrous-rooted species. A higher proportion of thicker roots penetrated the strong layer at the interface than thinner roots. There were differences between plant species in the extent to which root diameter increased in response to the compaction. The roots which had larger RRD also tended to have higher penetration percentage.The results suggest that the size of a root has a significant influence on its ability to penetrate strong soil layers. It is suggested that this could be related to the effects which root diameter may have on root growth pressure and on the mode of soil deformation during penetration.