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Bioindication of Soil Fertility and a Mathematical Model for Restoration Assessment
Author(s) -
Růžek Lubomír
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
restoration ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.214
H-Index - 100
eISSN - 1526-100X
pISSN - 1061-2971
DOI - 10.1111/j.1526-100x.1994.tb00048.x
Subject(s) - topsoil , environmental science , abiotic component , biomass (ecology) , soil water , total organic carbon , plough , soil fertility , soil carbon , soil quality , environmental chemistry , extraction (chemistry) , agronomy , soil science , ecology , chemistry , biology , chromatography
This article contributes to the worldwide trend of using microbiological methods for bioindication of the influence of abiotic, biotic, and anthropogenic factors on the soil environment, especially on the plough layer of soils. It compares two approaches to assess microbial biomass‐C: (1) chemical treatment of soil samples by CHCl 3 vapor, followed by extraction, and (2) heat treatment in the range of 62–65°C for 24 hours, followed by extraction. It recommends the analysis of different forms of organic carbon, the total carbon of soil organic mass, and microbial biomass‐C and other forms of organic carbon extractable with 0.5 M K 2 SO 4 and 0.5 M (NH 4 ) 2 SO 4 respectively. It presents a simple mathematical model suitable for assessment of microbial recuperation of the topsoil (0–15 cm) after restoration. The relation between the measured values and the values calculated with the model expressed as percentages expresses the quality of restoration achieved and the stage of disturbance of the living microbial part of the topsoil. It indicates not only the ecological impact but also the deficit and stress situations, to which the living microbial part of the topsoil is exposed in the long term.