Novel approach to monitoring of the soil biological quality
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2003 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Environment International |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Field | Ecology |
| Keywords | microbial biomass; respiration; soil biological quality |
| Description | In this study, a new approach to interpretation of results of the simple microbial biomass and respiration measurements in the soil microbiology is proposed. The principle is based on eight basal and derived microbial parameters which are standardized and then plotted into sunray plots. The output is visual presentation of one plot for each soil, which makes possible the relative comparison and evaluation of soils in the monitored set. Problems of soil microbiology with lacking benchmarking and reference values can be avoided by proposed method. We found that eight parameters provide enough information for evaluation of the status of the soil microorganisms and thus, for evaluation of the soil biological quality. The usage of rare parameters (potential respiration - PR, ratio of potential and basal respiration - PR/BR, biomass specific potential respiration - PR/Cbio, available organic carbon - Cext, and biomass specific available organic carbon - Cext/Cbio) can be recommended besides classical and well-known parameters (microbial biomass - Cbio, basal respiration - BR, metabolic coefficient - qCO2). The combination of basal parameters and derived coefficients can also extend our knowledge about the condition of the soil microorganisms. In monitoring case studies presented, we observed that soils evaluated to possess good biological quality displayed generally higher values of organic carbon, total nitrogen, clay, and cation exchange capacity. The soils of good biological quality can display higher levels of contaminants. This is probably related with higher content of organic carbon and clay in these soils. |
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