The study of soil as a natural resource, including soil formation, classification, mapping, fertility, chemistry, biology, physics, and management for agricultural production and environmental protection
4 papersLegacy nitrogen accumulated from decades of intensive agriculture contributes significantly to delays in water quality improvement. The paper emphasizes the need to quantify these legacies, adjust policy expectations, and develop integrated management strategies that consider lag times and balance short-term and long-term costs and benefits.
This review analyzes over 50,000 data points from nearly 5400 publications to determine how feedstock choice, pyrolysis temperature, and pyrolysis type affect biochar properties, particularly nutrient content. The study suggests that feedstock selection has the biggest impact, with manures/biosolids generally having the highest nutrient concentrations, and that it is possible to predict plant-available nutrients based on total nutrient content for certain feedstocks and elements (like K in wood-derived biochars).
The study finds that soil erosion by water significantly contributes to phosphorus loss from agricultural lands globally, potentially exacerbating future phosphorus shortages. Africa, South America, and Eastern Europe show the highest phosphorus depletion rates. Without changes to fertilizer practices and erosion control, global agricultural soils are projected to experience significant phosphorus depletion, highlighting the urgent need for sustainable land management practices.
This study found that introducing plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) can reduce the need for mineral fertilizers in hydroponic lettuce production by up to 40% without significantly impacting yield. Furthermore, PGPR application enhanced the nutritional quality of the lettuce, including higher levels of phenols, flavonoids, and total soluble solids.