Search results for "SOILS"

Pedogenic carbonates and carbon pools in gypsiferous soils of a semiarid Mediterranean environment in south Italy

2013

Abstract Soil carbonates are key features in soils of arid and semiarid environment, playing an important role from pedogenetic, landscape history, paleoclimatic and environmental points of view. The objectives of this work were (i) to study pathways of pedogenic carbonate (PC) formation, (ii) to distinguish between lithogenic and pedogenic inorganic C by using the natural C isotope abundance, and (iii) to estimate the soil C pools in a gypsiferous semiarid Mediterranean environment (Sicily, Italy). Five soil pedons developed on calcareous and non-calcareous parent materials from Holocene (10,000 years BP) to Upper Tortonian (7.2–5.3 Ma BP) in age were surveyed. During field soil descriptio…

Spatial relations of heavy metals in arable and greenhouse soils of a Mediterranean environment region (Spain)

2013

This study characterises and compares Cr, Ni, Pb, Cu, Zn and Cd (HMs) contents and the main edaphic parameters in arable soils (AS) from western areas of the Andalusian Autonomous Community (SE Spain) with greenhouse soils (GS) from the province of Almería, one of the most productive agricultural systems in Europe. We explored 199 GS and 142 AS, representing local and regional scales of variation in this important Mediterranean area. The hazardousness of HMs was particularly relevant in GS where agricultural practices, which centre on maximising production, end up with products that finally enter the human food chain directly. Despite their similar edaphic characteristics, the main differen…

SCAR-based real time PCR to identify a biocontrol strain (T1) of Trichoderma atroviride and study its population dynamics in soils.

2006

Strains of Trichoderma spp. are known for their antagonistic properties against plant pathogens, some are already on the market, others are under development. In order to launch a strain on the market its perfect identification at the species and strain levels is needed. The aim of this study is to (i) design a SCAR marker for specific identification of strain T1 of Trichoderma atroviride and (ii) monitor population dynamics of this strain in soil by real time PCR. A primer pair targeting a 141-bp fragment enabled specific detection of this strain without cross detection of autochthonous populations of Trichoderma in several field soils. In two soils, population dynamics assessed by real ti…

Plant Growth-Promoting Activities of Bacteria Isolated from an Anthropogenic Soil Located in Agrigento Province

2022

Bacteria producers of plant growth-promoting (PGP) substances are responsible for the enhancement of plant development through several mechanisms. The purpose of the present work was to evaluate the PGP traits of 63 bacterial strains that were isolated from an anthropogenic soil, and obtained by modification of vertisols in the Sicily region (Italy) seven years after creation. The microorganisms were tested for the following PGP characteristics: indole acetic acid (IAA), NH3, HCN and siderophore production, 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate deaminase activity (ACC) and phosphate solubilization. The results of principal component analysis (PCA) showed that Bacillus tequilensis SI 319, Brevib…

Elemental geochemistry of soils from the volcanic island of Pantelleria, Sicily: implications for Moscato wine production.

2006

The volcanic island of Pantelleria produces a naturally sweet wine Moscato di Pantelleria DOC obtained from the «Moscato d'Alessandria» (or «Zibibbo»), a grape favoured by hot climate. Geochemical and mineralogical investigations performed on soil profiles devoloped on rocks representative of the major outcropping lithologies (pantellerite, trachyte and alkalic basalt) show that the soils have preserved the parent material imprint. Consistently, values of the chemical index of alteration (CIA) indicate a low to moderate weathering degree for the rocks exposed in the Pantelleria area and consequently a low to moderate soil evolution. Soil-solution chemical analyses highlight that macro- and …

Nitrous oxide emission budgets and land-use-driven hotspots for organic soils in Europe

2014

Organic soils are a main source of direct emissions of nitrous oxide (N2O), an important greenhouse gas (GHG). Observed N2O emissions from organic soils are highly variable in space and time, which causes high uncertainties in national emission inventories. Those uncertainties could be reduced when relating the upscaling process to a priori-identified key drivers by using available N2O observations from plot scale in empirical approaches. We used the empirical fuzzy modelling approach MODE to identify main drivers for N2O and utilize them to predict the spatial emission pattern of European organic soils. We conducted a meta-study with a total amount of 659 annual N2O measurements, which was…

Sources of nitrous oxide and fate of mineral nitrogen in sub-Arctic permafrost peat soils

2021

Nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from permafrost-affected terrestrial ecosystems have received little attention, largely because they have been thought to be negligible. Recent studies, however, have shown that there are habitats in subarctic tundra emitting N2O at high rates, such as bare peat surfaces on permafrost peatlands. The processes behind N2O production in these high-emitting habitats are, however, poorly understood. In this study, we established an in situ 15N-labelling experiment with the main objectives to partition the microbial sources of N2O emitted from bare peat surfaces (BP) on permafrost peatlands and to study the fate of ammonium and nitrate in these soils and in adjacent …

Natural radioactivity in the Alte Madonie Mounts (Sicily, Italy)

2009

With the collaboration of geology experts, we have taken 45 samples of selected soils and rocks. All samples were powdered, dried and sealed in “Marinelli” beakers for 20 days before the measurement so as to ensure that radioactive equilibrium between 226Ra and 214Bi has been reached. Mineralogical and chemical features of the samples were determined by XRD and XRF analysis, instead Gamma ray spectrometric analysis was used in order to quantify radioactivity concentrations. The average values of concentrations of 214Bi, 228Ac and 40K are respectively 30, 19 and 258 Bq/kg while the greatest values were 134, 59 and 748 Bq/kg. A linear relationship exists between 214Bi, 228Ac and 40K activitie…

Diffusive emissions of hydrothermal methane and higher hydrocarbons from the soil at Nisyros (Greece)

2014

Genetic and Environmental Controls on Nitrous Oxide Accumulation in Lakes

2015

We studied potential links between environmental factors, nitrous oxide (N2O) accumulation, and genetic indicators of nitrite and N2O reducing bacteria in 12 boreal lakes. Denitrifying bacteria were investigated by quantifying genes encoding nitrite and N2O reductases (nirS/nirK and nosZ, respectively, including the two phylogenetically distinct clades nosZ(I) and nosZ(II)) in lake sediments. Summertime N2O accumulation and hypolimnetic nitrate concentrations were positively correlated both at the inter-lake scale and within a depth transect of an individual lake (Lake Vanajavesi). The variability in the individual nirS, nirK, nosZ(I), and nosZ(II) gene abundances was high (up to tenfold) a…