Assessment οf Soil Quality Under Different Agricultural Systems

AUTHOR(S):

Lacatusu Anca Rovena, Burtan Lavinia, Coronado M., Preda Claudia, Lacatusu R

TITLE

Assessment οf Soil Quality Under Different Agricultural Systems

ABSTRACT

The paper presents the results of researches conducted in two types of experimental fields organized in ecological, conservation versus conventional agricultural systems. An ecological agriculture field experiment was organized on a Chernozems in south-eastern part of Romania, for assessing the effect of soil organic fertilization with compost made from three organic waste (marine algae, farmyard manure and residual sludge from waste water treatment), applied in doses of 25, 50, 75 and 100 t/ha. The soil quality assessed by the main agrochemical analyses of soil samples collected towards the end of the plants growing season have demonstrated very good conditions for plants nutrition, especially for those cultivated on the soil fertilized with compost, revealing a higher nutrient content than the unfertilized or conventional mineral fertilized control. In the other experimental field belonging to the Drăgănești Vlașca Research and Development Agricultural Station, in the conservative and the conventional agricultural systems, soil surveys sampled in two stages have been analyzed for physics and chemical parameters, but in this paper, are presented the results of microbiological analyses, the total heterotrophic bacteria number, the total microfungi number and the soil respiration. The state of the soil aggregates arrangement that usually is more favorable in the conservative system as compared to the conventional ones led to a relative improvement of air circulation and better conditions for the water accumulation into the soil under conservative system. The reduced surface traffic allowed so called ”soil resting” that have been led to a natural rearrangement of the soil aggregates and a slight improvement of the air and water regimes. According to agrochemical parameters, respectively microbiological activity, in both agricultural systems, ecological and conservative, the soil presented favorable properties for growing and developing of cultivated plants, less equal or even more than in conventional agricultural system

KEYWORDS

ecological agriculture, organic compost, conservation agriculture, soil agrochemical properties

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Cite this paper

Lacatusu Anca Rovena, Burtan Lavinia, Coronado M., Preda Claudia, Lacatusu R. (2017) Assessment οf Soil Quality Under Different Agricultural Systems. International Journal of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Systems, 2, 52-59