Abstract
Soil arthropods respond sensitively to land management practices and correlate with beneficial soil functions. The aim of this research was to determine soil quality using the QBS index in different types of crops and influence of soil variables (pH soil, soil moisture, potassium, phosphorus and nitrogen) on soil arthropods. Between the years 2018 and 2020, we studied different types of crops (Brassica napus, Pisum sativum, Triticum aestivum, T. spelta, Zea mays, Grass mixture and Hordeum vulgare) and recorded 14 taxa. Our results suggest a higher QBS index value in crops grass mixture, Pisum sativum, Triticum aestivum, T. spelta. The EMI value grew with increasing values of soil moisture, soil pH, phosphorus, potassium and nitrogen; indicating the presence of soil arthropods occurring in higher quality soil. Our results suggest that agricultural intensification affects soil arthropods, which are important for the production of biomass, which also affects crop yields.
Highlights
Soil is one of the most species-rich habitats, representing the decomposition subsystem of terrestrial ecosystems
We observed the relationship between soil arthropods and crops
Using the Monte Carlo permutation test, we identified a statistically significant effect of grass mixture (P = 0.046, F(1.393) = 2.052, df = 6), Pisum sativum (P = 0.014, F(1.623) = 1.911, df = 6), Triticum aestivum (P = 0.021, F(2.212) = 3.102, df = 6), Triticum spelta (P = 0.042, F(3.112) = 4.212, df = 6), Hordeum vulgare (P = 0.045, F(1.139) = 1.527, df =
Summary
Soil is one of the most species-rich habitats, representing the decomposition subsystem of terrestrial ecosystems. It reflects ecosystem quality, where all bio-geo-chemical processes of soil and different ecosystem components are combined. A criterion of evaluating long-term sustainability of ecosystems is to assess the fluctuations of soil quality (Schoenholtz et al, 2000). Biological monitoring is required to correctly assess soil degradation and correlated risks. There is a need to identify indicators which are capable of expressing soil quality criteria and can be used as bench-marks in environmental remediation, as well as to assess and monitor soil quality (Violante, 2000)
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