Effects of biofertilizers and super absorbent polymers on plant growth and soil fertility in the arid mining area of Inner Mongolia, China

Abstract

A pot experiment was conducted in the Institute of Tianlong Ecology of Baotou City in Inner Mongolia, China, to investigate the effects of the application of biofertilizers and super absorbent polymers (SAP) on plant growth and soil improvement in arid mining area soil. Two typical species, namely, Syringa oblata Lindl. (SO) and Medicago sativa L. (MS), were present in the Bayan Obo mining area and used as representatives of shrubs and herbaceous plants in the pot experiment. (1) Biofertilizers and SAP significantly increased the tree height, the ground diameter of SO, and the total biomass of MS and improved the soil fertility of the mining area, especially its biological fertility, compared with those of the control group (CK). The application of biofertilizers and SAP decreased the mining soil pH and significantly increased available nitrogen, available phosphorus, available potassium, and soil organic matter. (2) After 180 days of growth, the microbial population (bacteria, fungi, and actinomycetes) and soil microbial biomass carbon and nitrogen significantly increased. Microbial ratios C: N significantly decreased compared with those of CK. (3) T5 and T6 treatments with the following dosages might be the optimum selection for the improvement of the studied mining area soil: 20 g SAP + 15 g biofertilizers (SO), 100 g/m2 SAP + 150 g biofertilizers (MS); 20 g SAP + 30 g biofertilizers (SO), and 100 g/m2 SAP + 200 g biofertilizers (MS). This study provided a promising reference for conducting future field studies and the local vegetation restoration.