Recovery of the biological activity in a vineyard soil after landscape redesign: A three-year study using the bait-lamina method

Abstract

To detect changes in the biological activity (checked as soil animals feeding activity), the bait-lamina test (VON TORNE 1990) was used in a vineyard and a fallow soil (old meadow) during a three-year study. Situated in the vine-growing region of Rheinhessen near Mainz, Germany, the vineyard was part of an intensive redesign of the landscape accompanied by soil restoration. In 1994 new grapevines were planted in a two-row-system: 1) uncovered, 'open' soil, 2) green-covered soil (grass and clover). The new vineyard soil was in a 'raw' soil stage (humus: <1.7 %) whereas the fallow soil (reference soil) was undisturbed (humus: approx. 5 %). At the onset of the experiment in spring 1997 the soil faunal feeding activity in the vineyard soil was close to zero while in the fallow soil the activity was 23 %. In the following tests the feeding activity increased in both, the green-covered and uncovered soil; the highest level of feeding activity was finally found in the covered soil. The results indicate that under the local climatic conditions soil faunal activity recovers within a few years after soil restoration and that the rate of biological activity depends on soil management.