Abstract
PurposeIn urban areas, humus quantity and quality depend less on natural environmental factors than on anthropogenic ones. The aim of the study was to assess the impact of different land use types of urban soils on the properties of soil organic matter (SOM).Materials and methodsThirty-five sites involving four ways of soil use were examined: lawns, allotment gardens, fallows, and arable lands. The study was conducted in Pruszków Town in the Warsaw Agglomeration, Central Poland. Lawns and allotment gardens were located in the central part of the town, whereas fallows and arable lands were in the peripheral zones. Humus horizons, to a depth of 0–20 cm, were analyzed. Using Na-pyrophosphate extraction, we determined the soluble SOM compounds (PY), and the organic matter in the extraction residue, considered as humins (HM). In a separate extraction (with 0.05 M H2SO4), low molecular weight (LMW) humus compounds were determined. The quantity of humic acids (HA) precipitated during Na-pyrophosphate extraction was determined as well. A spectroscopic method (UV-Vis) was used to characterize HA properties. The absorption coefficients E4/E6 were calculated based on the results of absorbance measurements involving 465- and 665-nm wavelengths of UV-Vis light. Statistical analyses were performed to find similarities and differences between soils differently used in Pruszków.Results and discussionThe dominant part of the humus in the studied soils were humins HMs. There were two times more HM in the central part of the town than that in the peripheral zones. The same observation was made for soluble humus compounds (PY). The amount of LMW fractions was similar in soils of all uses. The degree of humification was small and averaged about 30% for all soils. Fulvic acid (FA) concentrations predominated over HA concentrations in all soils. The least condensed HA occurred in the allotment gardens with an E4/E6 ratio of 5.7, whereas the most condensed HAs were present in soil on arable lands (E4/E6 ratio of 4.7).ConclusionsThe studies have shown that the type of land use affects humus properties. The main differences were found to be in the quantity of humus compounds. Soils from the central part of the town contained more stable (HM) and soluble (PY) compounds than soils in the outskirts of town. PY compounds were characterized by a simple structure. Fulvic acids (FA) dominated in all of the studied soils (low HA/FA ratio). A high E4/E6 ratio indicates low maturity of humic fractions with low molecular weight compounds.
Highlights
Urban soils show a great variety (Greinert 2015; Greinert 2017), mainly due to the way they are used and the variousResponsible editor: Yona ChenJ Soils Sediments (2018) 18:2823–2832 greenery in many Polish cities and towns is the lawn (Charzyński et al 2013b)
Significant differences were found in the soil organic carbon (SOC) quantities in soils of allotment gardens and lawns when compared to the average SOC content in the soils of arable lands and fallows (Table 1)
The largest concentrations of this element were noted in the soils of allotment gardens, deviating significantly from the contents found in other soils (Table 1)
Summary
Urban soils show a great variety (Greinert 2015; Greinert 2017), mainly due to the way they are used and the variousResponsible editor: Yona ChenJ Soils Sediments (2018) 18:2823–2832 greenery in many Polish cities and towns is the lawn (Charzyński et al 2013b). A common phenomenon is covering the soil surface with humus materials, which are transported from other places (Greinert 2013). Such treatments are often applied by owners of garden plots in order to improve the condition of their soils and during the establishment of green areas. The migration of people from city centers to the suburbs has made the latter areas increasingly integrated into cities and transformed by human intervention (Oktaba et al 2014). This has caused a decline in their original agricultural, forest-related, or other natural character. These processes have occurred for hundreds of years and; in many present urban soils, signs of past activity can be found (He and Zhang 2009; Krupski et al 2017)
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