Shallow Soil Depths Research Articles

Application of geo-spatial technologies in soil suitability assessment for village level crop planning in Chittaurgarh, Rajasthan

The agro-eco-sub region (AESR) 4.2 encompasses Aravalli foot hills, central Rajasthan plains and adjoining areas. Visual interpretation of geo-coded satellite data (IRS-P6, LISS IV MX) on the same scale was done before starting the field work. Based on the interpretative units a high intensity detailed soil survey was carried out in cluster of ten villages of Bhadesar tehsil of Chittaurgarh district on cadastral map (1:4000 scale) and the soils were characterized with respect to landforms. In all, 14 soil series were established and assessed for soil site suitability for maize, wheat, mustard and soybean. Daulatpura-c series soils are suitable for maize, mustard, soybean, and Daulatpura-d soils for soybean and moderately suitable for other crops. Soils of Bagund and Narbadiya-a series are moderately suitable for maize and marginally suitable for other crops. The soils of Bhadsoda-b series are marginally suitable only for mustard but moderately suitable for all other crops. Soils of Parliya series are moderately suitable only for mustard crop and marginally suitable for remaining crops. The soils of Guda series are marginally suitable for maize, wheat, mustard but not suitable for soybean. The soils of Nardhari-a and Nardhari-b are moderately suitable, Daulatpura-b, Bhadsoda-a and Narbadiya-b are marginally suitable whereas soils of Madanpura and Daulatpura are not suitable for all the crops due to limitations of shallow soil depth.

Potentiality and irrigability assessment of Shiwalik hill soils of Himachal Pradesh

The soils and lands developed under sub-humid sub-tropical climate of Shiwalik foot hills of Himachal Pradesh were evaluated for their productivity and potentiality under different land uses viz. agriculture, pastures and forest/tree crops and suitability for sustained irrigation. The actual productivity of these soils for agriculture was rated extremely poor to nil, poor and average comprising 80.4, 11.3 and 4.4% of total geographical area (TGA) of the watershed, respectively. The corresponding productivity for pastures was 12.0, 51.2 and 33% of TGA. The actual productivity of all these lands for forest/tree land use was found to be extremely poor to nil. The potential productivity for agriculture was in poor, average, good and excellent classes comprising 64.4, 10.5, 12.7 and 8.6% of TGA, respectively. Whereas, it was found to be average, good and excellent for pastures in 39.4, 48.2 and 8.6% of TGA, respectively. For forest/tree land use, the potential productivity was found to be extremely poor to nil for majority of the soils comprising 74% of TGA. Other classesviz. poor and average covered only 14.7 and 7.5% of TGA, respectively. Thus, productivity of most of the soils could be increased to a greatextent by applying improvement measures to overcome the identified constraints as indicated by their potential productivity classes.Based on characteristics pertaining to soil, topography, drainage conditions and cost of land development these lands were classified into four irrigability sub-classes (3s, 4ts, 5ts and 6ts) according to the kind and degree of limitations for sustained use under irrigation. The respective classes covered 115.71, 105.2, 380.45 and 797.29 ha comprising 8.0, 7.2, 26.2 and 54.8% of TGA, there being no class 1 or 2 irrigable land. Topography, shallow soil depth, coarse soil texture, high permeability and low available water capacity are the main limiting factors identified those may be manipulated suitably to increase production potential of these lands.

Significant shallow–depth soil warming over Russia during the past 40 years

Knowledge of the spatiotemporal dynamics of the soil temperature in cold environment is key to understanding the effects of climate change on land–atmosphere feedback and ecosystem functions. Here, we quantify the recent thermal status and trends in shallow ground using the most up-to-date data set of over 457 sites in Russia. The data set consists of in situ soil temperatures at multiple depths (0.8, 1.6, and 3.2 m) collected from 1975 to 2016. For the region as a whole, significant soil warming occurred over the period. The mean annual soil temperature at depths of 0.8, 1.6, and 3.2 m increased at the same level, at ca 0.30–0.31 °C/decade, whereas the increase in maximum soil temperature ranged from 0.40 °C/decade at 0.8 m to 0.31 °C/decade at 3.2 m. Unlike the maximum soil temperature, the increases in minimum soil temperature did not vary (ca 0.25 °C/decade) with depth. Due to the overall greater increase in maximum soil temperature than minimum soil temperature, the intra-annual variability of soil temperature increased over the decades. Moreover, the soil temperature increased faster in the continuous permafrost area than in the discontinuous permafrost and seasonal frost areas at shallow depths (0.8 and 1.6 m depth), and increased slower at the deeper level (3.2 m). The warming rate of the maximum soil temperature at the shallower depths was less than that at the deeper level over the discontinuous permafrost area but greater over the seasonal frost area. However, the opposite was found regarding the increase in minimum soil temperature. Correlative analyses suggest that the trends in mean and extreme soil temperatures positively relate to the trends in snow cover thickness and duration, which results in the muted response of intra-annual variability of the soil temperature as snow cover changes. This study provides a comprehensive view of the decadal evolutions of the shallow soil temperatures over Russia, revealing that the temporal trends in annual mean and extreme soil temperatures vary with depth and permafrost distribution. • Significant warming of shallow ground occurred in Russia during 1975–2016. • Trends in soil temperature vary with depth in different frost-related areas. • For the region as a whole, the intra-annual variability of soil temperature increased. • Trends in soil temperature significantly respond to changes in snow cover.

Soil-Site suitability evaluation for soybean and sunflower crops in the soils of north-west Gir Madhuvanti toposequence of South Saurashtra Region of Gujarat

Six representative pedons were evaluated for their suitability of two oilseed crops (Soybean and Sunflower) in the soils of different land slope of north-west Gir Madhuvanti toposequence of south Saurashtra region of Gujarat. The land slopes, lower piedmont belong to Vertic Haplusterts (P3) were marginally suitable (S3) for Soybean and Sunflower. The soils plain area belongs to Typic Haplusterts (P4) and depression area belong to Sodic Haplusterts (P5) were marginally suitable (S3) for Sunflower and currently not suitable (N1) for Soybean. Upper piedmont belongs to Lithic Ustorthents (P2) were marginally suitable (S3) for Soybean and permanently not suitable (N2) for Sunflower. The soils upper coast belong to Fluventic Calciustepts (P6) were marginally suitable (S3) for Sunflower and permanently not suitable (N2) for soybean. The hill slopes belong to Lithic Ustorthents (P1) were currently not suitable (N1) for Soybean and permanently not suitable (N2) for Sunflower. Topography, drainage, shallow soil depth, high CaCO3, poor soil fertility (low O.C. and high soil pH) soil salinity and sodicity are the major limitations in most soils of north-west Gir Madhuvanti toposequence of south Saurashtra. Results showed that the suitability classes can be improved if the correctable limitations (soil fertility characteristics) are altered through soil amelioration measures.

Coupled carbon and oxygen isotope model for pedogenic carbonates

Carbon and oxygen isotope values of ancient pedogenic carbonates reflect the paleoenvironmental conditions under which the carbonates formed. Carbon isotope values are commonly used to reconstruct pCO2, C3 vs. C4 plant types, and carbon cycle dynamics. Oxygen isotope values of the same carbonates have been used to reconstruct past temperatures and elevations. In the geologic record, changes in these isotope values can be difficult to interpret because they are affected by a suite of multiple local (e.g. precipitation and temperature) and global variables (e.g. pCO2 and global temperature) that can be difficult to separate. In this study, we develop a semi-mechanistic model of factors that affect carbon and oxygen isotope values of pedogenic carbonate. The model links these factors to a common suite of environmental variables using theoretical and empirical relationships. We test and optimize the model using modern environmental data and a compilation of modern pedogenic carbonate isotope measurements. This comparison indicates that the model best reproduces the observed data when carbonates are assumed to form under conditions where (1) evaporation affects oxygen isotope values of source waters at shallow soil depths only, (2) source waters mix precipitation from prior to and during the period of carbonate formation, and (3) soil CO2 respiration rates are anomalously low. Global predictions from the optimized model suggest strong spatial variation in both carbon and oxygen isotope values of pedogenic carbonate and highlight areas where future measurements from modern samples might provide strong tests of the model. The model also demonstrates coherent patterns of coupled δ13Ccarbonate and δ18Ocarbonate value variation associated with different types of environmental forcing, and offers a new framework for interpreting paired carbon and oxygen isotope data from ancient pedogenic carbonates to constrain paleoenvironmental change.

Modeling winter barley root distribution in flat and raised bed planting systems subject to full, deficit and rainfed irrigation

In this study, we developed two new depth-decaying and depth-cumulative models for root length density and root mass density of winter barley. The performance of the new models was compared with the several existing depth-decaying and depth-cumulative root distribution models. The experimental treatments were the combinations of full, deficit, and rainfed irrigations under the raised bed and conventional flat planting systems. The two new models showed good performance in comparison with the other existing models. Further analysis based on the cumulative specific root length approach revealed that full irrigation resulted in thicker and thinner roots in the shallow soil depths of the raised bed and flat planting systems, respectively. In contrast, under deficit and rainfed irrigations, thinner and thicker roots were respectively developed in the shallow soil depths of the raised bed and flat planting system. This shows that under suboptimal soil water content, the crops in the raised bed planting system might be able to seek water by developing a network of thin and long roots in the soil matrix.

Taking an Aerial View Underground

Wisconsin geologists are testing using drones equipped with thermal cameras to measure shallow soil depths in areas prone to groundwater contamination.

Context-dependent effects of a reintroduced ungulate on soil properties are driven by soil texture, moisture, and herbivore activity.

Although there is considerable evidence that large mammalian herbivores influence ecosystem‐level processes, studies have reported such widely varying results that generalizations have remained elusive. Here, we use an 18‐year‐old exclosure experiment—stratified across a landscape heterogeneous with respect to soil texture, moisture and herbivore activity—to understand the variable effects of tule elk (Cervus canadensis nannodes), a native reintroduced herbivore, on soil properties along the coast of northern California. Elk significantly increased soil bulk density and created a compacted layer at shallow soil depth, while decreasing infiltration rate and pH. The effects of elk on bulk density, penetration resistance, and pH varied with soil type, being least pronounced in coarse, sandy loams, and greatest in loose sand. The effects of elk on nutrient availability varied along gradients of soil texture and moisture. In coarser soils, elk decreased ammonium availability, but increased it in finer soils. Elk also decreased soil moisture content, in part through their positive effect on bulk density, and this effect was most pronounced in coarser soils. Through decreasing soil moisture content, elk also decreased nitrate availability in coarser soils. At greater levels of elk activity (as measured by dung deposition), the elk effect on bulk density was amplified, and this had a corresponding negative effect on nitrate and phosphate availability. Our study has demonstrated that a better understanding of spatial variation in the effects of herbivores on ecosystems can emerge by evaluating their influences across gradients of soil texture, soil moisture, and herbivore activity. These data enabled us to evaluate several frameworks that have been developed to understand the variable effects of herbivores on ecosystems, which is a significant step in reconciling the many competing ideas put forth to explain the context‐dependent effects of large herbivores on grazed ecosystems.

On the Use of Multivariate Analysis and Land Evaluation for Potential Agricultural Development of the Northwestern Coast of Egypt

The development of the agricultural sector is considered the backbone of sustainable development in Egypt. While the developing countries of the world face many challenges regarding food security due to rapid population growth and limited agricultural resources, this study aimed to assess the soils of Sidi Barrani and Salloum using multivariate analysis to determine the land capability and crop suitability for potential alternative crop uses, based on using principal component analysis (PCA), agglomerative hierarchical cluster analysis (AHC) and the Almagra model of MicroLEIS. In total, 24 soil profiles were dug, to represent the geomorphic units of the study area, and the soil physicochemical parameters were analyzed in laboratory. The land capability assessment was classified into five significant classes (C1 to C5) based on AHC and PCA analyses. The class C1 represents the highest capable class while C5 is assigned to lowest class. The results indicated that about 7% of the total area was classified as highly capable land (C1), which is area characterized by high concentrations of macronutrients (N, P, K) and low soil salinity value. However, about 52% of the total area was assigned to moderately high class (C2), and 29% was allocated in moderate class (C3), whilst the remaining area (12%) was classified as the low (C4) and not capable (C5) classes, due to soil limitations such as shallow soil depth, high salinity, and increased erosion susceptibility. Moreover, the results of the Almagra soil suitability model for ten crops were described into four suitability classes, while about 37% of the study area was allocated in the highly suitable class (S2) for wheat, olive, alfalfa, sugar beet and fig. Furthermore, 13% of the area was categorized as highly suitable soil (S2) for citrus and peach. On the other hand, about 50% of the total area was assigned to the marginal class (S4) for most of the selected crops. Hence, the use of multivariate analysis, mapping land capability and modeling the soil suitability for diverse crops help the decision makers with regard to potential agricultural development.

Root structure of shrub encroaching plants in the African savannas: insights from Terminalia sericea (Burch. ex dc) across a climate gradient in the Kalahari Basin

The competitive exclusion of grasses by shrubs in the African savannas is an elusive phenomenon. The popular concept, Walter’s two-layer hypothesis is still inconclusive. This concept suggests that trees and shrubs in the savannas develop deeper roots to avoid competition with grasses. This study was designed to test this hypothesis by investigating the root system of T. sericea, one of the common encroaching species in the Kalahari Basin. Using direct excavation method, 39 shrubs were randomly excavated across the Kalahari Basin.Results revealed contrasting rooting strategies by T. sericea under varying climatic conditions. Drier areas exhibit largely lateral roots, whereas moist sites were dominated by dual root systems. These findings are not consistent with the existing framework which argues that savanna shrubs are essentially deeper rooted. Instead, results support an emerging hypothesis that certain savanna shrubs opportunistically adapt their root systems in response to the prevailing environmental constraints such as water availability A shrub such as T. sericea with lateral roots abundantly deployed in shallow soil depth points to a direct competition exclusion with grasses in the Kalahari Basin. It is probable that the occurrence of shrub encroachment by T. sericea is a manifestation of this competitive interaction, contrary to the root niche partitioning hypothesis. Future savanna models need to be cognizant of the variation in savanna shrubs roots system architecture and its potential implications on tree-grass coexistence and competition.

Investigating the Spatio-Temporal dynamics in the soil water storage in Alberta’s Agricultural region

Anomalous atmospheric conditions which, for the most part, manifest in the form of heavy precipitation events leading to the generation of pluvial or fluvial flooding in some years, or as extended extreme dry spells resulting in the development of severe drought conditions in other years has significant implications for subsurface moisture budgets in regional and local catchments in the Canadian Prairies. The myriad implications of these frequent and extended dry spells over Alberta’s Agricultural Region can be far reaching economically, socially and otherwise, thereby exerting substantial negative toll on agricultural productivity (crop cultivation, livestock husbandry, and pasture management) within the Province. Soil moisture dynamics both in spatial and temporal scales has critical implications for agricultural water management especially under semi-arid climate conditions that are typical of the local- and regional-scale catchments in southern Alberta. This study is focused on the assessment of the observations of the soil water storage, soil temperature and meteorological variables (precipitation and air temperature) acquired from 39 monitoring stations spanning a 12-year period with the principal objective of examining the spatial and temporal dynamics in the shallow and deep soil water storage processes across the study domain. This study revealed that the moisture anomalies in the deep soil moisture store exhibit the longest hydrologic memory relative to those in the shallow and intermediate soil moisture storages as well as those in the meteorological variables across the study domain. The anomalies computed for the soil moisture measurements undertaken in the deep soil moisture store revealed frequency features that are dominant at seasonal cycle (9-month) and at a higher periodicity of 32-month cycle. This low-frequency feature (32-month cycle) is evidently non-existent in the soil water storage measured at the shallower soil depths nor in the meteorological variables evaluated in this study. This implies that the low-frequency feature of the soil water storage wavelet spectra increases with increasing soil depth across the Agricultural Region; indicating that at deeper soil depths, the largest variances are shifted to lower frequencies. This observed dominant long-memory feature in the deep soil moisture store could have important implications for characterizing the development of temperature extremes as well as for the evaluation of the severity of the recurrent drought outbreaks over regional watersheds in Alberta and potentially for other Canadian Prairie catchments.

Performance Comparison between Polyurethane Foam and Cement Grouting Slab Replacement for Soft Ground Improvement at Shallow Depth Using Finite Element Model

Two methods of ground improvement have been proposed to overcome excessive and differential settlement problem of soft ground foundation for infrastructure such as road, highway and parking space namely polyurethane (PU) foam and cement grouting slab. It has been executed by excavating and replacing the soft soil at shallow depth with the proposed ground improvement methods. The ground improvement methods able to minimise the excessive and differential settlement as the shallow depth of soft soil is removed and replaced by the stiff materials, thus the load can be distributed evenly to the underlying soil. The comparison of performance between both methods are evaluated in this study by carried out finite element analysis for soft ground problem namely PLAXIS. The results show that the settlement can be reduced significantly to the tolerable amount by applying PU foam instead of cement grouting slab as the increase in thickness of cement grouting slab cause the increase in settlement. On the other hand, the increase in PU foam thickness has not contributed to further settlement as the PU foam is lightweight, however, the soil may experience upward displacement due to insufficient overburden load to counter uplift.

Competition for water rather than facilitation in mixed beech-fir forests after drying-wetting cycle

In the present study we investigated water use strategies of mature stands of Fagus sylvatica (European Beech) with and without co-cultivation of Abies alba (Silver fir) during a summer drought and subsequent rewetting through simulated heavy precipitation in a temperate forest in south-west Germany. We used a combination of sap flow analysis, water stable isotope labeling and a simple linear mixing model with physiological restrictions to determine whether both species were able to switch water uptake depths during drought and reverse this switch after restoration of water supply. We showed that both species utilized water from relatively deep soil layers (>0.5 m) during the drought phase, though for beech trees these contributions were not able to support the high transpiration demands. In contrast, the transpiration of firs remained unaffected by drought probably due to a mixture of its isohydric water use strategy and taproot system. The reactions towards high intensity irrigation differed among species but also between beeches of the pure and mixed stands. While beech trees in the pure stand, once water uptake from the topsoil was re-established, used ~70% of water from more shallow soil depths and were able to restore transpiration, beech trees in the mixed stand obtained only 50% and transpiration decreased further. Firs used around 70% of the water in shallow soil layers and transpiration rates again remained unaffected. These differences indicate competition between beech trees and firs in the mixed stand upon drought. We conclude that drought is able to disrupt water relations in mixed temperate forested ecosystems in such a way that facilitation can turn into competition for resources like water.

Land Suitability Assessment and Agricultural Production Sustainability Using Machine Learning Models

Land suitability assessment is essential for increasing production and planning a sustainable agricultural system, but such information is commonly scarce in the semi-arid regions of Iran. Therefore, our aim is to assess land suitability for two main crops (i.e., rain-fed wheat and barley) based on the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) “land suitability assessment framework” for 65 km2 of agricultural land in Kurdistan province, Iran. Soil samples were collected from genetic layers of 100 soil profiles and the physical-chemical properties of the soil samples were analyzed. Topography and climate data were also recorded. After calculating the land suitability classes for the two crops, they were mapped using machine learning (ML) and traditional approaches. The maps predicted by the two approaches revealed notable differences. For example, in the case of rain-fed wheat, results showed the higher accuracy of ML-based land suitability maps compared to the maps obtained by traditional approach. Furthermore, the findings indicated that the areas with classes of N2 (≈18%↑) and S3 (≈28%↑) were higher and area with the class N1 (≈24%↓) was less predicted in the traditional approach compared to the ML-based approach. The major limitations of the study area were rainfall at the flowering stage, severe slopes, shallow soil depth, high pH, and large gravel content. Therefore, to increase production and create a sustainable agricultural system, land improvement operations are suggested.

Estimation of ground temperatures in permafrost regions of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau from climatic variables

Ground temperature is an important factor influencing ground source heat pumps, ground energy storage systems, land-atmosphere processes, and ecosystem dynamics. This paper presents an accurate development model (DM) based on a segment function: it can derive ground temperatures in permafrost regions of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) from air temperature in case of shallow soil depths and without using air temperature data in case of deep soil depths. Here, we applied this model to simulate the active layer and permafrost ground temperature at the Tanggula observation station. The DM results were compared with those from the artificial neural network (ANN), support vector machine (SVM), and multiple linear regressions (MLR) models, which were based on climatic variables from prior models and on ground temperatures derived from observations at different depths. The results revealed that the effect of air temperature on simulated ground temperatures decreased with increasing depth; moreover, ground temperatures fluctuated greatly within the shallow layers but remained rather stable with deeper layers. The results also indicated that the DM has the best performance for the estimation of soil temperature compared to the MLR, SVM, and ANN models. Finally, we obtained the three average statistics indexes, i.e., mean absolute error (MAE), root mean square error (RMSE), and the normalized standard error (NSEE) at TGL site: they were equal to 0.51 °C, 0.63 °C, and 0.15 °C for the ground temperature of active layer and to 0.08 °C, 0.09 °C, and 0.07 °C for the permafrost temperature.

Development of a Shallow-Depth Soil Temperature Estimation Model Based on Air Temperatures and Soil Water Contents in a Permafrost Area

A model for predicting shallow depth soil temperatures is important and effective to assess the changes in soil conditions related to global climate change and local disturbances. Shallow-depth soil temperature estimation model in cold region in Alaska is developed based on thermal response using air temperature and shallow-depth soil water content during active layer development period of 160 days from May to October. Among the seven soil temperature measurement sites, data from four sites were used for model development, and the remaining three sites were used for model validation. Near the middle of the seven measurement sites, air temperature is monitored at one location. The proposed model implemented concepts of thermal response and cumulative temperature. Temperatures and soil water contents were measured using automated remote sensing technology. Consequently, it was confirmed that the developed model enables fast and accurate assessment of shallow-depth soil temperature during active soil layer development period.

Guilette Receives Inaugural CCA Conservationist of the Year Award

Guilette Receives Inaugural CCA Conservationist of the Year Award

Soil carbon sequestration in bermudagrass golf course fairways in Lubbock, Texas

AbstractTurfgrasses benefit the environment through conversion of CO2 into stable C stored in soils. Limited research on the sequestration potential of bermudagrass (Cynodon spp.) has been conducted in semiarid climates. The objective of this study was to evaluate soil physiochemical properties of golf courses in Lubbock, TX, to determine C sequestration potential and longevity. Soil was obtained from fairways of five golf courses ranging in age from 13 to 93 yr. Shallow (0–7.5 cm) and deeper (7.5–15 cm) soil depths were tested for soil pH, electrical conductivity, soil organic matter, soil organic C (SOC), inorganic C, total N, inorganic N, and texture. After ANOVA and mean separation, principal component analysis (PCA) was used to group golf courses by soil depth or age. Soil organic matter and SOC decreased with depth, but the rate of SOC accumulation (0.22 Mg C ha−1 yr−1) was lower when compared with previous studies. Maximal C (35.1 and 23.7 Mg C ha−1 in the upper and lower depths) was consistent with previous studies, indicating that C accumulated for a longer period of time. The PCA explained 52.7% of variability in soil physiochemical properties on two axes, but PCA more effectively differentiated soil sampling depth than golf course age. High variability in data among fairways at a single golf course likely resulted in limited grouping capabilities. Including a broader regional representation of golf courses or sampling golf courses between 40 and 70 yr to quantify soils near maximal accumulation would strengthen future studies.

Soil depth and grassland origin cooperatively shape microbial community co‐occurrence and function

AbstractMany soils are deep, yet soil below 20 cm remains largely unexplored. Exotic plants can have shallower roots than native species, so their impact on microorganisms is anticipated to change with depth. Using environmental DNA and extracellular enzymatic activities, we studied fungal and bacterial community composition, diversity, function, and co‐occurrence networks between native and exotic grasslands at soil depths up to 1 m. We hypothesized (1) the composition and network structure of both fungal and bacterial communities will change with increasing depth, and diversity and enzymatic function will decrease; (2) microbial enzymatic function and network connectedness will be lower in exotic grasslands; and (3) irrigation will alter microbial networks, increasing the overall connectedness. Microbial diversity decreased with depth, and community composition was distinctly different between shallow and deeper soil depths with higher numbers of unknown taxa in lower soil depths. Fungal communities differed between native and exotic plant communities. Microbial community networks were strongly shaped by biotic and abiotic factors concurrently and were the only microbial measurement affected by irrigation. In general, fungal communities were more connected in native plant communities than exotic, especially below 10 cm. Fungal networks were also more connected at lower soil depths albeit with fewer nodes. Bacterial communities demonstrated higher complexity, and greater connectedness and nodes, at lower soil depths for native plant communities. Exotic plant communities’ bacterial network connectedness altered at lower soil depths dependent on irrigation treatments. Microbial extracellular enzyme activity for carbon cycling enzymes significantly declined with soil depth, but enzymes associated with nitrogen and phosphorus cycling continued to have similar activities up to 1 m deep. Our results indicate that native and exotic grasslands have significantly different fungal communities in depths up to 1 m and that both fungal and bacterial networks are strongly shaped jointly by plant communities and abiotic factors. Soil depth is independently a major determinant of both fungal and bacterial community structures, functions, and co‐occurrence networks and demonstrates further the importance of including soil itself when investigating plant–microbe interactions.

Shallow Depth Soil Resistivity Investigations and Subsurface Lithology for Corrosivity Assessment along Obama-Kolo Creek Pipeline Using Geoelectric Method

Shallow Depth Soil Resistivity Investigations and Subsurface Lithology for Corrosivity Assessment along Obama-Kolo Creek Pipeline Using Geoelectric Method