Soil Micro Research Articles

Effect of Organic Nutrient Sources on Economics, Soil Micro Nutrient Status and Microbial Growth of Ragi under Guni Method of Cultivation

A field experiment was conducted during the kharif-2019 at the farmers field of Mylandahalli in Chikkaballapura distict of Karnataka, to study the effect of organic nutrient sources on soil micro nutrient status, microbial count and economics of finger millet under guni method. The trial was framed out in randomized blocked design with twelve treatments reproduced thrice. The results of different organic nutrient sources were showed that supplement of sericulture waste compost (SWC) @ 50% N eq. + Enriched biodigested liquid manure (EBDLM) @ 50% N eq. ha-1 + panchagavya (PG) spray @ 3% (T9) had a significant effect on micro nutrient status in soil and their values were statistically higher than all the other treatments. The findings of study reported that supplement of sericulture waste compost (SWC) @ 50% N eq. + Enriched biodigested liquid manure (EBDLM) @ 50% N eq. ha-1 + panchagavya (PG) spray @ 3% (T9) recorded significantly higher Diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA) extractable iron, zinc, manganese and copper in soil. Likewise, the same treatment had recorded significantly superior in population of bacteria (49.96 colony forming units (CFU) x 106 g-1), fungi (27.36 CFU x 103 g-1) and actinomycetes (14.44 CFU x 103 g-1) were noticed compared to others and found to be highest economic returns during cropping period of kharif 2019.

New Records of Soil Galumnid Mites (Acarina: Cryptostigmata) from Dampa Tiger Reserve, Mizoram, India

Among all the soil micro- arthropods, mites are predominant and playing important role in increasing soil fertility through organic decomposition and they are inhabiting in all types of soil but predominantly found in soil litter, humus, and compost heaps. The present research work has been done to identify and prepare a record of the soil Galumnid mites from this region as very few works has been done on the taxonomy of this important group in this geographical area as well as in India. Only one major work has been found which was published by Sanyal (2009)[1] on the study of oribatid mites of Mizoram. Amongst all the States of India, Mizoram has the highest area under forest cover in terms of percentage of geographical area. Dampa Tiger Reserve of western Mizoram of India is located at Indo-Myanmar hotspot in the Lushai hills is one of the remotes Tiger Reserve of the country and immensely rich in floral and faunal biodiversity. 9 species including 5 genera of Galumnid mites are newly recorded for the first time from this area of study.

Molecular Identification of Soil Bacteria

The molecular identity of soil micro-organism is pivotal for expertise soil ecosystems that are important for agricultural productiveness, environmental sustainability, and biogeochemical cycles. This take a look at employs superior molecular techniques, inclusive of high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatics gear, to identify and classify micro-organism in various soil samples. Our comprehensive evaluation discovered a wealthy variety of bacterial species, which include both known and novel taxa, illustrating the complexity of soil micro biomes. These findings emphasize the vast function of soil micro-organism in nutrient cycling and plant health, supplying treasured insights for enhancing soil management practices and agricultural results. Additionally, the observe highlights the efficacy of molecular strategies in microbial ecology, suggesting potential future research instructions to take advantage of soil bacteria for environmental and biotechnological packages. This paintings underscores the crucial importance of molecular identification in unveiling the intricacies of soil bacterial groups and their useful roles within the ecosystem.

Control strategies for fractional order soil micro plastic pollution model and preserving nutrient cycle integrity

Control strategies for fractional order soil micro plastic pollution model and preserving nutrient cycle integrity

Insights on soil biological properties and crop yields under natural farming in western Himalaya

Sustainability of agricultural production systems is a major concern in context to present environmental conditions. Natural farming (NF) is being promoted as low-cost environment friendly option. A study was carried out to investigate the effects of NF vis-a-vis organic farming (OF) and conventional farming (CF) systems on soil microbial population, enzymatic activity, and microarthropod population under tomato crop in the mid-hill zone of Himachal Pradesh, India. The results showed that bacterial population under NF increased by 42.8% and 24% in comparison to CF and OF, respectively. Similarly, the population of soil fungi and actinomycetes under NF increased by 80.5 and 67.7% over CF, and by 47.9 and 39.6% over OF, respectively. The soil dehydrogenase activity under NF (22.5µg TPF/g soil/h) was 150.6% higher than CF and 85.2% higher than OF. Similar trend was found for phosphatase and urease activity. Soil micro arthropod population after two years of experiment was also highest under NF followed by OF and CF. The system yield was statistically at par to each other, among different farming systems. All the soil biological parameters were significantly correlated with each other (P<0.001, N=42). However, the correlation of these parameters was not significant for crop yield.

Effects of Palm Oil Processing Waste on Soil Microorganisms

This work was carried out to perform the comparative analysis on the effects of palm oil processing waste (POPW) on soil Microorganisms. Three soil samples were collected from three different locations, North bank, Wurukum, and High-level where palm oil processing waste are being discharged. The samples were analyzed, Soil samples unimpacted with POPW served as control. The physicochemical parameters of the soil samples that are pH, moisture, Temperature and particulate nature were analysized using standard methods. The total coliform count, total viable count and total fungal counts were evaluated using the pour plate method. Result showed that the Total Coliform, Total viable count and Total fungal counts (200.77 ±16.525 mean of the three samples, 22.55 ±2.041 mean of three samples and 28.88 ±2.590 mean of the three samples) of the impacted soils were lower compared to the values (291.00 ±13.00 in control soil, 118.33 ±18.717 control soil and 44.33 ±1.527 control soil respectively) of the un-impacted soils which served as control. The bacterial genera isolated from these soil samples include; Bacillus spp, Klebsiella, Staphylococcus spp, Salmonella spp and Proteus spp. The fungal genera isolated from soils with POPW includes; Aspergillus spp, Rhizopus spp, and Mucor spp, the results obtained indicates that POPW have immediate negative impact on soil microbiota as their application could lead to changes which affects soil microbial communities. Therefore, it would be advised that proper guidelines be set up for possible pre-treatment and safe discharge of POPW, in other to avoid its effect on soil micro biota and soil fertility

Survey on Soil Micro-Nutrients Analysis and Crop Recommendation System in Smart Agriculture

Healthy and sufficient crop and food production are very much essential for everyone as the population is increasing globally. At present, many advancements have been made in recent times, mainly, the roles of the data analysis and machine learning tools help a farmer to analyze and make better decisions in each stage of cultivation. Once suitable crop seeds are chosen, the farmer shall proceed with seeding, monitoring crop growth, disease detection, finding the ripening stage and then crop cutting. The main objective is to provide a continuous support system to a farmer so that he can obtain regular inputs about his field and crop. This survey thoroughly analyzes different soil micro nutrients such as nitrogen, boron, potassium and sulphur to improve Crop Recommendation Systems. It explores soil analysis components, various algorithms, and datasets used in precision agriculture.

Soil colloids as binding agents in the formation of soil microaggregates in wet-dry cycles: A case study for arable Luvisols under different management

In the hierarchical model of soil aggregates, small soil microaggregates (small SMA; <20 μm) are often considered to be fundamental building units at the micron scale. Below which, soil colloids (<1 µm) have recently been proposed as binding agents of (micro)aggregates. However, the way in which soil colloids contribute to the formation and stability of soil micro- and macroaggregates remains largely unknown. For clarification, we evaluated potential impacts of the colloidal content, particularly the <450 nm colloids, on the aggregation of small SMA. Free water stable small SMA and <450 nm colloids were isolated from Ap-horizons of Stagnic Luvisols under different management (cropped and bare fallow). The size-resolved elemental composition of the <450 nm colloids was analyzed by asymmetric flow field-flow fractionation in combination with an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer and an organic carbon detector. To vary the colloidal content in small SMA, (1) suspensions containing different amounts of <450 nm colloids were added in small SMA, or (2) <1 µm colloids were removed from small SMA by centrifugation. In the maximum colloidal addition treatment, the mass ratios of added colloids to small SMA were 3.0 and 5.1 wt% for the cropped and bare fallow soil samples, respectively. Aggregation of small SMA with different colloidal amounts was performed in three successive wet-dry cycles. Afterwards, the size distribution of the resulting aggregates was measured by laser diffraction. Our results indicated that, in wet-dry cycles, colloids were important binding agents for the formation of SMA. Their presence, especially those <450 nm, was likely to support the formation of solid bridges during drying at particle contacts of 1–10 µm small SMA, favoring hereby SMA build-up in a relatively small size range of 1–40 µm. In contrast, the absence of <1 μm colloids in small SMA led to a preferential generation of relatively large aggregates in wet-dry cycles, i.e., typically with sizes >40 μm up to 1700 μm in maximum. Our study on aggregation in wet-dry cycles revealed that the colloidal content has a controlling effect on the size distribution of resulting aggregates by acting as a binding agent and provides hereby new insights into the evolvement of aggregate hierarchy in soils.

Enhancing the Quality of Monoterpenes in (Cymbopogon nardus (L.) Rendle) Through Rhizobacteria Application Toward Sustained Soil Health

Cymbopogon nardus is an aromatic plant which produces essential oil. Citronellal, citronellol, and geraniol as well-known as monoterpenes. The component of monoterpenes in this research were triggered by organic matter, such as organic manure and rhizobacteria. Organic fertilizers are used for environmentally friendly by maintaining soil and plant health and it’s necessary to achieve agricultural sustainability. Rhizobacteria are beneficial microorganisms for plants and soil for environmental management of both soil, plants, and soil micro biodiversity. Rhizobacteria contributes to soil fertilization through bio-fixation and bio-solubilization of essential nutrients along with the production of growth regulators. Microorganisms regulate the mechanism of absorption and mobility of nutrients in soil. The objective of this research is to investigate the effects of rhizobacteria and organic manure on the component of monoterpenes as well as the content of citronellal, citronellol, and geraniol. The results research show that C. nardus treated with rhizobacteria accumulating of nitrogen 1% and geraniol 5% in leaves which is more than those without rhizobacteria. Interestingly, content of citronellal and citronellol in leaves increased reach at 10% treated by without rhizobacteria and it higher than those supplied with rhizobacteria. In that case, citronellal, citronellol, geraniol formed from the carbon which was seems supplied by organic manure. Furthermore, rhizobacteria treatment shows a stable content of oil components in various rates of organic manure, but able to increase the oil yield at about 30% of C. nardus. Meanwhile, without supply of rhizobacteria, the result of oil yield relatively similar in various rates of organic manure. Regarding to the results, found that application of rhizobacteria able to increase the fresh weight, dry weight, and oil content. As consequently, contribution of rhizobacteria and organic manure to the mechanism of mineralization and improve soil health indirectly. Hence, plant able to uptake and accumulation nutrients in particular nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium.

Microarthropod as soil quality indicator for ravenous soils of North-West Bundelkhand region

In this study microarthropod population was compared with established soil quality index (SQI), so that indicator potential of soil microarthropods could be established. Forty-three georeferenced sites based on advanced techniques were selected from the major representative land uses viz., arable land, forest, grazing land and degraded land that fall under four administrative districts viz., Datia, Jalaun, Hamirpur and Tikamgarh. The samples were analysed for soil physical, chemical, and biological parameters. The soil quality index (SQI) was computed using minimum data set derived through principal component analysis and based on expert opinion. Soil organic carbon, microbial biomass carbon, nitrogen, potassium, and clay content were selected as contributors of soil quality index. Regression between SQI and micro arthropod abundance established a definite relationship, establishing that the soil micro arthropods might be used as soil quality index for monitoring soil quality for this geography.

Effect of Palm Oil Processing Waste on Soil Microorganisms

This work was carried out to perform the comparative analysis on the effects of palm oil processing waste (POPW) on soil Microorganisms. Three soil samples were collected from three different locations, North bank, Wurukum, and High-level where palm oil processing waste are being discharged. The samples were analyzed, Soil samples unimpacted with POPW served as control. The physicochemical parameters of the soil samples that is pH, moisture, Temperature and particulate nature were analyzed using standard methods. The total coliform count, total viable count and total fungal counts were evaluated using the pour plate method. Result showed that the Total Coliform, Total viable count and Total fungal counts (200.77 ±16.525 mean of the three samples, 22.55 ±2.041 mean of three samples and 28.88 ±2.590 mean of the three samples) of the impacted soils were lower compared to the values (291.00 ±13.00 in control soil, 118.33 ±18.717 control soil and 44.33 ±1.527 control soil respectively) of the un-impacted soils which served as control. The bacterial genera isolated from these soil samples include; Bacillus spp, Klebsiella, Staphylococcus spp, Salmonella spp and Proteus spp. The fungal genera isolated from soils with POPW includes; Aspergillus spp, Rhizopus spp, and Mucor spp, the results obtained indicates that POPW have immediate negative impact on soil microbiota as their application could lead to changes which affects soil microbial communities. Therefore, it would be advised that proper guidelines be set up for possible pre-treatment and safe discharge of POPW, in other to avoid its effect on soil micro biota and soil fertility.

Plants Performance in the coal mining restoration area in Tabang, East Kalimantan

Coal mining production in East Kalimantan use open mining methods that changes ecosystem performance. After mining activity, the company is obligate to restore and rehabilitate the area to improve the land conditions. The study aims to evaluate plant performance in four different plants age to give brief information in restoration and rehabilitation in post coal mining land. Four different ages of two species, Falcataria falcata and Enterolobium cyclocarpum, were measured for diameter, height, and survival rate in the 0.25 ha of the plot sample. The measurement indicated that Falcataria falcata could reach diameter and height rate per year in 2.89 centimetres and 2.08 meters, respectively. As comparison, The Enterolobium cyclocarpum diameter performance could reach 3.54 centimetres per year; however, height performances only reach 1.75 meter per year. The first species indicated better indication for the standing performance; however, the other species indicated better performance in the canopy cover that could be advantage for soil micro climate and water conservation.

Improved assessment of the impacts of plant protection products on certain soil ecosystem services requires better consideration of terrestrial microalgae and cyanobacteria.

There is growing scientific and societal consciousness that the environmental risks and impacts of plant protection products (PPPs) cannot be properly assessed without considering ecosystem services. However, the science on this issue remains incomplete and fragmented, as recently illustrated in a collective scientific assessment that pointed out the limited knowledge on the risks and impacts of PPPs on soil ecosystem services, which are clearly overlooked. Beside soil ecosystem services, certain key players involved in these services are largely overlooked in the scientific literature on the risks and impacts of PPPs, namely soil microbial photosynthetic communities. Here, we followed the principles of evidence-based logic chain approaches to show the importance of considering these microorganisms when studying the impacts of PPPs on certain services provided by soil ecosystems, with a focus on regulating and maintenance services that play a role in the regulation of baseline flows and extreme events. Terrestrial microalgae and cyanobacteria are ubiquitous photosynthetic microorganisms that, together with other soil micro- and macro-organisms, play key roles in the ecosystem functions that underpin these ecosystem services. There is an extensive literature on the ecotoxicological effects of PPPs on different organisms including soil microorganisms, but studies concerning soil microbial photosynthetic communities are very scarce. However, there is scientific evidence that herbicides can have both direct and indirect impacts on these microbial photosynthetic communities. Given that they play key functional roles, we argue that soil microbial photosynthetic communities warrant greater attention in efforts to assess the environmental risks and impacts of PPPs and, ultimately, help preserve or restore the regulating and maintenance services provided by soil ecosystems.

Macrofauna amplify plant litter decomposition and stabilization in arctic soils in a warming climate

The soil organic carbon (SOC) pool of the Arctic region is currently protected by low temperatures, but is likely to decrease due to greater organic matter (OM) decomposition under a warmer climate. Negative feedback for climate warming can, however, be reversed by SOC accrual as climate warming leads to shifts in arctic vegetation (from grass to shrub) and soil faunal (introduction of macrofauna) communities affecting plant-soil C allocation. To decipher these contrasting effects, we performed a laboratory experiment with soils from dry tundra to test the interacting effects of plant litter quality (high-quality grass litter vs. the intermediate- and low-quality litter of shrubs) and soil fauna functional grouping (micro-, meso- and macrofauna [millipede]) on the processes of litter decomposition and OM stabilization.Our findings showed that macrofauna largely promoted decomposition of shrub litter, while soil micro- and mesofauna were mainly responsible for the decomposition of grass litter. Our study thus confirmed that, when introduced and established in a warmer Arctic, macrofauna may become an important agent in shrub litter decomposition. Our data also showed that with shrub litter, higher C content was stabilized as particulate OM (POM) in aggregates, whereas in grass litter and low-quality shrub litter, higher C content was stabilized as mineral-associated OM (MAOM). Both these effects were larger in the presence of macrofauna and with a higher abundance of fungi. This suggests that consequent shrub OM stabilization in occluded POM and MAOM fractions will be carried out jointly by macrofauna and fungi, which will probably lead to more efficient OM stabilization in Arctic soils than in the case of grass litter OM stabilization by micro- and mesofauna and bacteria. In conclusion, our study suggests that vegetation changes and the introduction of macrofauna in a warming climate will most probably lead to higher OM stabilization in Arctic soils.

Undrained response of fibre reinforced expansive soil subjected to cyclic loading

The evaluation of dynamic soil characteristics is a crucial task in understanding the geotechnical engineering problems associated with dynamic loads. Most of the investigations concentrated on non-expansive materials, and there is a dearth of information on the dynamic performance of fibre reinforced expansive soil. This research paper presents the experimental soundings on unreinforced and reinforced expansive soil with randomly distributed polypropylene fibre with varying confining pressures under cyclic loading. Furthermore, to understand the micro structural behavior of the fibre reinforced soil, samples are examined under SEM analysis after being subjected to cyclic loading. Quantitative analysis of soil micro pores was done through image processing. In addition, the study also included the presentation of maximum shear modulus, a modulus reduction curve and a pore pressure variation curve. Experimental results indicate that, the addition of fibres caused an improvement in the dynamic shear modulus and damping ratio with a rise in confining pressure. Inclusion of fibres reduces the permanent strain. The change of dynamic shear modulus and damping ratio over shear strain amplitude and the dynamic shear stress–strain curves were analyzed under different confining pressures. From the SEM analysis, fibre reinforced soil has a fabric with large packets of soil particles. Moreover, the presence of fibres enhanced pore distribution and diminished considerable amount of voids. The results of image processing shown the area porosity of unreinforced soil is 25.3% and that for 1% of fibre reinforced soil is 6.9%. This shows the enhancement of the interface effect of soil reinforced with fibre, which strengthens the soil and integrity.

Assessing the Tolerance Impact of Fungal Isolates against Lead and Zinc Heavy Metals under Controlled Conditions

Now a day’s cultivated lands are being polluted with heavy metals which is become very common issue in the country as well as across the globe due to increase in geologic and anthropogenic activity. Because of human activity, there is excess release of heavy metals like cadmium, copper, lead, nickel, zinc, and/are going on increasing up to alarming level which may significantly affects the crop yield and soil micro flora as well. Reports revealed that biological treatments, especially filamentous fungi are playing an important role in removal of heavy metals from the contaminated environment of the ecosystem. Hence, in present study we have isolated filamentous fungi viz., Trichoderma spp. and Aspergillus niger from contaminated soil with heavy metals with aim to find their tolerance properties towards selective heavy metals such as, Lead and Zinc. Findings of our study highlighted that Trichoderma spp. have greater ability to grow under varying Zinc and Lead concentration and shows greater tolerance limit of 0.98 at 5mM of Zinc concentration and 0.83 tolerance limits at 100 ppm lead concentration. Similarly, the fungi Aspergillus niger has ability to grow faster at high lead concentration and shows tolerance limit of 1.07 at 200 ppm of lead concentration. Thus, it is concluded that the filament fungi namely Trichoderma spp. and Aspergillus niger are efficient in removal of toxic heavy metals from the polluted soil. Hence, we can employ these fungi individually or in consortium as effective agents for bioremediation of the contaminated soil in order to crop cultivation and enhancing the yield of useful crop plants for supplying the demand of growing population.

Soil Fertility Analysis Using IoT

Abstract: Soil is crucial for economic and social development as it provides the foundation for plant growth and life cycle. Agriculture heavily relies on resources like land and fertilizer to produce food. However, the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS) reports that the annual soil loss rate in India is about 15.35 tonnes per hectare, which leads to the loss of 5.37 to 8.4 million tonnes of nutrients. This is due to intensive agricultural practices that cause nutrient imbalance and soil depletion, exacerbated by a lack of awareness about soil health. The declining soil health is one of the reasons for stagnant or decreasing crop yields, which will likely worsen in the future. To address this issue, this project aims to use IoT technology to test different types of soil and determine their macronutrient (NPK) and micronutrient values. The measured nutrient values are compared to a dataset of healthy soil samples' ideal nutrient values using an easy-to-use interface that displays pictorial representations. The farmer receives a detailed soil report that compares the soil's micro and macro nutrient values to the ideal values, much like a soil health report card.

Isolation of Pesticide Resistant Bacteria with Biofertilizer Potential from Agricultural Soil of Erutheyampathy, Palakkad, Kerala

Abstract: Soil loaded with millions of microorganisms forms the most important medium for the survival, growth and multiplication of microorganisms along with plant growth promotion. Understanding the importance of soil micro flora will enable us to learn deeply about soil ecosystem which could be effectively utilized in agricultural practices. The quantity of production is increased gradually by treating large variety of chemical pesticides, which also inhibits the useful microorganisms present in the soil. Chemical pesticides kills the useful bacteria, nematodes, earthworms also causing health effects to people. In this study the soil samples were collected from tomato farms of Erutheympathy where chemical pesticides is used. Total heterotopic population were determined and predominant bacteria were identified as genus Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Serratia, Micrococcus and Enterococcus. After studying pesticide resistance property Pseudomonas found to be resistant to pesticide followed by Serratia. After analysing the bio fertilizer potential for NPK of isolated bacteria Bacillus and Pseudomonas found to solubilize Phosphorus and Potassium. Bacillus, Serratia, Micrococcus and Enterococcus found to have role in conversion of nitrogen which can be absorbed by plants. Unique combination of the soil bacteria with pesticide resistance and bio fertilizer property is a boon to farmers since soil fertility can be retained even after application of chemical pesticide. Key Words: Tomato, Pesticides, Bio fertilizers

Multivariate prediction of soil aggregate-associated organic carbon by simulating satellite sensor bands

Soil aggregate-associated organic carbon (SAOC) is critical for maintaining soil quality and environmental health. To realize non-destructive and potentially applicable assessments on SAOC by using the hyperspectral technology, the resampling method was adopted to simulate the different satellites bands and the three multivariate methods of support vector machine (SVM), back propagation neural network (BPNN) and random forest (RF) were also implemented to calibrate the predictive models on SAOC. The results showed that the computed Three-band index 2 (TBI2) was proved to be highly related to both soil micro- and macroaggregate-associated organic carbon (OC) among all spectral indexes, and the highest correlation coefficient (R = −0.443) was obtained between the microaggregate-associated OC and TBI2 derived from the simulated bands 7, 4, 10 of Sentinel-2 satellite. For the macroaggregate-associated OC, the good correlation (R = −0.422) was also acquired with TBI2 which was constructed by using the simulated bands 7, 6, and 1 from the Sentinel-2 satellite. The calibrated models show that accepted accuracy for microaggregate-associated OC was achieved with R2 = 0.773, RMSE = 0.853, RPD = 1.808, and it outperformed than macroaggregates model (R2 = 0.709; RMSE = 0.969, RPD = 1.255) which was limited in the practical application with lower predictive accuracy. The results of correlation analysis and multivariate models performance indicated that the microaggregate-associated OC is highly related to responding to the spectral band simulated with different satellites than macroaggregates. This study provides a possible way to link the hyperspectral and remote sensing satellites, and open up opportunity for large-scale estimation on SAOC.

Improving crop nutrition, soil carbon storage and soil physical fertility using ramial wood chips

Ramial wood chips (RWC) amendment has great potential in sustainable agriculture; however more data is needed to assess its effect on soil fertility and carbon (C) storage. In this study, we investigated the effect of a single application of RWC amendment on a silty clay loam soil. During the 5 year experiment, we measured biomass production, grain yields and crop nutrient uptake. At the end of the experiment, we measured soil micro- and macronutrients, soil organic C (SOC) content and thermal stability, microbial biomass C (Cmic), and organic C and total N contents in soil particle size fractions. Soil physical properties, including structural porosity, air and water capacity, were also measured. Neither crop biomass production nor grain yields were affected by RWC. However, RWC was found to affect nutrient uptake, with improved N, P and Mg uptakes for the 2nd and 3rd crops after RWC amendment, and decreased Mn, Fe and Zn uptakes in the second half of the study period. The initially low SOC content increased by 10%, mainly in the mineral-associated organic matter fraction, resulting in a higher SOC stability. The increase in SOC following RWC amendment decreased the bulk density and increased the easily available water capacity due to a larger structural porosity. The increased porosity in the 15–30μm diameter range was ascribed to a change in SOC quality. In conclusion, RWC amendment improved macronutrient uptake in the short term, but decreased micronutrient uptake in the medium term. RWC increased SOC content and positively affected SOC quality, thus improving soil physical properties including water capacity and aeration.