Carbon dynamics in soils – Does the diversity of organic inputs matter?
The soil biota can be regarded as the ‘biological engine’ of the Earth, driving many of the key ecosystem services which soils deliver. Besides carbon and nutrients, the soil biota require energy to function. “By including energy properties of organic inputs, we can increase our understanding of soil carbon dynamics in diversified cropping systems”, says Louis J. P. Dufour
A toxic friendship: How cereal crops can make faba beans stronger
In the field, they stand side by side: the robust rye with its tough stems and the humble faba bean with its plump pods. At first glance, it might just look like a mixed crop. But beneath the surface, a chemical drama is unfolding – one that researchers from Aarhus University aim to examine in a new project supported by Independent Research Fund Denmark. Rye excretes defensive compounds — benzoxazinoids — into the soil, and faba beans absorb them like a kind of botanical bodyguard.
“We’ve discovered that legumes can absorb these compounds from the soil, which makes them more resistant to root-dwelling parasitic nematodes,” explains Professor Mette Vestergård Madsen from the Department of Agroecology at Aarhus Universit
Are agricultural pesticides an environmental threat?
A University of Helsinki study demonstrated that pesticides can negatively affect non-target species living in agricultural environment. However, the effects varied greatly depending on the substance tested.
