Impact of fertilizing pattern on the biodiversity of a weed community and wheat growth.

Weeding and fertilization are important farming practices. Integrated weed management should protect or improve the biodiversity of farmland weed communities for a better ecological environment with not only increased crop yield, but also reduced use of herbicides. This study hypothesized that appropriate fertilization would benefit both crop growth and the biodiversity of farmland weed communities. To study the effects of different fertilizing patterns on the biodiversity of a farmland weed community and their adaptive mechanisms, indices of species diversity and responses of weed species and wheat were investigated in a 17-year field trial with a winter wheat-soybean rotation. This long term field trial includes six fertilizing treatments with different N, P and K application rates. The results indicated that wheat and the four prevalent weed species (Galium aparine, Vicia sativa, Veronica persica and Geranium carolinianum) showed different responses to fertilizer treatment in terms of density, plant height, shoot biomass, and nutrient accumulations. Each individual weed population exhibited its own adaptive mechanisms, such as increased internode length for growth advantages and increased light interception. The PK treatment had higher density, shoot biomass, Shannon-Wiener and Pielou Indices of weed community than N plus P fertilizer treatments. The N1/2PK treatment showed the same weed species number as the PK treatment. It also showed higher Shannon-Wiener and Pielou Indices of the weed community, although it had a lower wheat yield than the NPK treatment. The negative effects of the N1/2PK treatment on wheat yield could be balanced by the simultaneous positive effects on weed communities, which are intermediate in terms of the effects on wheat and weeds.

Soil nutrient assessment for urban ecosystems in Hubei, China.

Recent urban landscape vegetation surveys conducted in many cities in China identified numerous plant nutrient deficiencies, especially in newly developed cities. Soil nutrients and soil nutrient management in the cities of Hubei province have not received adequate attention to date. The aims of this study were to characterize the available nutrients of urban soils from nine cities in Hubei province, China, and to assess how soil nutrient status is related to land use type and topography. Soil nutrients were measured in 405 sites from 1,215 soil samples collected from four land use types (park, institutional [including government building grounds, municipal party grounds, university grounds, and garden city institutes], residential, and roadside verges) and three topographies (mountainous [142-425 m a.s.l], hilly [66-112 m a.s.l], and plain [26-30 m a.s.l]). Chemical analyses showed that urban soils in Hubei had high pH and lower soil organic matter, available nitrogen (N), available phosphorus (P), and available boron (B) concentrations than natural soils. Nutrient concentrations were significantly different among land use types, with the roadside and residential areas having greater concentrations of calcium (Ca), sulfur (S), copper (Cu), manganese (Mn), and zinc (Zn) that were not deficient against the recommended ranges. Topographic comparisons showed statistically significant effects for 8 of the 11 chemical variables (p < 0.05). Concentrations of N, Ca, Mg, S, Cu, and Mn in plain cities were greater than those in mountainous cities and show a negative correlation with city elevation. These results provide data on urban soils characteristics in land use types and topography, and deliver significant information for city planners and policy makers.

Carbon dioxide flux from rice paddy soils in central China: effects of intermittent flooding and draining cycles.

A field experiment was conducted to (i) examine the diurnal and seasonal soil carbon dioxide (CO(2)) fluxes pattern in rice paddy fields in central China and (ii) assess the role of floodwater in controlling the emissions of CO(2) from soil and floodwater in intermittently draining rice paddy soil. The soil CO(2) flux rates ranged from -0.45 to 8.62 µmol.m(-2).s(-1) during the rice-growing season. The net effluxes of CO(2) from the paddy soil were lower when the paddy was flooded than when it was drained. The CO(2) emissions for the drained conditions showed distinct diurnal variation with a maximum efflux observed in the afternoon. When the paddy was flooded, daytime soil CO(2) fluxes reversed with a peak negative efflux just after midday. In draining/flooding alternating periods, a sudden pulse-like event of rapidly increasing CO(2) efflux occured in response to re-flooding after draining. Correlation analysis showed a negative relation between soil CO(2) flux and temperature under flooded conditions, but a positive relation was found under drained conditions. The results showed that draining and flooding cycles play a vital role in controlling CO(2) emissions from paddy soils.

[Assessment of soil nutrient status in urban green space of main cities in Hubei Province, China].

According to the topography of the cities in Hubei Province, soil samples were collected from the urban green space in two mountainous cities (Enshi and Shiyan), three hilly cities (Jing-men, Xiangfan and Yichang), and five plain cities (Wuhan, Xiaogan, Xianning, Jingzhou, Suizhou and Huangshi). Within each city, subsoil samples were taken in accordance with four different types of land use, including park, residential, institutional (school, hospital and government, etc.), and roadside. In the main cities in Hubei, the soil pH of urban green space was averagely 7.9, being obviously higher than that of natural soils, while the soil organic matter content was rather low (6.8 g x kg(-1)). The soil available N and P contents were at a low level, while the soil available trace element (Ca, Mg, S, Fe, Cu, Mn, Zn and B) contents were moderate. Land use type had significant effects on the soil nutrient contents in plain cities. The soil pH in the residential green space was significantly higher than that in the park, roadside and institutional green space, while the contents of soil available trace elements (S, Cu, Mn and Zn) in roadside green space were significantly higher than those of green space in the other land use types. Park green space had the lowest soil nutrient contents. There existed significant differences in the soil nutrient contents among the cities with different topography. The soil organic matter, NH4-N, available K and P, and Ca, Mg, S, Fe, Cu and Mn contents were significantly higher in plain cities than in mountainous cities.