Monitoring and mapping soil functionality in degraded areas of organic European vineyards

Póster presentado en el 11th International Terroir Congress, celebrado en Willamette Valley, Oregon (Estados Unidos) del 10 al 14 de julio de 2016.Soil malfunctioning, caused by an improper land preparation before vine plantation and/or management, is a common problem in European vineyards. Soil malfunctioning can include: reduced contribution of the soil fauna, poor organic matter content, imbalance nutritional status, altered pH, water deficiency, soil compaction and/or scarce oxygenation. To address these problems, ReSolVe, a transnational European research project, aimed at testing the effects of selected agronomic strategies for restoring optimal soil functionality in degraded areas within organic vineyard. The project involves 8 research groups in 6 different EU countries (Italy, Spain, France, Sweden, Slovenia, and Turkey) with experts from several disciplines including soil science, ecology, microbiology, grapevine physiology, viticulture, and biometry. The experimental vineyards are situated in Italy (Chianti hills and Maremma plain, Tuscany), Spain (La Rioja), France (Bordeaux and Languedoc), and Slovenia (Primorska) for winegrapes, and in Turkey (Adana and Mersin) for tablegrapes. Three different restoring strategies have been implemented: (i) compost, (ii) green manure with winter legumes, and (iii) dry mulching with cover crops. These strategies have being tested according to their efficiency to improve i) plant and root growth; and ii) grape yield and quality; optimize iii) the quality of soil ecosystem services; and iv) the terroir effect. The first activity of the project was characterizing and mapping the degraded areas within experimental vineyards. In the work we used non-invasive technologies to characterize soil and plant status. In Spanish and Italian vineyards, the delineation of degraded areas was performed by gamma-ray spectroscopy for topsoil, RGB machine vision for canopy status and thermography for plant water status. Gamma-ray spectroscopy measured continuously the natural gamma-ray emitted from the first 30-40 cm of soil, calculating the contribution of the main radionuclides (40K, 232Th, and 238U). The spectra of gamma-ray were able to provide information about mineralogy, texture, surficial stoniness and carbonates. RGB and thermal cameras were used to assess canopy porosity, leaf area exposure and vine water status of both degraded and non-degraded areas. All soil, canopy and water status parameters were mapped.Peer Reviewe

Soil indicators to assess the effectiveness of restoration strategies in dryland ecosystems

Soil indicators may be used for assessing both land suitability for restoration and the effectiveness of restoration strategies in restoring ecosystem functioning and services. In this review paper, several soil indicators, which can be used to assess the effectiveness of ecological restoration strategies in dryland ecosystems at different spatial and temporal scales, are discussed. The selected indicators represent the different viewpoints of pedology, ecology, hydrology, and land management. Two overall outcomes stem from the review. (i) The success of restoration projects relies on a proper understanding of their ecology, namely the relationships between soil, plants, hydrology, climate, and land management at different scales, which are particularly complex due to the heterogeneous pattern of ecosystems functioning in drylands. (ii) The selection of the most suitable soil indicators follows a clear identification of the different and sometimes competing ecosystem services that the project is aimed at restoring

The contribution of the European Society for Soil Conservation (ESSC) to scientific knowledge, education and sustainability

Soil is an integral component of the global environmental system which supports the quality and diversity of terrestrial life on Earth. Therefore, it is vital to consider the processes and impacts of soil degradation on society, especially on the provision of environmental goods and services, including food security and climate change mitigation and adaptation. Scientific societies devoted to soil science play significant roles in reducing soil degradation and promoting soil conservation by advancing scientific knowledge, education and environmental sustainability. The ESSC was founded on 4 November 1988, with the aims to: 1. Support research on soil degradation, soil protection and soil and water conservation. 2. Provide a network for the exchange of knowledge about soil degradation processes and soil conservation research and practises. 3. Produce publications on major issues relating to soil degradation and soil and water conservation. 4. Advise regulators and policy-makers on soil issues, especially soil degradation, protection and conservation. The societal challenges that can be addressed through better soil protection, advancing knowledge and scientific approaches to soil protection and sustainable management, mean the ESSC embraces the on-going development, application, review and constructive criticism of highly innovative scientific soil conservation methods. In this context, the ESSC analyses and publicizes the roles and functions of soil in natural and human-modified systems and the functional optimization of soils to ensure sustainable environmental protection. “The thin layer of soil that forms a patchy covering over the continents controls our own existence and that of every other animal of the land” (Rachel Carson (1962) in ‘Silent Spring’).European Society for Soil Conservatio

Considering Cloddiness When Estimating Rooting Capacity and Soil Fertility

The estimate of soil fertility, namely water and nutrient availability, and biological activity, is usually made considering soil as being uniform in the reference layer. The potential fertility is thus estimated for homogeneous soil volumes. However, both the soil profile and its horizons are often not homogeneous for many characteristics and properties. The soil rooting volume, in particular, can be limited by the presence of obstacles, such as bedrock, cemented layers, and stones, but also by soil masses, or clods, that are so dense that they cannot be penetrated by roots. Clods can not only occur at the soil surface but also throughout the soil profile and within a horizon, especially after the deep soil cultivation of clayey, poorly structured soils. The presence of clods is usually considered for the soil surface, but is always overlooked in the estimation of soil fertility. This bias can deeply affect the estimation of available water and nutrients, influencing irrigation, dosing of fertilizers, and the choice of rootstocks for tree crops. This work shows an innovative method that considers the presence of clods in the volume of soil horizons when estimating the potential soil rooting capacity. A reference soil under viticulture was used as an example. Visual soil assessment, bulk density and particle size were used to estimate the volume occupied by clods. The values of available water-holding capacity were then corrected according to the potential rooting capacity. The correction increased markedly the estimation of potential water stress and explained vine phenology and the agronomic result. Considering effective rooting capacity could be relevant to improve crop yield and sustainability

Clay minerals and the development of Quaternary soils in central Italy

HIV y capas mezcladas de illita-clorita, y clorita. El envejecimiento del suelo se caracteriza por un cambio en la composición de minerales arcillosos, que aumenta con la edad. La argiluviación está marcada por una acumulación preferencial de caolinita en horizontes iluviales, mientras que la formación de lenguas en fragipanes no produce ninguna diferencia significativa en la composición de minerales arcillosos entre las partes lavadas y manchadas de los horizontes. Más aún, la densidad aparente de los fragipanes no está relacionada con el contenido de minerales arcillosos. Por otra parte, las grandes masas lavadas en suelos más maduros contienen más kaolinita y vermiculita que la masa circundante. Las tendencias de los contenidos de minerales arcillosos a través de los horizontes del suelo confirman los dos tipos de discontinuidades litológicas que fueron pronosticadas durante levantamientos de campo

Soil Physical-Hydrological Degradation in the Root-Zone of Tree Crops: Problems and Solutions

The diffusion of tree crops has continuously increased during the last decades all over the world. The market boost has favored the adoption of intensive and highly mechanized cultivation, often triggering the degradation of the soil physical-hydrological qualities, mainly through enhanced soil erosion and compaction. Several papers have been published on soil degradation and restoration strategies in specific perennial crops and environments. This review paper collects such studies showing the sensitivity of soil under tree crops to the degradation of their physical-hydrological qualities. Then it reports the state of the art on the methodologies used for the evaluation of the physical-hydrological qualities in the field and in the laboratory, also suggesting an improved methodology for estimating the actual available water capacity. Some updated and promising experiences to recover the physical-hydrological qualities of soil are then illustrated. In particular, subsoiling and placement of drainages, spreading of organic amendments, compost, biochar, using of cover crops, and biological inoculants. A key point in applying the restoration practices is that they should not only be specific for the soil and tree rooting system, but also tailored according to the ecosystem functions that need to be improved besides plant health and yield

Soil Physical-Hydrological Degradation in the Root-Zone of Tree Crops: Problems and Solutions

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