Plant, Soil and Environment, 2019 (vol. 65), issue 9
Is maize suitable for substitution planting in arsenic-contaminated farmlands?Original Paper
Xiaoxia Cao, Lingyu Bai, Xibai Zeng, Junzheng Zhang, Yanan Wang, Cuixia Wu, Shiming Su
Plant Soil Environ., 2019, 65(9):425-434 | DOI: 10.17221/155/2019-PSE 
The efficacy of using maize (Zea mays L.) as a suitable substitute for other crops with high arsenic (As) accumulation in As-contaminated farmlands remains debated. Here, the As uptake capacity and the stability of accumulated As of different maize cultivars were studied using pot and field experiments, outdoor investigations and literature data analysis. When the total and available soil As levels were 238.8 and 8.1 mg/kg, respectively, grain As ranged from 0.03 to 0.07 mg/kg, significantly lower than the acceptable As limit (0.5 mg/kg) for maize in China. The results of field investigations and literature data analysis also supported this...
Effect of autumn nitrogen fertilization on winter oilseed rape growth and yield parametersOriginal Paper
Juraj Béreš, David Bečka, Jaroslav Tomášek, Jan Vašák
Plant Soil Environ., 2019, 65(9):435-441 | DOI: 10.17221/444/2019-PSE
Autumn fertilization of winter oilseed rape with nitrogen was monitored in exactly delimited small field experiment in the period of 2013/14-2015/16. The cultivar used was DK Exstorm, sowing amount: 50 seeds/m2 and fertilizer applied in autumn was Ureastabil - granulated urea with urease inhibitor (NBPT). The application period was at the end of October, doses 40 and 80 kg N/ha. Research results confirmed a statistically important effect of autumn fertilization on growth of the above-ground biomass and roots. Statistically important effect on seed yield was confirmed, too. The dose of 40 kg N/ha resulted...
Long-term effect of soil conservation tillage on soil water content, penetration resistance, crumb ratio and crusted areaOriginal Paper
Igor Bogunović, Péter Gergő Kovács, Igor Ðekemati, Ivica Kisić, István Balla, Márta Birkás
Plant Soil Environ., 2019, 65(9):442-448 | DOI: 10.17221/249/2019-PSE
Conservation tillage harmonizes soil protection with demands of the crop, soil and climate. The continuous conservation tillage improves soil properties and modifies impact of weather extremes. The aim of the paper was to investigate the changes in four soil physical states affected by soil conservation tillage and to evaluate soil water content in a critical period. The study was carried out on Chernozems applying six tillage treatments, that are loosening, ploughing, tine tillage (a deeper, and a shallower), disk tillage and direct drilling. The investigation suggested that soil conservation...
Effects of strip rotary tillage with subsoiling on soil enzyme activity, soil fertility, and wheat yieldOriginal Paper
Jianning He, Zhenwen Yu, Yu Shi
Plant Soil Environ., 2019, 65(9):449-455 | DOI: 10.17221/240/2019-PSE
Inappropriate tillage and soil compaction threaten farmland sustainability in the Huang-Huai-Hai Plains of China. We aimed to explore the impact of plowing tillage, rotary tillage, strip rotary tillage, and strip rotary tillage coupled to a two-year subsoiling interval (STS) on soil quality at various soil depths and on wheat yield. Soil bulk density was substantially lower in the 30-45 cm depth under STS than under any other treatment, resulting in lower soil penetration resistance. Highest soil particle macro-aggregation was observed under STS in the 15-45-cm soil layer.Consistently with greater nutrient availability, key enzymes associated with...
Effect of subsoiling on tillers, root density and nitrogen use efficiency of winter wheat in loessal soilOriginal Paper
Guohua Lv, Wei Han, Hanbo Wang, Wenbo Bai, Jiqing Song
Plant Soil Environ., 2019, 65(9):456-462 | DOI: 10.17221/311/2019-PSE
A 2-year field experiment was carried out in loessal soil in a semi-humid climate to research winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) growth and nitrogen use efficiency. The result showed that subsoiling increased root penetration and promoted deep soil water absorption, which resulted in high resilience to the adverse dry climate. Soil NO3--N residue throughout the profile was decreased but increased in rotary tillage. Grain yield was significantly increased by 21.9% and 11.3% in 2016 and 2017, respectively, mainly due to the significantly larger spikes per hectare and grains...
Assessment of plants for phytoremediation of hydrocarbon-contaminated soils in the Sudd Wetland of South SudanOriginal Paper
Jane Alexander Ruley, John Baptist Tumuhairwe, Alice Amoding, Emmanuel Opolot, Hannington Oryem-Origa, Twaha Basamba
Plant Soil Environ., 2019, 65(9):463-469 | DOI: 10.17221/322/2019-PSE
Hydrocarbon contaminants have become a global concern due to their long-term adverse effects on soil ecosystems and human health. Successful implementation of phytoremediation to clean up hydrocarbon contaminants requires the identification of the most effective remediation plant species. Twelve native plant species of the Sudd Wetland in South Sudan were evaluated for their potential application as phytoremediators. The treatments included six total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) concentrations of 0, 25, 50, 75, 100 and 125 g/kg soil. The twelve native plant species tested were: Sorghum arundinaceum Desv., Oryza longistaminata A. Chev....
Role of sulphate in affecting soil availability of exogenous selenate (SeO42-) under different statuses of soil microbial activityOriginal Paper
Lukáš Praus, Jiřina Száková
Plant Soil Environ., 2019, 65(9):470-476 | DOI: 10.17221/397/2019-PSE
We investigated sulphate application, different statuses of soil microbial activity and their joint effects as variables associated with changes in potentially plant-available selenium (Seppa) and soil Se fractionation during the course of an incubation study. The time-resolved behaviour of added selenate (400 µg Se/kg as Na2SeO4) in two agricultural soils was elucidated by means of single extraction (50 mmol/L NH4H2PO