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Microcalorimetric study of the effects of long-term fertilization on soil microbial activity in a wheat field on the Loess Plateau

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Abstract

The effects of the long-term inorganic (nitrogen, N; phosphate, P) and organic (manure, M; straw, S) fertilizers/managemenet individually and in combinations (N, NP, SNP, M, and MNP) on soil microbial activity were investigated in a wheat field on the Loess Plateau, China. Microcalorimetry was used to determine microbial activity under different treatments. Nearly 30 years of consecutive fertilization has altered the culturable population of soil bacteria and fungi, the highest ones were detected in the treatments of manure and MNP, followed by the NP and SNP treatments. The microbial growth rate constant (μ/h−1) was significantly greater in the MNP treatment than all the other treatments. The total heat exchange values (Q/J) were the highest in the MNP and NP treatments, which were significantly different from the N and M treatments. The peak height (P t/μW) were significantly higher in MNP and NP treatments than in the remaining treatments. The peak time values (t p/h) among the MNP, NP, SNP and M, N and CK treatments were significantly different. In general, comparing with control, soil microbial activity was much higher in MNP, NP and SNP treatments, all including the phosphate fertilizer. Our results showed that the application of inorganic fertilizer and organic manure have positive effects on multiple soil chemical parameters, soil microorganism abundance and activity, and hence crop yield.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by National Basic Research Program (2012CB026105), National Natural Science Foundation (31170482, 31370450), PhD Programs Foundation of Ministry of Education (2010021111002, 20110211110021), The Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (LZUJBKY-2013-92) in China, and State Key Laboratory of Frozen Soil Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences (SKLFSE200901).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. MOE Key Laboratory of Cell Activities and Stress Adaptations, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China

    Qi Zhang, Xiaomei Liu, Xiaojun Ma, Fasi Wu, Lizhe An & Huyuan Feng

  2. College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China

    Jian Fang

  3. Dryland Agricultural Institute, Gansu Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, 730070, Gansu, China

    Tinglu Fan

Authors
  1. Qi Zhang
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  2. Xiaomei Liu
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  3. Xiaojun Ma
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  4. Jian Fang
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  5. Tinglu Fan
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  6. Fasi Wu
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  7. Lizhe An
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  8. Huyuan Feng
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Huyuan Feng.

Additional information

Q Zhang and Xiaomei Liu contributed equally to this work.

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Zhang, Q., Liu, X., Ma, X. et al. Microcalorimetric study of the effects of long-term fertilization on soil microbial activity in a wheat field on the Loess Plateau. Ecotoxicology 23, 2035–2040 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-014-1315-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-014-1315-6

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