The scale and extent of the impact of farming on the natural environment are so wide-ranging that in many places on our planet, and especially in Europe, an ever growing pressure is being exerted on limiting or eliminating negative effects of this impact. Actions in this sphere adopted a concept of so-called sustainable farming, which combines production objectives with the requirements of environmental protection thanks to the application of integrated plant proPol. J. Environ. Stud. Vol. 24, No. 1 (2015), [285][286][287][288][289][290][291][292][293][294] Original Research Microbiological AbstractTraditional ploughing cultivation can contribute to soil erosion as well as to other symptoms of soil degradation, leading to a decline in its biological and production potentials. An alternative to conventional tillage is offered by simplified cultivation systems consisting of shallower and less intensive interference into the soil physical structure or even complete abandonment of cultivation treatment. The aim of the performed investigations was to ascertain the impact of a long-term application of simplifications in soil tillage on select soil chemical and microbiological properties under sugar beet cultivation employing two watering combinations: natural distribution of precipitation and sprinkling. Conventional ploughing tillage was treated as reference. The research hypothesis assumed that the application of simplifications in the pre-sowing soil cultivation of sugar beets contributes to the increase in soil organic carbon content and soil fertility. Its microbiological activity and sprinkling also can modify this effect.Experiments were carried out for a period of four years in conditions of long-term application of three tillage systems (conventional tillage, simplified cultivation, and direct sowing). Select soil chemical (pH, C org. , total N) and microbiological (total bacterial counts, numbers of oligotrophs, copiotrophs, actinomycetes and fungi, plus activity of dehydrogenases and acid phosphatase) parameters were analyzed.The microbiological indices analyzed in this study nearly always spoke in favour of simplifications in soil tillage or complete abandonment of cultivation treatments. In successive years of experiments, almost all the analyzed parameters assumed the lowest values in conditions of ploughing cultivation and the highest ones in direct sowing. Sprinkling and fertilization modified this rule, whereas the level and directions of this impact varied and depended on weather conditions.

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The aim of the study was to compare the influence of selected soil bioconditioners and traditional fertilisation P+K+Ca on the vitality and yield of Lolium perenne and on the microbiological state of soil. The study was conducted between 2008 and 2009 – it was based on a field experiment started in 2006, in Brody, at the Agricultural Experiment Station of the Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poland. The factorial experiment was conducted in a randomized block design, with three replications. Two experimental factors were used: - non-nitrogen fertilisation (Physio-Mescal G18, PRP-SOL, Effective Microorganisms, Effective Microorganisms + Ca, P+K+Ca); - nitrogen fertilisation (N0 and N200 kg ha-1). The following parameters were measured: the yield of dry matter of perennial ryegrass, the plants’ vitality (chlorophyll concentration), the count of selected groups of soil microorganisms (heterotrophic, oligotrophic, copiotrophic bacteria, actinobacteria, fungi), soil enzymatic activity (dehydrogenases, acid phosphatase), and soil pH. The experiment showed that the bioconditioners were not an alternative to traditional mineral fertilisation, especially to nitrogen fertilisation, as a basic yield factor, but they could be a very valuable supplement to this fertilisation, and help to maintain the right biological potential of soil and its fertility, especially in the places where no manure or other non-chemical fertilisers are used.

Summary. The objective of the study was to determine the dynamics of the enzymatic activity in a substrate containing a microbiological inoculum (Effective Microorganisms -EM) intended to improve French marigold growth and flowering. The material used in the study was peat substrate of 5.5-6.0 pH into which plants were planted and then inoculated with different doses of the EM biofertilizer (1 : 10, 1 : 50, 1 : 100). Samples of the substrate on which experimental plants were cultivated were collected during the following three phases: the phase of seedling planting, the phase of vegetative growth and the phase of flowering. The scope of investigations comprised determination of the activity of dehydrogenases, urease and acid phosphatase activity by the spectrophotometric method. In addition, the following plant morphological analyses were performed: plant height, shoot number and length, number of buds and inflorescences, and leaf greenness index (SPAD). It was found that the phase of plant development was proved to be the main determinant of the activity of the enzymes under study. The EM biofertilizer had positive * The study was supported by NCN (National Science Centre) grant no. N N305 0361 40.Wolna-Maruwka, A., Mocek-Płóciniak, A., Schroeter-Zakrzewska, A., Niewiadomska, A., Piechota, T., Swędrzyńska, D., Kosicka, D., . The influence of a microbial inoculum on the enzymatic activity of peat and morphological features of the French marigold. Nauka Przyr. Technol., 9, 4, #47. DOI: 10.17306/J. NPT.2015.4.47 2 effect on the acid phosphatase activity. However, the preparation did not have stimulating effect on the activity of urease or dehydrogenases. The EM biofertilizer concentrated at 1 : 100 and applied into the soil and foliage resulted in a larger number of darker leaves and greater number of inflorescences on the plants.

Recently, an increasing interest in such fertilizers and fertilization methods which not only directly supply nutrients to plants, but also stimulate soil bioactivity is noted. Their effect on both soil microbiota and forage plants has not been fully recognized. The aim of the study was to investigate the combined effect of forage plant mixture type and mineral fertilizers (NPK) with biostimulants based on a marine algae extracts on the botanical composition, yield, the structure of selected taxonomic and trophic groups of soil microorganisms, and the soil enzymatic activity. During the years 2018–2019 a field experiment established in split-plot design with two different forage plant mixtures, as a first factor, and different fertilization basing on mineral fertilizers amended with biostimulants, as a second factor was conducted. Two types of forage mixtures of sown species were used: grass mixture (GM) and legume-grass mixture (LGM). Every year the following biostimulants were applied: N-14, PinKstart, Physiostart, Physioactive and they were compared with standard NPK fertilisation and no fertilisation as a control. The reaction of forage plant mixtures on applied fertilisation was different. The intensive development of grass species, mainly Lolium perenne, at the expense of Trifolium repens share in LGM was observed. In GM sward dominated Dactylis glomerata. A beneficial effects of biostimulants’ application on the biomass yields of both grass mixtures was observed. The systematic soil acidification and a decrease of soil enzymatic activity in result of applied fertilization, except NPK + Physioactive treatment (calcium fertilizer containing 76% calcium carbonate), was noted. Soil reaction to applied fertilisation was dependent on the botanical composition of the sward. The counts of microorganisms in the soil under LGM were almost two times higher than in the soil under GM. The most effective, in reducing the negative effect of nitrogen mineral fertilization on the pH of soil, was fertilization with NPK + Physioactiv.