A reliable method for preserving soil structure in the field for subsequent morphological examinations

Mooney, Sacha J.; Tams, A.R.; Berry, Peter

doi:10.1016/j.geoderma.2005.07.019

Cited by 9 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 8 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…This is a significant step in characterizing heterogeneity of soil environments at micro-scales, as it allows obtaining more precise information regarding the physical structure of the soil aggregate matrix in three dimensions (3D). Solid-pore structures of intact soil matrix have been characterized by extracting fractal dimensions or multifractal spectra (e.g., Dathe and Thullner, 2005;Dathe et al, 2006;Gibson et al, 2006) and by conducting morphological characterization of soil macropore networks (Pierret et al, 1999(Pierret et al, , 2002De Gryze et al, 2004;Mooney et al, 2006Mooney et al, , 2007Mooney and Morris, 2008;Peth et al, 2008;Udawatta et al, 2008). Nunan et al (2006) applied geostatistical tools to quantify pore geometry for soil aggregates 1 to 3 mm in size at a scanning resolution of 4.4 [im.…”

Section: Abbreviationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Intra‐aggregate Pore Characteristics: X‐ray Computed Microtomography Analysis

Wang

Kravchenko

Smucker

et al. 2012

Soil Sci. Soc. Am. j.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Section: Abbreviationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Intra‐aggregate Pore Characteristics: X‐ray Computed Microtomography Analysis

Wang

Kravchenko

Smucker

et al. 2012

Soil Sci. Soc. Am. j.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…Large (∅ 120 mm) intact soil blocks with the plant stem and root structure encapsulated were impregnated in the field to a depth of ca. 100 mm with a water-based household varnish as described by Mooney et al (2006b). Following a subsequent laboratory impregnation with Crystic resin to fill any remaining pore spaces, solidified soil blocks were prepared as thin sections (110 mm × 55 mm) enabling examination at a spatial resolution of 5 lm pixel -1 .…”

Section: Sample Collection and Preparationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Quantification of soil structural changes induced by cereal anchorage failure: Image analysis of thin sections

Mooney

Morris

Craigon

et al. 2007

Z. Pflanzenernähr. Bodenk.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Cereal anchorage failure, or lodging, is the permanent displacement of a crop from the vertical and results in significant annual yield losses globally. Several factors have been identified as contributors to this phenomenon but the precise mechanisms of failure are still largely unknown because of difficulties in observing these processes as they occur in situ. To identify potential soil management practices to minimize losses associated with cereal root failure, an understanding of the nature of root-soil interactions attributed to lodging is needed. An experiment was conducted that involved field impregnation and subsequent thin sectioning of lodged and unlodged root-soil complexes from contrasting soils, cereal crops, and management practices to elucidate the effects of lodging on soil structure and porous architecture. Using image analysis, size and distribution of pores in soils were quantified at both meso-(100-30 lm) and microscales (<30 lm). A significant effect of lodging on porosity was recorded whereby lodging reduced total porosity through compaction created by movement of the stem base, although this was variable among soil types. Pore-size distributions comprehensively supported these trends since alteration in the relative frequency of pores within specific size classes was clearly observed. The effects of lodging were more pronounced at the mesoscale because the data were more susceptible to variations created by natural soil heterogeneity at the microscale. These data suggested that sideways movement of the subterranean stem within the soil is a significant factor which is likely to affect the propensity for a cereal plant to lodge, indicating soil strength in the upper part of the soil profile is crucial.

show abstract

“…Conservation agriculture (a system involving minimum disturbance of the soil, maintenance of permanent soil cover and diversification of crop species) has the potential to contribute to efforts to mitigate climate change as it can reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agricultural soils as well as enhance soil carbon sequestration (Six et al, 2000, West and Post, 2002, Zotarelli et al, 2007, Kong et al, 2009, Helgason et al, 2010, Fernández et al, 2010, Petersen et al, 2011, Mangalassery et al, 2015, Kassam et al, 2016, albeit that some of these claims are contested (Powlson et al, 2014). The mechanisms whereby conservation agriculture may impact GHG emission and soil carbon sequestration are mainly linked to how tillage practices and plant residue retention affect soil structure, thereby influencing the physio-chemical and hydrothermal soil conditions which control the GHG fluxes ( (Schjønning and Rasmussen, 2000, Beare et al, 2009, Mooney et al, 2006, Mangalassery et al, 2015.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%