Laboratory Methods for Soil Health Analysis (Soil Health series, Volume 2) (eBook)

Douglas L. Karlen, Retired ST Soil Scientist, USDA-ARS Doug is internationally recognized for his soil health and sustainable agricultural research and technology transfer program. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Agronomy (ASA), Soil Science Society of America (SSSA), Crop Science Society of America (CSSA), and Soil and Water Conservation Society (SWCS), editor/co-editor for seven books, and author or co-author of more than 425 refereed journal, book chapter, and proceedings publications. Diane E. Stott, Retired Soil Scientist, USDA-NRCS-SHD; Professor Emerita, Purdue University Diane conducted internationally recognized research focused on crop and soil management impacts on soil health, soil organic matter cycling, enzyme activities and soil erodibility and soil health. She is a Fellow of the American Society of Agronomy (ASA) and author or co-author of more than 115 refereed journal, book chapter, and proceedings publications. Maysoon M. Mikha, Research Soil Scientist, USDA-ARS Maysoon is nationally and internationally recognized for her agronomic research addressing soil quality/health and land sustainability. She received The Conservation Research Award from the SWCS and recognized by the SSSA for her excellent editorial skills. She authored and co- authored more than 100 refereed journals, book chapters, and proceedings.

Dedication v

Foreword ix

Preface xiii

Volume 2 Laboratory Methods for Soil Health Analysis

1 Laboratory Methods for Soil Health Assessment: An Ove view 1
Steven R. Shafer, Douglas L. Karlen, Paul W. Tracy, Cristine L.S. Morgan, and C. Wayne Honeycutt

2 Sampling Considerations and Field Evaluations for Soil Health Assessment 17
Mark A. Liebig, Dennis Chessman, Jonathan J. Halvorson, and Roberto Luciano

3 Soil Organic Carbon Assessment Methods 38
Charles W. Rice, Carlos B. Pires, James Lin, and Marcos V. M. Sarto

4 Water-Stable Soil Aggregate Assessment 52
Maysoon M. Mikha and Skye Wills

5 Determination of Infiltration Rate and Bulk Density in Soils 69
Jalal D. Jabro and Maysoon M. Mikha

6 Chemical Reactivity: pH, Salinity and Sodicity Effects on Soil Health 78

Yaakov Anker, Vladimir Mirlas, Michael Zilberbrand, and Adi Oren

7 Nutrient Availability: Macro- and Micronutrients in Soil Quality and Health 109
James A. Ippolito

8 Assessment and Interpretation of Soil-Test Biological Activity 126
Alan J. Franzluebbers

9 Permanganate Oxidizable Carbon: An Indicator of Biologically Active Soil Carbon 152
Steve W. Culman, Tunsisa T. Hurisso, and Jordon Wade

10 Is Autoclaved Citrate-Extractable (ACE) Protein a Viable Indicator of Soil Nitrogen Availability? 176
Tunsisa T. Hurisso and Steve W. Culman

11 Metabolic Activity - Enzymes 194
Verónica Acosta-Martínez, Lumarie Pérez-Guzmán, Kristen S. Veum, Márcio R. Nunes, and Richard P. Dick

12 PLFA and EL-FAME Indicators of Microbial Community Composition 251
Kristen S. Veum, Veronica Acosta-Martinez, R. Michael Lehman, Chenhui Li, Amanda Cano, and Marcio R. Nunes

13 Microbial Community Composition, Diversity, and Function 289
D. K. Manter, J. M. Moore, R. M. Lehman, and A. K. Hamm

Epilogue 324