Name
How do management practices across ecoregions impact soil microbial diversity and aggregate stability as indicators of soil health?
Description
The demand for agricultural products with the increasing global population drives the use of intensive cultivation practices and consequently may affect soil health and, consequently, the watershed water quality. However, maintaining soil health can preserve not only sustainable agriculture but also water quality, increasing social resilience and water-food security. Understanding the linkages between indicators of soil health, such as soil aggregate stability, soil organic carbon, and soil microbial community structure and diversity can help to build valuable hands of sustainable agricultural soil systems, which can then be used to assess cycling and export of soil nutrients to water bodies. This study examines 1m soil cores split into four depths and taken from three contrasting management practices (adaptive multi-paddock grazing, rotational grazing, and annual cropping) from different ecoregions (Foothills Parkland, Dry Mixed Grass, Northern Fescue, and Foothills Fescue) in Alberta, Canada. Microbial community structure is determined by fungal and bacterial amplicon sequencing, and standard techniques are used for wet aggregate stability. Soil organic carbon was determined by combustion. This study will assess how various environmental and land management conditions might influence soil health indicators. We will evaluate whether the management practices affect the indicators similarly across ecoregions in Alberta. The results will inform land users and agricultural stakeholders for more sustainable management of their lands in the future. The improved soil health and soil organic carbon can improve potential effects on watershed water quality.