Pulse Brain · Growing Health Evidence Index
Tier 4 — Narrative / commentaryPeer-reviewed

An integrated approach to assessing soil biological health

Christine D. Sprunger, Tvisha Martin

Advances in agronomy · 2023

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Summary

This 2023 review by Sprunger and Martin, published in Advances in Agronomy, proposes an integrated methodology for assessing soil biological health across farming systems. The paper appears to consolidate multiple approaches to measuring and interpreting soil microbial and faunal indicators, offering a framework for practitioners and researchers to evaluate soil biological status. As a review article, it synthesises current understanding of soil biology assessment rather than reporting primary experimental findings.

Regional applicability

The transferability of this framework to United Kingdom conditions would depend on its inclusion of temperate and maritime climate contexts. Without the full text, applicability to UK farming systems cannot be confirmed; however, integrated soil health assessment frameworks are increasingly relevant to UK agricultural policy and soil management guidance.

Key measures

Soil biological indicators; microbial communities; soil fauna; soil health assessment frameworks

Outcomes reported

The paper appears to present an integrated approach or framework for assessing multiple dimensions of soil biological health. The study likely synthesises existing measurement methods and indicators used to evaluate soil microbial and faunal communities.

Theme
Farming systems, soils & land use
Subject
Soil health assessment & monitoring
Study type
Narrative Review
Study design
Narrative review
Source type
Peer-reviewed study
Status
Published
System type
Mixed farming
DOI
10.1016/bs.agron.2023.06.003
Catalogue ID
SNmomgxtr7-er2n4n

Topic tags

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