Summary
This 55-year field experiment examined how contrasting fertilisation systems (no fertiliser, manure alone, mineral NPK, and two organic-mineral combinations) affected soil microbial diversity and function in sod-podzolic soil under grain-flax-potato rotation in western Ukraine. The results demonstrate that long-term mineral fertiliser use alone suppressed beneficial microbial populations and showed the least favourable conditions for physiological groups, whereas combined organic-mineral systems—particularly manure plus NPK—supported diverse microbial communities involved in nutrient cycling. The findings suggest that integrated nutrient management approaches may sustain soil biological activity more effectively than mineral fertilisers alone.
UK applicability
The study's findings on sod-podzolic soils are most directly applicable to similar soil types in northern and eastern UK regions. The demonstrated benefits of organic-mineral systems over continuous mineral fertilisation may inform UK arable practice, though climatic and soil differences between Ukraine and the UK warrant cautious extrapolation to UK-specific recommendations.
Key measures
Soil pH, microbial community composition (bacterial and fungal abundance), microbial physiological groups (nitrifiers, denitrifiers, non-symbiotic anaerobic nitrogen-fixers, cellulose-degrading organisms, phosphate-mobilising organisms), soil physical and chemical properties
Outcomes reported
The study measured changes in soil physical and chemical properties and microbial community composition (bacteria, micromycetes, and physiological groups involved in nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorus transformation) across five fertilisation treatments over 55 years. It evaluated the relationship between soil indicators and microbial populations, and identified which fertilisation systems most favoured specific microbial functional groups.
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