Aim: Agroforestry, one of the most ancient agricultural practices of the Mediterranean culture and partly lost due to agricultural intensification, has recently been reintroduced for its positive effects on the SOC sequestration (FAO and ITP 2021). Long-term agroforestry (LTA) studies in Mediterranean climate focusing on of the ecological drivers of organic carbon dynamics are extremely interesting and deserve to be analyzed. This survey aims to provide monitoring tools for the assessment of soil quality and to define appropriate biodiversity indicators useful for providing functional information relating to ecosystem services. Method: We analyzed mesofauna and microbial fungal communities in an LTA Silvopastoral farm. The methodology was developed along a gradient based on land use (Mediterranean forestry, Silvopastoral and Grassland) and on the intensity of grazing as a function of the maximum distance that animals usually reach from the main feeding stations (high density pastures with lower distance from the station feeder and low-density pasture at greater distance).Particular attention was given to fungi and possible relationships with soil abiotic e biotic components. Results: The first results showed a substantial trend in how some silvopastoral practices can better preserve soil biodiversity, with a high level of abundance of mesofauna and fungal biodiversity, as well as soil biological quality and ecological stability, if managed in a way rational. If forest pasture is not properly managed and livestock is persistently on the ground, biodiversity levels drop dramatically and the benefits of silvopastoral practice are not realized. Conclusions: Further analyses will be necessary to 1) deepen understand and highlight the complex interactions between biological communities and physicochemical variables, all of which contribute to the overall quality of soils; 2) explore if interactions can be reliable enough to be applied for soil quality monitoring and management.
Scanning soil biodiversity in a Silvopastoral system in Mediterranean area: results from central Italy
Maienza A.;Ghignone S.;Lumini E.
2023
Abstract
Aim: Agroforestry, one of the most ancient agricultural practices of the Mediterranean culture and partly lost due to agricultural intensification, has recently been reintroduced for its positive effects on the SOC sequestration (FAO and ITP 2021). Long-term agroforestry (LTA) studies in Mediterranean climate focusing on of the ecological drivers of organic carbon dynamics are extremely interesting and deserve to be analyzed. This survey aims to provide monitoring tools for the assessment of soil quality and to define appropriate biodiversity indicators useful for providing functional information relating to ecosystem services. Method: We analyzed mesofauna and microbial fungal communities in an LTA Silvopastoral farm. The methodology was developed along a gradient based on land use (Mediterranean forestry, Silvopastoral and Grassland) and on the intensity of grazing as a function of the maximum distance that animals usually reach from the main feeding stations (high density pastures with lower distance from the station feeder and low-density pasture at greater distance).Particular attention was given to fungi and possible relationships with soil abiotic e biotic components. Results: The first results showed a substantial trend in how some silvopastoral practices can better preserve soil biodiversity, with a high level of abundance of mesofauna and fungal biodiversity, as well as soil biological quality and ecological stability, if managed in a way rational. If forest pasture is not properly managed and livestock is persistently on the ground, biodiversity levels drop dramatically and the benefits of silvopastoral practice are not realized. Conclusions: Further analyses will be necessary to 1) deepen understand and highlight the complex interactions between biological communities and physicochemical variables, all of which contribute to the overall quality of soils; 2) explore if interactions can be reliable enough to be applied for soil quality monitoring and management.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
