Soil Health and Organic

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1 Soil Health and Organic Matter The Role of Soil Biology in Soil Function, Nutrient Cycling, and Pests and Diseases Dr. Simon Jeffery 19 th November 2015

2 Agenda What is soil health? What is the role of soil organic matter? What is the role of soil biology in soil function?

3 What is Soil Health? Often also referred to as soil quality Defined as the capacity of the soil to function to sustain life: A healthy soil can be used productively without adversely affecting its future productivity - Cornell University (USA) Soil health is the capacity of soil to function as a living system, with ecosystem and land use boundaries, to sustain plant and animal productivity, maintain or enhance water and air quality, and promote plant and animal health FAO (2008)

4 What is Soil Organic Matter? Includes all plant and animal resides at various stages of decomposition Dead plant and animal material Manure Substances synthesised and excreted by soil organisms Root exudates

5 What is the Role of Soil Organic Matter in Soil? Serves as a reservoir of nutrients for crops Retains moisture Increases aggregation and aggregate stability Reduces compaction and surface crusting Increases water infiltration Serves as the fuel for the soil biota!

6 Why are Soil Microbes Important? Nutrient cycles Vital for soil fertility! Organic matter decomposition (Carbon cycle) Disease Causing Prevention Biotechnology Antibiotics Soil remediation

7 Aboveground Foodweb

8 Belowground Foodweb

9 Who lives in the Soil?

10 The Soil as a Habitat 5 cm 5 mm 0.5 m Image: K. Ritz

11 The Scale of Soil Life

12 Nematodes Image courtesy of K. Ritz

13 Nematodes Plant Pests Root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne sp.) cause galls on tubers and roots. Plants are stunted and often offcolour Image credit Nischwitz (2012) and Agroscope

14 Nematodes Natural Enemies Entomopathogenic nematodes Steinernema sp. - Image credit H. van Megan

15 Nematodes Natural Enemies Pest Common name Pest Scientific name Key Crop(s) targeted Artichoke plume moth Platyptilia carduidactyla Artichoke Sc Armyworms Lepidoptera: Noctuidae Vegetables Sc, Sf, Sr Banana moth Opogona sachari Ornamentals Hb, Sc Banana root borer Cosmopolites sordidus Banana Sc, Sf, Sg Billbug Sphenophorus spp. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) Black cutworm Agrotis ipsilon Turf, vegetables Sc Turf Efficacious Nematodes Black vine weevil Otiorhynchus sulcatus Berries, ornamentals Hb, Hd, Hm, Hmeg, Sc, Sg Borers Synanthedon spp. and other sesiids Fruit trees & ornamentals Cat flea Ctenocephalides felis Home yard, turf Sc Citrus root weevil Pachnaeus spp. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae Citrus, ornamentals Hb,Sc Hb, Sc, Sf Sr, Hb Codling moth Cydia pomonella Pome fruit Sc, Sf Corn earworm Helicoverpa zea Vegetables Sc, Sf, Sr Corn rootworm Diabrotica spp. Vegetables Hb, Sc Cranberry girdler Chrysoteuchia topiaria Cranberries Sc Crane fly Diptera: Tipulidae Turf Sc Hb=Heterorhabditis bacteriophora, Hd = H. downesi, Hi = H. indica, Hm= H. marelata, Hmeg = H. megidis, Hz = H. zealandica, Sc=Steinernema carpocapsae, Sf=S. feltiae, Sg=S. glaseri, Sk = S. kushidai, Sr=S. riobrave, Sscap=S. scapterisci, Ss = S. scarabaei.

16 Nematoes Natural Enemies Continued Pest Common name Pest Scientific name Key Crop(s) targeted Diaprepes root weevil Diaprepes abbreviatus Citrus, ornamentals Hb, Sr Fungus gnats Diptera: Sciaridae Mushrooms, greenhouse Sf, Hb Grape root borer Vitacea polistiformis Grapes Hz, Hb Iris borer Macronoctua onusta Iris Hb, Sc Large pine weevil Hylobius albietis Forest plantings Hd, Sc Efficacious Nematodes Leafminers Liriomyza spp. (Diptera: Agromyzidae) Vegetables, ornamentals Sc, Sf Mole crickets Scapteriscus spp. Turf Sc, Sr, Scap Navel orangeworm Amyelois transitella Nut and fruit trees Sc Plum curculio Conotrachelus nenuphar Fruit trees Sr Scarab grubs** Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae Turf, ornamentals Hb, Sc, Sg, Ss, Hz Shore flies Scatella spp. Ornamentals Sc, Sf Strawberry root weevil Otiorhynchus ovatus Berries Hm Small hive beetle Aethina tumida Bee hives Yes (Hi, Sr) Sweetpotato weevil Cylas formicarius Sweet potato Hb, Sc, Sf Hb=Heterorhabditis bacteriophora, Hd = H. downesi, Hi = H. indica, Hm= H. marelata, Hmeg = H. megidis, Hz = H. zealandica, Sc=Steinernema carpocapsae, Sf=S. feltiae, Sg=S. glaseri, Sk = S. kushidai, Sr=S. riobrave, Sscap=S. scapterisci, Ss = S. scarabaei.

17 Acari (mites)

18 Predatory mite Natural enemies Phytoseiulus persimilis image credit Talbot (2008)

19 Acari - Parasites Deer tick (Ixodes scapularis) carries Lyme Disease (and others) Lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum) can cause Alpha-gal allergy

20 Protozoa Image courtesy of K. Ritz

21 Protozoa Euglypha sp. Difflugia lucida Grossglockneria acuta Credit: W. Foissner

22 Fungi Amanita muscari, Hygrocybe punicea, Calvatia gigantean, Pilobilus sp. Image credits: K Ritz and L. Deacon

23 Fungi - Hyphal Filamentous grow as belowground networks called hyphae Image credit: K. Ritz

24 Mycorrhiza

25 Mycorrhizae Symbiotic relationship between a fungus (or fungi) and plant roots Plant provides photosynthetically produced C compounds (e.g. sugars) Fungus increases water and nutrient uptake by plant

26 Carnivorous Fungi Drechslerra anchonia Image credit: G. Barron and N. Allin

27 The Largest Organism on Earth Armillaria bulbosa is common in hardwood forests in America One individual covered an area in Oregon of more than 890 hectares!

28 Bacteria

29 Bacteria in the Soil

30 Bacteria in the Soil

31 Soil Bacteria Drive soil process on a global scale Responsible for some diseases in plants, animals and humans BUT the vast majority work to our benefit we would not be here without soil bacteria! Extremely numerous and diverse in soils Still lots of unknowns <1% of soil bacteria can be grown in the laboratory

32 Soil Function and Ecosystem Services

33 Soil Based Ecosystem Services From Haygarth and Ritz 2009

34 The Nitrogen Cycle

35 Ecological Functions

36 Disease Suppression Source: Mitchell et al. 2002

37 The Value of Soil Based Ecosystem Services From Pimentel et al. 1997

38 Resistance and Resilience

39 Resistance and Resilience Resistance = how strongly a community can resist a stress without being negatively affected Resilience = how quickly a community can recover after being negatively affected Functional redundancy is the one of the most often quoted mechanisms underlying these factors

40 Functional Redundancy

41 Thank you for your attention

Good Bug? Bad Bug? Biocontrol of Insects and Weeds

Good Bug? Bad Bug? Biocontrol of Insects and Weeds Dr. Meredith Shrader Entomology Extension Agent Tri-River Area Meredith.shrader@mesacounty.us 970.244.1834 Biological Controls Predators Parasitoids Pathogens