Petar Đ. Sekulić

Copper content of vineyard soils at Sremski Karlovci (Vojvodina Province, Serbia) as affected by the use of copper-based fungicides

The present study investigated the copper content of nine vineyard plots soils and four control plots as affected by the application of copper-based fungicides. The study was carried out at the site of Sremski Karlovci in the Serbian province of Vojvodina. The results showed that Cu soil concentrations are increased at the site and that there is a tendency towards soil contamination by this element. Of the 27 total samples studied, only one had Cu concentration above the maximum allowable concentration of 100 mg kg−1. That samples concentration was 111.7 mg kg−1. All the samples from the 0–15 cm layer had copper levels that were above the critical value of 60 mg kg−1. The mean value of the samples was 79.4 mg kg−1, contrasting with the background concentration of 19.8 mg kg−1. The results obtained for the studied vineyard soils indicate that these soils are potentially at risk and call for reduced application of Cu-based fungicides along with soil monitoring.

TOTAL AND HOT-WATER EXTRACTABLE CARBON RELATIONSHIP IN CHERNOZEM SOIL UNDER DIFFERENT CROPPING SYSTEMS AND LAND USE

A study was conducted to determine the hot water extractable organic carbon (HWOC) in 9 arable and 3 non arable soil samples on Haplic Chernozem. The hot water extractable carbon represents assimilative component of the total organic matter (OM) that could contain readily available nutrients for plant growth. The obtained fraction of organic carbon (C) makes up only a small percentage of the soil OM and directly reflects the changes in the rhizosphere. This labile fraction of the organic matter was separated by hot water extraction at 80°C. In our study the HWOC content in different samples ranged from 125 mg g-1 to 226 mg g-1. On the plots that are under native vegetation, higher values were determined (316 mg g-1 to 388 mg g-1). Whereas samples from arable soils were lower in HWOC. It was found that this extraction method can be successfully used to explain the dynamics of the soil OM. Soil samples with lower content of the total OM had lower HWOC content, indicating that the preservation of the OM depends on the renewal of its labile fractions.