A microscopical study of the processes of transformation of alfalfa and wheat matter
1998
Slovik, R. (Slovenska Polnohospodarska Univ., Nitra (Slovak Republic))
A model laboratory experiment was carried out to investigate transformation processes in afterharvest residues of alfalfa and wheat matter as a source of organic substances in soil. The results confirm that processes are long-term. Humified plant residues preserve both their outer appearance and anatomical structure for a relatively long time. First symptoms of the decomposition of the anatomical structure appeared only in the second year, their fragments being also observed during the third year of incubation. The transformation of alfalfa matter is more rapid and more intensive than that of wheat residues. In the third year of incubation, a time difference of about 200 days was observed in the accumulation of humus substances. The succession of changes and the formation of humus substances first of all depend on the composition of plant matter, the environment, the length of vegetation, i.e. the ripeness level of plant residues, and on the thoroughness of their mixing with soil. Microscopical research enables a direct optical investigation of the transformation of plant matter, the decomposition of the anatomical structure, the formation of products and their accumulation, and the formation of humites on a level of microprocesses and their function in the given environment
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