Advances in measuring soil health

by Wilfred Otten (Editor), Felicity Crotty (Contribution by), Jacqueline L. Stroud (Contribution by), Andy Taylor (Contribution by), Thomas Freitag (Contribution by)

Overview

• Comprehensive overview of key advances in measuring soil biological, physical and chemical properties
• Particularly strong coverage of developments in measuring soil biological activity, including molecular techniques such as next-generation sequencing as well as improvements in measuring fauna such as earthworms, microbial and fungal communities
• Focus on ways of using analytical techniques in practice through the use of soil health indicators and decision support systems (DSS)

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781786764263
Publisher:	Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing
Publication date:	06/22/2021
Series:	Burleigh Dodds Series in Agricultural Science , #92
Pages:	382
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.88(d)

About the Author

Dr Wilfred Otten is Professor of Soil Biophysics at Cranfield University, UK. He was the President of the British Soil Science Society (2017-2018), and is a Fellow of the Institute of Soil Science. Professor Otten is internationally-renowned for his research on measuring and modelling physical, chemical and microbial processes in soil.

Table of Contents

Part 1 Measuring soil biological activity
1.Assessing soil health by measuring fauna: Felicity Crotty, Royal Agricultural University, UK;
2.Quantifying earthworm community structures as indicators of soil health: Jacqueline L. Stroud, formerly Rothamsted Research, UK;
3.Characterisation of fungal communities and functions in agricultural soils: Andy F. S. Taylor, The James Hutton Institute and University of Aberdeen, UK; and Thomas Freitag, Lucinda J. Robinson and Duncan White, The James Hutton Institute, UK;

Part 2 Measuring soil physical and chemical properties
4.Advances in visual soil evaluation techniques: Mansonia Pulido-Moncada, Aarhus University, Denmark; Bruce C. Ball, formerly Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), UK; and Wim M. Cornelis, Ghent University, Belgium;
5.Imaging soil structure to measure soil functions and soil health with X-ray computed micro-tomography: Alexandra Kravchenko and Andrey Guber, Michigan State University, USA;
6.Geophysical methods to assess soil characteristics: Ho-Chul Shin, Rothamsted Research, UK; Guillaume Blanchy, Lancaster University, UK; Ian Shield, Peter Fruen, Timothy Barraclough and Christopher W. Watts, Rothamsted Research, UK; Andrew Binley, Lancaster University, UK; and William R. Whalley, Rothamsted Research, UK;
7.Advances in techniques to assess soil erodibility: R. J. Rickson, E. Dowdeswell Downey, G. Alegbeleye and S. E. Cooper, Cranfield University, UK;
8.Advances in measuring mechanical properties of soil in relation to soil health: Muhammad Naveed, University of West London, UK;
9.Advances in near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy to assess soil health: Francisco J. Calderón, Oregon State University, USA; Andrew J. Margenot, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA; and Scarlett Bailey, National Resources Conservation Service - National Soil Survey Center, USA;
10.Spectral mapping of soil organic carbon: Bas van Wesemael, Universityé catholique de Louvain, Belgium;

Part 3 From measurement to management
11.Developing soil health indicators for improved soil management on farm: Elizabeth Stockdale, NIAB, UK; Paul Hargreaves, Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), UK; and Anne Bhogal, ADAS Gleadthorpe, UK;
12.Developing decision support systems (DSS) for farm soil and crop management: Matt Aitkenhead, The James Hutton Institute, UK;

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

The proposed content of this book is excellent and overdue - an outstanding and comprehensive compilation of current measurement knowledge by the world's foremost experts, on a topic that is highly relevant. This will be a must-have reference resource for soil and environmental scientists, government regulatory agencies, and students."
Don Reicosky, Soil Scientist Emeritus, USDA-ARS and University of Minnesota, USA; editor of Managing soil health for sustainable agriculture Volume 1: Fundamentals and Managing soil health for sustainable agriculture Volume 2: Monitoring and management

“The contents of this timely publication, prepared by experts from a wide range of soil disciplines, addresses all key aspects of measuring soil health. It will be an extremely valuable resource for the international community of academics, researchers, advisors and students seeking to advance our understanding of soil health.”
Dr Joanna Cloy, Soil Scientist, Scotland’s Rural College, Edinburgh, Scotland

“Soil health is an equivocal concept that takes on different meanings depending on the application and the investigator. The proposed content of this comprehensive volume will give more meaning to ‘soil health’, bringing together a range of measurement approaches, modelling and decision support tools, with an ultimate aim to improve soils.”Prof. Paul Hallett, University of Aberdeen, UK