Soil Types News

April 5, 2025

Top Headlines

Using Cover Plants to Remove Pollutants from Arable Soil

Mar. 25, 2025 — Nitrate, pesticides, metals, plastic -- agricultural soils often contain pollutants. But are there sustainable and climate-friendly ways to restore and promote soil health in agricultural land? Yes, says a research team. Specific plant species could ...

Time Is Not the Driving Influence of Forest Carbon Storage

Mar. 18, 2025 — It is commonly assumed that as forest ecosystems age, they accumulate and store, or 'sequester,' more ...

Peatlands' Potential to Capture Carbon Upgraded as Temperatures Rise

Mar. 20, 2025 — According to a predictive model, the microalgae present in peat bogs could offset up to 14% of future CO2 emissions, thanks to their photosynthetic activity. This conclusion was reached by basing the work on in situ experiments and the various ...

New 'Shy' Fungus Found in Old-Growth Forest

Mar. 18, 2025 — Although fungi of the genus Piloderma are common, scientists have now discovered five previously unknown species. One of these is one of the most widely distributed species in Northern Europe, while another is found only in old-growth forests. The ...

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Researchers Demonstrate New Technique for Boosting Plant Growth With Bacteria

Mar. 17, 2025 — Researchers have demonstrated a technique for successfully encapsulating bacteria that can then be stored and applied to plants to improve plant ...

Study: 'Sustainable Intensification' on the Farm Reduces Soil Nitrate Losses, Maintains Crop Yields

Mar. 13, 2025 — A nine-year study comparing a typical two-year corn and soybean rotation with a more intensive three-year rotation involving corn, cereal rye, ...

Packets of Freeze-Dried Bacteria Grow Biocement on Demand

Mar. 5, 2025 — Cement manufacturing and repair could be significantly improved by using biocement-producing bacteria, but growing the microbes at construction sites remains a challenge. Now, researchers report a ...

Iconic Australian Bird Reveals Hidden Farming Talent

Mar. 5, 2025 — The beloved Australian lyrebird best known for its stunning tail and powers of mimicry may have a cunning hidden ...

Ideal Nitrogen Fertilizer Rates in Corn Belt Have Been Climbing for Decades

Mar. 3, 2025 — The amount of nitrogen fertilizer needed to maximize the profitability of corn production in the Midwest has been increasing by about 1.2% per year for the past three decades, a trend driven by ...

Genetic Switch Could Help Control Leaf Growth in Poor Soils

Feb. 27, 2025 — A new study has identified a genetic circuit in plants that controls individual leaf growth and allows the plants to adapt to their environment. The findings could help the development of more ...

The International Space Station Is Overly Sterile; Making It 'Dirtier' Could Improve Astronaut Health

Feb. 27, 2025 — Astronauts often experience immune dysfunction, skin rashes, and other inflammatory conditions while traveling in space. A new study suggests that ...

Animals as Architects of Earth: First Global Study Reveals Their Surprising Impact

Feb. 17, 2025 — Animals are not just inhabitants of the natural world -- they are its architects. A new study has revealed how hundreds of species shape the ...

New England's Salt Marshes Store 10 Million Cars' Worth of Carbon -- And Add Another 15,000-Worth Every Year

Feb. 13, 2025 — In the race to combat global climate change, much attention has been given to natural 'carbon sinks:' those primarily terrestrial areas of the globe ...

Where Do Invasive Species Spread and Why? Researchers Take a Novel Approach to Find the Answer

Feb. 12, 2025 — Researchers took a deep dive to understand why certain locations are more susceptible and attractive to invasions by non-native plants or animals, ...

Park Entrances May Be Hotspots for Infective Dog Roundworm Eggs

Mar. 27, 2025 — In an analysis of soil samples from twelve parks in Dublin, Ireland, park entrances were more heavily contaminated with infective roundworm eggs than any other tested park ...

Climate Change Threatens Global Cocoa Production: New Study Highlights Pollination-Based Solutions

Feb. 14, 2025 — This Valentine's Day, millions of pounds worth of chocolate will be exchanged as gifts, but climate change and biodiversity loss imperil future global supplies of this treat. A new research ...

Micro-Nano Plastics Make Other Pollutants More Dangerous to Plants and Intestinal Cells

Feb. 11, 2025 — Researchers find that tiny plastic particles increase the absorption of environmental arsenic and pesticides in lettuce and human intestinal cells, raising new safety concerns about plastic ...

Twenty Years On, Biodiversity Struggles to Take Root in Restored Wetlands

Feb. 7, 2025 — While the restoration of natural areas is high on political agendas, a comprehensive new study shows that -- after more than two decades -- biodiversity growth has stalled in restored Danish ...

Large Differences in Water-Seeking Ability Found in U.S. Corn Varieties

Feb. 6, 2025 — A study has identified key genetic pathways in corn that help its roots branch out to find water in soil; the varieties adapted to temperate regions like the U.S. corn belt showed large differences ...

Value-Added Pancakes: Using Science to Improve Nutrition of Breakfast Staple

Feb. 5, 2025 — Food scientists are working to make pancakes healthier by boosting the popular morning favorite's nutritional value while enhancing its taste and texture. Generally, pancakes are made with ...

High-Yield Rice Breed Emits Up to 70% Less Methane

Feb. 3, 2025 — Rice cultivation is responsible for around 12% of global methane emissions, and these emissions are expected to increase with global warming and as the human population continues to grow. Now, ...

Burn Grasslands to Maintain Them: What Is Good for Biodiversity?

Jan. 31, 2025 — As grasslands get abandoned, controlled burning is discussed as a labor-saving method of keeping forests at bay. A research team found that this method results in higher biodiversity and a higher ...

Study Reveals How Microbes Help Detoxify Our Atmosphere

Jan. 29, 2025 — Researchers have discovered crucial new information about how microbes consume huge amounts of carbon monoxide (CO) and help reduce levels of this deadly ...

Complexity of Tree-Planting Schemes

Jan. 28, 2025 — Research with smallholder farmers in Kenya shows that tree-planting schemes must account for complex local issues and ...

How Animal Poop Helps Ecosystems Adapt to Climate Change

Jan. 27, 2025 — Relatives of the llama are dropping dung as they venture into higher elevations in the Andes Mountains, providing a nutrient-rich environment for life to thrive despite glacier ...

Bacteria Found to Eat Forever Chemicals -- And Even Some of Their Toxic Byproducts

Jan. 23, 2025 — A team has identified a strain of bacteria that can break down and transform at least three types of PFAS, and, perhaps even more crucially, some of the toxic byproducts of the bond-breaking ...

Skin-Penetrating Nematodes Have a Love-Hate Relationship With Carbon Dioxide

Jan. 21, 2025 — Globally, over 600 million people are infected with the skin-penetrating threadworm, Strongyloides stercoralis, mostly in tropical and subtropical regions with poor sanitation infrastructure. ...

Little Birds, Little Poops, Little Food Safety Risk

Jan. 21, 2025 — Smaller poops from smaller birds carry very low risk of foodborne pathogens on farms, finds a new ...

Researcher Studies the Power of Native Plants to Combat Road Salt Pollution

Jan. 17, 2025 — Salt pollution from road deicing salts threatens freshwater ecosystems and urban green infrastructure. New research on salt-tolerant plants like cattails highlights their potential role in mitigating ...

Direct Measurements Can Reduce Uncertainty in Soil Carbon Credit Markets

Jan. 17, 2025 — Scientists find a 'measure and remeasure' approach is a feasible method of verifying soil carbon storage in croplands for climate ...

How Climate Change May Alter Hydrology of Grassland Ecosystems

Jan. 16, 2025 — New research reveals that drought and increased temperatures in a CO2-rich climate can dramatically alter how grasslands use and move water. The study provides the first experimental demonstration of ...

Gene-Edited Soil Bacteria Could Provide Third Source of Nitrogen for Corn Production

Jan. 16, 2025 — If corn was ever jealous of soybean's relationship with nitrogen-fixing bacteria, advancements in gene editing could one day even the playing field. A recent study shows that gene-edited ...

Biochar Reduces the Risks of DDT-Contaminated Soil

Jan. 16, 2025 — DDT soil pollution is still a major problem in many parts of the world. Researchers have developed a new method to manage ecological risks from the toxin by binding it with biochar. When they mixed ...

Diversified Cropping Systems Boost Nitrogen Supply but Not Soil Carbon

Jan. 15, 2025 — Longer, more diverse rotations of crops fertilized with livestock manure have many environmental benefits, but carbon sequestration isn't one of them, according to a new ...