Gergely Jakab

7005036961

Publications - 6

Beyond land use: Understanding variations in topsoil bulk versus recalcitrant organic matter

Publication Name: Catena

Publication Date: 2024-09-01

Volume: 244

Issue: Unknown

Page Range: Unknown

Description:

Soil organic matter (SOM) concentration and composition are essential properties that affect most functions and ecosystem services. The relationship between soil and environmental covariates regarding SOM concentration and composition in various pools is not completely understood. This study aimed to identify the most influential drivers of SOM stabilization, focusing on arable lands in Hungary. Hungary is an ideal area for investigating SOM variability because it is at the meeting point of the three main climate effects that trigger a wide range of soil, land use, and topographical conditions. Overall, 87 soil samples were taken from the topsoil (2–20 cm) and fractionated (<20 µm) to separate the mineral phase-associated organic carbon (MAOC) and bulk pools. MAOC concentration varied on a wide range (0.5–14.1 %) and was the function of bulk SOM aromaticity and slope steepness, rather than land use, climatic conditions, or soil properties, indicating that MAOC is also affected by decomposition if the bulk OM is less available for the microbiome. Land use, especially in forest topsoils, reflects the elemental composition of the OM, focusing on the variations of residue composition. In contrast, aromaticity is rather related to soil and climate properties, suggesting increased relevance of transformation processes. As a consequence, SOM composition varies on a wide range in the topsoil, however, the lack of a definite trend at the county level suggests the complexity of the system and highlights the role of local circumstances.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.1016/j.catena.2024.108232

Challenges in Mapping Soil Variability Using Apparent Soil Electrical Conductivity under Heterogeneous Topographic Conditions

Publication Name: Agronomy

Publication Date: 2024-06-01

Volume: 14

Issue: 6

Page Range: Unknown

Description:

Site-specific management requires the identification of treatment areas based on homogeneous characteristics. This study aimed to determine whether soil mapping based on apparent soil electrical conductivity (ECa) is suitable for mapping soil properties of fields with topographic heterogeneity. Research was conducted on two neighbouring fields in Fejér county, Hungary, with contrasting topographic heterogeneity. To characterise the spatial variability of soil attributes, ECa was measured and supplemented by obtaining soil samples and performing soil profile analysis. The relationship between ECa and soil physical and chemical properties was analysed using correlation, principal component, and regression analyses. The research revealed that the quality and strength of the relationship between ECa and soil remarkably differed in the two studied fields. In homogeneous topographic conditions, ECa was weakly correlated with elevation as determined by soil physical texture and nutrient content in a strong (R2 = 0.72) linear model. On the other hand, ECa was significantly determined by elevation in heterogeneous topographic conditions in a moderate (R2 = 0.47) linear model. Consequently, ECa-based soil mapping can only be used to characterise the soil, thus delineating management zones under homogeneous topographic conditions.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.3390/agronomy14061161

The effect of local samples in the accuracy of mid-infrared (MIR) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) -based spectral prediction models

Publication Name: Precision Agriculture

Publication Date: 2022-12-01

Volume: 23

Issue: 6

Page Range: 2027-2039

Description:

Within the soil spectroscopy community, there is an ongoing discussion addressing the comparison of the performance of prediction models built on a global calibration database, versus a local calibration database. In this study, this issue is addressed by spiking of global databases with local samples. The soil samples were analysed with MIR and XRF sensors. The samples were further measured using traditional wet chemistry methods to build the prediction models for seventeen major parameters. The prediction models applied by AgroCares, the company that assisted in this study, combine spectral information from MIR and XRF into a single ‘fused-spectrum’. The local dataset of 640 samples was split into 90% train and 10% test samples. To illustrate the benefits of using local calibration samples, three separate prediction models were built per element. For each model, 0%, 50% (randomly selected) and 100% of the local training samples were added to the global dataset. The remaining 10% local samples were used for validation. Seventeen soil parameters were selected to illustrate the differences in performance across a range of soil qualities, using the validation set to measure performance. The results showed that many models already exhibit an excellent level of performance (R2 ≥ 0.95) even without local samples. However, there was a clear trend that, as more local calibration samples were added, both R2 and ratio of performance to interquantile distance (RPIQ) increase.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.1007/s11119-022-09942-y

Comparing Different Phosphorus Extraction Methods: Effects of Influencing Parameters

Publication Name: Sustainability Switzerland

Publication Date: 2022-02-01

Volume: 14

Issue: 4

Page Range: Unknown

Description:

The current study compares the phosphorus (P) analysis methods of ammonium lactate (AL), Mehlich 3 (M3); water extraction (P-WA(P)&P-WA(PO4 )), cobalt hexamine (CoHex) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) as an estimate of total soil P. The ratio of the P-content/XRF was first calculated and compared with the whole dataset. Based on the comparison of all the data, there were significant differences between the results of P-WA(P) and P-WA(PO4 ) vs. M3 and AL, CoHex vs. M3 and CoHex vs. AL methods (p < 0.001). The second step was the analysis of the influencing factors based on their categories for a more in-depth understanding of their role (CaCO3-content, pH, soil texture and clay content). The results showed that higher CaCO3 content (>1%) resulted in lower correlations (6/10 cases). The extraction methods, the soil, the classification method of the soil properties and the statistical analyses affect the evaluation. The dataset covers a good range of the analysed factors for the evaluation of phosphorus in the majority of Hungarian soil types in arable use. There were two methods that detected the largest amount of P from the total P in the soil: AL and M3.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.3390/su14042158

The effect of soil physicochemical characteristics on zinc analysis methods

Publication Name: Soil and Water Research

Publication Date: 2021-01-01

Volume: 16

Issue: 3

Page Range: 180-190

Description:

Zn is an essential micronutrient involved in a wide variety of physiological processes. Soils are tested for zinc in many countries with several extractants. Each country has its validated methods, best-suited for its soils. The current study was designed to compare different zinc content measuring methods with seventy-one samples from Hungary. The data were first compared for the whole dataset and then in certain categories such as CaCO3-content, pH, texture and clay content. The zinc content was determined by the water extraction, KCl-EDTA (ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid), Mehlich 3, CoHex (cobalt hexamine trichloride), and XRF (X-ray fluorescence) methods. Based on the analyses of all the data, we can conclude that all the methods are different. However, further analyses during the comparison of the methods based on the influencing factors, such as the pH, lime content, texture class, and clay content proved that, in some of the cases, there are similarities among the methods and, this way, we can get more knowledge on the measurements and the results provided. Farmers can gain extra knowledge from the comparison of the influencing factors to know where intervention is needed to use extra Zn for the proper fertilisation of their plants.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.17221/53/2020-SWR

Comparison of magnesium determination methods on Hungarian soils

Publication Name: Soil and Water Research

Publication Date: 2020-01-01

Volume: 15

Issue: 3

Page Range: 173-180

Description:

Magnesium is one of the most important nutrient elements. Soils are tested for magnesium in many countries with several extractants. Each country has its own validated methods, best-suited for its soils. The current study was designed to compare different magnesium content measuring methods with 80 Hungarian samples. The magnesium content was determined by the potassium chloride (1 M KCl 1:10), Mehlich 3 and CoHex (cobalt hexamine trichloride) methods. The maximum, mean and median values resulting from all the Mg determination methods showed the following order of measured magnitude: KCl < CoHex < M3.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.17221/92/2019-SWR