In view of modern worldwide research carried out in the context of broadly understood soil chemistry and monitoring of the natural environment, the methods of assessing the risk of Zn contamination in soil and agricultural crops based on the analyses of Zn concentration in the soil solution have gained more recognition. Accordingly, research on the evaluation of the effects of selected soil properties on changes in solid/solution partitioning coefficient (K d ), the total concentration and activity of zinc in the soil solution was undertaken in this study. The study was based on the microplot field experiment. Investigated soil factors were as follows: soil texture, pH, organic carbon content and the degree of Zn contamination. The results indicated that zinc activity in the soil solutions was very high and comparable to the total concentration of zinc. The investigated soil properties significantly influenced the K d , the total concentration of zinc, as well as the concentration of Zn 2? in the soil solution. The total concentration and activity of zinc in the soil solution increased with increasing Zn content in the soil and rising soil acidity, while they decreased with increasing the content of organic carbon and clay particles. The values of K d increased significantly with rising soil pH and total Zn content and decreased with increasing soil organic content. Observed K d values were significantly higher in soil with 13 % clay than in soil with 7 % clay.

Under the conditions of a long‐term fertilizer experiment, this study aimed to determine the contents of total and exchangeable aluminium in soil as well as the Al concentration in the soil solution. Additionally, Al speciation was evaluated with the use of the MINTEQA2 software. The results obtained indicated that under the conditions of long‐term application of different mineral fertilizers or farmyard manure, the soil reaction changed to a great extent (pH 3.58–6.78). At the same time, the content of total Al in soil fluctuated from 18.85 to 22.13 g/kg and that of exchangeable Al ranged from 1.42 to 102.66 mg/kg. The concentration of Al in the soil solution was highly differentiated (5.19–124.07 μmol/L) as well as that of free aluminium ions (Al3+) (0–16.9 μmol/L). In acidic soils, aluminium complexes with organic matter are the predominant forms of Al in the soil solution. In soils with neutral soil reaction, there were no free aluminium ions. Soil liming and addition of organic amendment were the treatments that restricted the presence of toxic aluminium forms in soil.

The paper aims to enlarge the current knowledge about the dependence of technological traits of wheat grain on its degree of infestation (DI) with fusariosis. Samples of grain of four wheat cultivars were obtained from naturally grown crops (control) and from crops inoculated with Fusarium culmorum from which three degrees of kernel infestation were selected. Samples were determined for thousand kernels weight (TKW), total protein, starch and wet gluten (WG) contents, Hagberg falling number (HFN) and sedimentation value (SV). Content of protein and wet gluten showed higher values for moderately infested kernels (up to 15 and 25%, respectively, when compared to control grain) than for kernels lightly or heavily infested. All the remaining traits had values lower than that for control grain and showed a decrease with increasing DI. Decrease for the heaviest infestation was on average: 8, 29, 31 and 34% for starch, TKW, HFN and SV, respectively.

The aim of the study was to assess of plant available molybdenum (Mo) resources in the solutions of soils as well as to evaluate the effects of selected soil properties on changes of the Mo concentration in the soil solution. Sixty-two soil samples were investigated. The soil solutions were obtained by modified vacuum displacement method. The results showed that Mo concentrations in the soil solutions were much differentiated, ranging from 0.002 to approximately 0.100 µmol/L. Positive correlations were found between soil solution Mo concentration and soil pH as well as the contents of available phosphorous and organic carbon in soil. At the same time, Mo concentration was higher in the soil solutions obtained from soils with larger amounts of soil particles with diameter lesser than<br /> 0.02 mm. Among the analysed soil parameters in this study, soil pH is the most important factor that influences the Mo concentration in soil solution. Studies have shown that in acid sandy soils the amount of molybdenum found in the soil solution is too small to cover the nutritional requirements of the plants. This indicates the need of fertilization with this element. Regular liming of soils and fertilization with phosphorus can improve the availability of molybdenum to plants.

Purpose Spatio-temporal variability in soil properties has long been observed on uniformly managed fields. Understanding the spatial characteristics of soil properties would be helpful in recognizing their relationship and the development of site-specific management techniques. The objective of this study was to determine the spatio-temporal variation of P forms and related enzymes and their relationship with some physico-chemical properties in a plot scale. Materials and methods A grid soil sampling (10×10 m) was used to measure the spatial variation of soil properties across a 0.4-ha field. Soil samples were collected at 50 points from the upper 20 cm of luvisols in April and August 2007. The total (P T ), available (P A ), inorganic (P I ), organic (P O ) phosphorus concentration, and acid (P AC ) and alkaline (P AL ) phosphatase activity were analyzed. Additionally, total organic carbon (TOC), soil pH KCl , and clay content were determined. Data were evaluated using classical statistical and geostatistical methods. Results and discussion Both enzyme activities were significantly higher in April than in August, while the P T and P I concentration were significantly lower. The concentrations of P O and P A did not significantly differ between sampling dates. The spherical or mixed (spherical/linear) models with the nugget effect were fitted to the calculated semivariograms. The P A and TOC concentrations on both sampling dates as well as P AC activity in April were situated in the strong variability class, the P I concentration in April revealed a weak spatial variability and the other properties were in the moderate variability class. The clay content revealed a pure nugget effect. The range of the influence that was calculated for the properties ranged from 16.5 to 50.0 m. Kriged maps showed that temporal variability was observed in the spatial patterns of the P I and TOC concentrations and P AC activity. Conclusions Results from this study can help us to understand and predict the contribution of internal factors (i.e., soil type) in the total variability of soil properties that can interfere with the influence of soil management practices. The spatiotemporal variability showed that the studied area was temporally unstable and the implication of these findings is that more frequent sampling, at least several times throughout the growing season, must be included in the sampling strategy in order to better understand whether P forms and related enzymes show any permanent spatial patterns in soil all of the time or whether they are more randomized.