Mycorrhizal and non-mycorrhizal alfalfa (Medicago sativa) was grown in pots containing soil artificially contaminated with various levels of benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P) (0, 1, 10 and 100 mg kg )1 ). Soil and plants were sampled after 30, 40, 50, 60 and 90 days and compared with unlanted pots. The percentage of mycorrhizal root length colonized by Glomus caledoniun was not significantly affected by the addition of B[a]P up to 10 mg kg )1 but was significantly lower at 100 mg kg )1 B[a]P compared with low concentrations (p < 0.05). There was no difference in soil polyphenol oxidase and dehydrogenase activity among the controls and applications of 1 and 10 mg kg )1 of B[a]P. However, enzyme activities were significantly higher at 100 mg kg )1 B[a]P compared with the other three treatments, and there was no mycorrhizal effect. Over a period of 90 days the concentration of B[a]P in soil in which alfalfa was grown was significantly lower than in unplanted soil (p < 0.05). Degradation rates of B[a]P added at 1, 10 and 100 mg kg )1 without G. caledonium were 76, 78 and 53%, and with mycorrhizal inoculation were 86, 87 and 57%. The degradation rate in unplanted soil was significantly lower than in planted soil, and was significantly higher in medium-and low-B[a]P treatments than in the high B[a]P concentration tested. There is a possibility of enhancement phytoremediation of PAHs in rhizosphere soil with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.
Abstract. Natural secondary succession, forest planting and agricultural practices after deforestation affect soil properties in many ways. During the last 50 years, land uses have greatly changed in the mountainous areas in southwestern China as the result of deforestation and cultivation. A study was initiated in Wolong Nature Reserve, Sichuan province to elucidate the complex relationships in a humid mountainous region. Soil properties under six typical land use types (natural forest, grassland, shrub, secondary forest, cultivated land and reforested land) were compared. Significant differences between land uses were found for soil bulk density (BD), total nitrogen (TN), soil organic carbon (SOC), available phosphorus (AP) and available potassium (AK). Cultivated land had the lowest levels for most soil properties compared to other land uses and shrubland had a higher SOC, TN and available nitrogen (AN) than other land uses. Soils under grassland and shrub contained the greatest carbon mass (TC). Further studies on reforested land indicated that soil properties could be changed by length of reforestation. The SOC and TN in particular showed a linear relationship with years since reforestation. The results suggested that in an area of China where the climate favours secondary succession, ‘leave nature as it is’ is a better choice than the policy ‘change farmland to forest land ‘, especially for the mountainous regions where there is lack of labour and financial support.
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