Practices of biological soil crust rehabilitation in China: experiences and challenges

Zhou, Xiaobing; Zhao, Yu-Guo; Belnap, Jayne; Zhang, Bingchang; Bu, Chongfeng; Zhang, Yuanming

doi:10.1111/rec.13148

Cited by 35 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 49 publications

(69 reference statements)

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“…The inoculum, initially placed into smaller (1 m × 4 m) raceway ponds, is then transferred to larger ponds (6 m × 40 m). The ponds are filled with nitrogen-free culture medium and stirred with one or more electrically driven paddle wheels (Zhou et al, 2020). This system easily applies to mixed cultures, being characterized by non-sterile conditions.…”

Section: Field Inoculation Experimentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Since moss natu-rally propagates by the dispersion of stems and leaves, moss inoculation has often been conducted using fragments as the actual inoculum. It has to be stressed, however, that some species such as Bryum arcticum and Didymodon vinealis have been shown to grow better starting from ground moss material than from spores of fragments (Xiao et al, 2011;Zhou et al, 2020). Due to their poikilohydric nature, dried fragments may be stored for a long time before being inoculated, without loss of viability.…”

Section: Moss Inoculationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In general, it has been observed that the scarcity of nutrients and temperature are other significant limiting factors to moss growth. The high sensitivity of mosses to environmental conditions accounts for the limited amount of moss cultivations successfully transferred to the field in China (Zhou et al, 2020). The wide array of parameters affecting moss growth implies the necessity to elaborate species-specific "recipes" for cultivation, considering the single and most significant constraints.…”

Section: Moss Inoculation: Critical Issuesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Lichens, which are also relevant biocrust components, are very difficult to employ to produce inoculants due to the difficulty of massively cultivating them in the laboratory or the greenhouse. Only a few studies concerning lichen cultivation and inoculation have been reported, due to the challenging cultivation, inoculation, and growth-assistance strategies required (Zhou et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Drought-tolerant cyanobacteria and mosses as biotechnological tools to attain land degradation neutrality

2021

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Abstract. The induction of biocrusts through inoculation-based techniques has gained increasing scientific attention in the last 2 decades due to its potential to address issues related to soil degradation and desertification. The technology has shown the most rapid advances in the use of biocrust organisms, particularly cyanobacteria and mosses, as inoculants and biocrust initiators. Cyanobacteria and mosses are poikilohydric organisms – i.e., desiccation-tolerant organisms capable of reactivating their metabolism upon rehydration – that can settle on bare soils in abiotically stressing habitats, provided that selected species are used and an appropriate and customized protocol is applied. The success of inoculation of cyanobacteria and mosses depends on the inoculant's physiology, but also on the ability of the practitioner to identify and control, with appropriate technical approaches in each case study, those environmental factors that most influence the inoculant settlement and its ability to develop biocrusts. This review illustrates the current knowledge and results of biocrust induction biotechnologies that use cyanobacteria or mosses as inoculants. At the same time, this review's purpose is to highlight the current technological gaps that hinder an efficient application of the technology in the field.

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Section: Field Inoculation Experimentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Moss Inoculationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Moss Inoculation: Critical Issuesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Drought-tolerant cyanobacteria and mosses as biotechnological tools to attain land degradation neutrality

2021

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“…The mechanization of sand consolidation work became possible with the development of a physicochemical method. A variety of chemical materials for bonding sand grains have been recommended: heavy oil [27,30], various polymers, bitumen emulsion, etc. [17].…”

Section: The Urgency Of the Problemmentioning

confidence: 99%

Theoretical Bases of Impregnation Without Pressure of Meliorants and the Application of Their Features in Practice of Fixing Mobile Sands

Mirakhmedov¹

2020

Transport Problems

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Desert sand is subject to deflation, which during the construction and operation of railways in the sandy desert leads to the filling of the railway track with sand and erosion of subgrade. To prevent this phenomenon, the surface of the sand is fixed with a binder, which is sprayed onto a deflated surface. The penetration of the working composition of the binder due to the characteristics of grinding is accompanied by an uneven distribution of the substance, which is proposed to characterize the saturation coefficient. Peculiarities of the interaction of the binder and sand from which the protective crust is formed are revealed, which made it possible to change the nature of the impregnation. Pre-wetting allows to reduce the pore space of sand, change the nature of the transfer of the substance when impregnated into the capillary, and increase the uniformity of impregnation, which as a result allows to obtain a resource-saving solution when fixing the movement of sand.

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A false paradigm? Do biocrust types necessarily reflect ‘successional stages’?

Kidron,

Xiao

2023

Ecohydrology

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The term ‘succession’ was first proposed to describe the gradual development of plants from an initial stage such as a bare ground to a well‐developed plant community, which at its peak, may reach a climax (primary succession). Accordingly, the earlier and fast growing stage (such as an annual plant community) may grant stability, organic matter and nutrients to the latter, high‐biomass and slow‐growing stages, such as trees. Commonly, reference to the different successional stages is also made once intact and disturbed communities (such as due to mechanical disturbance, tillage, fire, etc.) are compared (secondary succession). The concept was borrowed by many ecologists to describe variable biocrust types. Cyanobacterial or algal biocrust is regarded as an initial stage before turning to a later, more mature biocrust, whether composed of lichens or mosses. The underlain assumptions are that (a) the cyanobacteria provide essential stability and (b) nutrients that are required for the development of the later stages; (c) the initial biocrusts improve the water regime for the later successional stages; (d) cyanobacteria promote the lichen symbiosis; (e) due to substantial differences in the recovery time, a linear succession is inevitable, commonly from cyanobacterial/alga to lichen and lastly to moss; and (f) the cyanobacterial/algal biocrust is a temporary stage, just before being outcompeted by a later stage. It is argued hereafter that the above‐mentioned assumptions are not necessarily correct. As with higher plants, unless a direct comparison between disturbed and intact crusts justifies a reference to successional stages, different types of biocrusts commonly reflect the abiotic conditions at their site, and as such, unless the abiotic conditions change, they reflect stable communities of variable crust types. This paradigm shift may have important implications regarding inoculation efforts and directions and may explain the low success thus far obtained following inoculation experiments once performed with the more developed biocrusts, lichens and mosses.

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Practices of biological soil crust rehabilitation in China: experiences and challenges

Abstract: This is the author manuscript accepted for publication and has undergone full peer review but has not been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process, which may lead to differences between this version and the Version of Record. Please cite this article as

Cited by 35 publications

References 49 publications

Drought-tolerant cyanobacteria and mosses as biotechnological tools to attain land degradation neutrality

Drought-tolerant cyanobacteria and mosses as biotechnological tools to attain land degradation neutrality

Theoretical Bases of Impregnation Without Pressure of Meliorants and the Application of Their Features in Practice of Fixing Mobile Sands

A false paradigm? Do biocrust types necessarily reflect ‘successional stages’?

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