Role of Earthworm in Improving Soil Structure and Functioning

Sharma, Dinesh Kumar; Tomar, S. M. S.; Chakraborty, Debashis

doi:10.18520/cs/v113/i06/1064-1071

Cited by 64 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…Table 2 shows that minimum tillage and notillage could produce a higher earthworm population than intensive tillage. The result was in line with Sharma et al (2017), who stated that intensive soil tillage can damage the soil structure and disrupt the activity of soil organisms so that the availability of organic material is low. Intensive soil tillage produces more soil pores, and it will be filled with oxygen which can accelerate the decomposition of organic matter and reduce soil moisture (Utomo 2012).…”

Section: Earthworm Populationsupporting

confidence: 85%

Effect of the 32nd-year Soil Tillage and Nitrogen Fertilization on the Population and Biomass of Earthworm under Zea mays L.

et al. 2021

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The abundance and biomass of earthworms are affected by soil tillage and fertilization. This research aimed to study long-term 32nd-year soil tillage and nitrogen fertilization on the population and biomass of earthworms under Zea mays L. The research was conducted using a randomized block design (RBD) which consisted of two factors. The first factor was the soil tillage that was Intensive Tillage (IT), Minimum Tillage (MT), and No-Tillage (NT). The Second factor was nitrogen fertilization that was N0 = 0 kg N ha-1 and N1= 200 kg N ha-1. Data of earthworm population and biomass were tested using analysis of variance and continued with the least significant difference (LSD) test at the 95% significant level. The population and biomass of earthworms at MT or NT were higher than IT. The population and biomass of earthworms in the plots without fertilization were higher than those at 200 kg N ha-1. There was an interaction between the soil tillage and N fertilization on earthworm biomass observed 60 days after planting at a 0-10 cm depth. There was a positive correlation between soil pH and earthworm population and biomass before the tillage phase.

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Section: Earthworm Populationsupporting

confidence: 85%

Effect of the 32nd-year Soil Tillage and Nitrogen Fertilization on the Population and Biomass of Earthworm under Zea mays L.

et al. 2021

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“…Earthworms can consume newly germinated seedlings (Drouin et al, 2014), the fine roots of plants (Gilbert et al, 2014), and alter the soil microflora to favor only certain species (Drouin, Bradley & Lapointe, 2016). Of course, earthworms can have beneficial effects, as is seen in horticultural and agricultural systems (Bertrand et al, 2015;Sharma, Tomar & Chakraborty, 2017), but why these benefits would occur on islands and not in other areas of the BWCAW is outside the scope of our study. The most perplexing result of our study was the positive relationship between entry point distance and earthworm biomass.…”

Section: Factormentioning

confidence: 94%

Campsites, forest fires, and entry point distance affect earthworm abundance in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness

Wellnitz¹,

Barlow²,

Dick³

et al. 2020

PeerJ

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Factors controlling the spread of invasive earthworms in Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness are poorly known. Believed to have been introduced by anglers who use them as bait, invasive earthworms can alter the physical and chemical properties of soil and modify forest plant communities. To examine factors influencing earthworm distribution and abundance, we sampled 38 islands across five lakes to assess the effects of campsites, fire and entry point distance on earthworm density, biomass and species richness. We hypothesized that all three parameters would be greater on islands with campsites, lower on burned islands and would decrease with distance from the wilderness entry point. In addition to sampling earthworms, we collected soil cores to examine soil organic matter and recorded ground and vegetation cover. Campsite presence was the single most important factor affecting sampled earthworm communities; density, biomass and species richness were all higher on islands having campsites. Fire was associated with reduced earthworm density, but had no direct effects on earthworm biomass or species richness. Fire influenced earthworm biomass primarily through its negative relationship to groundcover and through an interaction with entry point distance. Entry point distance itself affected earthworm density and biomass. For islands with campsites, earthworm biomass increased with distance from the entry point.

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“…However, most studies of earthworms have an ecological reference frame (Stürzenbaum et al, 2009). This approach has established the significant positive (Aira & Piearce, 2009;Agapit et al, 2018) and negative (Craven et al, 2017) effects earthworms have on soil properties, structure, and processes (Sharma, Tomar & Chakraborty, 2017;Fierer, 2019). Earthworms can change the physicochemical characteristics of the soil or influence resident organisms (Bohlen et al, 2004;Ferlian et al, 2018;McCay & Scull, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dendrobaena veneta avoids ethyl pentanoate and ethyl hexanoate, two compounds produced by the soil fungus Geotrichum candidum

Reed

O'Connor

Johnson³

et al. 2021

PeerJ

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Earthworms shape the biological and physicochemical qualities of the soil they choose to reside in, but our understanding of the specific chemicals that attract or repel a particular species of earthworm remains incomplete. Current research indicates that some species feed on and are attracted to fungi, such as Geotrichum candidum. In the present study, as part of our continuing effort to characterize mechanisms of earthworm chemosensation, we tested whether ethyl hexanoate and ethyl pentanoate, two compounds produced by G. candidum, are appetitive to the European nightcrawler (Dendrobaena veneta). In a soil T-maze, both of these compounds significantly repelled individual earthworms in a dosage-dependent manner, this result ran counter to our initial hypothesis. D. veneta also avoided ethyl hexanoate and ethyl pentanoate in an assay we specifically developed to test an earthworms aversion to chemical stimuli in soil. In both of these assays, ethyl hexanoate was aversive at lower concentrations than ethyl pentanoate. These findings further clarify our understanding of the chemical cues that trigger the decision of D. veneta to select a particular soil-environment, and emphasize that different earthworm species may react very differently to commonly encountered chemical stimuli.

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Role of Earthworm in Improving Soil Structure and Functioning

Cited by 64 publications

References 45 publications

Effect of the 32nd-year Soil Tillage and Nitrogen Fertilization on the Population and Biomass of Earthworm under Zea mays L.

Effect of the 32nd-year Soil Tillage and Nitrogen Fertilization on the Population and Biomass of Earthworm under Zea mays L.

Campsites, forest fires, and entry point distance affect earthworm abundance in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness

Dendrobaena veneta avoids ethyl pentanoate and ethyl hexanoate, two compounds produced by the soil fungus Geotrichum candidum

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