• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.41 no.6
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• pp.415-418
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• 2008

The application of sludge wastes into agricultural fields has been increasing annually in Korea. In particular, sewage sludge application has been widely accepted in decades. Sewage sludge application aid in the recycling of essential nutrients and act as a source of organic matter improving the structure and water-holding properties of the soil. The efficient use of sludge wastes, however, requires an individual assessment of waste products. This study assessed the biological characteristics of organic waste-treated lysimeter soils and develop its indicator to assess the soil health of organic waste-treated lysimeter soils. Several analytical techniques more recently developed such as restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP), phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA), and community level substrate utilization (CLSU) fingerprints allow for detailed analyses of soil microbial communities. PLFA and RFLP was, therefore, used in the study to characterize the microbial communities in soil without the need to isolate individual fungi and bacteria. PLFA, RFLP and CLSU have been utilized to assess microbial characteristics of the lysimeter soils with four different sludge wastes for eight consecutive years. Each of these methods was analyzed for a different aspect of soil microbial characteristics. The study would disclose those methods yielded highly reproductive results for each soil and allow distinguishing the soils based on the structures of specific geneand PLFA-pools more than CLSU fingerprints. PLFA methods, especially, revealed the same relative similarities of the treated soils based on cluster analysis of the biological characteristics. Pig manure compost-treated soil, however, was only the same relative resemblance among the three methods. These results indicated that PLFA easily assessed the biological soil characterization.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.593-601
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• 2012

Heavy metals and metalloids removal can be considered as one of the most important world challenges because of their toxicity and direct impact on human health. Many processes have been introduced but biological processes of remediation seem to offer the most suitable solution in terms of efficiency and low cost. Actinobacteria constitute one of the major microbial populations in soil, and this can be attributed to their adaptive morphological structure as well as their exceptional metabolic power. Among microbes, actinobacteria are morphologic intermediate between fungi and bacteria. Studies on microbial diversities in metal contaminated lands have shown that actinobacteria may constitute a dominantly active microbiota in addition to ${\alpha}$ Proteobacteria. Furthermore, isolation studies have shown metal removal mechanisms which are reminiscent of notable multiresistant strains, such as Cupriavidus metallidurans. Apart from members of genus Streptomyces, which produce more than 90% of commercialized antibiotics, and the nitrogen fixing Frankia, little attention has been given to other members of this phylum. This is because of difficult culture condition requirements and maintenance. In this review, we focused on specific isolation of actinobacteria and their potential applications in metal bioremediation and plant growth promotion.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.316-319
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• 2011

Biopiles which offer the potential for cost-effective treatment of contaminated soils are above-ground, engineered systems that use oxygen to stimulate the growth and reproduction of aerobic bacteria for degradation of the petroleum constituents adsorbed to soil in excavated soils. This technology involves heaping contaminated soils into piles and stimulating aerobic microbial activity within the soils through the aeration and/or addition of minerals, nutrients, and moisture. Inside the biopile, microbially mediated reactions by blowing or extracting air through the pipes can enhance degradation of the organic contaminants. The influence of a aeration system on the biopile performance was investigated. Air pressure made to compare the efficiency of suction in the pipes showed that there were slightly significant difference between the two piles in the total amount of TPH biodegradation. The normalised degradation rate was, however, considerably higher in the aeration system than in the normal system without aeration, suggesting that the vertical venting method may have improved the efficiency of the biological reactions in the pile.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.31-43
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• 2018

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of organic farmland soil and nutrient management on soil properties depending on organic (animal manure compost and green manure [hairy vetch]) and chemical fertilization, tillage and no-tillage, and crop rotation (corn-wheat, corn-.hairy vetch). It was found that the application of organic matter such as animal manure compost and hairy vetch, increased the soil organic matter content, the soil microbial density and microbial biomass C content as compared with the chemical fertilizer treatment. It was also confirmed that the functional diversity of soil microbial community was increased. As a result of the comparison with the crop rotation and single cropping, the soil chemistry showed no significant difference between the treatments, but the corn-wheat and corn-hairy vetch rotation treatments tended to have higher microbial biomass C content and shannon's diversity index than the single cropping. Soil chemical properties of tillage and no-tillage treatments showed no significant difference between treatments. There was no statistically significant difference in substrate utilization of soil microbial community between tillage and no-tillage treatment. Correlation analysis between soil chemical properties and soil microbial activity revealed that soil organic matter content and exchangeable potassium content were positively correlated, with statistical significance, with substrate utilization, and substrate richness. To conclude, organic fertilization had positive effects on the short-term improvement of soil chemical properties and diversity of microbial communities.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.307-316
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• 2009

Soil microbial activity and diversity are affected by organic sources applied to improve soil quality and fluctuate seasonally. We investigated the effects of municipal compost (MC), poultry litter (PL), and cover crops of spring oats and red clover (RC) on soil enzyme activities, and soil bacterial community-level physiological profiling (CLPP) in a Mexico silt loam in North Central Missouri, USA. Temporal patterns of these parameters were observed by periodic five soil sampling from spring to fall over a two year period. MC increased soil dehydrogenase (DH) activity consistently beginning about three months after MC application; fluorescein diacetate (FDA) hydrolytic activity significantly began to increase by the September of the first year but fluctuated during the following period. DH activity responded more directly to the amount or properties of organic residues in soils while FDA hydrolysis and CLPP were generally influenced by composition of organic sources, and enzyme activities and CLPP showed seasonal variation, which depended on organic sources and soil moisture. MC and cover crops may be useful organic sources for enhancing general soil microbial activity and altering soil microbial diversity, respectively. Because microbial activities and diversity are dynamic and subject to seasonal changes, the effects of organic amendments on these parameters should be investigated frequently during a growing season.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.105-112
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• 2010

Applications of plant residues and green manures generally improve the properties of soil under conventional farming system. Therefore, we investigated the improvement of selected soil physical properties, bulk density, porosity, and water content, soil penetration resistance, and soil microbial biomass carbon (SMBC) content as affected by different management practices: 1) conventional tillage without rice straw or green manure crop treatment (TNT, check plot), 2) no-tillage amended with rice straw (NTRS), 3) no-tillage amended with rye (NTR), 4) no-tillage amended with Chinese milk vetch (NTCMV), 5) no-tillage without rice straw or green manure crop treatment (NTNT), The values of bulk density, porosity, and water content ranged from 1.22 to 1.37 Mg $m^3$, from 48.3 to 54.0%, and from 35.0 to 40.2%, respectively. The management practices might positively influence the changes in the selected soil properties, especially in the second experimental year. The soil penetration resistance and SMBC content were also improved after applying rice straw and green manure crops as comparing with TNT. Therefore, applications of the rice straw and green manure crop management practices under no-tillage system positively influenced soil physical properties and soil microbial activities in paddy field.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.151-163
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• 2022

This study was conducted to promote organic fertilizer(s) that sustain soil productivity for corn production and protect the environment as required by the Act on the promotion of eco-friendly agriculture. It was conducted at the research station of the Organic Agriculture Division of the National Institute of Agricultural. The treatments consisted of Compost (Com), Bokashi as fermented organic fertilizer (FOF), and mixed expeller pressed cake (PC). They were applied at 174 kg N /ha to field corn, together with a 'no fertilizer' check in Randomized Complete Block Design. At eight weeks after transplanting (WAT) corn, compost increased soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) to 7.48 and 0.76 g/kg respectively, while other fertilizers maintained the initial levels (before treatment application). At corn harvest (13 WAT), soil chemical properties (total C, total N, pH, electrical conductivity, P₂O₅, Ca, K, and Mg) were similar among all organic fertilizer treatments. For soil respiration, FOF increased soil CO₂ respiration by 31-76% above other fertilizer treatments. However, there were no prominent changes in the trends of CH₄ fluxes following the two mechanical weeding operations. Fermented organic fertilizer affected N₂O emissions between 87-96% lower than other fertilizer treatments. Compared to the initial microbial densities, FOF increased fungi and actinomycete colony foming unit by 25 and 16% at harvest. Therefore, the additional potential of improving soil biological fertility and local availability of raw materials make FOF a better option to sustain soil productivity while protecting the environment.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.124-130
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• 2004

This study was carried out to evaluate the effects of condensed molasses soluble (CMS) treatment on the mineralization of N, chemical properties and soil microbial population under the incubation condition with unsaturated water content during the 7 weeks at $25^{\circ}C$ in the different levels of CMS application. The results indicated that the total nitrogen content of soil was increased with increasing application rate of CMS and this trend was maintained up to 7 weeks. With CMS treatment content of $NH_4-N$ was gradually decreased. However, the content of $NO_3-N$ in the soil was gradually increased with incubation time due to the nitrification under the unsturated water condition. The CMS treatment increased the microbial populations such as bacteria, actinomycetes and fungi, which may be due to the availability of more nutrients such as amino acids, sugars and other minor elements from CMS. The pH of soil was found to be reduced by the addition of CMS, Whereas, electrical conduvtivity of soil was correspondingly increased with increasing application rate of CMS.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.381-387
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• 2016

The scientific information on the microbial differentiation according to the changes in chemical properties of paddy soil in reclaimed tidal lands is not enough to understand the reclamation processes. The changes in microflora based on the chemical properties of paddy soils at the same sites of reclaimed tidal lands (21 samples from Nampo, Ewon, Sukmoon and Shihwa sites) were investigated in 2013 and 2015. In general, organic matter in paddy soils increased whereas pH decreased with the reclamation time. The electrical conductivities (EC) of soil samples were closely related to the exchangeable $Na^+$. With an increases in EC of paddy soils from 0.39 to $48.9dS\;m^{-1}$, the ratios (%) of halotolerant and halophilic bacteria to mesophilic bacteria proportionally increased from 0.2% to 102,000%. The population of halotolerant and halophilic bacteria in total microflora was also differentiated with the changes in EC of the same sites from reclaimed tidal soils within 2 years. The population of mesophilic bacteria decreased with an increase in EC above $5dS\;m^{-1}$. The microflora including halotolerant and halophilic bacteria could be a candidate as a biological parameter in evaluating the reclamation processes in addition to the chemical index of EC.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Grassland and Forage Science
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.159-168
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• 2005

This experiment was carried out during the period from May to October 1998 to determine the effect of fermented sawdust swine manure application (SSM) on the herbage production of Japanese millet and soil properties in the Cheju brown volcanic ash soil. The randomized block design (T1 : basic chemical fertilizer, N 200 kg/ha + $P_2O_5\;300 kg/ha+K_2O$ 200kg/ha ; T2 : 1/2 basic chemical fertilizer, N $100+P_2O_5\;150+K_2O$ 100kg/ha; T3 : 1/2 basic SSM, N 100kg/ha, T4:basic SSM, N 200kg/ha; T5:2 times basic SSM, N 400 kg/ha ; T6:4 times basic SSM, N 800 kg/ha) was used. At the same application level of nitrogen 200kg/ha, the application of $100\%$ chemical fertilizer (T1) had significantly lower dry matter yield than that of $50\%$ chemical fertilizer and $50\%$ SSM (T2) or $100\%$ SSM (T4)(p<0.01). Dry matter yield increased with an increase of SSM application to N 400kg/ha level but decreased at N 800 kg/ha level. P, K and Ca contents of Japanese millet tended towards to decrease with an increase of SSM level. The application of chemical fertilizer lowered P and K content of Japanese millet in comparison with that of SSM (p<0.05). pH, available phosphorus. exchangeable potassium, Ca and Mg content of soil studied showed a significant increase with an increase of SSM application level (p<0.05). However, at the same application level of N 200kg/ha, there was statistically no significant difference between chemical fertilizer and SSM in those contents of soil after experiment. The bacterial number of soil among microbial population increased with an increase of SSM level, in June, 1998 (p<0.05), but there was no regular tendency, in October. The rate of bacteria to fungus in soil had a tendency to decrease with an increase of SSM level. In conclusion, it is recommended to use N 400kg/ha of SSM or N 100 kg/ha of chemical fertilizer+N 100 kg/ha of SSM for Japanese millet.