Is there a way that soil management changes could improve this project?

     In class we had discussed that good soil management needs to have stable aggregates, low bulk density, and lots of macropores. We also know that the soils need to have organic matter added to them as well. In our compost piles, it was noticed that the straw, wood chip piles, and the deciduous litters all had high numbers of biota contained within them.

This finished compost appears to have a diversity of pore sizes, and a lot of macropores, this is a quality of good soil management.

    When it came to the finished compost pile, there were very low numbers of biota within them, and it was also noticed that there were more predators and macrofauna within the finished compost pile. 
This was probably due to the fact that the pile was “finished” with decomposition, which also means that the smaller decomposing microfauna were done with their "job."  Since their food source was depleted, they either died or moved elsewhere.  As the microfauna die or move out the larger biota will eventually die or move out too as their food source diminishes.  We predict this is the stage that the soil ecology is currently at in the finished compost.  If there was more organic matter added to the finished pile it would give the decomposing biota more food so they would remain in the pile.

This predator prey relationship explains the ecological stage the finished compost is at

     It’s important to observe these biota to fully understand their role in the ecosystem, and how they can impact the soil function. It is known that soil biota are important for the regulation of organic matter dynamics, as well as enhancing the soil physical structure and the water regime. This chart below shows the relationships between the biota and their functions within the food web.

       Since there are diverse roles that different biota serve in soil decomposition, good soil management would facilitate diverse populations of biota.  The diversity and type of species present in a soil could be an indication of how "healthy" the soil is, and if the soil is being managed well.  Comparing the species present and the diversity of species in soil samples with a treatment of good soils management and poor soils management would have been an interesting component to this project.




http://www.nature.com/scitable/knowledge/library/the-soil-biota-84078125