The quality of sulphur selected fractions in soil from Nature reserve Žitavský Luh

Abstract

DOI: 10.15414/afz.2014.17.02.36–43

Received 17. February 2014 ǀ Accepted 8. April 2014 ǀ Available online 23. June 2014

The importance of the quantity of sulphur monitoring in soils increases not only with its effect on the quality of production but also from the environment protection. Dominant part of soil sulphur is bounded in organic compounds, so the quantity of sulphur depends on the quantity of organic compounds in soil. Sulphur is essential for synthesis of certain amino acids in plants. Sulphur is one of the most important elements in the earth's crust. The aim of our work is to determine selected fractions of sulphur, and organic carbon (C_ox) in soil samples from the protected area Žitavský luh. This area is located on the borders of the Žitava River, on foothill of hilly country of Hronska. The wetlands are interesting in not only from industrial point of view but they also play very important role in vegetation and composition of forest and plant communities by their position, climatic and soil conditions. We compared examined indicators in samples from different soil types, which were taken from the soils in Natural Reserve Žitavský luh in different depths, in years 2010 - 2012. From soil types there are Mollic Fluvisol Eutric Fluvisol and Histi-Umbric Gleysol in the wetland. The content of sulphate sulphur was an interval from 61.65 mg.kg^-1 (Eutric Fluvisol, depth 0.00 - 0.15 m) to 352.15 mg.kg^-1 (Histi-Umbric Gleysol, depth 0.00 - 0.10 m) in the monitoring time. The interval measured values of chloride - soluble sulphur content was from 39.03 mg.kg^-1 (depth 0.15 - 0.45 m) to 303.30 mg.kg^-1 (depth 0.00 - 0.15 m). The average quantity of heat - soluble sulphur (266.96 mg.kg^-1) was the largest in Histi-Umbric Gleysol and the smallest in the soil type Eutric Fluvisol (74.48 mg.kg^-1). The quantity of organic carbon in soil was highest in the humic horizons. The highest value of organic carbon in the soil type was in Histi -Umbric Gleysol (72.10 g.kg^-1; in 0.00 - 0.10 m), which could be caused unstableness organic matter during floods. The quantity of the organic carbon (Cox) in soil samples decreased gradually with depth.

The environment protection and ecological measures oriented to decrease of discharged sulphur compounds caused the fall of the supply of sulphur. The deficit of sulphur is one of the limiting factors for vegetal production. Sulphur is one of the essential, irrecoverable nutrients in cultivating agricultural plants; it is a mobile element. In environment it is reliable to very important changes because of the variety of its chemical forms.

Key words: soil type, fractions of sulphur, sulphur dynamics, Nature Reserve Žitavský luh