this post was submitted on 23 Jul 2023
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Reclamation - restoring disturbed lands

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Vetiver grass biomass production and decomposition were studied in three Australian soils.

Different soil types had varying decomposition rates, with clay soil showing higher rates compared to sand and silt soils.

Bacteria and fungi play a crucial role in soil decomposition, with soil structure and texture influencing their accessibility to organic matter.

Vetiver grass has the potential to produce a large amount of biomass in carbon and nutrient-depleted soils.

Factors such as growing conditions, genetic potential, and planting density can affect the biomass production of vetiver grass.

Conclusion:

The results from this study confirmed the large biomass (both above- and below-ground) production potential of vetiver grass over a short period of time even in soils with low fertility. The application of vetiver shoots and roots biomass on the surface of three soils with contrasting textures has also decomposed differently over time and the decomposition was more rapid in the clay soil compared with the sand and silt soils. However, the rate of decomposition of vetiver roots was more rapid than the shoots in all soil types. Besides, the high biomass production potential, the more rapid decomposition rate of vetiver root materials regardless of where they were sampled (root depth) from could be attributable to the lower C:N ratio of the vetiver roots compared with the vetiver shoots. Hence, the larger carbon storage through the depth and deeper soils could be a contribution from the vetiver roots than the shoots. This research, therefore, suggests that the large root biomass of vetiver contributed more to the soil carbon accumulation not only to the soil organic matter than the shoot biomass. This is due to the faster decomposition of vetiver root exudates which is crucial in releasing the carbon in the root exudates and would also speed up its contribution to stable soil organic matter. Hence, planting vetiver and similar tropical perennial grasses on degraded and less fertile soils could be a good strategy for carbon sequestration and to rehabilitate degraded soils. We, therefore, suggest that farmers need to be encouraged to plant vetiver and similar tropical perennial grasses on degraded soils and marginal lands to facilitate rehabilitation and carbon sequestration. Further research also needs to be conducted to investigate the mechanisms and impacts of potential tropical grasses like vetiver

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