meth_1.23 Soil Sampling and Processing AM0024

Contributors: Kumari Rajapaksha Prathirajage (ORCID: 0000-0002-3480-1493), Jeff Powell (ORCID: 0000-0003-1091-2452)

AM Project ID:  AM0024

Method: Soil samples were collected and processed as per the protocol described under method 1.1 with the following exceptions: 

1) plots were sized 20 metres by 20 metres.

2) soil samples were taken from the top 10cm, and no sample was collected from the 20-30cm depth.

3) for DNA extraction, soil was sieved through a 2mm sieve prior to being added to a 15mL Falcon tube and frozen at -20°C for storage. 

4) soil physical characteristics and microbial biomass were assessed in-house at the Hawkesbury Institute for the environment using the methods described in the following manuals:

– for clay, sand and silt percentages and for texture assessment: according to Gavlak et al. (2005)

– for bulk density: according to Blake and Hartge (1986)

– for microbial biomass: according to Peacock and White (2017)

References:

Blake, G. R. and Hartge, K. H. 1986. Bulk density. p. 363-375. In: A. Klute et al. (ed.) Methods of soil analysis: Part 1: Physical and Mineralogical Methods. Monograph Number 9 (Second Edition). ASA, Madison, WI.

Gavlak, R., D. Horneck, and R. Miller. 2005. Plant, soil and water reference methods for the Western Region. Western Regional Extension Publication (WREP) 125, WERA-103 Technical Committee, http://www.naptprogram.org/files/napt/western-states-method-manual-2005.pdf.

Peacock, Aaron D., and David C. White. 2017. “Microbial Biomass and Community Composition Analysis Using Phospholipid Fatty Acids.” In Hydrocarbon and Lipid Microbiology Protocols: Microbial Quantitation, Community Profiling and Array Approaches, edited by Terry J. McGenity, Kenneth N. Timmis, and Balbina Nogales, 65–76. Springer Protocols Handbooks. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/8623_2016_213.