Ultrasonic dispersion (sonication) is essential in the physical fractionation of soil organic matter (SOM). High sonication power, necessary to achieve complete soil dispersion, may cause fragmenta...

A promising strategy to optimise nitrogen (N) management in agriculture involves accounting for microbial soil organic matter (SOM) mineralisation and…

Ants are common soil engineers that influence carbon cycling. This meta-analysis shows that ants increase soil organic carbon storage by 22% and CO2 emissions by 84%, with effects shaped by speci...

Purpose: While olive pomace compost (OPC) represents an environmentally sustainable amendment, its nutrient enrichment may also favour the growth of invasive plant species, worsening an already significant ecological issue. Methods: This study evaluated the performance of invasive species E. canadensis and the non-invasive crop E. sativa in response to different OPCs produced under three amendment regimes: OP + barley straw (C1), OP + barley straw + urea (C2), and OP + barley straw + sheep litter (C3), applied at standard and elevated (10×) doses across three plant communities: invasive-only, crop-only, and mixed. Results: E. canadensis exhibited dry biomass of shoot (DBS) increased by 30.82% and 30.51%, respectively. In contrast, E. sativa exhibited DBS of 29.36% under C2 × 10 in the crop-only community. In invaded soil, TC, and TN were highest under C3 × 10 (p < 0.001), whereas B, Cr, Mg, Mn, Ni, P, Pb, and Si were higher under C1 × 10 in the non-invaded soil. E. sativa accumulated high levels of Na, P, S, and Si in the crop-only community. E. canadensis increased levels of Al and Fe in all compost treatments, with B, Ca, K, Na, and S exceeding BCFs > 1, while other elements remained < 1. Flavonoids declined in E. sativa but were strongly upregulated in E. canadensis (diosmetin, apigenin), with phenolic acids accumulating predominantly in the invasive-only community. Conclusions: Overall, nitrogen-enriched OP composts preferentially enhance the growth of E. canadensis and may potentially reinforce its competitive advantage over crops, emphasising the need to consider ecological risks when applying compost in invaded agroecosystems. Graphical Abstract

Soil microbes recycle nutrients, but their global nutrient use efficiency is poorly understood. This study finds microbial nitrogen-use efficiency is nearly twice phosphorus-use efficiency, driven by ...

This global assessment demonstrates that conservation tillage effectively balances agricultural productivity with environmental sustainability. The findings reveal that minimizing soil disturbance in...

As forest composition changes globally, understanding how shifts in mycorrhizal dominance affect soil carbon cycling becomes increasingly important. We found that the dominance of trees associating w....

The rhizosphere priming effects (RPE) influence soil organic carbon (SOC) decomposition at the root-soil interface. However, whether different tree species affect the direction and intensity of RPE ha...