Amend the soil with composts not otherwise specified

Overall effectiveness category Unknown effectiveness (limited evidence)
Number of studies: 1
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How is the evidence assessed?

Effectiveness

54%
Certainty

29%
Harms

19%

Calculating overall effectiveness category

Background information and definitions

Soil microbial biomass is the amount of tiny living organisms within a given area or amount of soil.

Study locations

Key messages

One controlled, randomized, replicated trial in Italy found that applying a high rate of compost increased soil organic matter levels, microbial biomass and fruit yield.

SOIL TYPES COVERED: Silty-clay.

About key messages

Key messages provide a descriptive index to studies we have found that test this intervention.

Studies are not directly comparable or of equal value. When making decisions based on this evidence, you should consider factors such as study size, study design, reported metrics and relevance of the study to your situation, rather than simply counting the number of studies that support a particular interpretation.

Supporting evidence from individual studies

A controlled, randomized, replicated experiment in 2001-2009 on silty-clay soil in Italy (Baldi et al. 2010) found 169% more soil organic matter in soil receiving 10 t/ha/year of compost compared to an unfertilized control, after 8 years. Soil receiving 5 t/ha/year of compost applied had 75% more organic matter compared to the control. Mineral fertilizers had no effect on organic matter levels. Soils receiving compost at 10 t/ha/year had higher microbial biomass (12 mg/g soil) and fruit yield (51 kg/tree) compared to the control (6.6 mg/g soil and 43 kg/tree, respectively). Six treatments replicated four times were applied to nectarine Prunus persica trees: (1) unfertilized control, (2) mineral fertilizer including phosphorus (100 kg/ha), potassium (200 kg/ha) and nitrogen (70 kg/ha), (3) cow manure (10 decreasing to 5 t/ha), (4) compost at planting then 5 t/ha/year, (5) compost at 5 t/ha/year, (6) compost at 10 t/ha/year. Soil samples were collected annually in September to 40 cm depth. Nectarine trees were spaced at 5 m between rows and 3.8 m between trees. Compost and manure were measured in tonnes of dry weight.
Study and other actions tested
Referenced paper
Baldi E., Toselli M., Marcolini G., Quartieri M., Cirillo E., Innocenti a. & Marangoni B. (2010) Compost can successfully replace mineral fertilizers in the nutrient management of commercial peach orchard. Soil Use and Management, 26, 346-353.

Please cite as:

Key, G., Whitfield, M., Dicks, L.V., Sutherland, W.J. & Bardgett, R.D. (2020) Enhancing Soil Fertility. Pages 613-634 in: W.J. Sutherland, L.V. Dicks, S.O. Petrovan & R.K. Smith (eds) What Works in Conservation 2020. Open Book Publishers, Cambridge, UK.

Where has this evidence come from?

List of journals searched by synopsis

All the journals searched for all synopses

This Action forms part of the Action Synopsis:

Soil Fertility

Related Actions

Actions	Effectiveness	Studies	Category
Amend the soil with organic processing wastes or their composts Action Link	Unknown effectiveness (limited evidence)	2	Synopsis Link
Amend the soil with formulated chemical compounds Action Link	Likely to be beneficial	14	Synopsis Link
Amend the soil with non-chemical minerals and mineral wastes Action Link	Unknown effectiveness (limited evidence)	2	Synopsis Link