Interrelationships between microbial and soil properties in young volcanic ash soils of Nicaragua

The activity and biomass of soil microorganisms were measured in soils from 25 different arable sites in the Pacific region of Nicaragua with the objective of elucidating their interrelationship with soil textural and soil chemical properties. All soils developed from recent volcanic deposits but differ in their particle size distribution. Short-term phosphorus fixation capacity varied widely and was, on average, 11% of added P. In contrast, long-term P fixation capacity varied within a small range of around 55%. Mean basal respiration was 8.6 mug CO2-C d(-1) g(-1) soil, average contents of biomass C, biomass P, and ergosterol as an indicator of fungal biomass were 116, 1.95, and 0.34 mug g(-1) soil, respectively, They were all, except biomass P, significantly lower in the sandy than in the loamy soils. The mean biomass C-to-soil C ratio was 0.69%, the mean metabolic quotient 95 Mg CO2-C d(-1) g(-1) biomass C, the mean ergosterol-to-biomass C ratio 0.31% and the mean biomass C-to-P ratio 107. The very low ergosterol-to-biomass C ratio indicates that fungi contribute only a relatively small percentage to the microbial biomass. The biomass C-to-P ratio exceeded considerably the soil C-to-total P ratio. Metabolic quotient qCO(2) and ergosterol-to-biomass C were both negatively correlated with biomass C-to-soil C ratio and clay content, indicating positive correlations between qCO(2) and ergosterol-to-biomass C ratio and between biomass C-to-soil C ratio and clay content. Key problems of soil fertility and soil quality in Nicaragua are low availability of soil organic matter and phosphorus to soil microorganisms, which are magnified by a low percentage of fungi, probably reducing the ability of soil to provide nutrients for plant growth. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.