Land development restricts tree growth by damaging soil structure and removing organic matter. Mechanical loosening and organic amendment may improve soil physical properties and tree establishment and growth. Effects of typical post-construction practice and improved methods of soil restoration on tree growth and soil properties were evaluated over two years. Treatments included undisturbed soil (UN); minimum effort (ME) (10 cm topsoil); enhanced topsoil (ET) (ME + rototilling); and profile rebuilding (PR) (compost, subsoiling, topsoil and rototilling). Pretreatment included removing topsoil and compacting subsoil to 1.95 g/cm3 bulk density. Acer rubrum L. (red maple), Quercus bicolor Willd. (swamp white oak), Ulmus 'Morton' (Ulmus japonica (Rehd.) Sarg. x Ulmus wilsoniana Schneid.) (Accolade® elm), Prunus 'First Lady' (Prunus xincam x Prunus campanulata) L. and Quercus macrocarpa Michx. (bur oak) were planted in each plot. The PR treatment reduced soil bulk density at 15-20 cm depth and increased soil C/N ratio, pH, and CEC. Mean canopy projection and cross-sectional trunk area in PR plots ranged from 32% to 226% and 16% to 71% greater, respectively, than those in ME plots. PR treatment increased Q. bicolor photosynthesis rates. Greater root presence was observed in deeper soil layers of ET and PR treatments for A. rubrum and of UN and PR for Q. bicolor; root distribution was not measured for other species. Rehabilitation improved soil physical properties and tree growth after two years. Species variation in growth rate and environmental tolerance appeared to influence early growth treatment effects. Long-term data is needed to fully understand effects of soil rehabilitation. / Master of Science

In 1998, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) adopted standards for soil handling and amendments to improve created non-tidal wetland soil conditions. This study was conducted in sites where these new reconstruction practices were supposedly being implemented. Specific objectives were (i) to determine the relative effects of soil reconstruction practices on mitigation site soils, (ii) to assess the degree to which hydric soil indicators were present, and (iii) to evaluate the relative edaphic potential of mitigation site soils. Soil physical, chemical and morphological properties were analyzed in ten mitigation wetlands located in Virginia's Piedmont and Coastal Plain. Surface soil pH was high due to liming, although some sites demonstrated low subsoil pH, indicating the presence of sulfidic materials. Nutrient levels varied, while C:N ratios were low (<25:1), suggesting a high quality organic matter complex. Organic amendments were generally applied at a rate of 4% soil organic matter content. Actual measured carbon content was <2.6% (<50 Mg ha⁻¹). Sites not receiving organic materials and associated tillage had root-limiting bulk densities at the surface, while the majority of sites had root-limiting subsoil (30 cm) bulk densities due to weakly developed soil structure and a lack of deep ripping practices. Many sites also contained high sand content (>50%), which may negatively affect other soil properties. Nine sites had confirmed Hydric Soil Indicators, with their occurrence in a site as high as 70%. Soil reconstruction methods need to incorporate higher organic amendment rates and/or routine disking/ripping practices to improve mitigation wetland soil conditions. / Master of Science

Past research indicates that created non-tidal wetlands in the mid-Atlantic region are considerably lower in soil organic matter than native forested hydric soils. However, optimal loading rates for created wetland soil reconstruction have not been rigorously established. Our objective was to determine appropriate organic amendment loading rates for a Coastal Plain mitigation wetland based on 1) soil properties reflective of hydric soil development, 2) the formation of redoximorphic features, and 3) the growth and vigor of hydrophytic vegetation. The study contained wet (CCW-Wet) and dry (CCW-Dry) experiments, each receiving 6 compost treatments (0 Mg/ha untilled and 0, 56, 112, 224, and 336 Mg/ha tilled). Over the 1.5-year monitoring period, redox potential decreased and redoximorphic feature formation increased with compost loadings up to 112 Mg/ha. Surface bulk density decreased with loadings up to 224 Mg/ha, while no treatment differences were noted in sub-surface bulk density. In the CCW-Dry experiment, soil moisture peaked in the 224 Mg/ha treatment, while soil moisture in CCW-Wet increased consistently across all loadings. Total biomass in CCW-Wet and Betula nigra L. growth in both experiments increased with loading rate. Total biomass in CCW-Dry and Quercus palustris Muench. growth in both experiments peaked at 112 Mg/ha, although differences were not significant. Collectively, these findings indicate that 112 Mg/ha of high quality organic amendment was optimal for inducing hydric soil conditions and positive hydrophytic vegetation response. Incorporating compost at rates exceeding 112 Mg/ha is challenging and leads to higher surface elevations and redox levels in the initial growing season. / Master of Science

Potentially toxic elements (PTEs) can be absorbed and accumulated in vegetables organ and tissues, and this is an important channel through which PTEs can enter into the food chain. Soil management may interfere in the behavior of PTEs in the system. So, the study of the dynamics of elements in the soil is fundamental to a better understanding of factors that influence soil-plant transfer. In the state of Pernambuco, Brazil, the production of vegetables is mainly concentrated in small or medium organic and conventional farms located in the Agreste and Sao Francisco regions. Our aims in this research were: i) to determine the contents of PTEs in soil and in vegetables produced under conventional and organic systems in garden soils of Pernambuco; ii) to investigate the forms of the PTEs and their uptake by the vegetables based on different soil-plant transfer factors; iii) to use the calculated transfer factors to assess the human risk exposure; iv) to assess the effect of aging and organic matter (OM) on copper (Cu) desorption in garden soils; v) to determine if manure application to soils increases water soluble Cu concentrations; and vi) to verify the efficiency of machine learning techniques in the classification of vegetables produced under organic and conventional systems. Acid and complexing solutions were employed to extract total contents of PTEs in plants and to extract pseudototal, reactive and bioavailable fractions of the PTEs in soils. Soil-plant transfer factors and human risk assessment were calculated based on the determined levels of PTEs. Kinetic assays were developed using rates of organic composts added to Cu-spiked soils to model the Cu desorption. Water extractable Cu and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) were extracted from soils amended with dairy manure, and the Cu-DOC interactions were studied using spectroscopic techniques. Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) leaves had the highest capacity to accumulate PTEs; conventional system promoted higher PTEs values in soils and plants than the organic production; regardless of the scenario, children and adults in contact to vegetables cropped in organic system have a lower health risk than individuals exposed to lettuce leaves conventionally produced. The addition of OM promoted greater Cu desorption, while aging lead to a reduction in the Cu release. The Fouriertransform infrared spectroscopy spectra showed increase in the presence of aliphatic and carboxylic groups in the extracts from the manure-amended soils. Carboxylic acid functional groups on the DOC formed strong bonds with Cu, which can promote Cu transport as dissolved Cu-organic complexes in the soil profile. The Support Vector Machine had an accuracy over 90% to classify the vegetables in the two groups (organic and conventional); and this high assertiveness rate highlights the potential of using elemental quantification and algorithms as support techniques in the process of authenticity and inspection of organic products. / Elementos potencialmente toxicos (EPTs) podem estar biodisponiveis para serem absorvidos e acumulados nos tecidos e orgaos vegetais, sendo esta uma importante rota de entrada de EPTs na cadeia alimentar. O manejo do solo pode interferir no comportamento dos EPTs no sistema. Desta forma, o estudo da dinamica desses elementos no solo e fundamental para melhor entendimento dos fatores que influenciam a transferencia solo-planta. No estado de Pernambuco, a producao de hortalicas se concentra em intensos cultivos organicos e convencionais localizados em pequenas ou medias propriedades, principalmente na regiao Agreste e Sao Francisco. Nossos objetivos neste trabalho foram: i) determinar os teores de EPTs no solo e nas hortalicas produzidas em sistemas convencionais e organicos em hortas de Pernambuco; ii) investigar as formas de EPTs e sua absorcao pelas hortalicas com base em diferentes fatores de transferencia solo-planta; iii) usar os fatores de transferencia calculados para investigar o risco de exposicao aos humanos; iv) estudar o efeito do tempo e da materia organica (MO) na dessorcao de cobre (Cu) em solos de horta; v) determinar se a aplicacao de esterco aumenta a concentracao de Cu soluvel em agua; e vi) verificar a eficiencia de tecnicas machine learning na classificacao de hortalicas produzidas em sistemas organicos e convencionais. Solucoes acidas e complexantes foram utilizadas para extrair os teores totais de EPTs nas plantas e os teores pseudototal, reativo e biodisponivel dos EPTs no solo. Fatores de transferencia solo-planta e avaliacao de risco humano foram calculados com base nos teores de EPTs. Estudos de cinetica foram desenvolvidos apos adicao de composto organico em solos contaminados com Cu para modelar a dessorcao de Cu. Cu soluvel em agua e carbono organico dissolvido (COD) foram extraidos de solos adubados com esterco, a interacao Cu-COD foi estudada usando tecnicas espectroscopicas. Folhas de alface (Lactuca sativa) apresentaram a maior capacidade de acumular EPTS; o sistema convencional promoveu maiores tores de EPTs nos solos e plantas do que o sistema organico; independentemente do cenario, criancas e adultos em contato com vegetais produzidos em sistema organico tem um menor risco do que os individuos que consomem folhas de alface convencionalmente produzidas. A adicao de MO promoveu maior dessorcao de Cu, enquanto o aumento no tempo de contato reduziu a liberacao de Cu. Os graficos da espectroscopia de infravermelho com transformada de Fourier mostraram um aumento na presenca de grupos funcionais alifaticos e carboxilicos nos extratos de solos adubados com esterco. Esses grupos funcionais no COD formam ligacoes fortes com Cu, o que promove o transporte do elemento na forma de complexos organicos dissolvidos no perfil do solo. O modelo Support Vector Machine apresentou acuracia superior a 90% na classificacao das hortalicas em dois grupos (organicas e convencionais); e a alta taxa de assertividade mostra o potencial do uso de quantificacao elementar e algoritmos como tecnicas auxiliares no processo de autenticidade de inspecao de produtos organicos.

Potentially toxic elements (PTEs) can be absorbed and accumulated in vegetables organ and tissues, and this is an important channel through which PTEs can enter into the food chain. Soil management may interfere in the behavior of PTEs in the system. So, the study of the dynamics of elements in the soil is fundamental to a better understanding of factors that influence soil-plant transfer. In the state of Pernambuco, Brazil, the production of vegetables is mainly concentrated in small or medium organic and conventional farms located in the Agreste and Sao Francisco regions. Our aims in this research were: i) to determine the contents of PTEs in soil and in vegetables produced under conventional and organic systems in garden soils of Pernambuco; ii) to investigate the forms of the PTEs and their uptake by the vegetables based on different soil-plant transfer factors; iii) to use the calculated transfer factors to assess the human risk exposure; iv) to assess the effect of aging and organic matter (OM) on copper (Cu) desorption in garden soils; v) to determine if manure application to soils increases water soluble Cu concentrations; and vi) to verify the efficiency of machine learning techniques in the classification of vegetables produced under organic and conventional systems. Acid and complexing solutions were employed to extract total contents of PTEs in plants and to extract pseudototal, reactive and bioavailable fractions of the PTEs in soils. Soil-plant transfer factors and human risk assessment were calculated based on the determined levels of PTEs. Kinetic assays were developed using rates of organic composts added to Cu-spiked soils to model the Cu desorption. Water extractable Cu and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) were extracted from soils amended with dairy manure, and the Cu-DOC interactions were studied using spectroscopic techniques. Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) leaves had the highest capacity to accumulate PTEs; conventional system promoted higher PTEs values in soils and plants than the organic production; regardless of the scenario, children and adults in contact to vegetables cropped in organic system have a lower health risk than individuals exposed to lettuce leaves conventionally produced. The addition of OM promoted greater Cu desorption, while aging lead to a reduction in the Cu release. The Fouriertransform infrared spectroscopy spectra showed increase in the presence of aliphatic and carboxylic groups in the extracts from the manure-amended soils. Carboxylic acid functional groups on the DOC formed strong bonds with Cu, which can promote Cu transport as dissolved Cu-organic complexes in the soil profile. The Support Vector Machine had an accuracy over 90% to classify the vegetables in the two groups (organic and conventional); and this high assertiveness rate highlights the potential of using elemental quantification and algorithms as support techniques in the process of authenticity and inspection of organic products. / Elementos potencialmente toxicos (EPTs) podem estar biodisponiveis para serem absorvidos e acumulados nos tecidos e orgaos vegetais, sendo esta uma importante rota de entrada de EPTs na cadeia alimentar. O manejo do solo pode interferir no comportamento dos EPTs no sistema. Desta forma, o estudo da dinamica desses elementos no solo e fundamental para melhor entendimento dos fatores que influenciam a transferencia solo-planta. No estado de Pernambuco, a producao de hortalicas se concentra em intensos cultivos organicos e convencionais localizados em pequenas ou medias propriedades, principalmente na regiao Agreste e Sao Francisco. Nossos objetivos neste trabalho foram: i) determinar os teores de EPTs no solo e nas hortalicas produzidas em sistemas convencionais e organicos em hortas de Pernambuco; ii) investigar as formas de EPTs e sua absorcao pelas hortalicas com base em diferentes fatores de transferencia solo-planta; iii) usar os fatores de transferencia calculados para investigar o risco de exposicao aos humanos; iv) estudar o efeito do tempo e da materia organica (MO) na dessorcao de cobre (Cu) em solos de horta; v) determinar se a aplicacao de esterco aumenta a concentracao de Cu soluvel em agua; e vi) verificar a eficiencia de tecnicas machine learning na classificacao de hortalicas produzidas em sistemas organicos e convencionais. Solucoes acidas e complexantes foram utilizadas para extrair os teores totais de EPTs nas plantas e os teores pseudototal, reativo e biodisponivel dos EPTs no solo. Fatores de transferencia solo-planta e avaliacao de risco humano foram calculados com base nos teores de EPTs. Estudos de cinetica foram desenvolvidos apos adicao de composto organico em solos contaminados com Cu para modelar a dessorcao de Cu. Cu soluvel em agua e carbono organico dissolvido (COD) foram extraidos de solos adubados com esterco, a interacao Cu-COD foi estudada usando tecnicas espectroscopicas. Folhas de alface (Lactuca sativa) apresentaram a maior capacidade de acumular EPTS; o sistema convencional promoveu maiores tores de EPTs nos solos e plantas do que o sistema organico; independentemente do cenario, criancas e adultos em contato com vegetais produzidos em sistema organico tem um menor risco do que os individuos que consomem folhas de alface convencionalmente produzidas. A adicao de MO promoveu maior dessorcao de Cu, enquanto o aumento no tempo de contato reduziu a liberacao de Cu. Os graficos da espectroscopia de infravermelho com transformada de Fourier mostraram um aumento na presenca de grupos funcionais alifaticos e carboxilicos nos extratos de solos adubados com esterco. Esses grupos funcionais no COD formam ligacoes fortes com Cu, o que promove o transporte do elemento na forma de complexos organicos dissolvidos no perfil do solo. O modelo Support Vector Machine apresentou acuracia superior a 90% na classificacao das hortalicas em dois grupos (organicas e convencionais); e a alta taxa de assertividade mostra o potencial do uso de quantificacao elementar e algoritmos como tecnicas auxiliares no processo de autenticidade de inspecao de produtos organicos.

La résistance aux antibiotiques représente un problème de santé publique majeur. La pression de sélection liée à la surutilisation des antibiotiques en médecines humaine et vétérinaire est responsable de cette augmentation, mais l’environnement joue également son rôle dans la diffusion de ces résistances.En Guadeloupe, très peu d’études ont été réalisées sur l’état de la résistance aux antibiotiques, mais l’utilisation vétérinaire et humaine des antibiotiques est intensive. Les amendements issus de déchets humains et animaux sont également largement utilisés en production végétale.Cependant, les analyses moléculaires ont pu mettre évidence la persistance des gènes de résistance aux antibiotiques et des gènes de mobilité dans les composts et les sols amendés. L’abondance et la persistance des gènes de résistance de mobilité aux antibiotiques dans les cultures maraichères (concombres et patates douces) sont liées à leur concentration dans les amendements. Un épandage réalisé jusqu’à trois fois consécutivement ne modifie pas la structure génétique des communautés bactériennes dans les sols quel que soit l’amendement utilisé. Les phylums bactériens majoritairement retrouvés dans les composts et les sols sont les Proteobacteria, les Firmicutes et les Bacteroidetes qui sont susceptibles de porter les gènes de résistance aux antibiotiques. L’apport d’amendements organiques dans les sols ne semble pas constituer un risque majeur d’acquisition de résistances par l’homme via les légumes consommés. En revanche, dans les élevages de grande taille où les animaux confinés sont pourvoyeurs de BRAs et de GRAs, les éleveurs pourraient être exposés via les aérosols en cas d’exposition prolongée. En Guadeloupe, la valorisation des déchets organiques, quelle que soit leur origine, pour leur utilisation en production végétale ne semble pas favoriser la diffusion d’E. coli résistants de l’environnement à l’homme. Cependant, la qualité du compostage, les caractéristiques physico-chimiques des sols et les conditions climatiques sont à prendre en compte pour la planification des apports d’amendements afin de réduire le risque d’exposition, de diffusion et de persistance de isolats d’E. coli résistants.Quinze souches d’E. coli productrices de Bêtalactamase à spectre étendu (BLSE) ont été isolées des fèces des chevaux durant leur traitement antibiotique, trois pour le premier cheval et 12 pour le second. Les profils de résistance aux antibiotiques étaient congruents avec l'analyse des plasmides, les gènes de résistance détectés au moyen de WGS, et avec l'analyse phylogénétique basée sur le génome du noyau. On peut distinguer trois clones et quatre singletons indiquant qu'une grande diversité génétique existe parmi les souches d’E. coli producteurs de BLSE.Cette étude a permis de mettre en évidence la persistance des E. coli productrices de BLSE (E. coli BLSE) dans le microbiote des chevaux traités par des antibiotiques. Cette étude a pu démontrer qu’il y a résurgence d’E. coli BLSE dès les premiers jours de traitement avec une persistance de ces souches plus d’un mois après le traitement. En effet, deux mois après la fin du traitement, les E. coli BLSE n’étaient plus détectables. Cette surprenante diversité clonales et l’apparition d’E. coli BLSE avant tout traitement antibiotique laisse supposer que le portage d’E. coli BLSE est fréquent chez les chevaux de cet élevage et probablement à plus grande échelle. / The pressure of selection related to the overuse of antibiotics in human and veterinary medicines is responsible for this increase, but the environment also plays a role in the diffusion of these resistances.In Guadeloupe, very few things are known on the state of resistance to antibiotics, but both veterinary and human uses are intense and amendments resulting from human and animal wastes are widely used.In Guadeloupe, the use of waste from animal, plant and human activities in crop production does not appear to favor E. coli resistant strains spreading from the environment to humans. However, composting quality, soil physicochemical characteristics and climatic conditions should be taken into account when planning amendments to reduce the exposure risk, spread and persistence of E. coli resistant strains.Fifteen strains of E. coli were isolated from horses feces were isolated during their antibiotic treatment, three in the first horse and 12 in the second. Profiles of antibiotic resistance were congruent with the plasmid analysis, genotypes for resistance genes detected using WGS, and with the phylogenetic analysis based on the core genome. Three clones and four singletons could be distinguished indicating that a high genetic diversity exists among E. coli producing ESBL. This study evidenced the persistence of E. coli producing ESBL in the microbiota of horses treated with antibiotics. This study was able to demonstrate the resurgence of resistant phenotypes even before the first day of treatment with persistence of these strains more than one month after treatment. The absence of detection of E. coli producing ESBL was evedenced a few months after treatment. Thus, the diversity of antibiotic-resistant pathogenic microorganisms has probably higher than that described in previous studies.

The production of strawberries can be severely limited by soilborne plant pathogens, insects and weeds. Macrophomina phaseolina is a problematic soilborne fungal pathogen in California strawberry production inciting the disease Macrophomina crown rot. When established, the pathogen can cause extensive plant decline and mortality. Host resistance will be a critical tool for managing this disease and guiding breeding programs in the post methyl bromide era. Evaluation of host resistance in strawberry germplasm to M. phaseolina was evaluated through phenotypic assessments of disease incidence. A total of 90 strawberry cultivars and elite selections were included in a replicated field trial conducted in artificially inoculated soils to assess host resistance. Significant differences in levels of resistance and susceptibility were observed among genotypes tested in this trial. The five most resistant strawberry genotypes from highest to lowest in percent plant mortality were: UC-R, UC-G, UC-V, Manresa, and Osceola. The five most susceptible strawberry genotypes with the highest percent mortality in ranking order from highest to lowest were: UC-J, Ruby June, Festival, UC-Y, and UC-A. Of the genotypes tested in this trial UC-V, Manresa and Osceola could be characterized as highly resistant, but no complete resistance was observed. An additional study was conducted to correlate host symptom expression with the extent of pathogen colonization in different strawberry tissues, and to determine if resistant germplasm can contribute to secondary inoculum production in the field. An established qPCR method was utilized to quantify M. phaseolina colonization of strawberry tissues. There were significant effects for cultivar (P < 0.0001) as well as a significant two-way interaction of cultivar x sample time (P= 0.0083) on the concentration of M. phaseolina DNA detected in strawberry tissues. Expression of the resistant phenotype in strawberry cultivars was associated with limited plant colonization by M. phaseolina. The extent of colonization of a specific cultivar by M. phaseolina was dependent on the sample time after inoculation with the pathogen. In addition, the roots and crowns of a specific strawberry cultivar were equally colonized on a per plant tissue weight basis, but this provides only speculation into the mechanisms conferring host resistance. A third study was conducted to integrate host resistance of strawberry genotypes with the use of organic amendments in effort to mutually enhance the efficacy of each factor for the control of Macrophomina crown rot. Artificially inoculated potting substrate was amended with Brassica juncea mustard seed meal at a rate of 4.94 tons ha-1(MSM), and anaerobic soil disinfestation utilizing rice bran at a rate of 22.24 tons ha-1 (ASD) were compared to a non-amended (UTC) and steam controls. The soil assay indicated that the ASD and steam treatments were able to reduce the CFU g-1 potting substrate of M. phaseolina by 99.7-100%. In addition, there were significant effects of soil treatment on the fresh biomass of weed seedlings recovered from the potting substrate. However, disease severity and host colonization of multiple strawberry cultivars by M. phaseolina was not reduced when grown in the treated potting substrate. The effect of strawberry cultivar on the extent of pathogen colonization was highly significant (P < 0.0001), in which cultivars characterized as resistant from phenotypic screenings possessed lower concentrations of M. phaseolina DNA. The suppression of M. phaseolina in response to organic amendments was limited but this study supports findings from previous experiments that genotype specific host resistance minimizes host colonization and reduces the production of secondary inoculum.

In der vorliegenden Studie wurden zwei Fragestellungen bearbeitet, die beide das Ziel verfolgen, die Stickstoff(N)-Ausnutzungseffizienz in landwirtschaftlichen Systemen zu steigern: 1) Hat die langjährige organische Düngung einen Einfluss auf den Abbau kürzlich applizierter organischer Dünger? Die Hypothese war, dass relevante Effekte nur bei schwer abbaubaren organischen Düngern auftreten während bei leicht abbaubaren organischen Düngern die Düngungshistorie keine Rolle spielt. 2) Können die hohen N-Bilanzüberschüsse im intensiven Freilandgemüsebau durch den Einsatz von Winterzwischenfrüchten (ZF) deutlich reduziert werden? Die Hypothese war, dass ZF die Bilanzüberschüsse der betrachteten zweijährigen Fruchtfolgen um mindestens 30 kg N / ha reduzieren. Die erste Hypothese wurde überprüft, indem der Abbau organischer Dünger in Böden, die sich in ihrer organischen Düngungshistorie unterschieden, gemessen wurde. Es wurden ein Topfversuch im Gewächshaus sowie ein Inkubationsversuch im Labor durchgeführt. Die Ergebnisse deuteten darauf hin, dass es Effekte der Historie auf den Abbau von Stallmist und Kiefernrinde gab, während es keine Effekte bei leicht abbaubarem Kohlmaterial gab. Daher wurde die Hypothese angenommen. Allerdings ergaben die beobachteten Effekte kein konsistentes Bild in Hinblick auf die Richtung der Effekte auf die Kohlenstoff(C)- und N-Mineralisierung und Effekte auf die Netto-N-Mineralisation waren generell sehr klein. Zur Überprüfung der zweiten Hypothese wurden an drei Standorten in Deutschland Feldversuche mit Gemüsefruchtfolgen und unterschiedlichen ZF durchgeführt. Die Ergebnisse ergaben, dass trotz der die mittleren Bilanzüberschüsse der Kontrollen (ohne ZF) von 217 kg N / ha die ZF die N-Bilanz im Mittel um nur 13 kg N / ha reduzierten. Daher wurde die Hypothese abgelehnt. Die Ergebnisse zeigten weiterhin, dass der verlustfreie Transfer der von der ZF aufgenommenen N-Menge an die Folgefrucht ein kritischer Schritt bei dieser Technik ist. / The current study dealt with two questions that target potential options to increase the nitrogen (N) use efficiency of agricultural systems: 1) Does long-term organic fertilization affect the decomposition of recently added organic fertilizers? The hypothesis was that effects only occur for recalcitrant organic fertilizers while for readily decomposable organic fertilizers, the fertilization history does not play a role. 2) Can the N balance surpluses in intensive field vegetable production systems be substantially reduced by cultivation of winter catch crops (CC)? The hypothesis was that the N balance surpluses of the investigated two-year crop rotations can be reduced by more than 30 kg N / ha. The first hypothesis was tested by applying organic fertilizers to soils that only differed in organic fertilization history. A greenhouse pot experiment and a laboratory incubation experiment were conducted. The results indicated that fertilization history had effects on the decomposition of farmyard manure and pine bark, not however on the decomposition of readily decomposable cabbage material. Hence, the hypothesis was accepted in that fertilization history effects depended on the type of fertilizer. However, fertilization history effects showed no consistent trend with respect to increase or decrease in carbon (C) and N mineralization and the effects on net N mineralization were minor in magnitude. The second hypothesis was tested by performing field experiments at three sites in Germany. Vegetable crop rotations were set up, testing different types of CC. The results suggested that in spite of high N surpluses in the control treatments (no CC) of 217 kg N / ha, CC reduced the N balance surplus on average by only 13 kg N / ha. Hence, the hypothesis was rejected. The findings further indicated that the transfer of N taken up by the CC to the succeeding crop is a critical step when adopting this technique.