Purpose Through high sorption affinities of Copper (Cu) to soil organic matter, excessively applied Cu generates complex responses by numerous soil functions, e.g. microbial nutrient cycling, that are relying on organic matter decomposition. Methods Effects of Cu on soil nitrogen (N) transformation were investigated on a bacterial community level with complying N-functional genes, enzymatic activities and N-pools. Up to 5000 m...

Petrographic observations and in situ U–Pb ages of melilitites, foidites, basanites, phonolites, and trachytes from the southern part of the Central European Volcanic Province (CEVP) and related plutonic inclusions therein reveal two distinct age groups separated by a gap of ~ 20 Myr. A late Cretaceous to early Eocene group (~ 73–47 Ma; Taunus, Lower Main plain, Odenwald and Kraichgau area, Bonndorfer Graben and Freiburger Buc...

Purpose Root exudates are key components driving belowground interaction between plant, microbes and soil. High-end analytical approaches provide advanced insights into exudate metabolite diversity, however, the amount of total carbon (C) released by roots should always be determined as the most basic parameter when characterizing root exudation as it (i) provides quantitative information of C exuded into the surrounding soil...

Soil P testing has been widely used to predict crop yields, P uptake, and fertilizer demands in agriculture. Diffusive gradients in thin films (DGT) provides a zero-sink soil P test which mimics diffusion-controlled plant uptake and has previously been found to predict P availability to crops better than conventional quantity-based P tests in highly weathered Australian, though not in European soils. Here we tested the perform...

Differences in herbivory among woody species can greatly affect the functioning of forest ecosystems, particularly in species‐rich (sub)tropical regions. However, the relative importance of the different plant traits which determine herbivore damage remains unclear. Defence traits can have strong effects on herbivory, but rarely studied geographical range characteristics could complement these effects through evolutionary asso...