Black truffle's impact on soil fungi was studied in plantations and forests across seasons via network analysis. Plantations showed more homogeneous and connected fungal network than forests, suggesting greater stability. Black truffle lacked a central role in either system's fungal network. Saprotrophic fungi mainly drove carbon and nutrient cycling. This work improves the understanding of fungal dynamics in black truffle soils and offers insights for better black truffle cultivation.

Cover crops (CC) are known to help capture nitrates, but their role in mitigating pesticide impacts has been less studied. We evaluated how two CC densities (vs. bare soil) affected pesticide residues in soil and solution over 3 months in a greenhouse pot experiment. Our results show that well-developed CCs enhance pesticide biodegradation across a wide range of active substances, likely by sustaining active edaphic microbiota. This further confirms the role of CCs in groundwater protection.

In this article, we developed a method to better understand how soil water moisture and salt content affect electrical signals measured from the surface by electromagnetic induction technique. This helps farmers manage irrigation, especially in areas using salty water. By combining field and lab data, we could tell how much each factor—water or salt—affected the signal. This technique offers a faster, easier way to track soil health and could improve how we use water in farming.

The study evaluates the effect of trachyte and basalt powders on soil and maize yield in the Sudano-Sahelian zone of Cameroon. Texture, base saturation, and organic carbon indicate moderate limitations. The climate is favourable for maize cultivation. Rock powder application significantly improves yield, with basalt being more effective than trachyte. The advantage of using rock powders lies in their environmental benefits, long-term effectiveness, and more affordable cost.

We assessed three soil quality indicators across Walloon Conservation Agriculture (CA) fields, accounting for practice diversity within four CA-types. Soil indicators varied significantly among CA-types. Inclusion of temporary grasslands in the crop sequence emerged as the most influential factor. Our findings show that CA effects depend on the combination of practices, highlighting the need for a systemic, context-based evaluation of soil quality.