Thus, the burnt soils showed slight acidification check details and decrease of exchangeable Ca, exchangeable Mg, total P and SB (sums of bases) values and

CEC (cation exchange capacity) levels. Table 1 Average values of soil properties Parameter Treatment   selleck chemical control Green cane Burnt cane pH 6.6a 6.4a 5.9b Exchangeable Al BD BD BD Exchangeable Ca 11.4a 10.b 4.3c Exchangeable Mg 3.9a 2.1b 1.6c Exchangeable Na 1.7a 2.8a BD Exchangeable K 306.6b 735.6a 280.0b Exchangeable H + Al 4.8b 5.0b 6.5a Total P 102.3a 34.6ab 32.6b SB1 16.1a 14.2b 6.6c CEC2 20.9a 19.0b 13.1c V3 77.0a 74.7a 50.4b Bulk density 0.96 b 1.25a 1.31a Moisture 29.2a 26.2a 27.6a WFPS4 41.8 b 58.7a 64.9a Total C 12.5a 6.7b 15.9a Total N 0.70a 0.30b 0.90a δ13C −22.8a −20.9b −23.1a δ15N 8.8b 11.4a 8.3b C:N 17.9b 22.3a 16.4b The numbers represent average values (n = 3 for density and n = 5 for the rest). Averages followed by the same letter in each line are not statistically different (5%) from each other according to the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test for Ca, Mg, Na, K, P and V; and according to the Tukey test for the rest. BD – Below the detection limit of the technique. 1Sum of bases

(sums of the Ca, Mg, LY2874455 in vitro Na and K content in cmolc dm-3). 2Cation exchange capacity (sums of SB and H + Al). 3Percent base saturation (SB divided by CEC). Parameters units: Al, Ca, Mg, H + Al, P, SB, CEC (cmolc dm-3), Na, K (mg dm-3), V (%), Bulk density (g kg-1), δ13C, δ15N (‰). 4 Water filled pore space. Moreover, significant differences between treatments regarding soil bulk density and water filled pore space (WFPS) were noted. Both green and burnt cane soils had

significantly higher bulk densities as compared to the control, i.e. 1.25 and 1.31, respectively, versus 0.96. We did not observe any major differences in soil moisture content, although the control showed a significantly decreased WFPS value (Table 1). The increase of soil bulk density under sugarcane cultivation is commonly observed when soil passes from its natural to a cultivated condition [3]. It occurs due to the breaking up of aggregates caused by soil tilling, the use of agricultural machines and the loss of organic matter [43]. Soil C and N content The data showed lower values for total C and total N in the green cane (p < 0.05) Methamphetamine versus the burnt treatment. In addition, the C:N ratio was significantly higher in the green cane soil (Table 1) than in other treatments. Moreover, raised values of δ13C and δ15N were observed in green cane, in comparison with the other treatments. Collectively, these data suggested that, in the green cane soil, a larger contribution to soil organic matter was provided by sugarcane (C4 photosynthetic cycle plant), next to a more intense and open N cycling. The lower C and N contents in the green cane soil were unexpected, and appear to contradict previous reports [3].