Piliostigma reticulatum and Guiera senegalensis are two native shrubs that
coexist with row crops in parkland systems of the Sahel of Africa. Although
permanently green all year around in soil depleted in nutrients and dry for a nine-month
period, these shrubs have been largely overlooked. Conventional management of these
shrubs...
Water availability is a critical limiting element in semi-arid ecosystem productivity and presents particular challenges in Sahelian countries such as Senegal. The landscapes are characterized by the presence of two common semi-arid shrubs (Piliostigma reticulatum and Guiera senegalensis), both of which may be important hydraulic regulators in these water-limited ecosystems....
Two native shrub species (Piliostigma reticulatum and Guiera senegalensis) are prominent vegetation components in farmers’ fields in Senegal. However, their role in nutrient cycling and ecosystem function has largely been overlooked. A study including both laboratory and field experiments was conducted to evaluate potential biophysical interactions of the two shrub...
Soil response and function were investigated following the adoption of an integrated reduced-tillage and cover-cropped vegetable system in the Willamette Valley of Western Oregon. The experiment was conducted over three cropping seasons (2002-2004) at the Oregon State University Vegetable Research Farm (Corvallis, OR). The design was a randomized complete-block with...
A method based on fatty acid (FA) analysis is used to profile microbial community structure (MCS). Various extraction protocols are available, which alter the types of FAs extracted from soils. The more time consuming but widely used protocol extracts only FAs from phospholipids (PLFA). This technique is desirable because PLFAs...