The loss of soil organic matter due to poor land-management practice threatens farmlands, and while the use for crop residues as feedstock for biomass ethanol and bio-based products increases, these materials no longer contribute to the health of the soil. Scientist have now developed a method of measuring soil quality to assure an adequate amount of soil organic matter, called the CQESTR model.

Earthworms can change the chemical nature of the carbon in North American forest litter and soils, potentially affecting the amount of carbon stored in forests. Scientists want to determine the earthworms' effect on forest chemistry by comparing carbon composition in forests that vary in earthworm activity.

The loss of organic matter is a threat to soil quality. Agricultural soils as well as mountain soils are both at risk; and both function as carbon sinks, and, under the impact of climate warming, could become sources greenhouse gas emissions. Near-infrared spectroscopy is a very promising avenue able to quantify the build-up of carbon in the soils at a large scale.

Excessive doses of organic residues in agricultural fields could be dangerous for plants, invertebrates and micro-organisms living in the soil. This is the finding of a new study that shows that the use of appropriate levels of fertilizers would prevent this toxic impact on the soil biota.

Many agricultural products can be converted into feedstocks for alternative fuel. Now analysis from the Agricultural Research Service suggests that they can be used this way without reducing the nation's food supply, soil production capacity or environmental quality.

A new study led by the Pacific Northwest Research Station represents the first direct evidence of the toll wildfire can take on forest soil layers. It draws on data from the 2002 Biscuit Fire, which scorched some 500,000 acres in southwest Oregon.

Sales of organic products are booming: Consumers want their food to be untainted. To avoid the use of fungicides yet nevertheless protect plants from disease, researchers have developed a method that involves bombarding seeds with electrons to kill fungal spores and viruses.

Researchers have shown that a plot of land on the campus of Auburn University that has been maintained by a century old practice of sustainable farming can produce similar cotton crops to those using other methods. This 110 year old continuous field experiment, called "the Old Rotation," utilizes traditional crop rotation methods and includes winter legumes to protect the soil from winter erosion.