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The role of earthworm communities in soil mineral weathering: a field experiment

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 July 2018

D. Carpenter ,
M. E. Hodson ,
P. Eggleton  and
C. Kirk
D. Carpenter*
Affiliation:
Department of Soil Science, University of Reading, Whiteknights, Reading RG6 6DW, UK
M. E. Hodson
Affiliation:
Department of Entomology, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK
P. Eggleton
Affiliation:
Department of Entomology, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK
C. Kirk
Affiliation:
Chemistry Department, Loughborough University, Loughborough, Leicestershire LE11 3TU, UK
*
*E-mail: [email protected]
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Extract

Minerals are an important component of the soil environment (Dixon et al., 1977). They provide a structural framework which supports plants and contribute to the physical heterogeneity of soil. Minerals also contribute to the fertility of soils. Primary minerals are a source of essential plant nutrients (Harley and Gilkes, 2000). Clay minerals impact on the water-holding capacity of soils, affect the cation exchange capacity of soils (Brown, 1977) and are able to sequester nutrients and contaminants within the soil (Dubbin, 2001).

Type
Research Article
Information
Mineralogical Magazine , Volume 72 , Issue 1 , February 2008 , pp. 33 - 36
Copyright
Copyright © The Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland 2008

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