# Wooded biocorridors substantially improve soil properties in low-altitude rural benchlands

## TL;DR

Wooded biocorridors improve soil quality by increasing water retention, organic carbon, and soil restoration, making them useful for climate change mitigation.

## Contribution

Demonstrates that biocorridors enhance soil properties and act as effective carbon sinks in low-altitude rural areas.

## Key findings

- Biocorridor soils show higher water retention, porosity, aeration, and organic carbon content.
- Forest-covered biocorridor soils have lower bulk density, indicating soil restoration.
- Soil microbiota in biocorridors more effectively utilize organic matter for carbon and nitrogen.

## Abstract

This study examines soil properties in 30- and 60-year-old agricultural biocorridors and provides a comparative overview with neighbouring farmland. Both mixed and undisturbed soil samples were collected from six farmland/biocorridor study areas to assess a wide spectrum of physical, hydrophysical, chemical and biological soil properties. Biocorridor soils were characterised by higher water retention capacities, porosity, aeration and soil carbon stock, the latter increasing with depth. On the other hand, biocorridor bulk density under forest vegetation cover was lower, indicating progressive soil restoration. Slightly lower soil reactions in biocorridor soils disproved the hypothesis that nutrient-rich soils under biocorridors would form substrates with a high base cation content, leading to soil acidification. Biological activity, expressed through respiration coefficients, was generally low due to unfavourable physical conditions (clayey or silty-clay substrates), with the lowest levels in biocorridors. Nevertheless, biocorridor soil microbiota displayed more effective utilisation of organic matter as a carbon and nitrogen source, with lighter-textured soils tending to show more effective organic matter utilisation after excluding the influence of land use. Our results confirm biocorridors as an important landscape component, contributing to both soil stability and local revitalisation of soil environments and further emphasising their potential as climate-change mitigation tools in their role as carbon sinks.

Image 1

•Biocorridor soils have higher water retention, porosity, aeration and total organic carbon content.•Biocorridor soils under forest vegetation have lower bulk density, indicating soil restoration.•Soil microbiota in biocorridor soils utilise soil carbon and nitrogen more effectively.

Biocorridor soils have higher water retention, porosity, aeration and total organic carbon content.

Biocorridor soils under forest vegetation have lower bulk density, indicating soil restoration.

Soil microbiota in biocorridor soils utilise soil carbon and nitrogen more effectively.