Agroecological assessment of the basal soil respiration in the slope agrolandscape of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, Republic of Serbia

In conditions of intensified agriculture, assessing the ecological status of soils, especially in vulnerable agrolandscapes such as slope vineyards, is becoming increasingly important. This study aimed to perform an agroecological assessment of the functional state of soils in an intensive vineyard and adjacent areas within slope catenas in the mountain landscape of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, Republic of Serbia, based on basal soil respiration. Basal respiration rate was determined by gas chromatography, soil organic matter content was measured by spectrophotometry, and correlation analysis was used to identify relationships between the studied parameters. The agroecological state of the vineyard soil, the wheel track soil, and the fallow soil under meadow vegetation was characterized by significant spatial heterogeneity, determined by a complex of multidirectional factors: position in the mesorelief, agroclimatic factors, and the intensity of agrogenic load. Signs of long-term periodic erosion-accumulative redistribution of the topsoil (loamy fine earth) under vineyards along the catena slopes were identified. This leads to the depletion of organic matter in the surface horizons down to 15 cm depth and its accumulation in the 15–30 cm horizon. The highest basal respiration rate was found in the post-agrogenic (fallow) soil (0.893 μg CO₂-C·g⁻¹·h⁻¹), with a a 1.2–2.0-fold decrease in vineyard soils. The basal respiration rate on the south-facing slope was 1.2–1.5 times higher than on the north-facing one, probably due to the partial compensation of the negative impact of sheet erosion by a more favorable thermal-moisture regime. The most stressful conditions for soil microbiota functioning were found in the wheel tracks, where the basal respiration rate (0.219 μg CO₂-C·g⁻¹·h⁻¹) was 4.1 times lower compared to the fallow soil. Thus, the obtained data indicate a significant depression of soil microbiota in the most disturbed elements of the agrolandscape and underscore the need to adapt applied agrotechnologies for slope lands. Determining soil biological activity, assessed via basal respiration rate, is useful as an integrative diagnostic parameter for both evaluating the current functional state of the soil ecosystem and for forecasting potential environmental problems resulting from the long-term use of slope agrolandscapes in the future.

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