In the current scenario of the growing need for sustainable management and monitoring of natural resources, there is a large demand for detailed soil maps. Poorly detailed conventional soil maps are enhanced using appropriate disaggregation methodologies that complete the soil information. This paper summarises the soil disaggregation strategies published up to now and shows their strengths and weaknesses.

Earthworms are used as indicators of soil health but more information is required on what desirable populations are. We investigate the interaction of earthworm abundance and ecological diversity on soil functions in two mesocosms. The importance of including a measure of ecological diversity alongside a measure of abundance to assess soil biological health is highlighted.

Studies about soil organic matter (SOM) dynamics on integrated production systems such as agrisilvicultural systems are still scarce around the world. Thus, the objective of this study was to compare the soil carbon and nitrogen stocks and the organic matter fractions under traditional and agrisilvicultural systems in the Southeast of Brazil. The results allowed us to infer that the agrisilvicultural system more effectively promoted an increase in soil carbon stocks and protection of SOM in the Brazilian Cerrado.

Patagonian steppe is a fragile environment composed of patches of vegetation surrounded by bare soil. Edaphic mesofauna is mainly associated to these vegetated areas and plays a critical role in maintaining soil quality and fertility. Thus, conservation of vegetation patches becomes particularly significant in an environment that is subjected to grazing by domestic herbivores.

Conventional tillage is one of the main causes of unsustainability in agricultural systems, promoting soil degradation. The impacts of the intensity of conventional tillage on soil properties were evaluated, with biological and physical properties being the most sensitive to disturbances. The most sensitive soil properties can be used as indicators of soil degradation due to the intensity of conventional tillage, helping to monitor agricultural areas that use this type of management practice.

The van Genuchten–Mualem model (VGM) is used largely to represent the soil hydraulic conductivity and retention functions but alternative equations proposed by Groenevelt and Grant (GRT) are mathematically more versatile. We developed and validated a set of equations to convert VGM parameters into GRT parameters by fitting numerical solutions and using soil samples from an international database. This possibility opens several applications for hydrological modelling due to the high flexibility of the GRT model.

Increasing the nitrogen use efficiency of crop plants requires detailed knowledge about soil nitrogen availabilities. Due to the heterogenous nature of soils, in situ innovative measuring techniques are required. In this study, microdialysis – a technique originally developed for neurosciences – was applied in a temperate agricultural field. Results show that crop plants have access to a variety of different nitrogen forms which may vary greatly at different spatial scales. Our results could serve as valuable input data for complex modelling approaches.

Biochar has a potential to improve soil water movement and prevent soil erosion in weathered tropical soils. However, field studies are lacking. In this field study, rice straw biochar improved soil aggregate strength against erosivity caused by heavy rainfall but did not affect soil hydraulic properties of an Acrisol containing a moderate amount of organic matter.