Fungal diversity on fallen leaves of Ficus in northern Thailand

Fallen leaves of Ficus altissima, F. virens, F. benjamina, F. fistulosa and F. semicordata, were collected in Chiang Mai Province in northern Thailand and examined for fungi. Eighty taxa were identified, comprising 56 anamorphic taxa, 23 ascomycetes and l basidiomycete. Common fungal species occurring on five host species with high frequency of occurrence were Beltraniella nilgirica, Lasiodiplodia theobromae, Ophioceras leptosporum, Periconia byssoides and Septonema harknessi. Colletotrichum and Stachybotrys were also common genera. The leaves of different Ficus species supported diverse fungal taxa, and the fungal assemblages on the different hosts showed varying overlap. The fungal diversity of saprobes at the host species level is discussed.

Sustainable management of campus fallen leaves through low-temperature pyrolysis and application in Pb immobilization

Realizing campus sustainability requires the environmental-friendly and economical treatment of tremendous fallen leaves.Producing fallen leaf biochar at a low temperature is a candidate approach.In this study,six common types of fallen leaves on the campus were pyrolyzed at 300℃.The obtained biochars were characterized and the adsorption mechanisms of lead(Pb)by the fallen leaf biochars were investigated.The adsorption capacity of leaf biochar for Pb was relatively high,up to 209 mg/g(Yulania denudata leaf biochar).Adsorption of Pb onto active sites was the rate-limiting step for most leaf biochars.But for Platanus leaf biochar,intraparticle diffusion of Pb^(2+)dominated owing to the lowest adsorption capacity.However,the highest exchangeable Pb fraction(27%)indicated its potential for removing aqueous Pb^(2+).Ginkgo and Prunus cerasifera leaf biochar immobilized Pb by surface complexation and precipitation as lead oxalate.Hence,they were suitable for soil heavy metal remediation.This study shed the light on the sustainable utilization of campus fallen leaves and the application of fallen leaf biochars in heavy metal remediation.

Anthropogenic Pedofeature in Andosols in Santome Shinden, One of the Representative Sites of the Satoyama Environment in Japan

Santome Shinden, a representative site of the Satoyama landscape in Japan, has its origins in 1696 when the common land of wild grass on the Musashino plateau was developed into a strip-shaped land division, which consists of residential area, upland field, and secondary forest. We investigated soils with different land use over 300 years;they are under the secondary forest, and in the upland field where fallen leaves compost derived from secondary forest has been applied continuously for about 300 years since the development. The measured exchangeable cation values suggested that the nutrients in the secondary forest were taken out to the field as fallen leaves. On the surface layer of the upland field soil, characteristic granules of dark brown coated peds (DBC peds) were developed strongly. However, on the surface layer of the secondary forest soil, the DBC peds were not found. Electron probe micro analyzer analysis showed that the outside (dark brown part) of the DBC peds, which was observed only in the upland fields was rich in carbon. The dark brown coated pedofeature was suggested to have an anthropogenic effect due to the long-term application of fallen leaves compost. The anthropogenic activities, which were fallen leaves compost application and cultivation for about 300 years, were thought to affect the soil micromorphology. Therefore, the peds newly found in the Santome shinden field were considered to be a soil microstructure that symbolizes anthropogenic activities.