Anthropogenic activities have resulted in land desertification in various regions of the world, leading to the degradation of critical soil characteristics such as organic matter (OM) content, nutrient stock, and prevailing biodiversity. Restoring such degraded soils through organic matter amendments and diversified crop rotations is thus an intrinsic part of organic farming. This review discusses a wide range of organic farming impacts on soil health and crop productivity by focusing on organic fertilizers and crop diversification. Conventional fertilizers were considered vital for agricultural production to harvest high crop yields. Nevertheless, they are now deemed as environmentally hazardous and an obstacle to sustainable agroecosystems due to intensive chemical inputs that damage the soil over time and have long-lasting impacts. Conventional fertilization results in nutrient depletion, loss of microbial diversity, organic matter reduction, and deterioration of physical characteristics of the soil. Conversely, organic fertilization makes use of naturally existing resources to improve soil health. Organic amendments such as biochar, manure, and fermented grass improve soil’s physical, chemical, and biological properties and promote the growth and diversity of beneficial soil microorganisms—important in nutrient cycling and soil stability. They facilitate the uptake of nutrients, hinder crop pathogen growth, mitigate heavy metals, and decompose xenobiotic organic substances. Moreover, growing cover crops is also a major strategy to improve soil health. Diversified crop rotation with combinatorial use of organic fertilizers may improve soil health and agricultural yields without any detrimental impacts on the environment and soil, ensuring sustainable food production, safety, and security. This integrated approach contributes to minimizing the use of chemical fertilizers and their effects on environmental health. It also contributes to reducing agricultural inputs along with enhancing OM, soil microbial diversity and biomass, nitrogen fixation, and carbon sequestration. Therefore, cover crops and organic fertilization may offer sustainable agroecosystems and climate change mitigation.

Soil organic matter (SOM) decomposition is a critical biogeochemical process that regulates the carbon cycle, nutrient availability, and agricultural sustainability of cropland systems. Recent progress in multi-omics and microbial network analyses has provided us with a better understanding of the decomposition process at different spatial and temporal scales. Climate factors, such as temperature and seasonal variations in moisture, play a critical role in microbial activity and enzyme kinetics, and their impacts are mediated by soil physical and chemical properties. Soil mineralogy, texture, and structure create different soil microenvironments, affecting the connectivity of microbial habitats, substrate availability, and protective mechanisms of organic matter. Moreover, different microbial groups (bacteria, fungi, and archaea) contribute differently to the decomposition of plant residues and SOM. Recent findings suggest the paramount importance of living microbial communities as well as necromass in forming soil organic carbon pools. Microbial functional traits such as carbon use efficiency, dormancy, and stress tolerance are essential drivers of decomposition in the soil. Furthermore, the role of microbial necromass, alongside live microbial communities, in the formation and stabilization of persistent SOM fractions is increasingly recognized. Based on this microbial perspective, feedback between local microbial processes and landscape-scale carbon dynamics illustrates the cross-scale interactions that drive agricultural productivity and regulate soil climate. Understanding these dynamics also highlights the potential for incorporating microbial functioning into sustainable agricultural management, which offers promising avenues for increasing carbon sequestration without jeopardizing soil nutrient cycling. This review explores current developments in intricate relationships between climate, soil characteristics, and microbial communities determining SOM decomposition, serving as a promising resource in organic fertilization and regenerative agriculture. Specifically, we examine how nutrient availability, pH, and oxygen levels critically influence these microbial contributions to SOM stability and turnover.

Background and Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the effects of different stand densities on wood density (WD), global modulus of elasticity (MOE), and bending strength (MOR) in 35-year-old Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst) stands, representing the hemiboreal forest zone. Materials and Methods: Scots pine and Norway spruce sites, representing different stand densities of 3000–3100; 2000–2100 and 1000–1100 trees per hectare, were chosen. Visually healthy model pine and spruce trees were selected, and diameter at breast height (DBH) was measured for model trees; the competition index was calculated; the MOE and MOR were evaluated by the Standards EN 408:2006 and EN 384:2016, at 12% moisture content; WD and the knot diameter were measured; and the strength class of wood was determined by the Standard EN 338:2009. To predict wood quality characteristics based on stand and tree characteristics, linear regression models were developed. Results and Conclusions: Higher stand density led to a significant change in the main wood properties of both conifer species. The highest mean WD, MOE, and MOR were obtained at the sites with the highest stand density. The MOE and MOR were highly correlated, but relatively weak correlations were found between MOE and MOR with tree DBH and WD. Despite the lower quality of Scots pine wood, the Norway spruce wood from more dense sites corresponded to the strength class of C16, according the strength grading of softwoods. The linear regression models did not perform well in describing the relationship of wood properties with stand and tree characteristics. The models for MOR accounted for the highest variation of 62–65% for both Scots pine and Norway spruce. These relationships can be expected to change with increased stand age or with the inclusion of specific crown parameters.

The effective management of soil organic carbon (SOC) is highlighted as one of the strategies and cost-effective options for mitigating climate change, while soil nitrogen (N) often is specified as an essential element for plant growth. This study was conducted to evaluate basic soil physical, chemical, and microbial indicators in three major soil types dominated in Lithuania—Arenosols, Retisols, and Cambisols—under forest land, perennial grassland, and arable land. Furthermore, soil microbial biomass carbon (SMBC) and nitrogen (SMBN), their ratio, and soil microbial respiration (microbial CO₂) next to SOC and total N were hypothesized to be important measures for assessing SOC stability under different land uses. Therefore, selected soil indicators were evaluated in the surface 0–10 and 10–20 cm mineral soil layers. The study results showed higher concentrations of SOC, N, SMBC, and SMBN, and soil microbial CO₂ in forest land and perennial grasslands than in arable land. The higher SMBC/SOC and SNBN/TN ratios indicated a higher ability to accumulate SOC and N in forest land and grasslands. Higher SOC immobilization in forest land and higher N immobilization in arable land were both specified by the obtained SMBC:SMBN ratio. This study identified forest land followed by grassland as the best land management practice that addresses soil C sequestration through higher C immobilisation. Assessing soil in forest land as a control land use next to the agricultural land could be a reasonable soil management practice to evaluate C sequestration in the region. Additionally, it was assumed that evaluation of the SMBC and SMBN concentrations together with soil physical and chemical indicators allow for a more effective assessment of SOC stability. Taken together, these findings support recommendation to develop grassland (and especially forest land systems) through afforestation or within agroforestry system, without reducing the importance of the agricultural sector.

One of the potential options for sewage sludge as an alternative organic material is the fertilization of energy crops. To evaluate the effect of granulated sewage sludge and mineral fertilization N60P60K60 on common osier’s (Salix viminalis L.) biomass productivity and soil parameters, field trials were held in Western Lithuania’s naturally acidic Retisol (WB 2014; pH_KCl 4.35–4.58). After four years of cultivation and dependent on fertilization type, common osier dry matter (DM) yield varied from 49.60 to 77.92 t ha⁻¹. Higher DM yield was related to an increased number of stems/plants. The application of a 90 t ha⁻¹ sewage sludge rate had a significant and positive impact on common osier productivity, as well as on the increment of soil organic carbon, total N, and mobile P₂O₅ content in the upper 0–30 cm soil layer. The use of both sewage sludge rates (45 and 90 t ha⁻¹) had a similar impact on soil bulk density, water-stable aggregates, and the active soil microbial biomass. Annual mineral fertilization had little effect on the parameters studied. When growing common osier in Retisol, 45 t ha⁻¹ of a single sewage sludge rate was enough to maintain both plant and soil productivity.

On the summit of a hill with a lack of humidity, and in usually stronger eroded midslope parts, crops thin out. Changing ecological conditions change the soil seed bank as well. The aim of this study was to examine changes in the seed bank size and number of species and the influence of seed surface characteristics on their spread in different-intensity agrophytocenoses under hilly relief conditions. This study included different parts of the hill (summit, midslope and footslope) in Lithuania. The southern exposition slope’s soil was slightly eroded Eutric Retisol (loamic). In spring and autumn, the seed bank was investigated at depths of 0–5 and 5–15 cm. Irrespective of the season, in the soil of permanent grassland, the seed number was 6.8 and 3.4 times smaller compared to those of cereal–grass crop rotation and crop rotation with black fallow. The highest number of seed species was determined in the footslope of the hill. Seeds with rough surfaces dominated on all parts of the hill, but the highest amount (on the average 69.6%) was determined on the summit of the hill. In autumn, a strong correlation was found between the total seed number and soil microbial carbon biomass (r = 0.841–0.922).