Soil health is the cornerstone of sustainable agriculture, serving as the foundation for crop productivity, environmental resilience, and long-term ecosystem stability. Contemporary agricultural methods, characterized by excessive pesticide and fertilizer application, monoculture, and intensive tillage, have resulted in extensive soil degradation, requiring novel strategies to restore and sustain soil functionality. This review examined sustainable practices to enhance soil health and improve crop quality in modern agricultural systems. Preserving soil’s physical, chemical, and biological characteristics is essential for its health, achievable through various agronomic strategies. Practices such as crop rotation, cover cropping, no-till or carbon farming, conservation agriculture (CA), and the use of organic amendments were explored for their ability to restore the soil structure, increase organic matter, and promote biodiversity. These initiatives seek to preserve and enhance soil ecosystems by aligning agricultural practices with ecological principles, ensuring long-term productivity and environmental stability. Enhancing soil health will improve soil functions, supporting the concept that increasing the soil organic carbon (SOC) is necessary. This study determined that conservation tillage is more advantageous for soil health than conventional tillage, a topic that is still controversial among scientists and farmers, and that various tillage systems exhibit distinct interactions. These strategies, through the integrated management of the interaction of plant, soil, microbial, and human activities, would enhance soil health.

Tillage practices govern crop quality and quantity through soil nutrient availability and crop root systems. A deeper knowledge of the impact of conservation tillage on soil chemical characteristics (such as pH, soil organic carbon, macro and micronutrient storage and distribution) is required for both the promotion of agricultural sustainability and environmental preservation. This study assesses the changes in soil features and properties in the context of a long-field experiment with different tillage systems and straw management practices. Research findings revealed that compared with conventional tillage (CT) conservative tillage with partial straw retention (MT) and no-tillage with straw mulching (NT) substantially boosted the organic carbon (OC) (by 6–19%), total nitrogen (TN) (by 2–12%), and available potassium content (AK) (by 2–5%), in 0–30 cm soil depth. However, the stratification trend was observed for available macro and micronutrient content (Zn, Fe, Mn) in both conservative management practices. The concentration of Cu indicates a constant pattern through a 0–30 cm soil profile with a higher concentration under MT (1.41 mg kg⁻¹) compared to NT (1.10 mg kg⁻¹). In particular, the results failed to establish if conservation tillage can increase the total phosphorus (TP) and potassium content (TK), where only in surface 0–10 cm an increase was observed. This research also suggested that the X-ray fluorescence analysis (XRF) of total micronutrient content (Zn, Cu, Fe, Mn) is minimal or unpredictable with no substantial differences between the tillage systems and straw return management practices. These findings suggest that conservation tillage in north-eastern Romania might be optimal to maintain soil quality status and sustain high yields.

Increasing interest is being devoted to innovative food products enriched with fruits and vegetables to enhance the nutritional and bioactive properties from the perspective of sustainable management. The addition (10, 15, and 20%) of blueberry fruits derived from two spontaneous flora varieties from the Rarău (G) and Ciocănești (C) mountains (Romania) into ‘French’ bread resulted in increased maximum breaking strength and mechanical work in spherical dough up to 10 and 15% in variety G, and deformation strength up to 20% integration; the untreated control displayed the highest values in the strips of dough. The 20% incorporation of both blueberry varieties in bread enhanced total, open, and closed porosity, maximum strength, gummosity, and chewiness, as well as titratable acidity, total soluble solids, vitamin C, flavonoids, anthocyanins, and antioxidant activity. Resilience and pH showed the highest levels in the untreated bread, which also exhibited the highest values of the color components ‘L’, ‘a’, and ‘b’ in both the bread crust and crumb. The untreated control showed the highest scores for some sensory features, and in most cases, an increasing trend with the fruit integration rising from 10 to 20% was recorded. The addition of blueberries represents an interesting strategy for creating bread as an innovative functional food under sustainable supply chain management.

Non-thermal plasma (NTP) has proven to be a green method in the agricultural field for the stimulation of germination, growth, and production of nutraceutical compounds in some cases. However, the process is far from being fully understood and depends on the targeted plant species and the NTP used. In this work, we focus on the production of alfalfa sprouts from NTP-treated seeds under different voltage conditions. A flexible electrode configuration was used to produce the NTP, which can also be placed on packages for in-package treatments. The surface of the seeds was analyzed, indicating that the microstructure was strongly affected by NTP treatment. Biometric measurements evidenced the possibility of stimulating the sprout growth in some conditions by up to 50% compared to the sprouts obtained from untreated seeds. Biochemical traits for the sprouts obtained in different processing conditions were also studied, such as the concentrations of chlorophyll pigments, flavonoids and polyphenols, and antioxidant activity. Most NTP treatments led to inhibitory effects, proving the strong dependence between NTP treatment and targeted plant species.

No-tillage (NT) is a key practice in conservation agriculture that minimizes soil disturbance, thereby enhancing soil structure, porosity, and overall quality. However, its long-term effects on soil pore networks and hydro-physical functions remain underexplored. This study evaluated the impacts of NT and conventional tillage (CT) on soil hydro-physical properties using undisturbed soil columns, X-ray computed tomography, and standard physical measurements. A field experiment was conducted under an eight-year continuous cropping system, with a four-year rotation [winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)—maize (Zea mays L.)—sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.)—peas (Pisum sativum L.)], comparing NT and CT treatments with three replications. Soil parameters including bulk density (BD), moisture content, total porosity (SP), water-stable aggregates (WSA), and saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat) were measured. Results showed that NT increased BD (1.45 g/cm³) compared to CT (1.19 g/cm³), likely due to reduced soil disturbance. Moisture content under NT was up to 78% higher than CT. Saturated hydraulic conductivity was also higher in NT, with 17% and 43% increases observed at harvest in 2022 and 2023, respectively, except in the 0–30 cm layer immediately after sowing. Micro-CT analysis revealed a 34–115% increase in macropores (>1025 μm) under NT at 10–40 cm depth. These findings demonstrate that long-term NT improves key soil hydro-physical properties, supporting its integration into sustainable farming systems to balance productivity and environmental stewardship.

Background: A critical-sized bone defect (CsBD) is considered one that will not heal spontaneously and requires reconstruction. This study aims to compare the results of using different bone reconstructive techniques and to study the potential of platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) to enhance the healing properties of a bone substitute (BS). Methods: In this experimental study on rats, the treatment of critical-sized bone defects was carried out by analysing four groups: a control group in which the bone defect was left empty; a group treated with Bio-Gen^®; another group in which the defect was treated with PRF in combination with Bio-Gen^®; and the last that was treated with autologous bone graft (ABG). The defects were evaluated by microcomputed tomography (µCT) and then histomorphometrically. Results: From both the histological and imagistic point of view, the best results were registered in the ABG group, followed by the group treated with Bio-Gen^® with PRF, Bio-Gen^® group, and control group, with statistically significant differences. Conclusions: A 5 mm defect in the rat radius can be considered critical. ABG showed the best results in treating the bone defect. PRF significantly enhanced the efficacy of Bio-Gen^®.