The Behaviour of a Soil Conditioner in Soil

Structural conditioners are used in agriculture to prevent crust formation. Less works deal with the distribution of conditioners in soil. The paper emphasized, by the aim of micromorphological study on soil thin sections, the distribution of a conditioner (Ponilit GT-1) into the soil. For better observation and understanding of the conditioner behavior in soil, an experiment has been established in the laboratory: undisturbed soil from the upper part of a Chernozem (susceptible to crust formation) has been sampled, brought in laboratory and treated with Ponilit GT-1. For a good visualization of the Ponilit GT-1 into the thin sections, it has been stained using two dyes: hematoxylin (red) and methylene (blue). The results of the micromorphological study pointed out the distribution of the conditioner as: thin films on the surfaces of soil aggregates and on the walls of intrapedal voids, as well as bridges between aggregates (into the interpedal voids). Ponilit GT-1 formed two types of bridges: 1) thin, similar to those observed by De Bood (1990) which has been also called "strings" bridges and 2) thicker, which has been called "meniscus-like" bridges. The formation of the films (which coated aggregates or intrapedal voids) and of the bridges (which bind together either soil particles or aggregates), the studied conditioner contributes to the strengthening of soil architecture and to the maintenance of the favorable aerohydric conditions for a good biochemical activity in soil