Maria Kalevitch , Valentine Kefeli and Margaret Dunn
Keywords: Soil bacteria, fungi, mineral nutritive elements, carbon-nitrogen ratio, and biological tests of the soil samples.
Abstract: Fabricated soil was created for the rehabilitation of the damaged mining soil that is abundant in Western Pennsylvania. Ourmajor goal was to evaluate mineral and microbial content of fabricated (manufactured) soil and to identify if this soil is a long-term or a short-term solution for maintenance of soil health. We also considered plant-soil-microbiota interactions as the contributors to ecological sustainability.The recipe of this soil contains parts of top soil, old mushroom compost, pond sediment, dry leaves and saw dust. This compositionmakes a favorable ratio of main nutrient elements,N, P, and K, as well as a sufficient ratio of carbon and nitrogen (1:5). The microbial composition of FS consists of fungi imperfecti and various bacteria species. During the five years of the experiment, trees of poplar andwillows were grown on the fabricated soil. The level of fungi was diminished and the presence of bacteria increased or varied over the years of research. Five years of investigating FS showed a decrease in the nitrogen level, but phosphorus and potassium were not changed actively. The addition of clay in the form of pond sediment increased the level of Al and Si in the FS composition.
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