Impact of Environmental Conditions and Management on Soil Arthropod Communities in Vineyard Ecosystems

Abstract

The importance of soil biodiversity and soil-based ecosystem services in the context of viticulture has recently been emphasized. Over 85% of soil fauna species richness is represented by edaphic arthropod communities. Edaphic arthropod responses to soil characteristics and management practices can be considered as good bioindicators of soil quality. Here, 168 soil samples that were collected from 2014 to 2019 in several vineyards of different Italian wine-growing areas were analyzed to explore how arthropod communities respond to several factors that are characteristic of vineyard ecosystems. The analysis of the combined effects of the primary abiotic variables (the chemical and physical characteristics of soil) and management practices (organic vs. conventional, soil inter-row management) on soil biological quality (assessed by QBS-ar index) identified soil temperature and soil texture as the abiotic factors exerting the most significant effect on the QBS-ar values. Organic vineyards exhibited higher QBS-ar values compared to those of conventionally managed vineyards, and subsoiling negatively influenced the soil biological quality.