Advances in Agronomy [Hardcover]

Volume 74 contains six excellent cutting-edge reviews detailing advances in the plant and environmental soil sciences. Chapter 1 is an extensive review on soil quality. Chapter 2 covers recent advances in understanding the formation of metal hydroxide precipitates on soil surfaces and their implications on metal sequestration and soil remediation. Chapter 3 is a timely review on effects of organic acid exudation from roots on phosphorus uptake and aluminum tolerance of plants in acid soils. Chapter 4 discusses bamboo production and management, including manipulation of growth and development and environmental aspects of bamboo production. Chapter 5 addresses a significant worldwide issue - management of soils for food security and environmental quality. Chapter 6 is a comprehensive review on the management of wheat, barley, and oat root systems.

Donald L. Sparks is the S. Hallock du Pont Chair in Soil and Environmental Chemistry, Francis Alison Professor and Director of the Delaware Environmental Institute at the University of Delaware. He is internationally recognized for his landmark research on the kinetics and mechanisms of metal/oxyanion/nutrient reactions at biogeochemical interfaces. His pioneering studies on kinetic processes in soils and minerals include the development of widely used and novel kinetic methods, elucidation of rate-limiting steps and mechanisms over a range of spatial and temporal scales, and coupling of real-time kinetic studies with in-situ molecular scale investigations. His discoveries on the speciation, formation rates and stability mechanisms of metal hydroxide surface precipitates, and their role in the retention and bioavailability of toxic metals in the terrestrial environment, have received worldwide attention. This research has led to more effective soil remediation strategies and predictive models.

He is the author or coauthor of 286 publications. These include: 11 edited books, 53 book chaptlS—