Dynamics of microbial population in soil as influenced by simazine and ecological factors

Simazine, even at normal rates of application, showed toxicity to bacteria fungi. It was less toxic to actinomycetes, since toxicity up to 20 ppm of the herbicide was not observed. On the contrary, the normal rate of simazine stimulated both Azotobacter and actinomycetes population. The interaction of simazine with soil ecological factors, such as temperature, moisture, pH, and organic matter, affected soil microbial population differently. Simazine was relatively less toxic to bacteria under acidic and alkaline conditions of soil; they were not affected at 15 degrees C. Actinomycetes were comparatively not adversely affected even with 200 ppm of simazine under high soil moisture regime. The stimulatory effect of simazine on Azotobacter was also confirmed under different ecological conditions. The incorporation of 2 per cent of organic matter in soil mitigated the toxicity of simazine in respect to soil fungi. Simazine also appeared to be less toxic to soil fungi at lower temperatures, under acidic and alkaline conditions of soil, as well as under high moisture regime.