Trends in dissolved phosphorus in Gray Luvisol soil profiles after forest harvest
Forest disturbances that increase P export from hillslopes will have negative consequences for site productivity and regional water quality. We studied P behavior in Gray Luvisols to understand the soil profile’s influence on P export from typical hillslopes of the Boreal Plain ecozone. We hypothesized that (1) P concentration is highest in upper horizons, (2) solution P is primarily in the dissolved and organic form, and (3) forest harvest will increase solution P concentration. We analyzed the soil solution, with emphasis on P, and determined P sorption properties of key soil horizons. Mean soluble reactive phosphorus concentration decreased with depth, ranging from 64 mg L-1 in the forest floor to 0.01 mg L-1 in the groundwater zone; solution P was mostly orthophosphate. Water soluble phosphorus decreased from 74 ± 9 to 41 ± 9 mg L-1 and extractable phosphorus was reduced in the forest floor only on two of four sampling occasions after harvest. Dissolved organic carbon may indirectly promote orthophosphate dominance in solution by complexing metal cations that would otherwise precipitate metal-P from solution. Gray Luvisols probably export P to soils lower on the hillslope catena, such as those of the Gleysolic and Organic Orders, both commonly associated with wetlands. Key words: Forest soil, phosphorus, orthophosphate, Gray Luvisol, biogeochemistry, sorption