Organic carbon and nitrogen stocks and storage profiles in cool, humid soils of eastern Canada

1997 ◽  
Vol 77 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. R. Carter ◽  
D. A. Angers ◽  
E. G. Gregorich ◽  
M. A. Bolinder

Current interest in carbon (C) exchange processes between terrestrial ecosystems and the atmosphere have identified a need to assess soil C stocks or inventories for specific soil types and climates. In this study, the mean store of C and nitrogen (N) was determined in the soil profile of several Gleysolic, Podzolic, Luvisolic, and Brunisolic soils under different agricultural management systems, in the cool, humid region of eastern Canada. Based on a total of 69 management treatments from 16 agroecosystem sites, mean soil C and N densities (to a soil depth of 60 cm) ranged from 3.1 to 13.1 kg C m−2 and from 0.36 to 1.05 kg N m−2 The C:N ratio ranged from 8.3 to 17.1. Distribution of C and N down the soil profile showed a relatively regular pattern of C and N decrease with depth. Estimated C stocks or storage for the 1-m soil depth ranged from 8.3 to 13.3 kg C m−2 for the Gleysolic soils, and 5.4 to 10.5 kg C m−2 for the Podzolic soils, with an overall range and mean for all soils of 3 to 16 kg C m−2 and 9.8 kg C m−2 ± 2.8 This indicates that some agricultural soils in eastern Canada possess a relatively high potential for organic matter storage. Key words: Organic carbon and nitrogen storage, agroecosystem, Gleysol, Podzol, Luvisol, Brunisol, cool-humid climate

PeerJ ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. e6897 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yujuan Zhang ◽  
Shiming Tang ◽  
Shu Xie ◽  
Kesi Liu ◽  
Jinsheng Li ◽  
...  

Background Patchy vegetation is a very common phenomenon due to long-term overgrazing in degraded steppe grasslands, which results in substantial uncertainty associated with soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) dynamics because of changes in the amount of litter accumulation and nutrition input into soil. Methods We investigated soil C and N stocks beneath three types of monodominant species patches according to community dominance. Stipa krylovii patches, Artemisia frigida patches, and Potentilla acaulis patches represent better to worse vegetation conditions in a grassland in northern China. Results The results revealed that the soil C stock (0–40 cm) changed significantly, from 84.7 to 95.7 Mg ha−1, and that the soil organic carbon content (0–10 cm) and microbial biomass carbon (0–10 and 10–20 cm) varied remarkably among the different monodominant species communities (P < 0.05). However, soil total nitrogen and microbial biomass nitrogen showed no significant differences among different plant patches in the top 0–20 cm of topsoil. The soil C stocks under the P. acaulis and S. krylovii patches were greater than that under the A. frigida patch. Our study implies that accurate estimates of soil C and N storage in degenerated grassland require integrated analyses of the concurrent effects of differences in plant community composition.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Pessanha Siqueira ◽  
Emanuela Forestieri Gama-Rodrigues ◽  
Marcos Vinícius Winckler Caldeira ◽  
Carlos Eduardo Rezende ◽  
Claudio Roberto Marciano ◽  
...  

Abstract Aims Atlantic Rainforest biome is one of the most threatened in the world by deforestation where afforestation programs are urgently needed. N-fixing species should be prioritized in re-establishing forest covers as they can enhance soil C and N and stimulate cycling of other nutrients. Yet, tropical ecosystems play a key role in global warming and remain underestimated in the global biogeochemical balances. We aimed to investigate the effects of tropical N-fixing species on soil C and N pools after pasture conversionMethods We selected: Plathymenia reticulata, Hymenaea courbaril, and Centrolobium tomentosum 27-year-old monospecific stands. We evaluated soil organic carbon (SOC), nitrogen (STN), and the natural abundance of 13C and 15N in the soil profile up to 100 cm depth. Results SOC was higher for P. reticulata, but an opposite pattern was observed when combining only soil layers up to 30 cm soil depth. Meanwhile, STN was similar across species and d15N values showed enrichment at intermediate soil layers indicating 14N gaseous loss. Most of the SOC originated from the planted trees rather than the former pasture, except beneath C. tomentosum where C4 derived C is decreasing at a slower rate. Conclusion This study presents novel insights in the understanding of tropical N-fixing species effects on soil C and N where specific-species traits appear to mediate SOC retention to the mineral soil rather than the N-fixing ability per se.


2006 ◽  
Vol 36 (9) ◽  
pp. 2157-2167 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles T Garten Jr.

The purpose of this research was to test the hypothesis that vertical enrichment of soil δ13C values is related to rates of soil C turnover in undisturbed, mature forest ecosystems. Soil C and N were measured at nine sites along an altitudinal gradient in the southern Appalachian Mountains (Tennessee and North Carolina, USA). Measurements indicated greater labile and total soil C stocks with increasing altitude. Laboratory incubations (3 days) of rewetted, air-dry soils indicated potential soil C mineralization (µg CO2 produced·g–1 soil C) declined with elevation. A principal component analysis indicated N availability increased with altitude. At each site, there was a significant relationship between δ13C and log-transformed C concentrations in the soil profile (30 cm deep). Enrichment factors (ε) from the Rayleigh equation were also equally useful for describing soil δ13C profiles at each site. Soil C partitioning and turnover times along the gradient were correlated with 13C-enrichment factors. Greater rates of change in δ13C through the soil profile were correlated with faster soil C turnover. Environmental factors, soil C partitioning, and the rate of vertical change in soil 13C abundance are interrelated such that δ13C measurements are a potential indicator of C dynamics in undisturbed forest soils.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 184-192
Author(s):  
Mamata Sharma ◽  
Gandhiv Kafle

Understanding distribution of soil organic carbon and nitrogen in soil profile is important for assessing soil fertility and soil carbon dynamics. However, little is known about their distribution in soil depth below 30cm in Nepal. In this context, this research was carried out in 2019 to determine the Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) and Total Nitrogen (TN) in 0-10 cm, 11-30 cm and 31-60 cm depths of soil profile at forest and grassland in Kotila community forest, Jajarkot, Nepal. Overall field measurement was based on national standard protocols. Three replicates of soil pit from forest and grassland were dug for soil sample collection. Approximately 100 g soil sample from each soil layer was collected and taken to laboratory for SOC analysis. Separate soil samples, one sample from each soil layer were collected with the help of a metal soil corer having volume 245.22cm3 to quantify bulk density. Forest has 25.42 ton/ha SOC stock and 3.28 ton/ha TN stock up to 60 cm soil depth. Likewise, Grassland has 21.19 ton/ha SOC stock and 3.14 ton/ha TN stock up to 60cm soil depth. However, these values are not significantly different at 5 % level of significance. The SOC and TN were decreased with increased soil depths, though not significantly different at 5 % level of significance. The C:N ratio was found higher in forest than grassland. It is concluded that SOC and TN do not vary significantly between forest and grassland. Topsoil contains more SOC, TN, and C:N ratio, so the management practices should focus on maintaining inputs of soil organic matter in the forest and grassland.


1992 ◽  
Vol 72 (3) ◽  
pp. 201-216 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. M. Rutherford ◽  
N. G. Juma

Modelling in soil ecological research is a means of linking the dynamics of microbial and faunal populations to soil processes. The objectives of this study were (i) to simulate bacterial-protozoan interactions and flows of C and N in clay loam Orthic Black Chernozemic soil under laboratory condtions; and (ii) to quantify the flux of C and N (inputs and outputs) through various pools using the simulation model. The unique features of this model are: (i) it combines the food chain with specific soil C and N pools, and (ii) it simultaneously traces the flows of C, 14C, N and 15N. It was possible to produce a model that fitted the data observed for the soil. The simulated CO2-C evolved during the first 12 d was due mainly to glucose addition (171 μg C g−1 soil) and cycling of C in the soil (160 μg C g−1 soil). During this interval, bacterial C uptake was 5.5-fold greater than the initial bacterial C pool size. In the first 12 d protozoa directly increased total CO2-C evolution by 11% and increased NH4-N mineralization 3-fold, compared to soil containing only bacteria. Mineralization of C and N was rapid when bacterial numbers were increased as a result of glucose addition. Key words: Acanthamoeba sp., modelling, N mineralization-immobilization, organic matter, Pseudomonas sp., Typic Cryoboroll


Soil Research ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 56 (6) ◽  
pp. 632 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn Conrad ◽  
Ram C. Dalal ◽  
Ryosuke Fujinuma ◽  
Neal W. Menzies

Stabilisation and protection of soil organic carbon (SOC) in macroaggregates and microaggregates represents an important mechanism for the sequestration of SOC. Legume-based grass pastures have the potential to contribute to aggregate formation and stabilisation, thereby leading to SOC sequestration. However, there is limited research on the C and N dynamics of soil organic matter (SOM) fractions in deep-rooted legume leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala)–grass pastures. We assessed the potential of leucaena to sequester carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) in soil aggregates by estimating the origin, quantity and distribution in the soil profile. We utilised a chronosequence (0–40 years) of seasonally grazed leucaena stands (3–6 m rows), which were sampled to a depth of 0.3 m at 0.1-m intervals. The soil was wet-sieved for different aggregate sizes (large macroaggregates, >2000 µm; small macroaggregates, 250–2000 µm; microaggregates, 53–250 µm; and <53 µm), including occluded particulate organic matter (oPOM) within macroaggregates (>250 µm), and then analysed for organic C, N and δ13C and δ15N. Leucaena promoted aggregation, which increased with the age of the leucaena stands, and in particular the formation of large macroaggregates compared with grass in the upper 0.2 m. Macroaggregates contained a greater SOC stock than microaggregates, principally as a function of the soil mass distribution. The oPOM-C and -N concentrations were highest in macroaggregates at all depths. The acid nonhydrolysable C and N distribution (recalcitrant SOM) provided no clear distinction in stabilisation of SOM between pastures. Leucaena- and possibly other legume-based grass pastures have potential to sequester SOC through stabilisation and protection of oPOM within macroaggregates in soil.


2021 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Preusser ◽  
Patrick Liebmann ◽  
Andres Stucke ◽  
Johannes Wirsching ◽  
Karolin Müller ◽  
...  

Litter-derived dissolved organic carbon (DOC) is considered to be a major source of stabilised C in soil. Here we investigated the microbial utilisation of litter-derived DOC within an entire soil profile using a stable isotope labelling experiment in a temperate beech forest. The natural litter layer of a Dystric Cambisol was replaced by 13C enriched litter within three areas of each 6.57 m−2 for 22 months and then replaced again by natural litter (switching-off the 13C input). Samples were taken continuously from 0 to 180 cm depths directly after the replacement of the labelled litter, and 6 and 18 months thereafter. We followed the pulse of 13C derived from aboveground litter into soil microorganisms through depth and over time by analysing 13C incorporation into microbial biomass and phospholipid fatty acids. Throughout the sampling period, most of the litter-derived microbial C was found in the top cm of the profile and only minor quantities were translocated to deeper soil. The microbial 13C stocks below 30 cm soil depth at the different samplings accounted constantly for only 6–12% of the respective microbial 13C stocks of the entire profile. The peak in proportional enrichment of 13C in subsoil microorganisms moved from upper (≤ 80 cm soil depth) to lower subsoil (80–160 cm soil depth) within a period of 6 months after switch-off, and nearly disappeared in microbial biomass after 18 months (&lt; 1%), indicating little long-term utilisation of litter-derived C by subsoil microorganisms. Among the different microbial groups, a higher maximum proportion of litter-derived C was found in fungi (up to 6%) than in bacteria (2%), indicating greater fungal than bacterial dependency on litter-derived C in subsoil. However, in contrast to topsoil, fungi in subsoil had only a temporarily restricted increase in litter C incorporation, while in the Gram-positive bacteria, the C incorporation in subsoil raised moderately over time increasingly contributing to the group-specific C stock of the entire profile (up to 9%). Overall, this study demonstrated that microorganisms in topsoil of a Dystric Cambisol process most of the recently deposited aboveground litter C, while microbial litter-derived C assimilation in subsoil is low.


2019 ◽  
Vol 886 ◽  
pp. 3-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wutthikrai Kulsawat ◽  
Boonsom Porntepkasemsan ◽  
Phatchada Nochit

Paddy residues are the most generous agricultural biomass from the paddy cultivation, Paddy residues practices include crop residue amendment and in-situ burning. It indicated that residue amendment increased the organic carbon and nutrient contents in soil, However, an open residue burning is still a common practice in Thailand despite of strict law enforcements and proper education to farmers about its implications on soil, human and animal health The present study determined how residues management practices: residue amendment and stubble burning, influence the soil organic carbon by determining δ13C in paddy soil profile. The 30 cm depth soil samples from the naturally straw amendment and stubble burning paddy fields were collected in Chiang Khwan district, Roi-et province during 2017. The δ13C values with soil depth showed that residue management practices produce statistical differences in both soils. The δ13C values of soil samples from amendment and burning sites ranged from-23.19‰ to-17.98‰ and-24.79‰ to-19.28‰, respectively. Carbon isotopes differentiate clearly between amendment site (more positive values) and burning site (more negative values). The results from this study were in accordance with literatures which reported that the δ13C distribution in the soil profile can be applied to study in SOC dynamics as a result of different paddy residue management practices (amendment or burning). Further research is needed to confirm the validity of the stable carbon isotope technique in this type of studies.


Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1089
Author(s):  
Lan Jiang ◽  
Zhongsheng He ◽  
Jinfu Liu ◽  
Cong Xing ◽  
Xinguang Gu ◽  
...  

Researches focused on soil carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) content and the stoichiometry characteristics along elevation gradients are important for effective management of forest ecosystems. Taking the soil of different elevations from 900 to 1700 m on Daiyun Mountain as the object, the elevation distribution of total C, N, and P in soil and their stoichiometry characteristics were studied. Also, the driving factors resulting in the spatial heterogeneity of soil stoichiometry are presented. The results show the following: (1) The average soil C and N content was 53.03 g·kg−1 and 3.82 g·kg−1, respectively. The content of C and N at high elevation was higher than that of at low elevation. Soil phosphorus fluctuated with elevation. (2) With increasing elevation, soil C:N ratio increased initially to 17.40 at elevation between 900–1000 m, and then decreased to 12.02 at elevation 1600 m. The changing trends of C:P and N:P were similar, and they all fluctuated with elevation. (3) Elevation, soil bulk density, and soil temperature were the main factors influencing the variation of soil C, N, and C:N. Soil pH and slope position were the driving factors for soil P, C:P, and N:P. The soil is rich in C and N, and has less total phosphorus on Daiyun Mountain. Raising the level of phosphate fertilizer appropriately can help to improve soil fertility and promote plant growth as well. In light of this information, in the near future, it will be necessary to conduct separation management of C, N, and P with regular monitoring systems to maintain favorable conditions for soil.


2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 103-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Bhandari ◽  
S Bam

The study was carried out in Chovar village of Kritipur Municipality, Kathmandu to compare the soil organic carbon (SOC) of three main land use types namely forest, agricultural and barren land and to show how land use and management are among the most important determinants of SOC stock. Stratified random sampling method was used for collecting soil samples. Walkley and Black method was applied for measuring SOC. Land use and soil depth both affected SOC stock significantly. Forest soil had higher SOC stock (98 t ha-1) as compared to agricultural land with 36.6 t ha-1 and barren land with 83.6 t ha-1. Similarly, the SOC in terms of CO22-1, 79.27 to 22.02 CO2-e ha-1 and 121.11 to 80.74 CO2-1 for 0- 20 cm to 40-60 cm soil depth, respectively. Bulk density (BD) was found less in forest soil compared to other lands at all depths, which showed negative correlation with SOC. The study showed a dire need to increase current soil C stocks which can be achieved through improvements in land use and management practices, particularly through conservation and restoration of degraded forests and soils.   DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/njst.v14i2.10422   Nepal Journal of Science and Technology Vol. 14, No. 2 (2013) 103-108


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