Abstract
Aims
Aboveground litter inputs have been modified by global changes in plantation forests, where understory management is also prevalent, which may alter soil fertility and stand productivity. This study aimed to quantify the specific roles of litter and understory in affecting soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) dynamics.
Methods
A field experiment was established with four treatments, namely, litter addition (LA), understory removal (UR), litter addition and understory removal (LA + UR), and a control, in a subtropical Cunninghamia lanceolata plantation. Topsoil δ13C, organic C concentration, storage and decomposition, mineral N, N mineralization, and C and N hydrolase activities were analyzed.
Results
Litter addition significantly increased soil organic C, macro-particulate organic C (macro-POC) and mineral N at a 0–5 cm depth, but decreased δ13Cmacro-POC at 0–5 cm and 5–10 cm depths. Understory removal significantly increased soil NH4+-N, the rates of nitrification and net N mineralization as well as the soil organic C respiration rate at the two depths, while it decreased the C storage in bulk soil, especially in mineral protected pools. The activities of β-glucosidase and β-N-acetylglucosaminidase increased with litter addition and understory removal, respectively.
Conclusions
Litter addition tends to improve soil C quantity and quality due to fresh organic C inputs, while understory removal helps increase the N supply via the acceleration of N mineralization and the absence of understory plant uptake.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Blagodatskaya Е, Kuzyakov Y (2008) Mechanisms of real and apparent priming effects and their dependence on soil microbial biomass and community structure: critical review. Biol Fert Soils 45:115–131
Bowden RD, Deem L, Plante AF, Peltre C, Nadelhoffer K, Lajtha K (2014) Litter input controls on soil carbon in a temperate deciduous forest. Soil Sci Soc Am J 78:S66–S75
Christensen BT (2001) Physical fractionation of soil and structural and functional complexity in organic matter turnover. Eur J Soil Sci 52:345–353
Cusack DF, Halterman SM, Tanner EVJ, Wright SJ, Hockaday W, Dietterich LH, Turner BL (2018) Decadal-scale litter manipulation alters the biochemical and physical character of tropical forest soil carbon. Soil Biol Biochem 124:199–209
Davidson EA, Hart SC, Shanks CA, Firestone MK (1991) Measuring gross nitrogen mineralization, and nitrification by 15N isotopic pool dilution in intact soil cores. J Soil Sci 42:335–349
Fan J, Wang J, Zhao B, Wu L, Zhang C, Zhao X, Kv G (2015) Effects of manipulated above-and belowground organic matter input on soil respiration in a Chinese pine plantation. PLoS One 10:e0126337
Fang H, Cheng S, Yu G, Yang X, Xu M, Wang Y, Li L, Dang X, Wang L, Li Y (2014) Nitrogen deposition impacts on the amount and stability of soil organic matter in an alpine meadow ecosystem depend on the form and rate of applied nitrogen. Eur J Soil Sci 65:510–519
Fang X, Zhao L, Zhou G, Huang W, Liu J (2015) Increased litter input increases litter decomposition and soil respiration but has minor effects on soil organic carbon in subtropical forests. Plant Soil 392:139–153
Fang XM, Christenson LM, Wang FC, Zeng JP, Chen FS (2016) Pine caterpillar outbreak and stand density impacts on nitrogen and phosphorus dynamics and their stoichiometry in Masson pine (Pinus massoniana) plantations in subtropical China. Can J For Res 46:601–609
Fang XM, Zhang XL, Chen FS, Zong YY, Bu WS, Wan SZ, Luo Y, Wang H (2019) Phosphorus addition alters the response of soil organic carbon decomposition to nitrogen deposition in a subtropical forest. Soil Biol Biochem 133:119–128
Fisk MC, Fahey TJ (2001) Microbial biomass and nitrogen cycling responses to fertilization and litter removal in young northern hardwood forests. Biogeochemistry 53:201–223
Fissore C, Giardina CP, Kolka RK, Trettin CC, King GM, Jurgensen MF, Barton CD, McDowell SD (2008) Temperature and vegetation effects on soil organic carbon quality along a forested mean annual temperature gradient in North America. Glob Chang Biol 14:193–205
Gregorich E, Monreal C, Ellert B (1995) Turnover of soil organic matter and storage of corn residue carbon estimated from natural 13C abundance. Can J Soil Sci 75:161–167
Han T, Huang W, Liu J, Zhou G, Xiao Y (2015) Different soil respiration responses to litter manipulation in three subtropical successional forests. Sci Rep-UK 5:18166
Hooper D, Coughlan J, Mullen M (2008) Structural equation modelling: guidelines for determining model fit. Electron J Bus Res Methods 6:53–60
Huang W, Spohn M (2015) Effects of long-term litter manipulation on soil carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus in a temperate deciduous forest. Soil Biol Biochem 83:12–18
Klein T, Bader KF, Leuzinger S, Mildner M, Schleppi P, Siegwolf RTW, Körner C (2016) Growth and carbon relations of mature Picea abies trees under five years of free air CO2 enrichment. J Ecol 104:1720–1733
Kuzyakov Y (2010) Priming effects: interactions between living and dead organic matter. Soil Biol Biochem 42:1363–1371
Kuzyakov Y (2011) Ecology: prime time for microbes. Nat Clim Chang 1:295–297
Lajtha K, Bowden RD, Nadelhoffer K (2014) Litter and root manipulations provide insights into soil organic matter dynamics and stability. Soil Sci Soc Am J 78:S261–S269
Leff JW, Wieder WR, Taylor PG, Townsend AR, Nemergut DR, Grandy AS, Cleveland CC (2012) Experimental litterfall manipulation drives large and rapid changes in soil carbon cycling in a wet tropical forest. Glob Chang Biol 18:2969–2979
Leitner S, Sae-Tun O, Kranzinger L, Zechmeister-Boltenstern S, Zimmermann M (2016) Contribution of litter layer to soil greenhouse gas emissions in a temperate beech forest. Plant Soil 403:455–469
Li R (2014) The screening of high-nitrogen utilization efficiency Chinese-fir family and effects on different family seedling with nitregen forms. Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fujian
Lützow MV, Kögel-Knabner I, Ekschmitt K, Matzner E, Guggenberger G, Marschner B, Flessa H (2006) Stabilization of organic matter in temperate soils: mechanisms and their relevance under different soil conditions–a review. Eur J Soil Sci 57:426–445
Matsushima M, Chang SX (2007) Effects of understory removal, N fertilization, and litter layer removal on soil N cycling in a 13-year-old white spruce plantation infested with Canada bluejoint grass. Plant Soil 292:243–258
Mikutta R, Kleber M, Torn MS, Jahn R (2006) Stabilization of soil organic matter: association with minerals or chemical recalcitrance? Biogeochemistry 77:25–56
Nilsson M-C, Wardle DA (2005) Understory vegetation as a forest ecosystem driver: evidence from the northern Swedish boreal forest. Front Ecol Environ 3:421–428
Pisani O, Lin LH, Lun OO, Lajtha K, Nadelhoffer KJ, Simpson AJ, Simpson MJ (2016) Long-term doubling of litter inputs accelerates soil organic matter degradation and reduces soil carbon stocks. Biogeochemistry 127:1–14
Sun XL, Zhao J, You YM, Sun OJ (2016) Soil microbial responses to forest floor litter manipulation and nitrogen addition in a mixed-wood forest of northern China. Sci Rep-UK 6:19536
Tanner EVJ, Sheldrake MW, Turner BL (2016) Changes in soil carbon and nutrients following 6 years of litter removal and addition in a tropical semi-evergreen rain forest. Biogeosciences 13:6183–6190
Trentini C, Villagra M, Pámies DG, Laborde VB, Bedano J, Campanello P (2018) Effect of nitrogen addition and litter removal on understory vegetation, soil mesofauna, and litter decomposition in loblolly pine plantations in subtropical Argentina. Forest Ecol Manag 429:133–142
Villalobos-Vega R, Goldstein G, Haridasan M, Franco AC, Miralles-Wilhelm F, Scholz FG, Bucci SJ (2011) Leaf litter manipulations alter soil physicochemical properties and tree growth in a Neotropical savanna. Plant Soil 346:385–397
Wang F, Zou B, Li H, Li Z (2014) The effect of understory removal on microclimate and soil properties in two subtropical lumber plantations. J Forest Res-JPN 19:238–243
Weintraub SR, Wieder WR, Cleveland CC, Townsend AR (2013) Organic matter inputs shift soil enzyme activity and allocation patterns in a wet tropical forest. Biogeochemistry 114:313–326
Whitaker J, Ostle N, Nottingham AT, Ccahuana A, Salinas N, Bardgett RD, Meir P, McNamara NP (2014) Microbial community composition explains soil respiration responses to changing carbon inputs along an a ndes-to-a mazon elevation gradient. J Ecol 102:1058–1071
Wu J, Liu Z, Wang X, Sun Y, Zhou L, Lin Y, Fu S (2011) Effects of understory removal and tree girdling on soil microbial community composition and litter decomposition in two Eucalyptus plantations in South China. Funct Ecol 25:921–931
Wu J, Zhang D, Chen Q, Feng J, Li Q, Yang F, Zhang Q, Cheng X (2018) Shifts in soil organic carbon dynamics under detritus input manipulations in a coniferous forest ecosystem in subtropical China. Soil Biol Biochem 126:1–10
Xu S, Liu LL, Sayer EJ (2013) Variability of above-ground litter inputs alters soil physicochemical and biological processes: a meta-analysis of litterfall-manipulation experiments. Biogeosciences 10:7423–7433
Zhao J, Wan S, Fu S, Wang X, Wang M, Liang C, Chen Y, Zhu X (2013) Effects of understory removal and nitrogen fertilization on soil microbial communities in Eucalyptus plantations. Forest Ecol Manag 310:80–86
Zhao Q, Classen AT, Wang WW, Zhao XR, Mao B, Zeng DH (2016) Asymmetric effects of litter removal and litter addition on the structure and function of soil microbial communities in a managed pine forest. Plant Soil 414:1–13
Zhou X, Zhu H, Wen Y, Goodale UM, Li X, You Y, Ye D, Liang H (2018) Effects of understory management on trade-offs and synergies between biomass carbon stock, plant diversity and timber production in eucalyptus plantations. Forest Ecol Manag 410:164–173
Acknowledgments
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31760200 & 31870427), Science and Technology Project of Jiangxi Provincial Department of Education (GJJ190173), the Research Project of Jiangxi Provincial Department of Forestry (201806) and Jiangxi Provincal “Double Thousand Plan” of Scientific and Technological Innovation for Youths (jxsq2019201080). We greatly thank the three anonymous referees for their insightful comments.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Responsible Editor: Simon Jeffery
Publisher’s note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Fang, XM., Wang, G.G., Xu, ZJ. et al. Litter addition and understory removal influenced soil organic carbon quality and mineral nitrogen supply in a subtropical plantation forest. Plant Soil 460, 527–540 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-020-04787-8
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-020-04787-8