新垦红壤坡地土壤水分有效性研究

针对南方红壤地区降雨时空分布不均的特点,以未开垦的自然植被为对照,对桂西北环境移民示范区不同季节(早季和雨季)一次性降雨前1d及降雨后4h、2d、4d、6d及8d新垦蔗地(中坡、下坡、谷地）0-20cm,20-40cm、40-60cm3个土层的土壤水分含量进行了测定．结果表明,雨后谷地蔗地的土壤有效水分增量几乎与降雨量相同,而中坡蔗地与未开垦的自然植被土壤有效水分增量仅相当于降雨量于80％．雨季雨后0-60cm土壤层次中土壤有效水分分布均匀,早季主要集中在表层．雨季一次性降雨后各哩理及各土层土壤有效水分饱和度均有显著差异;而早季3个新垦蔗地间无明显差异,3个土层以表层土壤有效水分饱和度最高,亚表层与心土层差异不明显．无论雨季还是旱季,0-60cm土层土壤有效水分的消耗速率都以自然植被处理为最低,由于雨季正是作物生长旺季,其0-60cm土层土壤有效水分的消耗速率比旱季快,按照早季雨后8d土壤有效水分的平均消耗速率,15d内0-60cm土层的有效水分将消耗殆尽。     

Accumulation and soil-to-plant transfer of radionuclides in the Nile Delta coastal black sand habitats

The radionuclide content was estimated in the soil of three black sand habitats in the Mediterranean coast of Egypt, namely, sand mounds and coastal sand planes and dunes. In addition, a total of 14 heavy minerals found in the soils were characterized. The soil to plant transfer of uranium and thorium was tested on three black sand species, namely, Cakile maritima Scop., Senecio glaucus L. and Rumex Pictus Forssk. The transfer of thorium and uranium radionuclides from the soil to plant is complex process that is subjected to many variables; among which are the organic matter and clay content of the soil, the type of radionuclides and plant species. The study revealed a strong negative relationship between uranium and thorium uptake by S. glaucus and R. pictus and the clay and organic matter content of soil. Concentration of thorium in the soil has a negative correlation with soil-to-plant transfer factor. The study results suggest the possibility of using black sand species for phytoremediation of soils contaminated with radioactive elements. The potentiality of S. glaucus as phytoremediator of radionuclides polluted soils is greater than R. pictus which in turn outweigh C. maritima.     

Some misconceptions about the spurious correlation problem in the ecological literature

Summary It is a common misconception that correlations between variables that share a common term are statistically invalid. Although the idea that such relationships are wholly or partially spurious was rejected decades ago by statisticians, ecologists continue mistakenly to exclude legitimate hypotheses on this basis. Besides directing attention to the statistical literature on the subject, we briefly reconsider the problem from 3 viewpoints: first, the confusion between spurious correlation and spurious inference, second, the problem of concept familiarity and definition, with particular reference to the self-thinning rule for plants, and third, a legitimate concern with measurement error of shared variable components.A contribution to the Limnology Research Centre of McGill University     

Interrelationships between site factors and productivity of radiata pine at Riverhead Forest,New Zealand

Summary Significant simple correlations were found between productivity of radiata pine growing on known P-deficient soils and available soil P, mycorrhizae, slope, aspect, pH, and drainage. However, partial and multiple correlations showed that available soil P, mycorrhizae, fine sand, clay and slope were the only measured variables to make a significant independent contribution towards explaining variation in productivity. Aspect and pH were found to be related to productivity indirectly through their interrelationship with available soil P, and drainage indirectly through its interrelationship with mycorrhizae. The failure of clay and fine sand to show a significant simple correlation with productivity despite contributing independently to variation in productivity was attributed to their effects being more pronounced within specific levels of other variables than over their complete range.     

长白山苔原草本植物入侵与土壤环境的关系

在对长白山高山苔原西坡样带内132个样方进行植被调查和土壤取样分析的基础上,应用冗余分析(RDA)和典型相关分析方法,探讨了草本植物入侵苔原带程度与苔原土理化性质及环境之间的关系。研究表明,长白山苔原带西坡草本入侵程度区域差异明显,可分为5个不同的入侵等级;海拔、坡度、全钾含量、粘粒含量、有机质含量等10种土壤环境因子与草本植物入侵程度明显相关。RDA分析表明土壤环境因子能解释93%的植物物种多度信息,影响草本植物入侵的主要土壤因子是有机质含量,粘粒含量和坡度;第一对典型变量说明有机质含量与牛皮杜鹃多度正相关,与大白花地榆多度负相关,粘粒含量则相反;第二对典型变量说明海拔、速效氮含量与笃斯越桔、长白老鹳草多度呈负相关。长白山苔原带西坡草本植物在空间分布上是离散的,呈斑块状。可见,草本植物入侵,对生境是有所选择的。土壤有机质含量与灌木多度呈正相关,说明在草本入侵过程中,土壤有机质含量会减少;或者有机质含量减少的地方,灌木生长退化,草本由此开始侵入定植。     

Effect of soil type on the damping-off of tomato seedlings caused bySclerotium rolfsii in the Nigerian savanna

Summary The conductiveness of tropical savanna soils in Nigeria to the damping-off of tomato seedlings induced bySclerotium rolfsii was studied using soil from different localities in the savanna zones of the country. The results showed that soils low in percentage clay content were more conducive to the disease than those with high clay contents. Statistical analysis also revealed a high negative correlation (r=−0.91) between disease conduciveness indices and percentage clay contents of the various soils, indicating that as clay content of soil increased, disease decreased.     

Accumulation of trace elements in agricultural topsoil under different geological background

For establishing rational farming mechanism, it is essential to know the relative contribution of different geological background and anthropogenic activities to trace elements in agricultural soil. In this paper, 282 surface soil samples were collected based on the different geological background. Five harmful trace elements (As, Cd, Cr, Hg and Pb) were analyzed. The results indicated most of trace elements contents were far beyond the threshold of uncultivated soil background, which indicate anthropogenic input strongly influenced on trace elements in agricultural soil. In addition, correlation analysis showed trace element contents exhibited high relationships with soil pH, C/N and physical clay (<0.01 mm) (p?<?0.05). The principal component analysis showed that the first component included Cd, Cr and Hg, while Pb and As formed the second component. Furthermore, in the agricultural topsoil derived from carbonate rock, the high background values of trace elements and alkaline condition made the enrichments of Cd, Cr and Hg were the most significant. In the agricultural topsoil derived from red residua, the Pb and As contents was the highest values among the soil categories, partly because the type of soil had amount of physical clay (<0.01 mm). In the agricultural topsoil derived from shale, the pH or physical clay had significant relationship with Cd, Pb, Hg and As (p?<?0.01). In the agricultural topsoil derived from sand stone, the acid condition and loose texture might account for the lowest values of Cd, Cr, Pb and As content to some extent.     

Prediction of soil property distribution in paddy soil landscapes using terrain data and satellite information as indicators

Sustainable land management and land use planning require reliable information about the spatial distribution of the physical and chemical soil properties affecting both landscape processes and services. Although many studies have been conducted to identify the spatial patterns of soil property distribution on various scales and in various landscapes, only little is known about the relationships underlying the spatial distribution of soil properties in intensively used, finely structured paddy soil landscapes in the southeastern part of China. In order to provide adequate soil information for the modelling of landscape processes, such as soil water movement, nutrient leaching, soil erosion and plant growth, this study investigates to what extent cheap and readily available ancillary information derived from digital elevation models and remote sensing data can be used to support soil mapping and to indicate soil characteristics on the landscape scale. This article focuses on the spatial prediction of the total carbon and nitrogen content and of physical soil properties such as topsoil silt, sand and clay content, topsoil depth and plough pan thickness. Correlation analyses indicate that, on the one side, the distribution of C, N and silt contents is quite closely related to the NDVI of vegetated surfaces and that, on the other side, it corresponds significantly to terrain attributes such as relative elevation, elevation above nearest drainage channel and topographical wetness index. Geostatistical analyses furthermore reflect a moderately structured spatial correlation of these soil variables. The combined use of the above mentioned terrain variables and the NDVI in a multiple linear regression accounted for 29% (silt) to 41% (total C) of the variance of these soil properties. In order to select the best prediction method to accurately map soil property distribution, we compared the performance of different regionalization techniques, such as multi-linear regression, simple kriging, inverse distance to a power, ordinary kriging and regression kriging. Except for the prediction of topsoil clay content, in all cases regression kriging model “C” performed best. Compared to simple kriging, the spatial prediction was improved by up to 14% (total C), 13% (total N) and 10% (silt). Since the autocorrelation lengths of these spatially well correlated soil variables range between three and five times the soil sampling density, we consider regression kriging model “C” to be a suitable method for reducing the soil sampling density. It should help to save time and costs when doing soil mapping on the landscape scale, even in intensively used paddy soil landscapes.     

Changes in soil carbon inventories following cultivation of previously untilled soils

Cultivation of previously untilled soils usually results in release of carbon from the soil to the atmosphere, which can affect both soil fertility locally and the atmospheric burden of CO₂ globally. Generalizations about the magnitude of this flux have been hampered by a lack of good quality comparative data on soil carbon stocks of cultivated and uncultivated soils. Using data from several recent studies, we have reexamined the conclusions of previous reviews of this subject. The data were divided into subsets according to whether the soils were sampled by genetic horizon or by fixed depths. Sampling by fixed depths appears to underestimate soil C losses, but both subsets of data support earlier conclusions that between 20% and 40% of the soil C is lost following cultivation. Our best estimate is a loss of about 30% from the entire soil solum. Our analysis also supports the conclusion that most of the loss of soil C occurs within the first few Years (even within two Years in some cases) following initial cultivation. Our analysis does not support an earlier conclusion that the fractional loss of soil carbon is positively correlated to the amount of carbon initially present in the uncultivated soil. We found no relation between carbon content of uncultivated soil and the percentage lost following cultivation.     

Quantification and correlation of vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizal propagules with soil properties of some mollisols of northern India

The populations of vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizae (VAM) propagules by the most probable number method in some mollisols and their correlations with some important soil properties were determined. On average, the six soils, Phoolbagh clay loam, Beni silty clay loam, Haldi loam, Nagla loam, Khamia sandy loam and Patherchatta sandy loam contained 4.9, 4.0, 7.9, 7.9, 3.3 and 13.0 propagules/g soil, respectively, i.e. none of the soils was found to be high in VAM. The size of the VAM population was compared to soil properties such as pH, organic carbon, sand content, available phosphorus and available potassium, cation-exchange capacity, silt and clay contents. A significant positive correlation (r=0.586) was only found with available soil phosphorus (P<0.05) and a significant negative correlation (r=-0.555) with soil clay content (P<0.05).Directorate research paper series No. 7862     

雅鲁藏布江山南宽谷风沙化土地土壤养分和粒度特征

在雅鲁藏布江山南宽谷区,选择流动沙地、平缓沙砾地、半固定沙地、固定沙地和覆沙河滩地等类型样地,研究了不同深度(0—10 cm、10—20 cm和20—40 cm)土壤层的养分状况和粒度特征,探讨了风沙运动对土壤粒度组成和养分含量的影响。结果表明:1)风沙化土地土壤pH值呈中性、碱性和强碱性,土壤有机质和全氮含量均很低,但全磷和全钾均很高。土壤粒度组成表现为砂粒含量(53.83%—95.93%)>粉粒(3.3%—40.5%)>粘粒(0.77%—5.68%)。2)粘粒和粉粒含量均以覆沙河滩地(分别为4.02%和27.95%)最大、半固定沙地(分别为1.35%和5.27%)最小。粘粒含量表现为覆沙河滩地>固定沙地(2.98%)>河滩流动沙地(2.89%)>平缓沙砾地(1.69%)>河岸流动沙地(1.54%)>山坡流动沙地(1.49%)>半固定沙地。不同类型沙地粉粒含量的大小顺序与粘粒含量相似,仅在山坡流动沙地和河岸流动沙地的大小顺序有所差别。砂粒含量以半固定沙地(为93.40%)最大、覆沙河滩地最小(68.05%)。不同类型沙地的砂粒含量与粉粒含量的大小顺序正好相反。3)土壤养分含量与粘粒、粉粒、极细砂粒和细砂粒等细沙物质的相关性较强,与中砂粒、粗砂粒和极粗砂粒等粗沙物质呈负相关或相关性较弱。其中,粘粒和极细砂粒含量的增加对土壤养分的增加贡献较大。流动沙丘随风沙运动而不断往复摆动的现象和土壤细颗粒的迁移和损失,对不同类型沙地和沙丘部位的土壤养分状况及其再分配过程产生较大影响。     

The capacity of soils to preserve organic C and N by their association with clay and silt particles

Although it has been recognized that the adsorption of organics to clay and silt particles is an important determinant of the stability of organic matter in soils, no attempts have been made to quantify the amounts of C and N that can be preserved in this way in different soils. Our hypothesis is that the amounts of C and N that can be associated with clay and silt particles is limited. This study quantifies the relationships between soil texture and the maximum amounts of C and N that can be preserved in the soil by their association with clay and silt particles. To estimate the maximum amounts of C and N that can be associated with clay and silt particles we compared the amounts of clay- and silt-associated C and N in Dutch grassland soils with corresponding Dutch arable soils. Secondly, we compared the amounts of clay- and silt-associated C and N in the Dutch soils with clay and silt-associated C and N in uncultivated soils of temperate and tropical regions.We observed that although the Dutch arable soils contained less C and N than the corresponding grassland soils, the amounts of C and N associated with clay and silt particles was the same indicating that the amounts of C and N that can become associated with this fraction had reached a maximum. We also observed close positive relationships between the proportion of primary particles < 20 m in a soil and the amounts of C and N that were associated with this fraction in the top 10 cm of soils from both temperate and tropical regions. The observed relationships were assumed to estimate the capacity of a soil to preserve C and N by their association with clay and silt particles. The observed relationships did not seem to be affected by the dominant type of clay mineral. The only exception were Australian soils, which had on average more than two times lower amounts of C and N associated with clay and silt particles than other soils. This was probably due to the combination of low precipitation and high temperature leading to low inputs of organic C and N.The amount of C and N in the fraction > 20 m was not correlated with soil texture. Cultivation decreased the amount of C and N in the fraction > 20 m to a greater extent than in the fraction < 20 m, indicating that C and N associated with the fraction < 20 m is better protected against decomposition.The finding of a given soil having a maximum capacity to preserve organic C and N will improve our estimations of the amounts of C and N that can become stabilized in soils. It has important consequences for the contribution of different soils to serve as a sink or source for C and N in the long term.     

Distribution of spring barley roots in Danish soils,of different texture and under different climatic conditions

Summary Spring barley root profiles have been investigated in three years with different climatological conditions during the growing season. In total, 50 root profiles were determined by measuring cm root/ml soil in different 10 cm sections of the profile. The investigations, show that the root density was nearly identical for all soil types within the upper part of the plough layer. The decrease in root density with depth is most pronounced for the sandy soils and less for the loamy soils. The mean max. root depth in the sandy soils was roughly 70 cm, while it was roughly 140 cm for the loamy soils. A comparison between the clay and silt content in the subsoil and the thickness of soil layers with more than given root densities shows that there is no correlation between texture and thickness of soil layers with more than 1.0 cm root/ml soil, while there was a clear, positive correlation between thickness of soil layers with lower root densities and the clay and silt content in the subsoil. The different climatological conditions during the growing season give rise to differences in the root development. Very wet springs seem to impede root development in loamy soils with slowly permeable subsoils, while this is not the case in the sandy soils.     

乌兰布和沙漠东北部不同耕作年限农田土壤有机碳密度及其影响因素

明确干旱区农田开垦过程中土壤有机碳变化及其影响因素对评估其固存特征具有重要意义。本研究以乌兰布和沙漠东北部不同开垦年限(2～5、12～15、25～30、40～50年)农田为对象,以未开垦的自然土壤为对照,采用空间代替时间的研究方法,探究农田开垦过程中0～2 m土层内土壤有机碳密度变化特征及其影响因素。结果表明: 随开垦年限的增加,浅层(0～0.4 m)土壤有机碳密度呈持续增加趋势,但农田土壤有机碳密度均处于较低水平(0.990～1.983 kg·m^-2)。深层(1.2～2 m)土壤有机碳密度在开垦年限较长(25～30和40～50年)的农田中有所增加,而在开垦年限较短(2～5和12～15年)的农田中无增加趋势。未开垦土壤和各耕作年限农田深层土壤有机碳密度在0～2 m土层中占比较大(28.9%～38.6%)。不同耕作年限农田中土壤有机碳密度随土层深度的增加均呈先减小后增大的二次函数关系,且拟合度较高(R²为0.757～0.972)。土壤黏粒和粉粒含量是影响0～2 m土层有机碳密度的关键因素,且耕作年限对浅层(0～0.4 m)土壤有机碳的积累具有重要促进作用。     

退化沙质草地开垦和围封过程中的土壤颗粒分形特征

研究了科尔沁退化沙质草地开垦和围封过程中土壤颗粒分形维数的变化特征,以及分形维数与土壤性状的关系.结果表明,不同开垦和围封年限的土壤颗粒分形维数(0～30cm)介于2.387～2.588之间.随着开垦年限的增加,0～15 cm层土壤颗粒分形维数从2.441降至2.387;围封11年后,0～15 cm层土壤颗粒分形维数增加到2.588.15～30 cm层土壤颗粒分形维数无明显变化.土壤颗粒分形维数是反映土壤质地的一个较好指标,重点反映粘粒含量,其次是粉粒含量.分形维数的变化能够很好地表征退化沙质草地土壤的化学、物理和生物学性状的变化趋势,可以作为评价退化沙质草地土壤性状的一个综合指标.     

茶园土壤及与茶叶中微量元素锌硒含量相关性的研究

植物生长的环境适应及其内含物质功能和变化规律的研究已成为热点问题。该研究对贵州省地标品牌湄潭翠芽、凤冈锌硒茶4个样地12个样点茶园土壤及其对应种植点茶叶样品中锌硒含量变化进行了检测与分析。结果表明:(1)4个样地中,3个样地的锌含量都是原土高于种植土,而硒含量没有明显规律性变化;各主产区土壤锌硒含量的标准差均大于均值的5%,土质均匀度都较低;(2)4个样地新叶(一芽二叶)与老叶的锌含量都呈现显著差异,而硒在新叶和老叶中的含量差异无明显变化规律;(3)锌元素在茶树体内转移现象明显,由老叶向新叶中转移,新叶中含量较高;硒元素在新叶和老叶中的含量变化不明显。新叶中锌的含量与其0~20 cm表层土样和21~40 cm深层土样中锌的含量呈极显著正相关(P0.01),相关系数为0.768;而新叶硒的含量与0~20 cm表层土中硒含量呈显著正相关(P0.05)。茶叶中锌硒主要是通过茶树根系从土壤中吸收和传输,但其吸收转移效率不由土壤中的含量多少直接决定,还受到茶园土壤质地、茶园温湿度等环境管控因素的影响,锌硒微量元素参与茶树体内的生理作用和代谢途径具有较大的差异。因此,进一步探索茶树吸收与转化锌硒微量元素的存在形态和作用机理,了解不同产区茶叶中微量元素锌硒含量与其茶园土壤的关系,对于生产适宜于人类身体健康适当锌硒含量的有机茶具有重要意义。     

荒漠草原区土壤粒径组成对柠条根际土壤微生物数量及酶活性的影响

柠条(Caragana korshinskii)是荒漠草原区主要的造林绿化树种,研究其根际土壤微生物和酶活性与不同土壤类型土壤粒径组成的关系有重要意义,然而土壤粒径对荒漠草原柠条根际土壤微生物数量和酶活性的影响知之甚少,探讨土壤颗粒组分与微生物数量、土壤酶活性之间的关系,以及土壤颗粒组成对荒漠草原区固沙灌木植物柠条根际土壤微生物数量及酶活性的影响,可为揭示荒漠草原土壤退化及生态修复提供参考。以宁夏荒漠草原区土壤粒径组成差异显著的灰钙土、红黏土、风沙土环境下栽植的柠条为研究对象,研究不同土壤颗粒组成对根际土壤微生物数量及酶活性的相互关系与影响。结果表明:土壤微生物的数量表现为细菌放线菌真菌。根际土壤中的细菌、真菌数量显著高于非根际,且在3种不同类型的土壤中随着细砂粒的增多,真菌和放线菌数量逐渐降低,而细菌数量呈先增大后减小的趋势;根际与非根际土壤的蔗糖酶、碱性磷酸酶及过氧化氢酶活性均呈现出灰钙土红黏土风沙土的趋势,红黏土根际土壤中的脲酶活性显著高于灰钙土与风沙土;除过氧化氢酶外,土壤酶活性表现为根际高于非根际,在3种不同类型的土壤中随着细砂含量的增加,土壤酶活性均呈递减趋势。土壤颗粒组成与微生物数量之间没有明显的相关性,而与土壤酶活性之间显著相关,土壤酶活性与黏粒、粉粒呈正相关,与细砂、中砂呈负相关关系,根际土壤中酶活性更高,能够为植物及微生物提供更多的营养。     

绿洲边缘夹粘沙丘持水特性

夹粘沙丘是指剖面中分布有一层红褐色粘化层的沙丘,其夹粘层埋藏深度常在120—500cm左右,厚度在40—100cm之间,粘粉粒含量达到90%以上。夹粘沙丘人工梭梭固沙植被郁闭度在0.5以上,明显高于相同水热条件下的植被生产力,这可能与夹粘层通过改变土壤持水性及水分状况,从而提高了土壤水分承载力有关。以河西走廊绿洲边缘夹粘沙丘为研究对象,在测定0—8.0m剖面土壤物理性质和土壤水分特征曲线的基础上,计算了土壤孔隙分布和持水特性,研究了剖面中土壤持水性的变化规律及其影响因素。结果表明:(1)夹粘层土壤含水量最高,上覆沙土土壤含水量最少且随深度增加而增加,下伏沙土受地下水毛管作用影响水分含量较高;(2)土壤机械组成决定了不同土层的持水特性,土壤中粘粉粒含量越高,田间持水量和饱和含水量就越大,夹粘层的土壤持水性远高于沙土层;(3)夹粘层是沙丘土壤水分暂时贮存的重要土层,可以为植被提供深层土壤水分,这对绿洲边缘人工固沙植被的生存和繁衍有重要影响,而土壤持水性和毛管作用的强弱决定了夹粘层对沙丘水分调节能力的强弱。本研究为深入理解绿洲边缘雨养固沙植被斑块状分布的机理提供了一定的理论依据。     

南亚热带不同林分土壤颗粒分形与水分物理特征

以广西国有高峰林场的6种不同林分(马尾松林Pinus massoniana、杉木林Cunninghamia lanceolata、尾巨桉林Eucalyptus urophylla×E. grandis、米老排林Mytilaria laosensis、红锥林Castanopsis hystrix和天然次生林)为对象,运用分形学和森林水文学的理论和方法,研究了不同林分类型土壤的颗粒组成以及水分物理特征。结果表明:研究区不同林分类型的土壤颗粒组成以黏粒为主,其次为粉粒和细砂粒,粗砂粒的含量相对较低,土壤颗粒分形维数从大到小依次表现为天然次生林、杉木林、米老排林、红锥林、马尾松林和尾巨桉林;不同林分类型土壤的水分物理特征存在差异,蓄水性能大小依次表现为天然次生林、米老排林、杉木林、红锥林、马尾松林和尾巨桉林,且土壤表层(0~10 cm)的蓄水能力要好于下层(20~50 cm);土壤颗粒分形维数主要受黏粒含量的影响,分形维数与黏粒含量呈极显著正相关,与总孔隙度、饱和蓄水量显著正相关,与土壤密度显著负相关,而与非毛管孔隙度、非毛管蓄水量和有机质含量相关性不显著。土壤颗粒分布的分形维数可作为反映南亚热带赤红壤地区人工林土壤水文物理性质的综合性指标。     

Soil carbon cycling proxies: Understanding their critical role in predicting climate change feedbacks

The complexity of processes and interactions that drive soil C dynamics necessitate the use of proxy variables to represent soil characteristics that cannot be directly measured (correlative proxies), or that aggregate information about multiple soil characteristics into one variable (integrative proxies). These proxies have proven useful for understanding the soil C cycle, which is highly variable in both space and time, and are now being used to make predictions of the fate and persistence of C under future climate scenarios. However, the C pools and processes that proxies represent must be thoughtfully considered in order to minimize uncertainties in empirical understanding. This is necessary to capture the full value of a proxy in model parameters and in model outcomes. Here, we provide specific examples of proxy variables that could improve decision‐making, and modeling skill, while also encouraging continued work on their mechanistic underpinnings. We explore the use of three common soil proxies used to study soil C cycling: metabolic quotient, clay content, and physical fractionation. We also consider how emerging data types, such as genome‐sequence data, can serve as proxies for microbial community activities. By examining some broad assumptions in soil C cycling with the proxies already in use, we can develop new hypotheses and specify criteria for new and needed proxies.