Effects of soil frost on soil respiration and its radiocarbon signature in a Norway spruce forest soil

Apart from a general increase of mean annual air temperature, climate models predict a regional increase of the frequency and intensity of soil frost with possibly strong effects on C cycling of soils. In this study, we induced mild soil frost (up to −5 °C in a depth of 5 cm below surface) in a Norway spruce forest soil by removing the natural snow cover in the winter of 2005/2006. Soil frost lasted from January to April 2006 and was detected down to 15 cm depth. Soil frost effectively reduced soil respiration in the snow removal plots in comparison to undisturbed control plots. On an annual basis 6.2 t C ha⁻¹ a⁻¹ were emitted in the control plots compared with 5.1 t C ha⁻¹ a⁻¹ in the snow removal plots. Only 14% of this difference was attributed to reduced soil respiration during the soil frost period itself, whereas 63% of this difference originated from differences during the summer of 2006. Radiocarbon (Δ¹⁴C) signature of CO₂ revealed a considerable reduction of heterotrophic respiration on the snow removal plots, only partly compensated for by a slight increase of rhizosphere respiration. Similar CO₂ concentrations in the uppermost mineral horizons of both treatments indicate that differences between the treatments originated from the organic horizons. Extremely low water contents between June and October of 2006 may have inhibited the recovery of the heterotrophic organisms from the frost period, thereby enhancing the differences between the control and snow removal plots. We conclude that soil frost triggered a change in the composition of the microbial community, leading to an increased sensitivity of heterotrophic respiration to summer drought. A CO₂ pulse during thawing, such as described for arable soils several times throughout the literature, with the potential to partly compensate for reduced soil respiration during soil frost, appears to be lacking for this soil. Our results from this experiment indicate that soil frost reduces C emission from forest soils, whereas mild winters may enhance C losses from forest soils.     

Evaluation of soil respiration and soil CO2 concentration in a lowland moist forest in Panama

Soil gas exchange was investigated in a lowland moist forest in Panama. Soil water table level and soil redox potentials indicate that the soils are not waterlogged. Substantial microspatial variation exists for soil respiration and soil CO₂ concentration. During the rainy season, soil CO₂ at 40 cm below the surface accumulates to 2.3%–4.6% and is correlated with rainfall during the previous two weeks. Temporal changes in soil CO₂ are rapid, large and share similar trends between sampling points. Possible effects of soil CO₂ changes on plant growth or phenology are discussed.     

Partitioning sources of soil respiration in boreal black spruce forest using radiocarbon

Separating ecosystem and soil respiration into autotrophic and heterotrophic component sources is necessary for understanding how the net ecosystem exchange of carbon (C) will respond to current and future changes in climate and vegetation. Here, we use an isotope mass balance method based on radiocarbon to partition respiration sources in three mature black spruce forest stands in Alaska. Radiocarbon (Δ¹⁴C) signatures of respired C reflect the age of substrate C and can be used to differentiate source pools within ecosystems. Recently‐fixed C that fuels plant or microbial metabolism has Δ¹⁴C values close to that of current atmospheric CO₂, while C respired from litter and soil organic matter decomposition will reflect the longer residence time of C in plant and soil C pools. Contrary to our expectations, the Δ¹⁴C of C respired by recently excised black spruce roots averaged 14‰ greater than expected for recently fixed photosynthetic products, indicating that some portion of the C fueling root metabolism was derived from C storage pools with turnover times of at least several years. The Δ¹⁴C values of C respired by heterotrophs in laboratory incubations of soil organic matter averaged 60‰ higher than the contemporary atmosphere Δ¹⁴CO₂, indicating that the major contributors to decomposition are derived from a combination of sources consistent with a mean residence time of up to a decade. Comparing autotrophic and heterotrophic Δ¹⁴C end members with measurements of the Δ¹⁴C of total soil respiration, we calculated that 47–63% of soil CO₂ emissions were derived from heterotrophic respiration across all three sites. Our limited temporal sampling also observed no significant differences in the partitioning of soil respiration in the early season compared with the late season. Future work is needed to address the reasons for high Δ¹⁴C values in root respiration and issues of whether this method fully captures the contribution of rhizosphere respiration.     

Soil pCO2, soil respiration,and root activity in CO2-fumigated and nitrogen-fertilized ponderosa pine

The purpose of this paper is to describe the effects of CO₂ and N treatments on soil pCO₂, calculated CO₂ efflux, root biomass and soil carbon in open-top chambers planted with Pinus ponderosa seedlings. Based upon the literature, it was hypothesized that both elevated CO₂ and N would cause increased root biomass which would in turn cause increases in both total soil CO₂ efflux and microbial respiration. This hypothesis was only supported in part: both CO₂ and N treatments caused significant increases in root biomass, soil pCO₂, and calculated CO₂ efflux, but there were no differences in soil microbial respiration measured in the laboratory. Both correlative and quantitative comparisons of CO₂ efflux rates indicated that microbial respiration contributes little to total soil CO₂ efflux in the field. Measurements of soil pCO₂ and calculated CO₂ efflux provided inexpensive, non-invasive, and relatively sensitive indices of belowground response to CO₂ and N treatments.     

Clean rain promotes fine root growth and soil respiration in a Norway spruce forest

Soil acidification and N saturation are considered to affect the decomposition of soil organic matter as well as growth and mortality of fine roots in many forest soils. Here we report from a field experiment where ‘clean rain’ has been applied to the soil for about 10 years under a roofed plot of a 71‐year‐old Norway spruce plantation at Solling, Central Germany. Reduced amounts of protons (?78%), sulphate (?53%), ammonium (?86%), and nitrate (?49%) were sprayed on the soil surface of the clean rain plot between 1992 and 2001. In an adjacent roofed control plot, throughfall was collected and immediately re‐sprinkled below the roof construction without any chemical manipulation. One year before the clean rain treatment started, live and dead fine root masses (≤2 mm) were determined from undisturbed soil cores down to 40 cm mineral soil depth. Total live fine root mass was significantly lower in the clean rain plot than in the control plot. After the first sampling, the soil holes were refilled with quartz sand and repeatedly sampled in June 1992, June 1996, and October 2001. There were no differences in live and dead fine root masses between the plots in 1992 and 1996. In 2001, both live and dead fine root masses of the clean rain plot were about twice as high as in the control plot, indicating that fine root growth recovered in the mineral soil following 10 years of clean rain treatment. Moreover, the clean rain treatment significantly reduced the total N concentrations of live fine roots and 1‐year‐old needles. Our results suggest that the reduced N input promoted fine root growth to compensate N deficiency. Reduced Al concentration in soil solution may have contributed to the recovery of fine root growth, however, the toxicity of Al species is largely unknown. Mean annual soil respiration rate was 24% higher in the period from 2000 to 2001, indicating that the clean rain treatment increased respiration of roots and heterotrophic microorganisms within the rhizosphere. Laboratory incubation of samples from the organic horizon and the top mineral soil revealed no differences between the plots in the decay rate of soil organic matter. Our results suggest that strong reductions in atmospheric N deposition from about 30 to 10 kg N ha^?1 yr^?1 and decreasing acid stress can have beneficial effects on growth of fine roots in the mineral soil within a decade. We conclude that biological recovery under reduced atmospheric loads can affect the nutrient and carbon budget of spruce soils in the long run.     

Elevated CO2 impacts ectomycorrhiza-mediated forest soil carbon flow: fungal biomass production,respiration and exudation

Large quantities of carbon are exchanged between terrestrial ecosystems and the atmosphere, and extensive research efforts are made to understand carbon cycling and the impact of elevated atmospheric CO₂ levels. The response of soils to increased carbon availability is largely driven by root associated ectomycorrhizal fungi in forest ecosystems, since they partition host derived carbon belowground. In this review I examine how CO₂ enrichment affects ectomycorrhizal fungal biomass production, exudation, respiration, soil carbon fluxes, and other soil microbes, and the importance of the fungal species in these responses. I briefly discuss the significance of CO₂ alterations in the mycorrhizal symbiosis in the context of consequences for carbon sequestration, and present research priorities.     

Cu、Pb和丁草胺污染对土壤呼吸强度的影响

采用室内碱液吸收法研究了重金属Cu 、Pb 和丁草胺及其复合污染对土壤呼吸强度的影响及其随时间的动态变化.重金属Cu 、Pb 和丁草胺单一污染对土壤呼吸强度的影响,随污染物的浓度和培养时间而变化,DMRT 法检验表明,在后期各处理与对照间的呼吸强度都存在显著差异,前期则差异不显著.复合污染中,丁草胺与Cu 复合污染对土壤呼吸强度的影响在培养后期存在明显的交互作用,而丁草胺与Pb 复合污染对土壤呼吸强度的影响在培养前期存在一定的的交互作用,Cu 与丁草胺复合污染及Pb 与丁草胺的复合污染对土壤呼吸强度变化率的影响大于单一污染对土壤呼吸强度变化率的影响,复合污染对土壤呼吸强度变化率的影响表现为:丁草胺与Cu 复合污染>丁草胺与Pb 复合污染.     

Estimating respiration of roots in soil: Interactions with soil CO2, soil temperature and soil water content

Little information is available on the variability of the dynamics of the actual and observed root respiration rate in relation to abiotic factors. In this study, we describe I) interactions between soil CO₂ concentration, temperature, soil water content and root respiration, and II) the effect of short-term fluctuations of these three environmental factors on the relation between actual and observed root respiration rates. We designed an automated, open, gas-exchange system that allows continuous measurements on 12 chambers with intact roots in soil. By using three distinct chamber designs with each a different path for the air flow, we were able to measure root respiration over a 50-fold range of soil CO₂ concentrations (400 to 25000 ppm) and to separate the effect of irrigation on observed vs. actual root respiration rate. All respiration measurements were made on one-year-old citrus seedlings in sterilized sandy soil with minimal organic material.Root respiration was strongly affected by diurnal fluctuations in temperature (Q₁₀ = 2), which agrees well with the literature. In contrast to earlier findings for Douglas-fir (Qi et al., 1994), root respiration rates of citrus were not affected by soil CO₂ concentrations (400 to 25000 ppm CO₂; pH around 6). Soil CO₂ was strongly affected by soil water content but not by respiration measurements, unless the air flow for root respiration measurements was directed through the soil. The latter method of measuring root respiration reduced soil CO₂ concentration to that of incoming air. Irrigation caused a temporary reduction in CO₂ diffusion, decreasing the observed respiration rates obtained by techniques that depended on diffusion. This apparent drop in respiration rate did not occur if the air flow was directed through the soil. Our dynamic data are used to indicate the optimal method of measuring root respiration in soil, in relation to the objectives and limitations of the experimental conditions.     

Microbial activity and soil respiration under nitrogen addition in Alaskan boreal forest

Climate warming could increase rates of soil organic matter turnover and nutrient mineralization, particularly in northern high‐latitude ecosystems. However, the effects of increasing nutrient availability on microbial processes in these ecosystems are poorly understood. To determine how soil microbes respond to nutrient enrichment, we measured microbial biomass, extracellular enzyme activities, soil respiration, and the community composition of active fungi in nitrogen (N) fertilized soils of a boreal forest in central Alaska. We predicted that N addition would suppress fungal activity relative to bacteria, but stimulate carbon (C)‐degrading enzyme activities and soil respiration. Instead, we found no evidence for a suppression of fungal activity, although fungal sporocarp production declined significantly, and the relative abundance of two fungal taxa changed dramatically with N fertilization. Microbial biomass as measured by chloroform fumigation did not respond to fertilization, nor did the ratio of fungi : bacteria as measured by quantitative polymerase chain reaction. However, microbial biomass C : N ratios narrowed significantly from 16.0 ± 1.4 to 5.2 ± 0.3 with fertilization. N fertilization significantly increased the activity of a cellulose‐degrading enzyme and suppressed the activities of protein‐ and chitin‐degrading enzymes but had no effect on soil respiration rates or ¹⁴C signatures. These results indicate that N fertilization alters microbial community composition and allocation to extracellular enzyme production without affecting soil respiration. Thus, our results do not provide evidence for strong microbial feedbacks to the boreal C cycle under climate warming or N addition. However, organic N cycling may decline due to a reduction in the activity of enzymes that target nitrogenous compounds.     

Photosynthetic CO2-fixing activity in dark-grown spruce seedlings

Bicarbonate-dependent O₂-evolving activity in dark-grown cotyledonsof Picea abies was measured with an oxygen electrode with differentpreillumination times. The activity showed a slight linear increasewith increasing preillumination time. On the other hand, O₂-evolvingactivity (Hill activity) of chloroplasts prepared from preilluminateddark-grown cotyledons exhibited a characteristic change of asteep rise followed by a gradual increase with increasing preilluminationtime. The results obtained were discussed in connection withthe light activation of the latent, inactive O₂-evolving centerin dark-grown cotyledons. (Received December 8, 1978; )     

Influence of Norway spruce seedlings on the nutrient availability in mineral soil and forest floor material

A greenhouse experiment was performed to evaluate the effect of Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) seedlings on net nutrient availability in five different growing media containing F- or H-layer and mineral soil originating from a haplic podzol in northern Sweden. The initial total amounts of eight nutrient elements (N, K, P, Ca, Mg, Mn, Fe, Zn) and exchangeable amounts of the same elements were analyzed in pots with or without spruce seedlings. In the planted pots seedling nutrient uptake was also estimated. After 26 weeks, higher net nutrient availability with seedlings was found in 25 out of the 40 (62%) growing media and nutrient element combinations. A positive seedling effect on net nutrient availability might be explained by rhizodeposition stimulating the soil microorganism activity and accelerating the weathering of minerals or by seedling roots promoting the nutrient providing processes through changes in soil chemical and physical properties. Nitrogen availability was primarily affected by what part of the forest floor the growing medium contained although the positive response to seedling presence was apparent. The positive net availability response of P, Ca, Mg, Mn, Fe and Zn to seedling presence was on the other hand relatively strong. In the case of P, K, and Zn the growing medium composition (if the F- and H-layer was pure or mixed with mineral soil) was also an important factor for the estimated net availability. Pure F-and H-layer provided greater P- and K-availability while the availability of Zn increased when mineral soil was added. The influence of growing plants ought to be considered when soil samples are used for assessing the nutrient availability.     

Influence of stand density on soil CO2 efflux for a Pinus densiflora forest in Korea

We investigated the influence of stand density [938 tree ha⁻¹ for high stand density (HD), 600 tree ha⁻¹ for medium stand density (MD), and 375 tree ha⁻¹ for low stand density (LD)] on soil CO₂ efflux (R _S) in a 70-year-old natural Pinus densiflora S. et Z. forest in central Korea. Concurrent with R _S measurements, we measured litterfall, total belowground carbon allocation (TBCA), leaf area index (LAI), soil temperature (ST), soil water content (SWC), and soil nitrogen (N) concentration over a 2-year period. The R _S (t C ha⁻¹ year⁻¹) and leaf litterfall (t C ha⁻¹ year⁻¹) values varied with stand density: 6.21 and 2.03 for HD, 7.45 and 2.37 for MD, and 6.96 and 2.23 for LD, respectively. In addition, R _S was correlated with ST (R ² = 0.77–0.80, P < 0.001) and SWC (R ² = 0.31–0.35, P < 0.001). It appeared that stand density influenced R _S via changes in leaf litterfall, LAI and SWC. Leaf litterfall (R ² = 0.71), TBCA (R ² = 0.64–0.87), and total soil N contents in 2007 (R ² = 0.94) explained a significant amount of the variance in R _S (P < 0.01). The current study showed that stand density is one of the key factors influencing R _S due to the changing biophysical and environmental factors in P. densiflora.     

Effects of starch additions on N turnover in Sitka spruce forest floor

Starch and carboxymethyl starch were added to forest floor samples collected from a sitka spruce stand near Aberdeen, Scotland. Samples were incubated for one month and were periodically analyzed for respiration, biomass-C, net and gross N-mineralization/immobilization. Gross mineralization/immobilization was measured by using a ¹⁵N-isotope pool dilution technique. Starch additions did not significantly affect respiration rates or biomass-C but caused net immobilization. The mechanism of this appeared to be inhibition of the decomposition of N-containing soil organic matter by the available starch-C, which resulted in decreased gross mineralization. Carboxymethyl starch acted as a biocide, probably as a result of an osmotic effect.     

Winter CO2 flux from soil and snow surfaces in a cool-temperate deciduous forest, Japan

We measured diurnal and wintertime changes in CO₂ fluxes from soil and snow surfaces in a Japanese cool-temperate Quercus/Betula forest between December 1994 and May 1995. To evaluate the relationship between these winter fluxes and temperature, flux measurements were made with the open-flow infrared gas analyzer (IRGA) method rather than with the more commonly used closed chamber method or the snow CO₂ profile method. The open-flow IRGA method proved to be more successful in measurements of winter CO₂ fluxes than the two standard methods. Despite colder air temperatures, soil temperature profiles were greater than 0°C because of the thermal insulation effect of deep snowpack. This reveals that soil temperature is satisfactory for microbial respiration throughout the winter. Unfrozen soils under the snowpack showed neither diurnal nor wintertime trends in CO₂ fluxes or in soil surface temperature, although there was a daily snow surface CO₂ flux of 0.18–0.32 g m^–2. By combining this with other reference data, Japanese cool-temperate forest soils in snowy regions can be estimated to emit < 100 g m^–2 carbon over an entire winter, and this value accounts for < 15% of the annual emission. In the present study, when data for all winter fluxes were taken together, fluxes were most highly correlated with deep soil temperatures rather than the soil surface temperature. Such a high correlation can be attributed to the relatively increased respiration of the deep soil where the temperature was higher than the soil surface temperature. Thus, deeper soil temperature is a better predictor of winter CO₂ fluxes in cold and snowy ecosystems.     

Effects of soil phosphorus availability,temperature and moisture on soil respiration in Eucalyptus pauciflora forest

Rates of soil respiration (CO₂ efflux) were measured for a year in a mature Eucalyptus pauciflora forest in unfertilized and phosphorus-fertilized plots. Soil CO₂ efflux showed a distinct seasonal trend, and average daily rates ranged from 124 to 574 mg CO₂ m^–2 hr^–1. Temperature and moisture are the main variables that cause variation in soil CO₂ efflux; hence their effects were investigated over a year so as to then differentiate the treatment effect of phosphorus (P) nutrition.Soil temperature had the greatest effect on CO₂ efflux and exhibited a highly significant logarithmic relationship (r² = 0.81). Periods of low soil and litter moisture occurred during summer when temperatures were greater than 10 °C, and this resulted in depression of soil CO₂ efflux. During winter, when temperatures were less than 10 °C, soil and litter moisture were consistently high and thus their variation had little effect on soil CO₂ efflux. A multiple regression model including soil temperature, and soil and litter moisture accounted for 97% of the variance in rates of CO₂ efflux, and thus can be used to predict soil CO₂ efflux at this site with high accuracy. Total annual efflux of carbon from soil was estimated to be 7.11 t C ha^–1 yr^–1. The model was used to predict changes in this annual flux if temperature and moisture conditions were altered. The extent to which coefficients of the model differ among sites and forest types requires testing.Increased soil P availability resulted in a large increase in stem growth of trees but a reduction in the rate of soil CO₂ efflux by approximately 8%. This reduction is suggested to be due to lower root activity resulting from reduced allocation of assimilate belowground. Root activity changed when P was added to microsites within plots, and via the whole tree root system at the plot level. These relationships of belowground carbon fluxes with temperature, moisture and nutrient availability provide essential information for understanding and predicting potential changes in forest ecosystems in response to land use management or climate change.     

Autotrophic and heterotrophic soil respiration in a Norway spruce forest: estimating the root decomposition and soil moisture effects in a trenching experiment

The two components of soil respiration, autotrophic respiration (from roots, mycorrhizal hyphae and associated microbes) and heterotrophic respiration (from decomposers), was separated in a root trenching experiment in a Norway spruce forest. In June 2003, cylinders (29.7 cm diameter) were inserted to 50 cm soil depth and respiration was measured both outside (control) and inside the trenched areas. The potential problems associated with the trenching treatment, increased decomposition of roots and ectomycorrhizal mycelia and changed soil moisture conditions, were handled by empirical modelling. The model was calibrated with respiration, moisture and temperature data of 2004 from the trenched plots as a training set. We estimate that over the first 5 months after the trenching, 45% of respiration from the trenched plots was an artefact of the treatment. Of this, 29% was a water difference effect and 16% resulted from root and mycelia decomposition. Autotrophic and heterotrophic respiration contributed to about 50% each of total soil respiration in the control plots averaged over the two growing seasons. We show that the potential problems with the trenching, decomposing roots and mycelia and soil moisture effects, can be handled by a modelling approach, which is an alternative to the sequential root harvesting technique.     

No overall stimulation of soil respiration under mature deciduous forest trees after 7 years of CO2 enrichment

The anthropogenic rise in atmospheric CO₂ is expected to impact carbon (C) fluxes not only at ecosystem level but also at the global scale by altering C cycle processes in soils. At the Swiss Canopy Crane (SCC), we examined how 7 years of free air CO₂ enrichment (FACE) affected soil CO₂ dynamics in a ca. 100‐year‐old mixed deciduous forest. The use of ¹³C‐depleted CO₂ for canopy enrichment allowed us to trace the flow of recently fixed C. In the 7th year of growth at ～550 ppm CO₂, soil respiratory CO₂ consisted of 39% labelled C. During the growing season, soil air CO₂ concentration was significantly enhanced under CO₂‐exposed trees. However, elevated CO₂ failed to stimulate cumulative soil respiration (R_s) over the growing season. We found periodic reductions as well as increases in instantaneous rates of R_s in response to elevated CO₂, depending on soil temperature and soil volumetric water content (VWC; significant three‐way interaction). During wet periods, soil water savings under CO₂‐enriched trees led to excessive VWC (>45%) that suppressed R_s. Elevated CO₂ stimulated R_s only when VWC was ≤40% and concurrent soil temperature was high (>15 °C). Seasonal Q₁₀ estimates of R_s were significantly lower under elevated (Q₁₀=3.30) compared with ambient CO₂ (Q₁₀=3.97). However, this effect disappeared when three consecutive sampling dates of extremely high VWC were disregarded. This suggests that elevated CO₂ affected Q₁₀ mainly indirectly through changes in VWC. Fine root respiration did not differ significantly between treatments but soil microbial biomass (C_mic) increased by 14% under elevated CO₂ (marginally significant). Our findings do not indicate enhanced soil C emissions in such stands under future atmospheric CO₂. It remains to be shown whether C losses via leaching of dissolved organic or inorganic C (DOC, DIC) help to balance the C budget in this forest.     

Spatial variability of NO and NO2 flux rates from soil of spruce and beech forest ecosystems

In order to evaluate differences in the magnitude of NO and NO₂ flux rates between soil areas in direct vicinity to tree stems and areas of increasing distance to tree stems, we followed in 1997 at the Höglwald Forest site with a fully automated measuring system a complete annual cycle of NO and NO₂ fluxes from soils of an untreated spruce stand, a limed spruce strand, and a beech stand using at each stand measuring chambers which were installed onto the soils in such a way that they formed a stem to stem gradient. Flux data obtained since the end of 1993 from measuring chambers placed at the interstem areas of the stands, which had been used for the calculation of the long year annual mean of NO and NO₂ flux rates from soils of the stands, are compared to both (a) those obtained from the interstem chambers in 1997 and (b) those from the stem to stem gradient chambers. Daily mean NO fluxes obtained in 1997 were in a range of 0.3 – 280.1 g NO-N m^–2 h^–1 at the untreated spruce stand, 0.5 – 273.2 g NO-N m^–2 h^–1 at the limed spruce stand and 0.5 - 368.8 g NO-N m^–2 h^–1 at the beech stand, respectively. Highest NO emission rates were observed during summer, lowest during winter. Daily mean NO₂ fluxes were in a range of –83.1 – 7.6 g NO₂-N m^–2 h^–1 at the untreated spruce stand, -85.1 – 2.1 g NO₂-N m^–2 h^–1 at the limed spruce stand and –77.9 to –2.0 g NO₂-N m^–2 h^–1 at the beech site, respectively. As had been observed for the years 1994–1996, also in 1997 NO emission rates were highest at the untreated spruce stand and lowest at the beech stand and liming of a spruce stand resulted in a significant decrease in NO emission rates. For NO₂ no marked differences in the magnitude of flux rates were found between the three different stands. Results obtained from the stem to stem gradient experiments revealed that at all stands studied NO emission rates were significantly higher (between 1.6- and 2.6-fold) from soil areas close to the tree stems and decreased – except at the beech stand - with increasing distance from the stems, while for NO₂ deposition no marked differences were found. Including the contribution of soil areas in direct vicinity to the beech stems in the estimation of the annual mean NO source strength revealed that the source strength has been underestimated by 40% in the past.     

Seasonal and spatial variability of soil respiration in four Sitka spruce stands

We investigated the causes for the seasonal and spatial variation of soil respiration in a first rotation Sitka spruce chronosequence composed of four age classes (10, 15, 31, and 47 year old) in Central Ireland. The study aimed at identifying easily determinable environmental parameters that explained the variation in soil respiration rates. The variation in temperature and soil water content influenced the seasonal trend observed in the spatial variability of soil respiration. The highest coefficients of variation in soil respiration were observed during autumn drought, while lower coefficients were generally observed during periods with highest soil respiration rates. On average, the sampling strategy of 30 sampling points per stand was adequate to obtain an average rate of soil respiration within 20% of its actual value at the 95% confidence level. Significantly higher soil respiration rates were observed at locations with high accumulation of organic matter and in collars established in close vicinity to tree stems. The organic layer thickness was the only variable that yielded significant regressions for explaining spatial variation in soil respiration in all the stands. Correlation analyses between the studied variables and soil respiration suggested the relative importance of heterotrophic and autotrophic components differed in their annual contribution to total soil respiration at each forest stand. Multiple regression analyses were used to assess the relative importance of primary temporal and spatial controls over soil respiration. Soil temperature and organic layer thickness explained most of the variance of soil respiration for the different sampling periods, while soil water content had a weaker effect as well as a different influence on soil respiration depending on the time of the year. The strong linear correlation between forest floor carbon and soil carbon stock further confirmed organic layer thickness as an integrative factor encompassing the effect of soil carbon pools on soil respiration. Moreover, its inclusion in the multiple regression analyses overrode the influence of both distance and fine root biomass. Overall, a multiple linear regression model driven by easily determinable environmental variables such as soil temperature, organic thickness, soil water content, soil bulk density, and soil organic carbon concentration allowed us to explain 54% of total variance of soil respiration over the different stand ages for the entire year (P < 0.05). Our results show that the adoption of an adequate sampling strategy, and the determination of some key environmental variables may help to explain a large proportion of total variation of soil respiration over the entire rotation length of afforested ecosystems.