Changes in nutrient availability from calcareous to acid wetland habitats with closely related brown moss species: increase instead of decrease in N and P

To test whether shifts in nutrient availability from calcareous to mineral-poor habitats could be a driving force in the evolution of seven closely related wetland brown mosses, we measured soil and vascular plant nutrients and conducted a laboratory incubation experiment with Swedish and some Dutch samples, in which net N and P-mineralization, respiration and microbial characteristics were measured. In spite of high respiration and microbial N, net N-mineralization appeared to be low for the calcareous Palustriella falcata and Scorpidium spp. Net N-mineralization significantly increased (and respiration and microbial N decreased) for the mineral-poor Sarmentypnum exannulatum, Straminergon stramineum and Warnstorfia fluitans, probably due to a decrease in microbial N-demand. Even though values were mainly negative, net P-mineralization showed a similar increase from calcareous to mineral-poor fens, probably due to lower precipitation of calcium phosphate. The calcareous habitat of the early wetland mosses may thus have been nutrient-poor instead of nutrient-rich. Adaptation to mineral-poor habitats, probably driven by expansion of mineral-poor wetlands when the boreal zone became colder and wetter, may have been associated with higher availability of ammonium and phosphate. However, this may have stimulated Sphagnum more than brown mosses, which may have been restricted to particular niches with perhaps some nitrification.     

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.     

Influence of the phenolic compound bearing species Ledum palustre on soil N cycling in a boreal hardwood forest

The effects of the understory shrub Ledum palustre on soil N cycling were studied in a hardwood forest of Interior Alaska. This species releases high concentrations of phenolic compounds from green leaves and decomposing litter by rainfall. Organic and mineral soils sampled underneath L. palustre and at nearby non-Ledum sites were amended with L. palustre litter leachates and incubated at controlled conditions. We aimed to know (i) whether L. palustre presence and litter leachate addition changed net N cycling rates in organic and mineral soils, and (ii) what N cycling processes, including gross N mineralization, N immobilization and gross N nitrification, were affected in association with L. palustre. Our results indicate that N transformation rates in the surface organic horizon were not affected by L. palustre presence or leachate addition. However, mineral soils underneath L. palustre as well as soils amended with leachates had significantly higher C/N ratios and microbial respiration rates, and lower net N mineralization and N-to-C mineralization compared to no Ledum and no leachates soils. No nitrification was detected. Plant presence and leachate addition also tended to increase both gross N mineralization and immobilization. These results suggest that soluble C compounds present in L. palustre increased N immobilization in mineral soils when soil biota used them as a C source. Increases in gross N mineralization may have been caused by an enhanced microbial biomass due to C addition. Since both plant presence and leachate addition decreased soil C/N ratio and had similar effects on N transformation rates, our results suggest that litter leachates could be partially responsible for plant presence effects. The lower N availability under L. palustre canopy could exert negative interactions on the establishment and growth of other plant species.     

Differential effects of sugar maple, red oak, and hemlock tannins on carbon and nitrogen cycling in temperate forest soils

Tannins are abundant secondary chemicals in leaf litter that are hypothesized to slow the rate of soil-N cycling by binding protein into recalcitrant polyphenol–protein complexes (PPCs). We studied the effects of tannins purified from sugar maple, red oak, and eastern hemlock leaf litter on microbial activity and N cycling in soils from northern hardwood–conifer forests of the northeastern US. To create ecologically relevant conditions, we applied tannins to soil at a concentration (up to 2 mg g⁻¹ soil) typical of mineral soil horizons. Sugar maple tannins increased microbial respiration significantly more than red oak or hemlock tannins. The addition of sugar maple tannins also decreased gross N mineralization by 130% and, depending upon the rate of application, decreased net rates of N mineralization by 50–290%. At low concentrations, the decrease in mineralization appeared to be driven by greater microbial-N immobilization, while at higher concentrations the decrease in mineralization was consistent with the formation of recalcitrant PPCs. Low concentrations of red oak and hemlock tannins stimulated microbial respiration only slightly, and did not significantly affect fluxes of inorganic N in the soil. When applied to soils containing elevated levels of protein, red oak and hemlock tannins decreased N mineralization without affecting rates of microbial respiration, suggesting that PPC formation decreased substrate availability for microbial immobilization. Our results indicate that tannins from all three species form recalcitrant PPCs, but that the degree of PPC formation and its attendant effect on soil-N cycling depends on tannin concentration and the pool size of available protein in the soil.     

Carbon and nitrogen turnover in adjacent grassland and cropland ecosystems

The effects of cultivation and soil texture on net and gross N mineralization, CO₂ evolution and C and N turnover were investigated using paired grassland and cropped sites on soils of three textures. Gross N mineralization and immobilization were measured using¹⁵N-isotope dilution. Grassland soils had high CO₂ evolution and gross N mineralization rates, and low net N mineralization rates. Cropland soils had low CO₂ evolution rates but had high net and gross N mineralization rates. Grassland soils thus had high immobilization rates and cropland soils had low immobilization rates. Cultivation increased N turnover but reduced C turnover. The data suggest that the microflora in grassland soils are N limited, while those of cropland soils are limited by C availability. Increasing clay content reduced N turnover. C turnover was less clearly related to texture. Differences in the immobilization potential of substrates help explain why agricultural soils have higher N losses than do grassland soils.     

Organic matter turnover in a sagebrush steppe landscape

Laboratory incubations of¹⁵N-amended soils from a sagebrush steppe in south-central Wyoming indicate that nutrient turnover and availability have complex patterns across the landscape and between microsites. Total and available N and P and microbial C and N were highest in topographic depressions characterized by tall shrub communities. Net and gross N mineralization rates and respiration were also highest in these areas, but microbial efficiencies expressing growth relative to respiration cost were highest in soils of exposed ridgetop sites (prostrate shrub communities). Similar patterns occurred between shrub and intershrub soils, with greater nutrient availability under shrubs, but lower microbial efficiencies under shrubs than between. Surface soils had higher soil nutrient pools and N mineralization rates than subsurface soils, but N and C turnover and microbial efficiencies were lower in those surface soils. All soils decreased in respiration, mineralization, and immobilization rates during the 30-day incubation period, apparently approaching a steady-state substrate use. Soil microbial activity of the high organic matter accumulation areas was apparently more limited by labile substrate.     

Responses of soil nitrogen dynamics in a Mojave Desert ecosystem to manipulations in soil carbon and nitrogen availability

We investigated the effects of changes in soil C and N availability on N mineralization, nitrification, denitrification, NH(3) volatilization, and soil respiration in the Mojave Desert. Results indicate a C limitation to microbial N cycling. Soils from underneath the canopies of Larrea tridentata (DC.) Cov., Pleuraphis rigida Thurber, and Lycium spp. exhibited higher rates of CO(2 ) flux, lower rates of NH(3) volatilization, and a decrease in inorganic N (NH(4)(+)-N and NO(3)(-)-N) with C addition. In addition to C limitation, soils from plant interspaces also exhibited a N limitation. Soils from all locations had net immobilization of N over the course of a 15-day laboratory incubation. However, soils from interspaces had lower rates of net nitrification and potential denitrification compared to soils from under plant canopies. The response to changes in C availability appears to be a short-term increase in microbial immobilization of inorganic N. Under controlled conditions, and over a longer time period, the effects of C and N availability appear to give way to larger differences due to spatial location. These findings have implications for ecosystems undergoing changes in soil C and N availability due to such processes as desertification, exotic species invasions, or elevated atmospheric CO(2) concentration.     

The Effects of Snow,Soil Microenvironment,and Soil Organic Matter Quality on N Availability in Three Alaskan Arctic Plant Communities

Climate warming in The Arctic may lead to a shift from graminoid to shrub dominance, which may, in turn, alter the structure and function of the ecosystem through shrub influences on the abiotic and/or biotic controls over biogeochemical cycles of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N). In Arctic tundra, near Toolik Lake, Alaska, we quantified net N-mineralization rates under ambient and manipulated snow treatments at three different plant communities that varied in abundance of deciduous shrubs. Our objective was twofold: (1) to test whether the amount of snow that can accumulate around Arctic deciduous shrubs maintains winter soil temperatures high enough to stimulate microbial activity and increase soil N levels (effect of soil microclimate) and (2) to compare the relative effects of snow versus shrubs on N availability via effects on the main drivers of N-mineralization: SOM quality versus microclimate. Winter snow addition had a positive effect on summer, but not winter, N-mineralization rates. Soil organic matter quality had a nine times larger effect on N-mineralization than did soil microclimate in the summer season and only SOM quality had a detectable effect on N-mineralization in the winter. Here we conclude that on a short time scale, shrub interactions with snow may play a role in increasing plant available N, primarily through effects on the summer soil microenvironment. In addition, differences in SOM quality can drive larger differences in net N-mineralization than changes in soil microclimate of the magnitude of what we saw across our three sites.     

Factors affecting nitrogen dynamics in a semiarid woodland (Dry Chaco,Argentina)

In an effort to elucidate the factors affecting soil N dynamics in the Dry Chaco ecosystem, soil respiration and microbial biomass N were measured for one year underneath 5 vegetation types: a leguminous tree (Prosopis flexuosa DC), a non-leguminous tree (Aspidosperma quebracho-blanco Schlecht.), a non leguminous shrub (Larrea spp.), the open interspaces, and a pure grassland. Ammonifier and nitrifier densities and N content in litter were also measured in some cases. Results were compared with previously reported N mineralization rates and soil fertility.During the dry season microbial biomass N and net N mineralization were low, while accretion of easily mineralizable C occurred (estimated through soil respiration rates in lab under controlled temperature and moisture). With the onset of rain, microbial biomass N and N mineralization increased markedly, resulting in a decrease in easily mineralizable C. Throughout the wet season N mineralization varied with soil moisture while microbial biomass N remained consistently high. Mean values of immobilized N in this ecosystem were high (20–140 mg kg^–1), of about the same order of magnitude as accumulated net N mineralization (50–150 mg kg^–1 yr^–1). Microbial decay in the dry season, considered as a source of easily mineralizable N, accounted for only 40% of gross N mineralization increase at the beginning of the wet season. Ammonifier densities correlated significantly with soil moisture and N mineralization, but nitrifiers did not.The highest values of total N, N mineralization, inorganic N, microbial biomass N, nitrifier densities, N content in litter, total organic C and easily mineralizable C were found under Prosopis and the lowest values under shrubs and the interspaces. The main differences between tree species were in N mineralization at the beginning of the wet season, in total and inorganic N pools, and in nitrifier densities; all of which were significantly lower under Aspidosperma than under Prosopis.N mineralization in the pure grassland was very low despite high values of total N and C sources. Although N immobilized in microbial biomass was similarly high under Aspidosperma, Prosopis and the pure grassland, net N mineralization rates were quite different.     

Relieving substrate limitation-soil moisture and temperature determine gross N transformation rates

A field experiment was designed with the objective to reveal the interactions between soil moisture, temperature, total, dissolved, and phosphate buffer extractable C and N, and microbial activity in the control of in situ gross N mineralization and immobilization rates in a deciduous forest. We had three alternative hypotheses to explain variations of the gross N transformations: 1) microorganisms are C limited, 2) microorganisms are N limited, or 3) neither C nor N limit the microorganisms but moisture and temperature conditions. Each hypothesis had specific criteria to be fulfilled for its acceptance. The results demonstrated that gross N transformation rates were more dependent on and variable with soil moisture and temperature than the size of the different C and N pools. The immobilization of N was dependent on the gross mineralization rate, suggesting that the production of enzymes for mineralization of organic N and the immobilization of N from the surrounding soil is disconfirmed when the intracellular N content of the microorganisms is sufficiently high. If the microorganisms are starved for N, enzyme systems involved in both the assimilation and mineralization of N are activated. The mean in situ gross N mineralization rate was two orders of magnitude higher than the natural N deposition in the area and the N addition in the NITREX experiments, meaning that a reduction in the gross N mineralization rate of about 1% would be enough to compensate for the addition of inorganic N. This decrease would hardly be detectable given the great spatial and temporal variability of N transformation rates.     

Interactions between plant growth and soil nutrient cycling under elevated CO2: a meta-analysis

free air carbon dioxide enrichment (FACE) and open top chamber (OTC) studies are valuable tools for evaluating the impact of elevated atmospheric CO₂ on nutrient cycling in terrestrial ecosystems. Using meta‐analytic techniques, we summarized the results of 117 studies on plant biomass production, soil organic matter dynamics and biological N₂ fixation in FACE and OTC experiments. The objective of the analysis was to determine whether elevated CO₂ alters nutrient cycling between plants and soil and if so, what the implications are for soil carbon (C) sequestration. Elevated CO₂ stimulated gross N immobilization by 22%, whereas gross and net N mineralization rates remained unaffected. In addition, the soil C : N ratio and microbial N contents increased under elevated CO₂ by 3.8% and 5.8%, respectively. Microbial C contents and soil respiration increased by 7.1% and 17.7%, respectively. Despite the stimulation of microbial activity, soil C input still caused soil C contents to increase by 1.2% yr^?1. Namely, elevated CO₂ stimulated overall above‐ and belowground plant biomass by 21.5% and 28.3%, respectively, thereby outweighing the increase in CO₂ respiration. In addition, when comparing experiments under both low and high N availability, soil C contents (+2.2% yr^?1) and above‐ and belowground plant growth (+20.1% and+33.7%) only increased under elevated CO₂ in experiments receiving the high N treatments. Under low N availability, above‐ and belowground plant growth increased by only 8.8% and 14.6%, and soil C contents did not increase. Nitrogen fixation was stimulated by elevated CO₂ only when additional nutrients were supplied. These results suggest that the main driver of soil C sequestration is soil C input through plant growth, which is strongly controlled by nutrient availability. In unfertilized ecosystems, microbial N immobilization enhances acclimation of plant growth to elevated CO₂ in the long‐term. Therefore, increased soil C input and soil C sequestration under elevated CO₂ can only be sustained in the long‐term when additional nutrients are supplied.     

Dynamics of the internal soil nitrogen cycles under moder and mull forest floor types on a slope in a <Emphasis Type="Italic">Cryptomeria japonica</Emphasis> D. Don plantation

To examine the influence of microbial carbon (C) availability on the internal soil nitrogen (N) cycles under moder and mull forest floor types within the same slope sequence, surface mineral soils (0–5cm depth) taken at upper (moder-type forest floor) and lower (mull-type forest floor) positions on a slope in a Cryptomeria japonica D. Don plantation were incubated for 300days. During the incubation, changes in net and gross N transformations, the organic C and N pools, and microbial respiration were monitored. Despite relatively small differences in net N mineralization in both soils, very rapid rates of gross N transformations were found in mull soil during the initial 15days of the experiment. A rapid net nitrification occurred after days 150 and 100 in moder and mull soils, respectively, presumably because of decreased microbial C availability. However, a rapid net nitrification also occurred in the mull soil during the initial 15days when microbial C availability was high, and gross nitrification was detected in both soils, except at day 0 in the moder soil. Changes in gross N transformations and in organic C and N pools over the experiment suggested that the start of rapid net nitrification might be influenced not only by microbial C availability, but also by the microbial availability of N relative to C.     

Nitrogen transformation rates are affected by cover soil type but not coarse woody debris application in reclaimed oil sands soils

Forest floor mineral soil mix (FMM) and peat mineral soil mix (PMM) are cover soils commonly used for reclamation of open‐pit oil sands mining disturbed land in northern Alberta, Canada; coarse woody debris (CWD) is another source of organic matter for land reclamation. We investigated net nitrogen (N) transformation rates in FMM and PMM cover soils near and away from CWD 4–6 years after oil sands reclamation. Monthly net nitrification and N mineralization rates varied over time; however, mean rates across the incubation periods and microbial biomass were greater (p < 0.05) in FMM than in PMM. Net N mineralization rates were positively related to soil temperature (p < 0.001) and microbial biomass carbon (p = 0.045). Net N transformation rates and inorganic N concentrations were not affected by CWD; however, the greater ¹⁵N isotope ratio of ammonium near CWD than away from CWD indicates that CWD application increased both gross N mineralization/nitrification (causing N isotope fractionation) and gross N immobilization (no isotopic fractionation). Microbial biomass was greater near CWD than away from CWD, indicating the greater potential for N immobilization near CWD. We conclude that (1) CWD application affected soil microbial properties and would create spatial variability and diverse microsites and (2) cover soil type and CWD application had differential effects on net N transformation rates. Applying FMM with CWD for oil sands reclamation is recommended to increase N availability and microsites.     

Plant carbon substrate supply regulated soil nitrogen dynamics in a tallgrass prairie in the Great Plains,USA: results of a clipping and shading experiment

Aims Land use management affects plant carbon (C) supply and soil environments and hence alters soil nitrogen (N) dynamics, with consequent feedbacks to terrestrial ecosystem productivity. The objective of this study was to better identify mechanisms by which land-use management (clipping and shading) regulates soil N in a tallgrass prairie, OK, USA.Methods We conducted 1-year clipping and shading experiment to investigate the effects of changes in land-use management (soil microclimates, plant C substrate supply and microbial activity) on soil inorganic N (NH 4 + ? N and NO 3 ? ? N), net N mineralization and nitrification in a tallgrass prairie.Important findings Land-use management through clipping and/or shading significantly increased annual mean inorganic N, possibly due to lowered plant N uptake and decreased microbial N immobilization into biomass growth. Shading significantly increased annual mean mineralization rates (P < 0.05). Clipping slightly decreased annual mean N nitrification rates whereas shading significantly increased annual mean N nitrification rates. Soil microclimate significantly explained 36% of the variation in NO 3 ? ? N concentrations (P = 0.004). However, soil respiration, a predictor of plant C substrate supply and microbial activity, was negatively correlated with NH 4 + ? N concentrations (P = 0.0009), net N mineralization (P = 0.0037) and nitrification rates (P = 0.0028) across treatments. Our results suggest that change in C substrate supply and microbial activity under clipping and/or shading is a critical control on NH 4 + ? N, net N mineralization and nitrification rates, whereas clipping and shading-induced soil microclimate change can be important for NO 3 ? ? N variation in the tallgrass prairie.     

Threshold responses of soil gross nitrogen transformation rates to aridity gradient

The responses of soil nitrogen (N) transformations to climate change are crucial for biome productivity prediction under global change. However, little is known about the responses of soil gross N transformation rates to drought gradient. Along an aridity gradient across the 2700 km transect of drylands on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, this study measured three main soil gross N transformation rates in both topsoil (0–10 cm) and subsoil (20–30 cm) using the laboratorial ¹⁵N labeling. The relevant soil abiotic and biotic variables were also determined. The results showed that gross N mineralization and nitrification rates steeply decreased with increasing aridity when aridity was less than 0.5 but just slightly decreased with increasing aridity when aridity was larger than 0.5 at both soil layers. In topsoil, the decreases of the two gross rates were accompanied by the similar decreased patterns of soil total N content and microbial biomass carbon with increasing aridity (p < .05). In subsoil, although the decreased pattern of soil total N with increasing aridity was still similar to the decreases of the two gross rates (p < .05), microbial biomass carbon did not change (p > .05). Instead, bacteria and ammonia oxidizing archaea abundances decreased with increasing aridity when aridity was larger than 0.5 (p < .05). With an aridity threshold of 0.6, gross N immobilization rate increased with increasing aridity in wetter region (aridity < 0.6) accompanied with an increased bacteria/fungi ratio, but decreased with increasing aridity in drier region (aridity > 0.6) where mineral N and microbial biomass N also decreased at both soil layers (p < .05). This study provided new insight to understand the differential responses of soil N transformation to drought gradient. The threshold responses of the gross N transformation rates to aridity gradient should be noted in biogeochemical models to better predict N cycling and manage land in the context of global change.     

Microbial transformations of C and N in a boreal forest floor as affected by temperature

The effects of temperature on N mineralization were studied in two organic surface horizons (LF and H) of soil from a boreal forest. The soil was incubated at 5 °C and 15 °C after adding ¹⁵ N and gross N fluxes were calculated using a numerical simulation model. The model was calibrated on microbial C and N, basal respiration, and KCl-extractable NH₄ ⁺, NO₃ ⁻, ¹⁵NH₄ ⁺ and ¹⁵ NO₃ ⁻. In the LF layer, increased temperature resulted in a faster turnover of all N pools. In both layers net N mineralization did not increase at elevated temperature because both gross NH₄ ⁺ mineralization and NH₄ ⁺ immobilization increased. In the H layer, however, both gross NH₄ ⁺ mineralization and NH₄ ⁺ immobilization were lower at 15 °C than at 5 °C and the model predicted a decrease in microbial turnover rate at higher temperature although measured microbial activity was higher. The decrease in gross N fluxes in spite of increased microbial activity in the H layer at elevated temperature may have been caused by uptake of organic N. The model predicted a decrease in pool size of labile organic matter and microbial biomass at elevated temperature whereas the amount of refractory organic matter increased. Temperature averaged microbial C/N ratio was 14.7 in the LF layer suggesting a fungi-dominated decomposer community whereas it was 7.3 in the H layer, probably due to predominance of bacteria. Respiration and microbial C were difficult to fit using the model if the microbial C/N ratio was kept constant with time. A separate ¹⁵N-enrichment study with the addition of glucose showed that glucose was metabolized faster in the LF than in the H layer. In both layers, decomposition of organic matter appeared to be limited by C availability. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

秸秆在土壤内分解初期氮素矿化与固持的模拟测定

利用模拟软件Modelmaker对3种作物秸秆在土壤内分解初期氮素循环转化过程进行了模拟,取得了土壤铵态氮、硝态氮、微生物氮及其¹⁵N丰度等个变量模拟值和测定值的良好一致性.模型模拟对氮转化速率测定的结果表明,土壤微生物主要固持铵态氮,对硝态氮固持非常微弱.氮矿化主要发生于作物秸秆,腐殖质氮的矿化极其微弱.一级动力学方程对秸秆氮素矿化过程的描述优于零级动力学方程.微生物固持氮的再矿化过程落后于氮固持过程,假定再矿化不发生或认为再矿化与固持化同时进行可导致氮矿化与固持速率测定的严重误差.忽略氮硝化过程和挥发损失将导致氮矿化和固持速率的测定值偏低.净固持或净矿化的产生不仅与秸秆碳氮比有关,而且与秸秆在土壤内分解时间有关.     

Leaf strategies and soil N across a regional humidity gradient in Patagonia

We analyzed leaf traits related to carbon-fixation, nutrient conservation strategies, and decomposability and their relationships with potential N-mineralization and microbial N in soil in 19 species of 5 dominant life forms growing in 40 sites across a regional humidity gradient in northern Patagonia. We hypothesized that (1) the shifting of species and life forms across the humidity gradient is related to a shifting in traits of green and senesced leaves with some overlapping among life forms, and (2) leaf traits associated with litter decomposition are related to the potential dynamics of soil-N across the humidity gradient. LMA in green leaves and P-resorption efficiency decreased with humidity while concentrations of lignin and total phenolics in green and senesced leaves and P concentration in senesced leaves increased with humidity. Soil C and N concentrations were positively correlated to humidity. Increasing soil N concentration was related to increasing rates of absolute (per unit soil mass) potential net N-mineralization and microbial-N flush. Relative (per unit N mass) potential net N-mineralization and microbial-N flush decreased with soil N and were inversely correlated to lignin concentration and C/N ratio in senesced leaves. We found overlapping in N concentration and C/N ratio in green and senesced leaves, P concentration in green leaves, and N resorption among species and life forms across the humidity gradient. We concluded that (1) leaf traits related to carbon fixation and the decomposition pathway significantly varied with humidity and were not overlapped between plant life forms from dry and humid habitats, (2) the largest overlapping among species and plant life forms across the gradient occurred in those leaf traits related to N conservation in the plant, and (3) life forms from humid habitats produce more recalcitrant litter that induce lower rates of relative potential net N mineralization (per unit N) than those of dry habitats.     

The effects of understorey dwarf bamboo (Sasa kurilensis) removal on soil fertility in a Betula ermanii forest of northern Japan

We investigated the changes in soil microbial biomass C (MBC), microbial biomass N (MBN) and N mineralization in Sasa kurilensis-present (SP) and S. kurilensis-removed (SR) stands in a Betula ermanii forest. The mean levels of MBC and MBN were significantly higher in the SR stand than in the SP, which may have positively influenced the N-mineralization rate as depicted by a significant positive correlation between these variables and the N-mineralization rate. N immobilization and subsequent N release along with decreased use of available soil N due to S. kurilensis removal may have ensured greater N availability in the SR stand.     

Predominant role of water in regulating soil and microbial respiration and their responses to climate change in a semiarid grassland

Climate change can profoundly impact carbon (C) cycling of terrestrial ecosystems. A field experiment was conducted to examine responses of total soil and microbial respiration, and microbial biomass to experimental warming and increased precipitation in a semiarid temperate steppe in northern China since April 2005. We measured soil respiration twice a month over the growing seasons, soil microbial biomass C (MBC) and N (MBN), microbial respiration (MR) once a year in the middle growing season from 2005 to 2007. The results showed that interannual variations in soil respiration, MR, and microbial biomass were positively related to interannual fluctuations in precipitation. Laboratory incubation with a soil moisture gradient revealed a constraint of the temperature responses of MR by low soil moisture contents. Across the 3 years, experimental warming decreased soil moisture, and consequently caused significant reductions in total and microbial respiration, and microbial biomass, suggesting stronger negatively indirect effects through warming‐induced water stress than the positively direct effects of elevated temperature. Increased evapotranspiration under experimental warming could have reduced soil water availability below a stress threshold, thus leading to suppression of plant growth, root and microbial activities. Increased precipitation significantly stimulated total soil and microbial respiration and all other microbial parameters and the positive precipitation effects increased over time. Our results suggest that soil water availability is more important than temperature in regulating soil and microbial respiratory processes, microbial biomass and their responses to climate change in the semiarid temperate steppe. Experimental warming caused greater reductions in soil respiration than in gross ecosystem productivity (GEP). In contrast, increased precipitation stimulated GEP more than soil respiration. Our observations suggest that climate warming may cause net C losses, whereas increased precipitation may lead to net C gains in the semiarid temperate steppe. Our findings highlight that unless there is concurrent increase in precipitation, the temperate steppe in the arid and semiarid regions of northern China may act as a net C source under climate warming.