Discrete functional pools of soil organic matter in a UK grassland soil are differentially affected by temperature and priming

We show that both temperature and priming act differently on distinct C pools in a temperate grassland soil. We used SOM which was ¹⁴C-labelled in four different ways: by labelling soil with ¹⁴C-glucose, by adding leaf litter from plants pre-labelled with ¹⁴CO₂, and by labelling in situ with ¹⁴CO₂ applied to the ryegrass canopy either 6 or 18 months earlier. Samples of each type of ¹⁴C labelled soil were incubated at either 4, 10, 15, or 20 °C and the exponential loss of ¹⁴CO₂ used to characterise treatment effects. ¹⁴C allocation to microbial fractions was greater, and so overall mineralization by microbes was greater, as temperature rose, but turnover of the microbial labile pool was temperature-insensitive, and the turnover of microbial structural material was reduced as temperature rose. The ability of the microbial population to degrade just one fraction of plant litter was increased greatly by temperature. A pool of SOM with a half-life of about 70 d was degraded faster at higher temperatures. Less tractable but abundant pools of SOM were not accessed more readily at higher temperatures by the microbial population. Priming with glucose or amino-acids only speeded the mineralization of recent SOM (probably from the living microbial biomass), and was not altered by temperature. These results have implications for the impacts of climate change on soil C cycling.     

Rhizosphere priming effect: Its functional relationships with microbial turnover, evapotranspiration, and C–N budgets

Understanding soil organic matter (SOM) decomposition and its interaction with rhizosphere processes is a crucial topic in soil biology and ecology. Using a natural ¹³C tracer method to separately measure SOM-derived CO₂ from root-derived CO₂, this study aims to connect the level of rhizosphere-dependent SOM decomposition with the C and N balance of the whole plant–soil system, and to mechanistically link the rhizosphere priming effect to soil microbial turnover and evapotranspiration. Results indicated that the magnitude of the rhizosphere priming effect on SOM decomposition varied widely, from zero to more than 380% of the unplanted control, and was largely influenced by plant species and phenology. Balancing the extra soil C loss from the strong rhizosphere priming effect in the planted treatments with C inputs from rhizodeposits and root biomass, the whole plant–soil system remained with a net carbon gain at the end of the experiment. The increased soil microbial biomass turnover rate and the enhanced evapotranspiration rate in the planted treatments had clear positive relationships with the level of the rhizosphere priming effect. The rhizosphere enhancement of soil carbon mineralization in the planted treatments did not result in a proportional increase in net N mineralization, suggesting a possible de-coupling of C cycling with N cycling in the rhizosphere.     

Stoichiometric constraints on the microbial processing of carbon with soil depth along a riparian hillslope

Soil organic matter (SOM) content is a key indicator of riparian soil functioning and in the provision of ecosystem services such as water retention, flood alleviation, pollutant attenuation and carbon (C) sequestration for climate change mitigation. Here, we studied the importance of microbial biomass and nutrient availability in regulating SOM turnover rates. C stabilisation in soil is expected to vary both vertically, down the soil profile and laterally across the riparian zone. In this study, we evaluated the influence of five factors on C mineralisation (C_min): (i) substrate quantity, (ii) substrate quality, (iii) nutrient (C, N and P) stoichiometry, (iv) soil microbial activity with proximity to the river (2 to 75 m) and (v) as a function of soil depth (0–3 m). Substrate quality, quantity and nutrient stoichiometry were evaluated using high and low molecular weight ¹⁴C-labelled dissolved organic (DOC) along with different nutrient additions. Differences in soil microbial activity with proximity to the river and soil depth were assessed by comparing initial (immediate) C_min rates and cumulative C mineralised at the end of the incubation period. Overall, microbial biomass C (MBC), organic matter (OM) and soil moisture content (MC) proved to be the major factors controlling rates of C_min at depth. Differences in the immediate and medium-term response (42 days) of C_min suggested that microbial growth increased and carbon use efficiency (CUE) decreased down the soil profile. Inorganic N and/or P availability had little or no effect on C_min suggesting that microbial community growth and activity is predominantly C limited. Similarly, proximity to the watercourse also had relatively little effect on C_min. This work challenges current theories suggesting that areas adjacent to watercourse process C differently from upslope areas. In contrast, our results suggest that substrate quality and microbial biomass are more important in regulating C processing rates rather than proximity to a river.     

Biochar differentially affects the cycling and partitioning of low molecular weight carbon in contrasting soils

Biochar application to soils has received much attention due to the potential for dual benefits of improved fertility and carbon (C) sequestration. Whilst its effect on C and nitrogen (N) cycling in soils has been investigated previously, this has usually either focussed on the bulk soil organic matter, or a single compound such as glucose. Five low molecular weight dissolved organic C (LMWDOC) substrates (three sugars, one amino acid, one organic acid) were selected for a ¹⁴C-CLPP experiment from which turnover rate (t_1/2) and immediate carbon use efficiency (CUE) of the substrate were estimated. We demonstrated that whilst soil type had the greatest effect on soil microbial function, the addition of biochar also influenced microbial turnover and CUE of the substrates, most notably in the lowest fertility soil. We also identified that the relationship between turnover and CUE of the five substrates differed substantially, and the effect of biochar and soil type was more pronounced in the amino acid than the organic acid. This effect tended to be greatest in biochars produced at 450 °C, and less pronounced with the addition of biochars produced at 550 °C, though these trends were not consistent for all compounds in all soils tested. We conclude biochars and soils interact to manifest non-systematic differences in turnover rates of LMWDOCs, and thus a variety of mechanisms are likely responsible for this observation. As these compounds are most commonly found in the rhizosphere and can contribute a significant portion of photosynthetically-fixed C, and plant roots have been observed to grow preferentially around biochar particles, it is apparent that biochar may significantly affect the flow of LMWDOC through the microbial community in soils.     

Microbial response to the addition of glucose in low-fertility soils

Addition of soluble organic substrates to soil has been shown to either increase or restrict the rate of microbial CO₂–C evolution. This has been attributed to a priming effect resulting from accelerated or decreased turnover of the soil organic matter including the soil microflora. We investigated microbial responses to small glucose-C additions (10–50 μg C g¹ soil) in arable soils either amended or not with cellulose. An immediate CO₂–C release between 0 and 69 h (equivalent to 59% of glucose-C applied) was measured. However, only half of the CO₂–C respired could be attributed to the utilisation of glucose-C substrate, based on the percentage of ¹⁴C–CO₂ evolved after the addition of a ¹⁴C-labelled glucose tracer. Thus, although no evidence of an immediate release of ‘extra’ C above the rate applied as glucose-C was observed, the pattern of decomposition for ¹⁴C-glucose suggested utilisation of an alternate C source. Based on this, a positive priming effect (1.5 to 4.3 times the amount CO₂–C evolved that was attributed to glucose-C decomposition) was observed for at least 170 h in non-cellulose-amended soil and 612 h in cellulose-amended soil. Two further phases of microbial activity in cellulose-amended soils were attributed to either activation of different microbial populations or end-product inhibition of cellulase activity after glucose addition. During these subsequent phases, a negative priming effect of between 0.1 and 1.5 times was observed. Findings indicate that the response of the microbial community to small additions of soluble organic C substrate is not consistent and support the premise that microbial response varies in a yet to be predicted manner between soil type and ecosystems. We hypothesise that this is due to differences in the microbial community structure activated by the addition of organic C and the timing of soluble organic substrate addition with respect to the current dissolved organic C status of the soil.     

Microbial community abundance and structure are determinants of soil organic matter mineralisation in the presence of labile carbon

Altered rates of native soil organic matter (SOM) mineralisation in the presence of labile C substrate (‘priming’), is increasingly recognised as central to the coupling of plant and soil-biological productivity and potentially as a key process mediating the C-balance of soils. However, the mechanisms and controls of SOM-priming are not well understood. In this study we manipulated microbial biomass size and composition (chloroform fumigation) and mineral nutrient availability to investigate controls of SOM-priming. Effects of applied substrate (¹³C-glucose) on mineralisation of native SOM were quantified by isotopic partitioning of soil respiration. In addition, the respective contributions of SOM-C and substrate-derived C to microbial biomass carbon (MBC) were quantified to account for pool-substitution effects (‘apparent priming’). Phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) profiles of the soils were determined to establish treatment effects on microbial community structure, while the ¹³C-enrichment of PLFA biomarkers was used to establish pathways of substrate-derived C-flux through the microbial communities. The results indicated that glucose additions increased SOM-mineralisation in all treatments (positive priming). The magnitude of priming was reduced in fumigated soils, concurrent with reduced substrate-derived C-flux through putative SOM-mineralising organisms (fungi and actinomycetes). Nutrient additions reduced the magnitude of positive priming in non-fumigated soils, but did not affect the distribution of substrate-derived C in microbial communities. The results support the view that microbial community composition is a determinant of SOM-mineralisation, with evidence that utilisation of labile substrate by fungal and actinomycete (but not Gram-negative) populations promotes positive SOM-priming.     

Rhizodeposition: Its contribution to microbial growth and carbon and nitrogen turnover within the rhizosphere

A greenhouse rhizobox experiment was carried out to investigate the fate and turnover of ¹³C‐ and ¹⁵N‐labeled rhizodeposits within a rhizosphere gradient from 0–8 mm distance to the roots of wheat. Rhizosphere soil layers from 0–1, 1–2, 2–3, 3–4, 4–6, and 6–8 mm distance to separated roots were investigated in an incubation experiment (42 d, 15°C) for changes in total C and N and that derived from rhizodeposition in total soil, in soil microbial biomass, and in the 0.05 M K₂SO₄–extractable soil fraction. CO₂‐C respiration in total and that derived from rhizodeposition were measured from the incubated rhizosphere soil samples. Rhizodeposition C was detected in rhizosphere soil up to 4–6 mm distance from the separated roots. Rhizodeposition N was only detected in the rhizosphere soils up to 3–4 mm distance from the roots. Microbial biomass C and N was increased with increasing proximity to the separated roots. Beside ¹³C and ¹⁵N derived from rhizodeposits, unlabeled soil C and N (native SOM) were incorporated into the growing microbial biomass towards the roots, indicating a distinct acceleration of soil organic matter (SOM) decomposition and N immobilization into the growing microbial biomass, even under the competition of plant growth. During the soil incubation, microbial biomass C and N decreased in all samples. Any decrease in microbial biomass C and N in the incubated rhizosphere soil layers is attributed mainly to a decrease of unlabeled (native) C and N, whereas the main portion of previously incorporated rhizodeposition C and N during the plant growth period remained immobilized in the microbial biomass during the incubation. Mineralization of native SOM C and N was enhanced within the entire investigated rhizosphere gradient. The results indicate complex interactions between substrate input derived from rhizodeposition, microbial growth, and accelerated C and N turnover, including the decomposition of native SOM (i.e., rhizosphere priming effects) at a high spatial resolution from the roots.     

Short-term effects of forest recovery on soil carbon and nutrient availability in an experimental chestnut stand

Soil organic matter (SOM) pools and soil available calcium (Ca_exch) were monitored during a 4-year period in an experimental chestnut stand treated for the restoration of timber production. In 2004 the stand was cut and stumps were grafted. Before the forestry operations, the biocycling process seemed to contrast soil nutrient loss, returning Ca to mineral soil through plant activity. Therefore, we hypothesized that the regrowing vegetation after forestry operations would supply Ca to the soil surface and maintain a certain soil fertility level. In fact, from 2005, a progressive recovery of 460 mg Ca_exch kg^?1 year^?1 at the soil surface was found, corresponding to about 5 % of the Ca of the leaf litter (8,605 mg Ca kg^?1, chestnut leaves sampled in 2007). However, the Ca_exch seemed to depend on the humified C (r ²?=?0.858; p?<?0.01). At the soil surface, the humified C decreased. Therefore, other processes involving SOM dynamics may be taken into account. After the first year, the scarce presence of litter layer at the soil surface could have exacerbated soil erosion and reduction of SOM content, as shown by the change in horizon thickness and C amount. In later years a litterfall layer was present due to the regrowing vegetation and soil erosion was reduced, but SOM turnover did not change. In parallel the amount of microbial biomass C and soil respiration increased. Because the addition of new C source from regrowing vegetation can stimulate soil microbial activity, we hypothesized that the occurrence of a priming effect in our soil could further affect soil C and nutrient availability in later years management change.     

Priming effect of the addition of maize to a Japanese volcanic ash soil and its temperature sensitivity: a short-term incubation study

ABSTRACT

The response of soil organic matter (SOM) to global warming is a crucial subject. However, the temperature sensitivity of SOM turnover remains largely uncertain. Changes in the mineralization of native SOM, i.e., priming effect (PE) may strongly affect the temperature sensitivity of SOM turnover in the presence of global warming. We investigated the direction and magnitude of the PE in a Japanese volcanic ash soil at different temperatures (15°C, 25°C, and 35°C) using a natural ¹³C tracer (C4-plant, maize leaf) in a short-term (25 days) incubation study. In addition, we evaluated the temperature sensitivity expressed as Q₁₀ value with and without the addition of maize to the soil and their relations to PE. We found that positive PE occurred at each temperature condition and tended to increase with decreased temperature, and these PE results were consistent with the microbial biomass at the end of the incubation period. CO₂ emission from control soil (without maize) increased with increasing temperature (Q₁₀ = 2.6), but CO₂ emission from the soil with added maize did not significantly change with increasing temperature (Q₁₀ = 1.0). This was caused by the suppression of CO₂ emission from the soil with increasing temperature (Q₁₀ = 0.9). On the other hand, soil-originated CO₂ emission clearly increased with increasing temperature (Q₁₀ = 3.4) when Q₁₀ values were calculated on the assumption that the temperature and substrate supply increase at the same time (from 25°C). These results suggest that not only the temperature increase but also the labile carbon supply may be important for the temperature sensitivity of Japanese volcanic ash soil.     

Biological degradation of pyrogenic organic matter in temperate forest soils

Pyrogenic organic matter (PyOM), derived from the incomplete combustion of plant biomass and fossil fuels, has been considered one of the most stable pools of soil organic matter (SOM) and a potentially important terrestrial sink for atmospheric CO₂. Recent evidence suggests that PyOM may degrade faster in soil than previously thought, and can affect native SOM turnover rates. We conducted a six-month laboratory incubation study to better understand the processes controlling the degradation of PyOM in soils using dual-enriched (¹³C/¹⁵N) PyOM and its precursor wood (Pinus ponderosa). We examined the effects of soil type and inorganic N addition on PyOM and wood C and N mineralization rates, microbial C utilization patterns, and native SOM turnover rates. PyOM charred at 450 °C or its precursor pine wood was incubated in two temperate forest subsoils with contrasting short range order (SRO) clay mineralogy (granite versus andesite parent material). Duplicates of experimental treatments with and without PyOM added were sterilized and abiotic C mineralization was quantified. In a second incubation, PyOM or wood was incubated in granitic soil with and without added NH₄NO₃ (20 kg N ha⁻¹). The fate of ¹³C/¹⁵N-enriched PyOM and wood was followed as soil-respired ¹³CO₂ and total extractable inorganic ¹⁵N. The uptake of ¹³C from PyOM and wood by soil microbial community groups was quantified using ¹³C-phospholipids fatty acids (PLFA). We found that (1) The mean residence time (MRT) of PyOM-C was on a centennial time scale (390–600 yr) in both soil types; (2) PyOM-C mineralization was mainly biologically mediated; (3) Fungi more actively utilized wood-C than PyOM-C, which was utilized by all bacteria groups, especially gram (+) bacteria in the andesite (AN) soil; (4) PyOM-N mineralization was 2 times greater in granite (GR) than in AN soils; (5) PyOM additions did not affect native soil C or N mineralization rates, microbial biomass, or PLFA-defined microbial community composition in either soil; (6) The addition of N to GR soil had no effect on the MRT of C from PyOM, wood, or native SOM. The centennial scale MRT for PyOM-C was 32 times slower than that for the precursor pine wood-C or native soil C, which is faster than the MRT used in ecosystem models. Our results show that PyOM-C is readily utilized by all heterotrophic microbial groups, and PyOM-C and -N may be more dynamic in soils than previously thought.     

Using metabolic tracer techniques to assess the impact of tillage and straw management on microbial carbon use efficiency in soil

Tillage practices and straw management can affect soil microbial activities with consequences for soil organic carbon (C) dynamics. Microorganisms metabolize soil organic C and in doing so gain energy and building blocks for biosynthesis, and release CO₂ to the atmosphere. Insight into the response of microbial metabolic processes and C use efficiency (CUE; microbial C produced per substrate C utilized) to management practices may therefore help to predict long term changes in soil C stocks. In this study, we assessed the effects of reduced (RT) and conventional tillage (CT) on the microbial central C metabolic network, using soil samples from a 12-year-old field experiment in an Irish winter wheat cropping system. Straw was removed from half of the RT and CT plots after harvest or incorporated into the soil in the other half, resulting in four treatment combinations. We added 1-¹³C and 2,3-¹³C pyruvate and 1-¹³C and U-¹³C glucose as metabolic tracer isotopomers to composite soil samples taken at two depths (0–15 cm and 15–30 cm) from each of the treatments and used the rate of position-specific respired ¹³CO₂ to parameterize a metabolic model. Model outcomes were then used to calculate CUE of the microbial community. Whereas the composite samples differed in CUE, the changes were small, with values ranging between 0.757 and 0.783 across treatments and soil depth. Increases in CUE were associated with a reduced tricarboxylic acid cycle and reductive pentose phosphate pathway activity and increased consumption of metabolic intermediates for biosynthesis. Our results suggest that RT and straw incorporation do not substantially affect CUE.     

Changes in variability of soil moisture alter microbial community C and N resource use

Grassland ecosystems contain ∼12% of global soil organic carbon (C) stocks and are located in regions where global climate change will likely alter the timing and size of precipitation events, increasing soil moisture variability. In response to increased soil moisture variability and other forms of stress, microorganisms can induce ecosystem-scale alterations in C and N cycling processes through alterations in their function. We explored the influence of physiological stress on microbial communities by manipulating moisture variability in soils from four grassland sites in the Great Plains, representing a precipitation gradient of 485-1003 mm y⁻¹. Keeping water totals constant, we manipulated the frequency and size of water additions and dry down periods in these soils by applying water in two different, two-week long wetting-drying cycles in a 72-day laboratory incubation. To assess the effects of the treatments on microbial community function, we measured C mineralization, N dynamics, extracellular enzyme activities (EEA) and a proxy for substrate use efficiency. In soils from all four sites undergoing a long interval (LI) treatment for which added water was applied once at the beginning of each two-week cycle, 1.4-2.0 times more C was mineralized compared to soils undergoing a short interval (SI) treatment, for which four wetting events were evenly distributed over each two-week cycle. A proxy for carbon use efficiency (CUE) suggests declines in this parameter with the greater soil moisture stress imposed in LI soils from all four different native soil moisture regimes. A decline in CUE in LI soils may have been related to an increased effort by microbes to obtain N-rich organic substrates for use as protection against osmotic shock, consistent with EEA data. These results contrast with similar in situ studies of response to increased soil moisture variability and may indicate divergent autotrophic vs. heterotrophic responses to increased moisture variability. Increases in microbial N demand and decreases in microbial CUE with increased moisture variability observed in this study, regardless of the soils’ site of origin, imply that these systems may experience enhanced heterotrophic CO₂ release and declines in plant-available N with climate change. This has particularly important implications for C budgets in these grasslands when coupled with the declines in net primary productivity reported in other studies as a result of increases in precipitation variability across the region.     

Influence of organic by-products and nitrogen source on chemical and microbiological status of an agricultural soil

We assessed the influence of the addition of four municipal or agricultural by-products (cotton gin waste, ground newsprint, woodchips, or yard trimmings), combined with two sources of nitrogen (N), [ammonium nitrate (NH₄NO₃) or poultry litter] as carbon (C) sources on active bacterial, active fungal and total microbial biomass, cellulose decomposition, potential net mineralization of soil C and N and soil nutrient status in agricultural soils. Cotton gin waste as a C source promoted the highest potential net N mineralization and N turnover. Municipal or agricultural by-products as C sources had no affect on active bacterial, active fungal or total microbial biomass, C turnover, or the ratio of net C:N mineralized. Organic by-products and N additions to soil did not consistently affect C turnover rates, active bacterial, active fungal or total microbial biomass. After 3, 6 or 9 weeks of laboratory incubation, soil amended with organic by-products plus poultry litter resulted in higher cellulose degradation rates than soil amended with organic by-products plus NH₄NO₃. Cellulose degradation was highest when soil was amended with newsprint plus poultry litter. When soil was amended with organic by-products plus NH₄NO₃, cellulose degradation did not differ from soil amended with only poultry litter or unamended soil. Soil amended with organic by-products had higher concentrations of soil C than soil amended with only poultry litter or unamended soil. Soil amended with organic by-products plus N as poultry litter generally, but not always, had higher extractable P, K, Ca, and Mg concentrations than soil amended with poultry litter or unamende soil. Agricultural soil amended with organic by-products and N had higher extractable N, P, K, Ca and Mg than unamended soil. Since cotton gin waste plus poultry litter resulted in higher cellulose degradation and net N mineralization, its use may result in faster increase in soil nutrient status than the other organic by-products and N sources that were tested. Received: 15 May 1996     

Microbial decomposition of soil organic matter is mediated by quality and quantity of crop residues: mechanisms and thresholds

Crop residue quality and quantity have contrasting effects on soil organic matter (SOM) decomposition, but the mechanisms explaining such priming effect (PE) are still elusive. To reveal the role of residue quality and quantity in SOM priming, we applied two rates (5.4–10.8 g kg^?1) of ¹³C-labeled wheat residues (separately: leaves, stems, roots) to soil and incubated for 120 days. To distinguish PE mechanisms, labeled C was traced in CO₂ efflux and in microbial biomass and enzyme activities (involved in C, N, and P cycles) were measured during the incubation period. Regardless of residue type, PE intensity declined with increasing C additions. Roots were least mineralized but caused up to 60% higher PE compared to leaves or stems. During intensive residue mineralization (first 2–3 weeks), the low or negative PE resulted from pool substitution. Thereafter (15–60 days), a large decline in microbial biomass along with increased enzyme activity suggested that microbial necromass served as SOM primer. Finally, incorporation of SOM-derived C into remaining microbial biomass corresponded to increased enzyme activity, which is indicative of SOM cometabolism. Both PE and enzyme activities were primarily correlated with residue-metabolizing soil microorganisms. A unifying model demonstrated that PE was a function of residue mineralization, with thresholds for strong PE increase of up to 20% root, 44% stem, and 51% leaf mineralization. Thus, root mineralization has the lowest threshold for a strong PE increase. Our study emphasizes the role of residue-feeding microorganisms as active players in the PE, which are mediated by quality and quantity of crop residue additions.     

Substrate quality and the temperature sensitivity of soil organic matter decomposition

Determining the relative temperature sensitivities of the decomposition of the different soil organic matter (SOM) pools is critical for predicting the long-term impacts of climate change on soil carbon (C) storage. Although kinetic theory suggests that the temperature sensitivity of SOM decomposition should increase with substrate recalcitrance, there remains little empirical evidence to support this hypothesis. In the study presented here, sub-samples from a single bulk soil sample were frozen and sequentially defrosted to produce samples of the same soil that had been incubated for different lengths of time, up to a maximum of 124 days. These samples were then placed into an incubation system which allowed CO₂ production to be monitored constantly and the response of soil respiration to short-term temperature manipulations to be investigated. The temperature sensitivity of soil CO₂ production increased significantly with incubation time suggesting that, as the most labile SOM pool was depleted the temperature sensitivity of SOM decomposition increased. This study is therefore one of the first to provide empirical support for kinetic theory. Further, using a modelling approach, we demonstrate that it is the temperature sensitivity of the decomposition of the more recalcitrant SOM pools that will determine long-term soil-C losses. Therefore, the magnitude of the positive feedback to global warming may have been underestimated in previous modelling studies.     

微生物残体在土壤中的积累转化过程与稳定机理研究进展

近年来,关于微生物残体在土壤有机质积累和转化过程中的作用越来越受到研究者的关注。土壤有机质中微生物残体的数量和组成比例变化与土壤有机质的形成、容量大小及周转特征密切相关。对目前土壤微生物残体研究方面的相关进展进行了梳理和总结,在明确土壤微生物残体的来源及其重要性的基础上,介绍了土壤微生物残体定量和转化的表征方法,阐述了微生物残体在土壤有机质积累转化过程中的作用及其主要影响因素,探讨了微生物残体在土壤中的稳定机制,提出了微生物通过同化代谢作用驱动细胞残体积累进而促进土壤有机质积累和稳定过程中亟待探讨的科学问题。期望为进一步探究陆地生态系统土壤有机质周转与微生物过程的相互作用机理提供一定的思考。     

Direct effect of fertilization on microbial carbon transformation in grassland soils in dependence on the substrate quality

Response of microbial metabolism (growth, substrate utilization, energetic metabolism) to fertilization by N and P and resulting changes in soil‐organic‐matter (SOM) decomposition (priming effect) were studied in grassland soils with relatively high organic‐matter content. Treatments with and without glucose addition were studied to simulate difference between rhizosphere and bulk soil. Our expectation was that fertilization would decrease soil respiration in both treatments due to an increased efficiency of microbial metabolism. At first, fertilization activated microbial metabolism in both treatments. In glucose‐nonamended soils, this was connected with a short‐term apparent priming effect but if glucose was available, the higher energetic demand was covered by its mineralization in preference against SOM, causing significant SOM savings as compared to unfertilized soils. After a relatively short period of 1–3 d, however, the phase of deprived microbial metabolism occurred in both treatments, which was characterized by lower soil respiration in fertilized than in unfertilized soils. Fertilization further decreased net microbial growth following glucose addition, shortened turnover time of microbial biomass and changed the partitioning of assimilated glucose within microbial biomass (decreased accumulation of storage compounds and increased the proportion of mineralized glucose). As a result, fertilization reduced soil respiration mainly due to a deprivation of microbial metabolism. The rate and range of microbial response to fertilization and also the amount of saved soil C were larger in the soil with higher SOM content, likely driven by the higher content of microbial biomass.     

Microbial physiology and necromass regulate agricultural soil carbon accumulation

Strategies for mitigating soil organic carbon (SOC) losses in intensively managed agricultural systems typically draw from traditional concepts of soil organic matter formation, and thus emphasize increasing C inputs, especially from slowly decomposing crop residues, and reducing soil disturbance. However these approaches are often ineffective and do not adequately reflect current views of SOC cycling, which stress the important contributions of microbial biomass (MB) inputs to SOC. We examined microbial physiology as an alternate mechanism of SOC accumulation under organic (ORG) compared to conventional (CT) agricultural management practices, where ORG is accumulating C despite fewer total C inputs and greater soil tillage. We hypothesized that microbial communities in ORG have higher growth rates (MGR) and C use efficiencies (CUE) and that this relates to greater MB production and ultimately higher retention of new C inputs. We show that ORG had 50% higher CUE (±8 se) and 56% higher MGR (±22 se) relative to CT (p < 0.05). From in situ ¹³C substrate additions, we show that higher CUE and MGR are associated with greater rates and amounts of ¹³C glucose and phenol assimilation into MBC and mineral-associated SOC pools in ORG up to 6 mo after field substrate additions (p < 0.05). ORG soils were also enriched in proteins and lipids and had lower abundances of aromatic compounds and plant lipids (p < 0.05). These results illustrate a new mechanism for SOC accumulation under reduced C inputs and intensive soil disturbance and demonstrate that agricultural systems that facilitate the transformation of plant C into MB may be an effective, often overlooked strategy for building SOC in agricultural soils.     

Urea fertilisation affected soil organic matter dynamics and microbial community structure in pasture soils of Southern Ecuador

In the mountain rainforest region of the South Ecuadorian Andes natural forests have often been converted to pastures by slash-and-burn practice. With advanced pasture age the pasture grasses are increasingly replaced by the tropical bracken leading to the abandonment of the sites. To improve pasture productivity a fertilisation experiment with urea was established. The effects of urea on soil organic matter (SOM) mineralisation and microbial community structure in top soil (0–5 cm depth) of an active and abandoned pasture site have been investigated in laboratory incubation experiments. Either ¹⁴C- or ¹⁵N-labelled urea (74 mg urea-N kg⁻¹ dw soil) was added to track the fate of ¹⁴C into CO₂ or microbial biomass and that of ¹⁵N into the KCl-extractable NH₄-N or NO₃-N or microbial biomass pool. The soil microbial community structure was assessed using phospholipid fatty acid analysis (PLFA). In a second experiment two levels of ¹⁴C-labelled urea (74 and 110 mg urea-N kg⁻¹ dw soil) were added to soil from 5 to 10 cm depth of the respective sites. Urea fertilisation accelerated the mineralisation of SOC directly after addition up to 17% compared to the non-fertilised control after 14 days of incubation. The larger the amount of N potentially available per unit of microbial biomass N the larger was the positive priming effect. Since in average 80% of the urea-C had been mineralised already 1 day after amendment, the priming effect was strong enough to cause a net loss of soil C. Although the structure of the microbial community was significantly different between sites, urea fertilisation induced the same alteration in microbial community composition: towards a relative lower abundance of PLFA marker characteristic of Gram-positive bacteria and a higher one of those typical of Gram-negative bacteria and fungi. This change was positively correlated with the increase in NH₄, NO₃ and DON availability. In addition to the activation of different microbial groups the abolishment of energy limitation of the microbes seemed to be an important mechanism for the enhanced mineralisation of SOM.     

Contribution of exudates,arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and litter depositions to the rhizosphere priming effect induced by grassland species

The presence of plants induces strong accelerations in soil organic matter (SOM) mineralization by stimulating soil microbial activity – a phenomenon known as the rhizosphere priming effect (RPE). The RPE could be induced by several mechanisms including root exudates, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and root litter. However the contribution of each of these to rhizosphere priming is unknown due to the complexity involved in studying rhizospheric processes. In order to determine the role of each of these mechanisms, we incubated soils enclosed in nylon meshes that were permeable to exudates, or exudates & AMF or exudates, AMF and roots under three grassland plant species grown on sand. Plants were continuously labeled with ¹³C depleted CO₂ that allowed distinguishing plant-derived CO₂ from soil-derived CO₂. We show that root exudation was the main way by which plants induced RPE (58–96% of total RPE) followed by root litter. AMF did not contribute to rhizosphere priming under the two species that were significantly colonized by them i.e. Poa trivialis and Trifolium repens. Root exudates and root litter differed with respect to their mechanism of inducing RPE. Exudates induced RPE without increasing microbial biomass whereas root litter increased microbial biomass and raised the RPE mediating saprophytic fungi. The RPE efficiency (RPE/unit plant-C assimilated into microbes) was 3–7 times higher for exudates than for root litter. This efficiency of exudates is explained by a microbial allocation of fresh carbon to mineralization activity rather than to growth. These results suggest that root exudation is the main way by which plants stimulated mineralization of soil organic matter. Moreover, the plants through their exudates not only provide energy to soil microorganisms but also seem to control the way the energy is used in order to maximize soil organic matter mineralization and drive their own nutrient supply.