褐煤腐殖酸对不同土壤上小麦生长的影响

Humic acid(HA),a fairly stable product of decomposed organic matter that consequently accumulates in ecological systems,enhances plant growth by chelating unavailable nutrients and buffering pH.We examined the effect of HA derived from lignite on growth and macronutrient uptake of wheat(Triticum aestivum L.) grown in earthen pots under greenhouse conditions.The soils used in the pot experiment were a calcareous Haplustalf and a non-calcareous Haplustalf collected from Raisalpur and Guliana,respectively,in Punjab Province,Pakistan.The experiment consisted of four treatments with HA levels of 0(control without HA),30,60,and 90 mg kg -1 soil designated as HA 0,HA 1,HA 2,and HA 3,respectively.In the treatment without HA(HA 0),nitrogen(N),phosphorus(P),and potassium(K) were applied at 200,100,and 125 mg kg -1 soil,respectively.Significant differences among HA levels were recorded for wheat growth(plant height and shoot weight) and N uptake.On an average of both soils,the largest increases in plant height and shoot fresh and dry weights were found with HA 2(60 mg kg -1 soil),being 10%,25%,and 18%,respectively,as compared to the control without HA(HA 0).Both soils responded positively towards HA application.The wheat growth and N uptake in the non-calcareous soil were higher than those of the calcareous soil.The HA application significantly improved K concentration of the non-calcareous soil and P and NO 3-N of the calcareous soil.The highest rate of HA(90 mg kg -1 soil) had a negative effect on growth and nutrient uptake of wheat as well as nutrient accumulation in soil,whereas the medium dose of HA(60 mg kg -1 soil) was more efficient in promoting wheat growth.     

作物残茬翻埋对土壤性质的影响

Chemical transformation, nutrient release and changes in the energy content of decomposing rape, sunflower and soybean residues confined in buried fiberglass bags were assessed in a laboratory study during a 340-day incubation period. The organic C decreased by about 70% while total N, after initial decay, remained almost constant for each type of residue. The NH₄⁺-N was progressively oxidized and, consequently, the NO₃^--N increased. The C/N ratio narrowed with loss of C. Hemicellulose, cellulose and lignin decreased with different trends for each crop residue. The energy content, was reduced to about 25% in rape, 30% in sunflower and 20% in soybean residues. Total P, K, Ca and Mg contents decreased for each type of residue. The results suggest that the three residues could improve the nutrient pool of the soil.     

不同氧化还原条件下土壤性质对非石灰性土壤中锌溶解动力学的影响

Zinc(Zn) deficiency in paddy soils is often a problem for rice production.Flooding can decrease metal availability in some noncalcareous soils through different mechanisms associated with soil redox status.Laboratory experiments were performed in order to better understand the processes that governed the dynamics of Zn in non-calcareous paddy soils at varying redox potentials(Eh).Airdried non-calcareous soil samples collected from four different paddy field sites in the Philippines were submerged and incubated in a reaction cell with continuous stirring and nitrogen purging for 4 weeks,and then purged with compressed air for another week to reoxidize the system.The Eh of the four soils started at 120 to 300 mV,decreased to —220 to —300 mV after 100 to 250 h of reduction,and was maintained at this low plateau for about 2 weeks before increasing again upon reoxidation.Zinc solubility showed contrasting patterns in the four soils,with two of the soils showing a decrease in soluble Zn as the Eh became low,probably due to zinc sulfide(ZnS) precipitation.In contrast,the other two soils showed that Zn solubility was maintained during the reduced phase which could be due to the competition with iron(Fe) for precipitation with sulfide.Differences in the relative amounts of S,Fe,and manganese(Mn) oxides in the four soils apparently influenced the pattern of Zn solubility after flooding.     

长期种植苜蓿对中国半干旱地区黄土钾含量和粘土矿物的影响

Alfalfa cropping has been considered an efficient method of increasing soil fertility.Usually nitrogen increase in root nodules is considered to be the major beneficial effect.A 21-year time series (five sampling periods) of alfalfa cultivation plots on a loess soil,initially containing illite and chlorite,in Lanzhou of northwestern China was selected to investigate the relationships among alfalfa cropping,soil potassium (K) content and soil clay minerals.The results indicated that soil K significantly accumulated after cropping,with a peak value at about 15 years,and decreased afterwards.The accumulated K was associated with the K increase in the well-crystallized illite,which was not extracted by the traditional laboratory K extraction methods in assessing bioavailability.The steep decline in soil K content after 15-year cropping was in accord with the observed fertility loss in the alfalfa soil.Plant biomass productivity peaked at near 9 years of culture,whereas soil K and clay minerals continued to increase until cropping for 15 years.This suggested that K increased in the topsoil came from the deep root zone.Thus alfalfa continued to store K in clays even after peak production occurred.Nitrogen did not follow these trends,showing a general decline compared with the native prairie soils that had not been cropped.Therefore,the traditional alfalfa cropping can increase K content in the topsoil.     

传统耕作和覆盖作物管理方式下半干旱区葡萄园表层土壤性质影响降水后碳氧化物排放

In semiarid regions of the Mediterranean basin, a rainfall event can induce a respiratory pulse that releases a large amount of soil carbon dioxide(CO_2) into the atmosphere; this pulse can significantly contribute to the annual ecosystem carbon(C) balance.The impacts of conventional tillage and two different cover crops, resident vegetation and Bromus catharticus L., on soil CO_2 efflux were evaluated in a Vitis vinifera L. vineyard in La Rioja, Spain. Soil CO_2 efflux, gravimetric water content, and temperature were monitored at a depth of 0–5 cm after rainfall precipitation events approximately every 10 d in the period from May 17 to July 27, 2012,during which the cover crops had withered. Additionally, on June 10, 2012, soil organic C, microbial biomass C, and β-glucosidase activity were determined at soil depths of 0–2.5, 2.5–5, 5–15, and 15–25 cm. The results show that pulses of soil CO_2 were related to the increase in soil water content following precipitation events. Compared to the conventional tillage treatment, both cover crop treatments had higher soil CO_2 efflux after precipitation events. Both cover crop treatments had higher soil organic C, microbial biomass C, and β-glucosidase activity at the soil surface(0–2.5 cm) than the conventional tillage treatment. Each pulse of CO_2 was related to the surface soil properties. Thus, this study suggests that the enhancement of soil organic C and microbiological properties at the soil surface under cover crops may increase soil CO_2 efflux relative to conventional tillage immediately after precipitation events during the dry season.     

清水灌溉在消除土壤多环芳烃中的作用及对土壤微生物特征的影响: 以沈抚灌区为例

To evaluate the effect of groundwater irrigation on the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs) pollution abatement and soil microbial characteristics,a case study was performed in the Shenfu irrigation area of Shenyang,Northeast China,where the irrigation with petroleum wastewater had lasted for more than fifty years,and then groundwater irrigation instead of wastewater irrigation was applied due to the gradually serious PAHs pollution in soil.Soil chemical properties,including PAHs and nutrients contents,and soil microbial characteristics,including microbial biomass carbon,substrateinduced respiration,microbial quotient(qM),metabolic quotient(qCO2),dehydrogenase(DH),polyphenol oxidase(PO),urease(UR) and cellulase(CE) in surface and subsurface were determined.Total organic C,total N,total P,and available K were significantly different between the sites studied.The PAHs concentrations ranged from 610.9 to 6362.8 μg kg-1 in the surface layers(0-20 cm) and from 404.6 to 4318.5 μg kg-1 in the subsurface layers(20-40 cm).From the principal component analysis,the first principal component was primarily weighed by total PAHs,total organic C,total N,total P and available K,and it was the main factor that influencing the soil microbial characteristics.Among the tested microbial characteristics,DH,PO,UR,CE,qM and qCO2 were more sensitive to the PAHs stress than the others,thus they could serve as useful ecological assessment indicators for soil PAHs pollution.     

利用方式和土壤肥力对土壤团聚体和养分的影响

The size distribution of water-stable aggregates and the variability of organic C, N and P contents over aggregate size fractions were studied for orchard, upland, paddy, and grassland soils with high, medium, and low fertility levels. The results showed that > 5 mm aggregates in the cultivated upland and paddy soils were 44.0% and 32.0%, respectively, less than those in the un-tilled orchard soil. Organic C and soil N in different size aggregate fractions in orchard soil with high fertility were significantly higher than those of other land uses. However, the contents of soil P in different size aggregates were significantly greater in the paddy soil as compared to the other land uses. Soil organic C, N and P contents were higher in larger aggregates than those in smaller ones. The amount of water-stable aggregates was positively correlated to their contribution to soil organic C, N and P. For orchard and grassland soils, the > 5 mm aggregates made the greatest contribution to soil nutrients, while for upland soil, the 0.25-0.053 mm aggregates contributed the most to soil nutrients. Therefore, the land use with minimum disturbance was beneficial for the formation of a better soil structure. The dominant soil aggregates in different land use types determined the distribution of soil nutrients. Utilization efficiency of soil P could be improved by converting other land uses to the paddy soil.     

添加调节N和P浓度后的植物残体对土壤呼吸作用、微生物量和养分有效性的影响

Microbial activity and nutrient release are known to be influenced by organic matter properties,but it is difficult to separate the effect of C/N ratio from that of C/P ratio because in most plant residues both ratios are either high or low.An incubation experimeut was conducted to investigate the effects of reducing the C/N and C/P ratios of slowly decomposable plant residues (young eucalyptus leaves,mature wheat straw,and sawdust) to those of rapidly decomposable residues (young kikuyu shoots) on soil respiration,microbial biomass,and N and P availability.The C/N and C/P ratios of the former were adjusted to 15 and 89,respectively,by adding N as (NH4)2SO4,P as KH2PO4 or both and residues were added at 10 g C kg-1 to a silt loam.Soil respiration was measured over 21 d;microbial biomass C (MBC) and available N and P were measured on days 0,7,and 21.Compared to the unamended soil,addition of kikuyu increased cumulative respiration 20-fold,MBC concentration 4 to 8-fold,and available P concentration up to 4-fold,whereas the increase in available N concentration was small and transient.Cumulative respiration and MBC concentration were low in the sawdust-amended soil and were not influenced by reducing the C/N and C/P ratios.Cumulative respiration with original wheat and eucalyptus was 30％-40％ of that with kikuyu.Reducing the C/N ratio alone or both C/N and C/P ratios increased cumulative respiration and MBC concentration 2-fold compared to the original wheat and eucalyptus,whereas reducing the C/P ratio had little effect.Throughout the experiment,the available N concentration after addition of residues with reduced C/N ratio increased in the following order of eucalyptus ＜ wheat ＜ sawdust.By independently lowering the C/N and C/P ratios,microbial activity was more limited by C and N than P.However,lowering the C/N ratio of very slowly decomposable sawdust had no effect on soil respiration and MBC concentration,suggesting that other properties such as concentration of poorly decomposable C compounds limited decomposition.     

长期施肥对土壤中硒的累积及其生物有效性的影响

Continuous applications of organic and inorganic fertilizers can affect soil and food quality with respect to selenium(Se) concentrations.A long-term(over 20 years) experimental field study,started in 1989,was conducted to investigate the changes in soil Se fractions and its uptake by crops,as affected by different fertilizer practices,in the North China Plain with an annual crop rotation of winter wheat and summer maize.The long-term experiment was arranged in a complete randomized block design consisting of 4replications with 7 fertilizer treatments:1) organic compost(OC),2) half organic compost plus half N-P-K chemical fertilizers(OC+ NPK),3) N-P-K fertilizers(NPK),4) N-P fertilizers(NP),5) P-K fertilizers(PK),6) N-K fertilizers(NK),and 7) an un-amended control.Soil samples from the surface(20 cm) were collected in 1989,1994,1999,2004 and 2009 to characterize Se and other soil properties.In 2009,the average soil Se concentrations in the treatments(149 ± 8 μg kg~(-1)) were higher than those in the soil samples collected in 1989 at the beginning of the experiment(112 ± 4 μg kg~(-1)),and decreased in the order of OC OC + NPK NPK≈NP PK ≈NK control.Sequential extraction showed the oxidizable fraction(50.06%± 3.94%) was the dominant form of Se in the soil,followed by the residual fraction(24.12%± 2.89%),exchangeable fraction(15.09%± 4.34%) and Fe-Mn oxides fraction(10.73%± 4.04%).With an increase of soil K,the exchangeable Se concentrations in the soil increased.The Se concentrations in the soil tillage layer(0-20 cm) were mainly related to soil organic carbon(SOC),although different contributions came from atmospheric deposition,irrigation and fertilizers.With the accumulation of SOC,the uptakes of soil Se by two crops were inhibited.For the OC and OC + NPK treatments,Se concentrations in wheat grains were lower than the critical standard of Se in stable food(100 μg kg~(-1)).Additionally,Se concentrations in grains were also decreased by the deficiencies of major soil nutrients,especially P.     

土壤状况及养分交互作用对棉花产量影响的数学分析

The influence of soil chemical properties and soil nutrition on cotton yields was studied by means of establishing mathematical models. The nultivariate quadratic regression equations developed by a stepwise regression method not only presented the single effect of soil factors but also displayed the interaction (synergistic or antagonistic) of soil nutrients. The effect of individual factor and the way of nutrient interaction were further analysed by the path analysis method. The results showed that among major factors affecting cotton yields, there existed the interactions between macronutrients(available P × available K), and between macronutrients and microelements (N × Zn, P × Mo, P × Cu, P × Zn, K × Mo) besides the single effect of soil pH, total P, available Cu and available Zn.     

Sugarcane by-products used as soil amendments on a sandy soil: Effects on sugarcane crop nutrition and yield

Agricultural by-products applied as soil amendments have the potential to improve crop production on low organic matter (OM) soils. This two-year study investigated the use of two readily available sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) milling by-products, mill mud, and mill ash, as soil amendments to improve first sugarcane crop (plant cane) and subsequent crop (first ratoon) grown on a sandy Spodosol. Sugarcane was grown in lysimeters receiving mill mud, mill ash, and a 50:50 (v:v) mill mud to mill ash mix. Amendments were applied at low, medium, and high application rates (5, 10, and 15 cm depths, respectively) and then incorporated 30 cm deep. Amendment effects on plant nutrition, soil characteristics, and crop yield were determined. High rate applied mill mud and mill ash had the highest soil OM content for both years and soil OM did not significantly change between crops for all treatments except for high rate mill mud, which increased the second year (ratoon crop). Leaf nutrient levels for nitrogen (N), iron (Fe), and copper (Cu) for all treatments both years were insufficient; nutrient levels for magnesium (Mg), manganese (Mn), and silicon (Si) were within marginal to sufficient range for all treatments both years. All amendments produced significantly higher biomass and sucrose yields for plant cane and first ratoon crops compared to the control. Mill ash treatments produced the greatest increase in sucrose and biomass yields from plant cane to ratoon crops, which corresponded with an increase in potassium (K) in leaf tissue. However, mid and high rates of mix produced the highest sugarcane biomass and sucrose yields for the both the plant cane and ratoon crops.     

杉木和米槠人工林土壤可溶性碳组分动态及其对凋落叶输入的响应

可溶性碳组分是土壤有机碳库中最活跃的部分,作为土壤碳周转初期变化的敏感指标,其含量受到凋落叶等植物残体输入、森林类型及季节性水热变化的共同调节。采用土壤原位培养法,以亚热带米槠(Castanopsis carlesii)人工林与杉木(Cunninghamia lanceolata)人工林为对象,分析生长季内土壤可溶性碳(DOC)与热水溶性碳(HWSC)含量动态变化及其对凋落叶输入的响应趋势。结果表明,凋落叶输入、森林类型和培养月份均极显著影响土壤可溶性碳组分含量(p<0.001)。杉木人工林土壤DOC与HWSC含量整体较高,分别高出米槠人工林15.09%和13.06%,但后者的土壤可溶性有机质芳香化程度更高。经过1个生长季的培养,2种人工林土壤DOC与HWSC含量均明显增加。凋落叶增加生长季米槠人工林土壤DOC与HWSC的含量,但对杉木人工林的影响具有季节差异。研究结果表明杉木人工林土壤DOC与HWSC含量更高,但凋落叶输入促进米槠人工林DOC与HWSC含量,更易于随淋溶过程流失。     

Biochar and crop residue application to soil: effect on soil biochemical properties,nutrient availability and yield of rice (Oryza sativa L.) and wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

In the recent past, biochar and crop residues have attracted lots of attention as a viable strategy for maintaining soil health. This paper evaluates the comparative effect of two different doses (equivalent to 2 and 5 t C ha^?1) of each of pine needle and Lantana biochar (PBC and LBC), wheat residue and lentil residue (WR and LR) on soil biological properties, nutrient availability and yield of rice and wheat in pot culture. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) revealed higher C content of biochar than crop residues. Evaluation of biochemical quality reflected high recalcitrance indices of C and N for both PBC and LBC. Application of LBC and PBC increased the wheat grain yield significantly by 6.2%–24.2% over control. Both PBC and LBC significantly increased N and P uptakes in grain over the control and crop residues. Both biochars recorded a significant decrease of 33.9 and 71,7% in β-glucosidase activity in comparison to control at termination of study. PBC and LBC also resulted in more soil available N, P and K in soil at different intervals. The geometric mean of enzyme activities (GMea) reflected improved soil quality by PBC and LR and reduction by LBC application.     

南亚热带杉木林改造对土壤及凋落物持水能力的影响

对杉木林进行改造,是提高林分质量和生态效能的重要措施。该文研究了杉木林改造前期对土壤及凋落物持水能力的影响。结果表明,在杉木林改造前期,不同林龄段试验林间土壤容重、孔隙度和土壤持水量差异不显著（P > 0.05）,但随林龄的增加呈上升趋势,土壤涵养水源能力有所增加。凋落物量及其持水能力随改造林龄的增加呈上升趋势,9～11 a林龄试验林凋落物及持水能力显著高于3～5 a林龄试验林（P < 0.05）,而其凋落物持水能力与5～7 a林龄试验林差异不显著（P > 0.05）。浸水试验表明,凋落物持水率随浸泡时间的增加呈对数曲线增长,吸水速率与浸泡时间呈反函数关系。凋落物最大持水量远小于土壤最大持水量,仅为土壤的0.18%,0.11%和0.08%,土壤为森林涵养水源的主体。通过分析试验林土壤和凋落物持水能力发现,杉木+米老排+阴香+山杜英+枫香、杉木+火力楠+米老排+阴香+红荷和杉木+木荷+山杜英+香椿+山黄麻改造模式对土壤和凋落物持水能力影响效果较好,其水文功能较高。     

间伐对杉木人工林土壤碳氮及其组分特征的影响

为探究不同间伐强度对杉木人工林土壤碳氮及其组分特征的影响,以福建省三明市官庄国有林场11年生杉木(Cunninghamia lanceolata)人工林为研究对象,采用弱度间伐(LIT)、中度间伐(MIT)、强度间伐(HIT)等3种间伐强度,研究不同间伐强度林分0—10,10—20,20—40,40—60,60—80,...     

Effect of biochar and phosphorus fertilizer application on soil fertility: soil physical and chemical properties

This study evaluated the effect of biochar and phosphorus fertilizer application on selected soil physical and chemical properties in two contrasting soil types: Rhodic Ferralsols (clay) in Thohoyandou and Leptic Cambisols (loamy sand) in Nelspruit, South Africa. Field experiments were conducted in summer and winter. Treatments consisted of a factorial combination of four biochar levels (0, 5, 10 and 20 t ha^?1) and two phosphorus fertilizer levels (0 and 90 kg ha^?1) arranged in a randomized complete block design with three replicates. Chickpea was the test crop. Soil bulk density, aggregate stability, porosity, total C, total N, C:N ratio, K and Mg were determined. Biochar (10 t ha^?1) and phosphorus increased bulk density and decreased porosity at 0–5 and 15–20 cm soil depth on a loamy sand soil in both seasons. The interaction between biochar and phosphorus increased total C and total N on a clay soil in the summer sowing. However, in the loamy sand soil, biochar (10 t ha^?1) increased total C, C:N ratio, K and Mg in the summer sowing. The effect of biochar was more evident in the loamy sand soil than the clay soil suggesting that the influence of biochar may be soil-specific.     

庐山杉木林与黄山松林的土壤层水源涵养能力和土壤侵蚀敏感性探究

森林的水土保持效益包含水源涵养能力和土壤的侵蚀敏感性,为探讨基于坡面尺度林分因子对水土流失的影响,进一步揭示森林植被的水土保持效益机制,采用环刀法、EPIC模型等分别计算黄山松林、杉木林的水源涵养能力和土壤侵蚀因子.结果表明:(1)黄山松林的土壤容重在垂直剖面无明显差异,变化范围为0.66～1.10 g/cm3;杉木林...     

不同氮素形态对干旱胁迫杉木幼苗养分吸收及分配的影响

【目的】干旱胁迫是限制植物生长的重要非生物因素之一,而适宜的氮素营养可以提高植物的抗旱性。本文探讨了供应不同形态氮源对干旱条件下杉木[Cunninghamia lanceolata (Lamb.) Hook]幼苗养分吸收及分配的影响。【方法】采用水培试验,供试杉木材料为2个无性系幼苗(7–14号和8–8号),在营养液中添加10%(w/v)PEG-6000进行干旱胁迫。营养液中的氮源处理包括硝态氮、铵态氮、硝铵混合氮,氮素浓度均为4.571mmol/L,每个品种均设6个处理。培养20天后,测定了杉木幼苗根、茎、叶的养分含量及生物量。【结果】与正常水分供应相比较,干旱胁迫条件下供应铵态氮可促进叶片N、K以及茎叶P、K的吸收,供应混合氮可促进根部K的吸收;供应铵态氮可促进根、茎对Ca的吸收,对叶片Ca无明显作用。干旱胁迫对根部Fe、Mn、Cu、Zn吸收量影响显著,氮素供应不同程度地降低了干旱胁迫下各器官Mg、Fe、Mn和Cu吸收量,表现为抑制吸收,但添加铵态氮比硝态氮的降低幅度小。3个氮源处理均降低了干旱条件下根部Zn吸收量,但没有降低甚至增加了茎、叶中Zn的吸收量,说明氮营养可调节Zn在各器官间的分配,缓解干旱导致的缺锌现象。不同器官之间各养分吸收量差异显著,3个氮源处理中,N和P吸收量表现为叶>根>茎,K和Ca为叶>茎>根,Fe、Cu为根>叶>茎,Mg、Mn和Zn在各器官之间的分配规律不一。铵态氮吸收量均表现为叶>根>茎,且各器官铵态氮吸收量显著高于硝态氮,说明杉木具有明显的喜铵特性。【结论】在干旱胁迫下,氮素供应形态显著影响杉木幼苗对养分的吸收及在各器官中的分配,作用效果因家系品种和元素种类而异。总体来讲,铵态氮提高干旱胁迫下杉木幼苗养分吸收的效果好于硝态氮,杉木可以认为是喜铵植物。     

Effect of vegetation switch on soil chemical properties

Soil chemical properties were investigated under four types of forest to evaluate the effect of replacement of tree species on soil chemical properties in the north of Japan. Two sites had undergone a vegetation switch around 1960 from broadleaved to coniferous trees (BC) and coniferous to broadleaved trees (CB), while the other two sites had had no vegetation change and carried broadleaved trees (BB) and coniferous trees (CC). Soil samples from the four sites were analyzed for pH (water, H₂O), electrical conductivity (EC), total carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) content, exchangeable cations [Ex. calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), potassium (K) and sodium (Na)], inorganic nitrogen (Inorg-N), nitrogen mineralization potential, total phosphorus (P), and available phosphate. Most of the soil chemical properties in both the upper (0–5?cm) and lower (5–10?cm) layers at the BC site had lower values than those at the BB site. Values of soil chemical properties in the upper and lower soil layers were similar at the BC and CC sites. pH, Inorg-N, EC, Ex.Ca and Ex.Mg in the upper layer at the CB site were significantly higher than those at CC site, whereas all soil properties at the CB site except for Inorg-N were similar to those at the BB site. In the lower layer at the CB site, values of soil chemical properties except for the C/N ratio were almost the same as those at the CC site, but lower than those at the BB site. The upper soil layer at sites where a vegetation switch had occurred was affected by the current tree species, whereas in the lower soil layer, the effects differed between the different vegetation switch patterns. At the CB site, where the vegetation switch was from coniferous to broadleaved trees, the soil chemical properties in the lower layer remained similar to those at the coniferous site (CC) 50 years after the vegetation switch, while changes in soil properties have occurred following the switch from broadleaved to coniferous trees. The change in soil nutrient content by vegetation switch was considerably affected by change in not only litter quality but also composition of earthworm community. In particular, a combination of epigeic and endogeic earthworms exhibited important roles for nutrient dynamics to the deeper soil layer.     

Soil nutrient supply and biomass production in a mixed forest on a skeleton‐rich soil and an adjacent beech forest

In the natural forest communities of Central Europe, beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) predominates in the tree layer over a wide range of soil conditions. An exception with respect to the dominance of beech are skeleton‐rich soils such as screes where up to 10 broad‐leaved trees co‐exist. In such a Tilia‐Fagus‐Fraxinus‐Acer‐Ulmus forest and an adjacent mono‐specific beech forest we compared (1) soil nutrient pools and net nitrogen mineralization rates, (2) leaf nutrient levels, and (3) leaf litter production and stem increment rates in order to evaluate the relationship between soil conditions and tree species composition. In the mixed forest only a small quantity of fine earth was present (35 g l^—1) which was distributed in patches between basalt stones; whereas a significantly higher (P < 0.05) soil quantity (182 g l^—1) was found in the beech forest. In the soil patches of the mixed forest C and N concentrations and also concentrations of exchangeable nutrients (K, Ca, Mg) were significantly higher than in the beech forest. Net N mineralization rates on soil dry weight basis in the mixed forest exceeded those in the beech forest by a factor of 2.6. Due to differences in fine earth and stone contents, the volume related soil K pool and the N mineralization rate were lower in the mixed forest (52 kg N ha^—1 yr^—1, 0—10 cm depth) than in the beech forest (105 kg N ha^—1 yr^—1). The leaf N and K concentrations of the beech trees did not differ significantly between the stands, which suggests that plant nutrition was not impaired. In the mixed forest leaf litter fall (11 %) and the increment rate of stem basal area (52 %) were lower than in the beech forest. Thus, compared with the adjacent beech forest, the mixed forest stand was characterized by a low volume of patchy distributed nutrient‐rich soil, a lower volume related K pool and N mineralization rate, and low rates of stem increment. Together with other factors such as water availability these patterns may contribute to an explanation of the diverse tree species composition on Central European screes.