氮素补充对高寒草甸土壤团聚体有机碳、全氮分布的影响

土壤结构的稳定性对高寒草甸生态系统有重要意义。为研究不同水平氮素补充对高寒草甸草地土壤团聚体、有机碳和全氮含量及分布格局的影响,于2012-2014年在青藏高原东部夏河县进行3 a的试验研究。试验为随机区组设计,包括0(对照)、50(低氮)、100(中氮)和200(高氮)kg/hm2 4个氮素补充水平。研究结果表明:低、中、高水平氮素补充处理显著提高了0~30 cm土层≥0.25 mm大团聚体质量分数(P0.05),比对照分别提高了4.74%、6.42%和1.96%;较之对照,低、中水平氮素补充处理显著增加了≥5 mm、≥2~5 mm粒级团聚体含量;低、中水平氮素补充处理显著提升了0~30 cm土壤团聚体平均质量直径,分别比对照提升了9.79%和12.63%。不同水平氮素补充处理有机碳、全氮含量大小排序分别为:中氮≈低氮对照高氮、中氮低氮≈高氮对照。不同粒级团聚体中0.25 mm微团聚体有机碳含量最高而全氮含量最低、≥0.25~2 mm粒级有机碳含量最低而全氮含量最高;低、中水平氮素补充提高了不同粒级团聚体0~30 cm土层有机碳含量而高水平氮素补充处理显著降低了有机碳含量;低、中、高水平氮素补充增加了不同粒级团聚体全氮含量,其中中水平氮素补充处理最高,低水平氮补充次之。不同粒级团聚体含量是影响团聚体养分贡献率的主要原因,≥2~5 mm粒级团聚体含量与相应粒级团聚体有机碳含量呈显著正相关关系,≥5 mm和≥2~5 mm粒级团聚体含量与相应粒级团聚体全氮含量分别呈极显著正相关、显著正相关关系。研究表明连续每年补充50~100 kg/hm2氮可以改善高寒草甸土壤结构并提高土壤肥力状况。     

长期不同施肥潮土活性有机氮库组分与酶活性对外源牛粪的响应

【目的】研究不同施肥制度下潮土中活性有机氮库及酶活性对新添加有机物料的响应机制,可深入理解不同施肥制度培肥土壤、提高土壤基础地力的机理。【方法】供试土壤采集于从1986年开始的长期定位试验处理,包括CK (不施肥)、OF (常量有机肥)、CF (常量化肥)、OCF (常量有机无机配施) 4个处理。通过室内恒温培养试验,研究添加等氮量牛粪后长期不同施肥潮土有机氮库组分(微生物量氮、可溶性有机氮和颗粒有机氮)含量及土壤酶(α-葡萄糖苷酶、β-葡萄糖苷酶、β-木糖苷酶、纤维二糖水解酶、磷酸酶、过氧化物酶和酚氧化酶)活性的变化特征。【结果】首先,无论添加牛粪与否,土壤全氮、可溶性有机氮和颗粒有机氮含量均随培养时间呈上升趋势或与初始时期差异不显著;添加牛粪的长期不施肥与施化肥处理土壤微生物量氮含量显著低于相同处理不添加牛粪的土壤微生物量氮含量。其次,培养结束后,添加牛粪增加了长期不同施肥潮土全氮、可溶性有机氮和颗粒有机氮含量,分别提高了5.43%~15.49%、5.83%~69.42%及9.75%~42.29%,却降低了土壤微生物量氮含量16.91%~62.10%。另外,施肥、添加牛粪及其交互作用对土壤酶活性具有显著影响(P <0.05);无论添加牛粪与否,不同施肥处理土壤氧化酶(过氧化物酶和酚氧化酶)活性显著低于不施肥处理,不同施肥处理的土壤水解酶活性却呈现不同的变化趋势。不添加牛粪情况下,长期施肥显著提高了除β-葡萄糖苷酶以外的土壤水解酶活性;其中与长期不施肥处理相比,长期施用化肥土壤β-木糖苷酶和β-纤维素酶分别提高了208.74%和180.75%。添加牛粪情况下长期施用有机肥土壤β-葡萄糖苷酶和β-纤维素酶比不施肥分别提高了201.40%和308.04%;冗余分析(redundancy analysis,RDA)显示,添加与不添加牛粪条件下土壤酶活性的关键环境驱动因子不同,在不添加牛粪时为可溶性有机氮,添加后其关键驱动因子为全氮和可溶性有机氮。【结论】不同施肥制度下土壤微生物量氮、可溶性有机氮、颗粒有机氮与土壤全氮之间呈显著正相关;室内好气培养条件下,添加牛粪显著提高了长期不同施肥潮土的全氮、可溶性有机氮、颗粒有机氮含量,却显著降低了土壤微生物量氮含量;不同施肥制度下土壤酶活性差异显著,牛粪的添加改变了影响长期不同施肥潮土酶活性的关键环境因子。     

Extraction of soil nitrogen by chloroform fumigation – A new index for the evaluation of soil nitrogen supply

The N extracted after chloroform (CHCl₃) fumigation was determined as a possible index of soil N supply to plants. The relationships between extractable N following fumigation and reference indices such as total N, alkali-hydrolyzable N, N released by the Stanford short-term incubation method, and the N extracted by KCl and by CaCl₂, were measured in nine soils of differing soil N supply capacity. A highly significant correlation was achieved between the extractable N released by fumigation and the N released by the Stanford method, i.e. a short-term aerobic incubation (r = 0.87). Similarly, the correlation between extractable N by fumigation and the N uptake by ryegrass was highly statistically significant (r = 0.93). Using the N extracted following fumigation has the advantage that laboratory results are available in two days and are both reproducible and of high precision. Therefore, the N extracted following fumigation is a valid, timesaving and precise index of soil N supply capacity.     

Extraction of soil nitrogen by chloroform fumigation – A new index for the evaluation of soil nitrogen supply

The N extracted after chloroform (CHCl₃) fumigation was determined as a possible index of soil N supply to plants. The relationships between extractable N following fumigation and reference indices such as total N, alkali-hydrolyzable N, N released by the Stanford short-term incubation method, and the N extracted by KCl and by CaCl₂, were measured in nine soils of differing soil N supply capacity. A highly significant correlation was achieved between the extractable N released by fumigation and the N released by the Stanford method, i.e. a short-term aerobic incubation (r = 0.87). Similarly, the correlation between extractable N by fumigation and the N uptake by ryegrass was highly statistically significant (r = 0.93). Using the N extracted following fumigation has the advantage that laboratory results are available in two days and are both reproducible and of high precision. Therefore, the N extracted following fumigation is a valid, timesaving and precise index of soil N supply capacity.     

Leaching of mineral nitrogen in the soil influenced by addition of compost and N-mineral fertilizer

This paper deals with the problem of mineral N leaching from arable lands due to the fertilization method. The influence of different doses of compost (50 and 100?Mg ha^?1) and N-mineral fertilizer (35-70-140 kg N ha^?1) on leaching of N_min in a lysimetric experiment with winter wheat. The area of our interest represents the main source of drinking water for the city of Brno and its neighborhoods. To demonstrate the effect of compost and mineral nitrogen addition, the lysimetric experiment was established there. Seven variants of the experiment with different fertilization schemes were studied during two vegetation seasons (2013 and 2014), each with three repetitions. The experiment was carried out in plastic experimental containers of 0.3 m diameter and 0.5 m height. Therefore, each lysimeter was the same size and was filled with 25 kg of subsoil and 25 kg of topsoil. The highest leaching of N_min was detected in the variant C2 where 140 kg N ha^?1 was applied, in both vegetation periods (5.97 kg N_min ha^?1 after the first vegetation period and 17.02 kg N_min ha^?1 after the second vegetation period). The positive effect of compost application (individually or in combination with the mineral N) on decrease in mineral N leaching was found during both vegetation period in comparison with variant C2. The highest doses of compost (100?Mg per ha) significantly decreased the concentration of mineral nitrogen in the soil eluate in both periods (3.03 kg N_min ha^?1 and 5.79 kg N_min ha^?1, respectively), by 197% and 293% in comparison with variant C2. There is evidence that the application of compost has a positive effect on the reduction of N_min leaching.     

长期添加外源有机物料对华北平原不同粒级土壤氮素和氨基糖的影响

华北平原是我国主要的粮食生产基地之一,农民为了追求高产,过量施用化肥的弊端日益凸显。本研究依托中国科学院栾城农业生态系统试验站有机养分循环再利用长期定位试验,开展不同外源有机物料对土壤氮素和氨基糖在不同粒级土壤库中分布的影响研究,为阐释不同农业管理措施下土壤氮素的物理保护机制和生物保护机制提供依据。定位试验设6个处理：无肥无秸秆处理（对照,CK）、单施猪圈肥（M）、单施化肥（NPK）、单施秸秆（SCK）、化肥配施猪圈肥（MNPK）和化肥配施秸秆（SNPK）。通过超声波分散-离心分离得到3种粒径土壤——砂粒级（2 000~53 μm）、粉粒级（53~2 μm）和黏粒级（<2 μm）,分析全土及各粒级土壤中全氮和3种土壤氨基糖（氨基葡萄糖、胞壁酸和氨基半乳糖）的含量及变化;基于这3种土壤氨基糖的稳定性和异源性,以氨基糖作为微生物残留物标识物,了解真菌和细菌残留物的积累和转化,阐释真菌和细菌在养分转化中的作用。结果表明：添加有机物料（秸秆、猪圈肥）明显提升了土壤全氮和氨基糖含量,粒级间土壤氮素和氨基糖含量顺序均为黏粒级>砂粒级>粉粒级。添加有机物料对砂粒级土壤氮素影响最大,长期化肥配施猪圈肥中氮素主要在砂粒级中富集,长期化肥配施秸秆的氮素主要在黏粒级中富集。添加秸秆主要提高了真菌来源的氨基葡萄糖的含量,而添加猪圈肥主要提高了土壤中细菌来源的胞壁酸含量,表明添加不同有机物料可影响土壤微生物的群落结构。从各粒级中氨基葡萄糖/胞壁酸的比值来看,添加不同类型外源有机物料对砂粒级土壤微生物群落结构影响最为明显。由此可见,在长期秸秆还田措施下实施有机粪肥部分替代化肥不仅可以减少化肥用量,还可提升土壤养分含量和微生物多样性,改善土壤质量。     

Responses of soil microbial communities and functions associated with organic carbon mineralization to nitrogen addition in a Tibetan grassland

Alpine grasslands with a high soil organic carbon(SOC) storage on the Tibetan Plateau are experiencing rapid climate warming and anthropogenic nitrogen(N) deposition; this is expected to substantially increase the soil N availability, which may impact carbon(C) cycling. However, little is known regarding how N enrichment influences soil microbial communities and functions relative to C cycling in this region. We conducted a 4-year field experiment on an alpine grassland to evaluate the effects o...     

Chemical stabilization of soil organic nitrogen by phenolic lignin residues in anaerobic agroecosystems

This review summarizes independent reports of yield decreases in several agricultural systems that are associated with repeated cropping under wet or submerged soil conditions. Crop and soil data from most of these agroecosystems have led researchers to attribute yield decreases to a reduction in crop uptake of N mineralized from soil organic matter (SOM). These trends are most evident in several long-term field experiments on continuous lowland rice systems in the Philippines, but similar trends are evident in a continuous rice rotation in Arkansas, USA and with no-till cropping systems in North American regions with cool, wet climatic conditions in Spring. Soil analyses from some of these systems have found an accumulation of phenolic lignin compounds in SOM. Phenolic compounds covalently bind nitrogenous compounds into recalcitrant forms in laboratory conditions and occurrence of this chemical immobilization under field conditions would be consistent with field observations of reduced soil N supply. However, technological shortcomings have precluded its demonstration for naturally formed SOM. Through recent advances in nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, agronomically significant quantities of lignin-bound N were found in a triple-cropped rice soil in the Philippines. A major research challenge is to demonstrate in the anaerobic agroecosystems that these lignin residues bind sufficient quantities of soil N to cause the observed yield decreases. A key objective will be to elucidate the cycling dynamics of lignin-bound N relative to the seasonal pattern of crop N demand. Anaerobic decomposition of crop residues may be the key feature of anaerobic cropping systems that promotes the accumulation of phenolic lignin residues and hence the covalent binding of soil N. Potential mitigation options include improved timing of applied N fertilizer, which has already been shown to reverse yield decreases in tropical rice, and aerobic decomposition of crop residues, which can be accomplished through field drainage or timing of tillage operations. Future research will evaluate whether aerobic decomposition promotes the formation of phenol-depleted SOM and greater in-season N mineralization, even when the soil is otherwise maintained under flooded conditions during the growing season.     

Carbon mineralization is promoted by phosphorus and reduced by nitrogen addition in the organic horizon of northern hardwood forests

Limitations to the respiratory activity of heterotrophic soil microorganisms exert important controls of CO₂ efflux from soils. In the northeastern US, ecosystem nutrient status varies across the landscape and changes with forest succession following disturbance, likely impacting soil microbial processes regulating the transformation and emission of carbon (C). We tested whether nitrogen (N) or phosphorus (P) limit the mineralization of soil organic C (SOC) or that of added C sources in the Oe horizon of successional and mature northern hardwood forests in three locations in central New Hampshire, USA. Added N reduced mineralization of C from SOC and from added leaf litter and cellulose. Added P did not affect mineralization from SOC; however, it did enhance mineralization of litter- and cellulose- C in organic horizons from all forest locations. Added N increased microbial biomass N and K₂SO₄-extractable DON pools, but added P had no effect. Microbial biomass C increased with litter addition but did not respond to either nutrient. The direction of responses to added nutrients was consistent among sites and between forest ages. We conclude that in these organic horizons limitation by N promotes mineralization of C from SOC, whereas limitation by P constrains mineralization of C from new organic inputs. We also suggest that N suppresses respiration in these organic horizons either by relieving the N limitation of microbial biomass synthesis, or by slowing turnover of C through the microbial pool; concurrent measures of microbial growth and turnover are needed to resolve this question.     

Carbon and nitrogen degradation on molecular scale of grass-derived pyrogenic organic material during 28 months of incubation in soil

The present study focuses on the microbial recalcitrance of pyrogenic organic material (PyOM) on a molecular scale. We performed microcosm incubation experiments using ¹³C- and ¹⁵N-enriched grass-derived PyOM mixed with a sub soil material taken from a Haplic Cambisol. Solid-state ¹³C and ¹⁵N NMR studies were conducted to elucidate the humification processes at different stages of PyOM degradation. The chemical structure of the remaining PyOM after incubation was clearly different from the initial pyrogenic material. The proportion of O-containing functional groups was increased, whereas that of aryl C and of N-containing heterocyclic structures had decreased, probably due to mineralisation and conversion to other C and N groups. After 20 months of incubation the aryl C loss reached up to 40% of the initial amount and up to 29% of the remaining PyOM C was assigned to carboxyl/carbonyl C and O-aryl C. These reactions alter the chemical and physical properties of the char residue and make it more available for further microbial attack but also for adsorption processes. Our study presents direct evidence for the degradation of N-heterocyclic domains in charred plant remains adding new aspects to the understanding of the N cycling in fire-affected ecosystems.     

Experimental evaluation of methods to quantify dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in soil

A significant proportion of the total nutrient in soil solution can be bound to organic molecules and these often constitute a major loss from soil to freshwater. Our purpose was to determine whether chemical extractants used for measuring inorganic N could also be used to quantify dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) and carbon (DOC) in soil. In a range of soils, DOC and DON were extracted with either distilled water or 2 M KCl and the amount recovered compared with that present in soil solution recovered by centrifugal-drainage. The recovery of DON and DOC from soil was highly dependent upon the method of extraction. Factors such as soil sampling strategy (number of samples over space and time), sample preparation (sieving and drying), soil storage, extraction temperature, shaking time, and soil-to-extractant volume ratio all significantly affected the amount of DOC and DON extracted from soil. To allow direct comparison between independent studies we therefore propose the introduction of a standardized extraction procedure: Replicate samples of unsieved, field-moist soil extracted as soon as possible after collection with distilled water, 0.5 M K₂SO₄ or 2 M KCl at a 1:5 w/v ratio for 1 h at 20 °C.     

Evaluation of the mineralizable organic nitrogen in soil using an immunological technique

Phosphate buffer-extractable organic nitrogen (PEON), which can be extracted from soil with a 67-mM neutral phosphate buffer solution, is considered to be a major source of mineralizable nitrogen (N) that is ubiquitous in soil. We have developed a Western blot analysis and enzyme-linked immune sorbent assay (ELISA) method for determining PEON. First, anti-PEON antibody (IgG) from a rabbit was produced using purified PEON from a volcanic ash soil. PEON was detected as a ladder-like staining pattern in the high-molecular-weight region and as a single band under 14 kDa in Western blot analysis using the anti-PEON IgG. In the ELISA assay, the anti-PEON IgG could specifically react with PEON irrespective of soil type and management. Furthermore, the absorbance at 450 nm in ELISA was highly correlated to the concentration of organic N (N_org) in phosphate extracts of different soils. We propose the immune assay using the anti-PEON IgG as a possible novel method for evaluating available N in soil.     

有机无机肥配施对滨海盐渍农田土壤盐分及作物氮素利用的影响

土壤盐渍化造成氮素的损失,限制了作物对氮素的有效利用。为研究滨海盐渍化农田等氮量投入条件下,有机无机肥配施对农田土壤盐分和作物氮素养分吸收利用及氮平衡的影响,以江苏东台滩涂围垦农田为研究平台,选取玉米品种‘长江玉8号’为供试作物,设6个处理：不施肥（CK）、全有机肥（OM1）、1/4化肥+3/4有机肥（OM3/4）、1/2化肥+1/2有机肥（OM1/2）、3/4化肥+1/4有机肥（OM1/4）、全化肥（OM0）。在玉米播种前、生长期和收获后采集土样,同时在收获后采集植株样品,分析土壤盐分、pH、水分、无机氮含量和玉米植株不同部位的氮含量和累积量,计算氮肥利用效率和氮平衡。结果表明：1）有机肥代替部分化肥的施入,降低了滨海盐渍化农田土壤的电导率,且呈现出随有机肥施用量增加电导率逐渐降低的趋势,但其对土壤pH影响不显著。2）有机肥的施入提高了土壤有机质含量,改善了土壤结构,降低了土壤容重,同时提高了土壤含水率,增强了土壤的持水性能。3）就不同处理玉米产量和吸氮量来看,OM1/4处理玉米产量、籽粒含氮量和全植株吸氮量最高。同时,氮收获指数、氮肥当季回收率、氮肥农学效率和氮肥偏生产力等指标也较高。4）就氮素平衡状况来看,氮素输入量远大于作物吸收量和土壤残留量,有很大一部分无机氮损失掉。其中,OM1/4处理氮素表观损失量较小。综合有机无机肥配施对降低土壤盐分和作物养分吸收利用两者来看,在225 kg·hm^-2氮用量条件下,OM1/4处理效果最好,既能在一定程度上降低土壤含盐量,又能维持较高的作物产量和氮素利用效率。同时对于改善土壤结构,提高土壤的保水性和土壤有机质含量都具有重要意义。     

Effect of addition of organic residues,farmyard manure and fertilizer nitrogen on soil fertility in rice‐wheat cropping system

A field experiment was conducted for 3 crop years (July‐June) at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi to study the effects of Sesbania and cowpea green manuring (GM) and incorporation of mungbean residues after harvesting grain, Leucaena loppings, FYM and wheat straw incorporation before planting rice and application of 0,40,80 and 120 kg N ha^?1 to rice on the soil organic carbon (SOC), alkaline permanganate oxidizable N (APO‐N), 0.5 M sodium bicarbonate extractable P (SBC‐P) and 1N ammonium acetate exchangeable K (AAE‐K) in surface 0–15 cm soil after the harvest of rice and wheat grown in sequence. Green manuring and addition of organic residues prevented the decline in SOC. On the other hand addition of N fertilizer tended to decrease SOC after rice harvest. On the contrary application of green manures, organic residues, FYM and fertilizer N increased APO‐N, which indicates the benefit of these treatments to a more labile soil organic N pool. Also application of green manures, organic residues, FYM and fertilizer N increased SBC‐P. Not much change was observed in AAE‐K by the treatments applied.     

Monitoring organic matter dynamics in soil profiles by 'Rock-Eval pyrolysis': bulk characterization and quantification of degradation

Rock‐Eval pyrolysis was designed for petroleum exploration to determine the type and quality of organic matter in rock samples. Nevertheless, this technique can be used for bulk characterization of the immature organic matter in soil samples and recent sediments. We studied 76 samples from seven soil classes and showed that their pyrograms can be described by a combination of four elementary Gaussian components: F1, F2, F3 and F4. These four components are related to major classes of organic constituents differing in origin and their resistance to pyrolysis: labile biological constituents (F1), resistant biological constituents (F2), immature non‐biotic constituents (F3) and a mature refractory fraction (F4). We discriminated the relative contributions of these components and used them to derive two indices: (i) to quantify the relative contributions of labile and resistant biological constituents and (ii) to quantify the degradation stage of the soil organic matter. The practical applications are illustrated via the influence of vegetal cover on soil organic matter dynamics and peat development in a Holocene sedimentary sequence, but we suggest that the approach is of much wider application.     

Bacteriological studies on the mineralization of soil organic nitrogen in paddy soils

Anaerobes were isolated from both disrupted and undisrupted soil samples incubated under submerged condition. All isolates were divided into 9 groups based on their gram stain and morphological characteristics. Correlation coefficients between the amount of nitrogen mineralized and the number of each group were calculated. A significant correlation was observed only between the amount of nitrogen mineralized and the number of gram positive-rod shaped anaerobic microorganisms (r=0.768 at P=0.05). This result indicates that in this study system, sorne particular anaerobes may play an important role in the mineralization of soil organic nitrogen.     

Development of a soil degradation assessment tool for organic olive groves in southern Spain

Forty-six organic olive orchards under different soil management systems were evaluated in the province of Córdoba (southern Spain) to assess the state of their soil properties and the degree of degradation of their topsoil, and the possibilities for monitoring any soil degradation risk. Our study indicated that 55% of the olive farms sampled (OF) presented a low soil degradation, in which most of their deficiencies were a low content in some soil nutrients such as P, which may be partly due to the moderate fertility of some soils in the area. This result could be explained by the low or moderate intensity of the farming systems used in a large part of the study area. Seven percent of the sampled OFs had a large number of physical, chemical and biological soil properties, that could be considered as being degraded, and these olive orchards were classified as seriously degraded. The remaining OFs were in an intermediate state. The degree of soil degradation was not correlated with any specific soil management method or with predicted soil erosion rates, suggesting that it was the result of specific and varied on-farm conditions difficult to detect without a field evaluation. Three soil degradation indexes were obtained through a principal component analysis of the soil properties analyzed. These indexes were able to distinguish between OFs with low soil degradation and those in a serious state of degradation. Two of the indexes are basically integrative ones that can be used in relatively large surveys considering a large number of soil properties. The third index developed used only three soil properties, organic C, water stable macroaggregates, and extractable P, and has the potential to be used as a relatively easy and inexpensive screening test of soil degradation for organic olive farms in the area.     

Glomalin-related soil protein responses to elevated CO2 and nitrogen addition in a subtropical forest: Potential consequences for soil carbon accumulation

According to the economy theory, plants should preferentially allocate photosynthate to acquire below-ground resources under elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide (eCO₂) but decrease below-ground C allocation when nitrogen (N) is sufficient for plant growth. Arbuscular mycorrhizae (AM) represent a critical mechanism of below-ground nutrient acquisition for plants. The dynamics of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) could therefore reflect the response of plant C allocation under eCO₂ and N addition. We examined the responses of glomalin-related soil protein (GRSP) to eCO₂ (approximately 700 μmol mol⁻¹ CO₂) and/or N addition (100 kg N ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹ as NH₄NO₃) in a modeled subtropical forest to better understand its potential influence on soil C storage. We hypothesized that GRSP would increase under eCO₂ and decrease under N addition. Furthermore, the positive effects of eCO₂ on GRSP would be offset by extra N addition, and GRSP would remain unchanged under combined eCO₂ and N addition. Our results showed that the mean concentrations of easily extractable GRSP (EE-GRSP) and total GRSP (T-GRSP) were 0.35 ± 0.05 and 0.72 ± 0.13 mg C cm⁻³, respectively, which accounted for 2.76 ± 0.53% and 5.67 ± 0.92% of soil organic carbon (SOC) in the 0–10 cm soil layer. Elevated CO₂ significantly increased T-GRSP by 35.02% but decreased EE-GRSP by 5.09% in the top 10 cm soil layer. The opposite responses of T-GRSP and EE-GRSP to eCO₂ might result from an unchanged photosynthate investment to AMF with possible changes in their decomposition rates. The effect of N on GRSP was contrary to our hypothesis, i.e., there was a 1.72%–48.49% increase in T-GRSP and a slightly increase in EE-GRSP. Both EE-GRSP and T-GRSP concentrations increased under the combination of eCO₂ and N addition, which was inconsistent with our hypothesis. The significant increase of EE-GRSP under the combination of eCO₂ and N addition was partly caused by more rapid plant growth and reduced microbial diversity, and the marginal increase of T-GRSP indicated that the interaction between eCO₂ and N addition offset their independent effects. In addition, the relatively higher accumulation ratios of GRSP (22.6 ± 13.6%) compared with SOC (15.9 ± 9.4%) indicated that more rapid GRSP deposition in the soil might accelerate SOC accumulation under eCO₂ and N addition. Our results will improve the understanding of the functioning of GRSP in soil C sequestration under global environmental change scenarios.     

Chemical composition of cover crops and soil organic matter pools in no-tillage systems in the Cerrado

In no-tillage systems (NTS), cover crops are recommended to increase the productivity of agricultural systems. Furthermore, a greater diversity of cover crops in NTS favours an increase in soil carbon (C) stocks. However, there are scarce published data on the relationship between the chemical composition of cover crops and the accumulation of labile and stable fractions of SOM. We evaluated the relationship between the chemical composition of cover crops and SOM fractions, C stocks and maize yield. Hemicellulose, cellulose and lignin contents were determined for Urochloa ruziziensis, Canavalia brasiliensis, Cajanus cajan and Sorghum bicolor, cultivated in the off-season of maize. Canavalia brasiliensis had high N (20.96 g kg⁻¹) and hemicellulose (185.67 g kg⁻¹) contents, lower lignin content (39.50 g kg⁻¹) and high dry matter yield (3,251 kg ha⁻¹). All these characteristics resulted in a better SOM quality. Urochloa ruziziensis, with higher hemicellulose and lower lignin contents, and low lignin/N ratio, was associated with accumulation of TOC (19.95 and 18.33 g kg⁻¹ in 0- to 10-cm and 10- to 20-cm layers, respectively) and mineral-associated organic C (on average, 16.68 g kg⁻¹) in the soil. Cover plants with N:lignin ratio lower than 2.0 are fundamental for soil C sequestration. In conclusion, it is recommended the adoption of Urochloa ruziziensis and Canavalia brasiliensis as cover plants improve maize production, soil organic matter quality and C sequestration in the Cerrado region.