Fluxes of CO2, CH4 and N2O from drained organic soils in deciduous forests

We examined net greenhouse gas exchange at the soil surface in deciduous forests on soils with high organic contents. Fluxes of CO₂, CH₄ and N₂O were measured using dark static chambers for two consecutive years in three different forest types; (i) a drained and medium productivity site dominated by birch, (ii) a drained and highly productive site dominated by alder and (iii) an undrained and highly productive site dominated by alder. Although the drained sites had shallow mean groundwater tables (15 and 18 cm, respectively) their average annual rates of forest floor CO₂ release were almost twice as high compared to the undrained site (1.9±0.4 and 1.7±0.3, compared to 1.0±0.2 kg CO₂ m⁻² yr⁻¹). The average annual CH₄ emission was almost 10 times larger at the undrained site (7.6±3.1 compared to 0.9±0.5 g CH₄ m⁻² yr⁻¹ for the two drained sites). The average annual N₂O emissions at the undrained site (0.1±0.05 g N₂O m⁻² yr⁻¹) were lower than at the drained sites, and the emissions were almost five times higher at the drained alder site than at the drained birch site (0.9±0.35 compared to 0.2±0.11 g N₂O m⁻² yr⁻¹). The temporal variation in forest floor CO₂ release could be explained to a large extent by differences in groundwater table and air temperature, but little of the variation in the CH₄ and N₂O fluxes could be explained by these variables. The measured soil variables were only significant to explain for the within-site spatial variation in CH₄ and N₂O fluxes at the undrained swamp, and dark forest floor CO₂ release was not explained by these variables at any site. The between-site spatial variation was attributed to variations in drainage, groundwater level position, productivity and tree species for all three gases. The results indicate that N₂O emissions are of greater importance for the net greenhouse gas exchange at deciduous drained forest sites than at coniferous drained forest sites.     

用δ~(13)C法研究黑土添加有机物料后有机碳的变化规律

通过室内短期培养实验,利用δ13C的方法研究了外源有机物料分解过程中黑土有机碳的变化规律。结果表明:黑土中添加有机物料后,土壤有机碳的数量明显增加。在有机物料分解过程中,随着培养时间的延长,土壤有机碳的总量在逐渐下降,总的变化趋势是先快后慢,渐趋平缓,到培养结束(30天),有机物料在土壤中净残留率小于50%。黑土有机碳的δ13C值受进入土壤中有机物料的种类所影响,从数量上土壤有机碳的δ13C值可以反映土壤中不同来源有机碳的变化。在小麦秸秆分解过程中,新进入黑土中的有机碳转化较快,而土壤中固有的有机碳转化较慢,添加有机物料可以增加土壤中有机碳的固定。     

低丘红壤有机碳库的密度及变异

在中国科学院红壤生态实验站,采样分析了不同利用方式下土壤有机C 库的密度及其变异。结果表明,低丘红壤有机C 的密度0 ~ 20cm为(2.09 0.69) kg/m2,0 ~ 100 cm为(5.01 1.46) kg/m2; 全N密度0 ~ 20 cm为(0.20 0.07) kg/m2, 0 ~ 100 cm为(0.59 0.14) kg/m2。从裸地到稀疏荒草地,0 ~ 20 cm和0 ~ 100 cm土壤有机C 密度可以提高1.0 kg/m2和1.7 kg/m2;而从稀疏荒草地到人工林地或园地,0 ~ 20 cm和0 ~ 100 cm土壤有机C 密度可以提高0.7 kg/m2和0.9 kg/m2;稀疏荒草地如果开垦利用为水田,经长期培肥达到高度熟化,则0 ~ 20 cm和0 ~ 100 cm土壤有机C 密度可以提高2.3 kg/m2和4.4 kg/m2。即使不同类型的人工林地和园地之间,0 ~ 20 cm和0 ~ 100 cm土壤有机C 的密度差异也可达到1.0 kg/m2和3.5 kg/m2。不同地形部位之间0 ~ 20 cm和0 ~ 100 cm土壤有机C 密度差异达到1.3 kg/m2和2.9 kg/m2,全N密度差异达0.1 kg/m2和0.3 kg/m2;不同肥力水平之间0 ~ 20 cm和0 ~ 100 cm土壤有机C 密度差异达到1.5 ~ 2.2 kg/m2和2.8 ~ 4.1 kg/m2,全N密度差异达0.07 ~ 0.11 kg/m2和0.20 ~ 0.23 kg/m2; 强烈侵蚀可以降低0 ~ 20 cm和0 ~ 100 cm土壤有机C 密度1.4 kg/m2和2.2 kg/m2。因此,通过调整土地利用方式,可以提高土壤有机C 库密度,增     

Combined microbial community level and single species biosensor responses to monitor recovery of oil polluted soil

Understanding the effects of oil contamination on the composition and function of soil microbiota entails investigation of the effects of a mixture of hydrocarbons at the community level in a complex environmental matrix. One approach to this difficult problem is to ally a community-level fingerprinting approach with bioassays that have a physiological or functional implication. Two contrasting refined oils (paraffin and motor oil) were used to contaminate soil microcosms, and a simulated bioremediation treatment with nutrient-addition was applied. The indigenous microorganisms were monitored over 103 d using complementary community-level techniques (carbon source physiological profiling using Biolog^® microplates, and phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) profiling). Changes in the toxicity of the applied oils were monitored using luminescent bacterial bioassays, including Vibrio fischeri and a hydrocarbon-degrading Pseudomonas putida strain. Distinct shifts in microbial community structure and C source utilization profiles were observed as a result of oil contamination. There was some evidence that bioremediated soils were returning to control values by the end of the experiment. This was supported by the bioassay results which showed an initial increase in toxicity as a result of the oil addition which had then decreased by the conclusion of the experiment. The two oils exhibited markedly different toxicity towards the bioassay organisms, with species-specific differences in response. This oil-specific difference was also found in the PLFA profiles which showed the two oil types selected different microbial communities.     

Decomposition of barley straw in a subarctic soil in the field

Summary The mass loss and N dynamics of barley stems and leaves, placed on the soil surface or buried, were examined over two summers. There was little difference in mass loss or N dynamics in straw placed 7.5 or 15 cm deep. However, the surface straw lost mass much more slowly and immobilized more N for a longer time than the buried straw. Filter paper had a slow rate of mass loss initially, but once started, lost mass much more rapidly than either the barley stems or leaves. Loss of mass was closely correlated with the cellulose loss in straw, whether buried or placed on the soil surface. The sustained rate of mass loss was 6.3 and 7.0% month^-1, respectively, for surface and incorporated leaves compared with 3.5 and 4.3% month^-1, for surface and incorporated stems. The greater loss sustained by the leaves was attributed to a lower lignin content rather than a higher N content, because the addition of N to the straw after 30 days in the field failed to increase CO₂ evolution. Maximum net N immobilization occurred within 30 days for all the barley straw, except for the stems placed on the ground surface, which did not reach maximum N immobilization until the second summer. Immobilization and mineralization of N were estimated for a 3000 kg ha^-1 grain crop. Surface straw immobilized 3.8 kg N ha^-1 in the 1st year and 9 kg N ha^-1 in the 2nd year, whereas incorporated straw immobilixed 3.5 kg N hs^-1 in the 1st year and mineralized 4.5 kg N ha^-1 in the 2nd year. Thus, in Alaska, residue management does not affect N fertilizer requirements in the 1st year, but an additional 13.5 kg N ha^-1 is required for surface residues in the 2nd year.     

Carbon cycling in rice field ecosystems in the context of input, decomposition and translocation of organic materials and the fates of their end products (CO2 and CH4)

Rice fields are intensively managed, unique agroecosystems, where soil flooding is general performance for rice cultivation. Flooding the field results in reductive soil conditions, under which decomposition of organic materials proceeds during the period of rice cultivation. A large variety of organic materials are incorporated into rice soils according to field management. In this review, the kind and abundance of organic materials entering carbon cycling in the rice field ecosystem are evaluated first. Then, decomposition of plant residues and soil organic matter in rice fields is reviewed quantitatively. Decomposition of plant residues is shown to be the active process in carbon cycling in rice fields. Rice releases photosynthates into the rhizosphere (rhizodeposition), and they follow a different avenue of decomposition in soil from that of plant residues. Incorporation of rhizodeposition into microbial biomass and soil organic matter during the period of rice cultivation, and their fates after harvesting are evaluated quantitatively from ¹³C pulse labeled experiments. Percolating water transports inorganic and organic carbon from the plow layer to the subsoil layer. The amounts of their transport and accumulation in the subsoil layer are evaluated in relation to the amounts of soil organic C in the plow layer. Not only CO₂ but also CH₄ are produced in the decomposition process of organic materials in flooded rice fields. CH₄ evolution from rice fields is of global concern from the viewpoint of global warming. Origins of CH₄ evolved from rice fields are estimated first, followed by the fates of CH₄ in rice field ecosystems. Rhizodeposition is shown to be the main origin of CH₄ evolved from rice fields. Evolution to the atmosphere is not the sole pathway of CH₄ produced in rice fields. The amounts of CH₄ retained in soil, percolated to the subsoil layer and decomposed in soil are evaluated in the context of the amounts of CH₄ efflux. Thus, this review focuses on carbon cycling in the rice field ecosystem from the viewpoints of input, decomposition, and translocation of organic materials and the fates of their end products (CO₂ and CH₄).     

北京城市园林树木碳贮量与固碳量研究

为了解北京城市园林树木碳库的贮量及其固碳效果,在1995年和2000年北京城市园林绿化普查资料的基础上,结合遥感影像,对北京城市园林树木碳贮量进行计算。结果表明:2002年北京城市园林树木总碳贮量约为58.88万t,单位建成区面积碳贮量为7.70t/hm2;近年来北京园林树木碳贮量正逐年增加,2002年新增碳贮量达0.46万t。     

Linking the B ring hydroxylation pattern of condensed tannins to C, N and P mineralization. A case study using four tannins

Condensed tannins (CTs) are a major component of litter inputs, but little is known about the effects of tannin structural variations on soil biological processes and organic matter development. Four different CTs extracted from balsam fir, western red cedar, kalmia and black spruce were added to Corsican pine litter and subsequently incubated for 16 weeks in order to investigate the effect of the B ring hydroxylation pattern on C, N and P transformations. While for C mineralization the chain length and stereochemistry of the CTs seemed to be a more important parameter, net N and P mineralization rates were clearly reduced compared with non-amended litter. With regard to the B ring hydroxylation, the prodelphinidin (PD) CTs having predominantly three hydroxy groups at the B ring (balsam fir and western red cedar) exhibited significantly lower mineralization rates than the procyanidin (PC) CTs having two OH groups (kalmia and black spruce). The same was true for net nitrification, but this process was only slightly affected by the CTs. Although based on only four CTs, this study indicates that B ring hydroxylation is an important variable determining net N and P mineralization rates. Our results support previous suggestions that PD tannins bind to or react more strongly with soil organic matter. Therefore, more than PC tannins, they reduce the availability of organic N for mineralization as well as their own detectability by standard methods for soil CT.     

Soil microbial and nutrient dynamics in a wet Arctic sedge meadow in late winter and early spring

Microbial activity is known to continue during the winter months in cold alpine and Arctic soils often resulting in high microbial biomass. Complex soil nutrient dynamics characterize the transition when soil temperatures approach and exceed 0 °C in spring. At the time of this transition in alphine soils microbial biomass declines dramatically together with soil pools of available nutrients. This pattern of change characterizes alpine soils at the winter-spring transition but whether a similar pattern occurs in Arctic soils, which are colder, is unclear. In this study amounts of microbial biomass and the availability of carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) for microbial and plant growth in wet peaty soils of an Arctic sedge meadow have been determined across the winter-spring boundary. The objective was to determine the likely causes of the decline in microbial biomass in relation to temperature change and nutrient availability. The pattern of soil temperature at depths of 5-15 cm can be divided into three phases: below −10 °C in late winter, from −7 to 0 °C for 7 weeks during a period of freeze-thaw cycles and above 0 °C in early spring. Peak microbial biomass and nutrient availability occurred early in the freeze-thaw phase. Subsequently, a steady decrease in inorganic N occurred, so that when soil temperatures rose above 0 °C, pools of inorganic nutrients in soils were very low. In contrast, amounts of microbial C and soluble organic C and N remained high until the end of the period of freeze-thaw cycles, when a sudden collapse occurred in soluble organic C and N and in phosphatase activity, followed by a crash in microbial biomass just prior to soil temperatures rising consistently above 0 °C. Following this, there was no large pulse of available nutrients, implying that competition for nutrients from roots results in the collapse of the microbial pool.