Involvement of Bradyrhizobium japonicum denitrification in symbiotic nitrogen fixation by soybean plants subjected to flooding

Denitrification by Bradyrhizobium japonicum bacteroids contributes to nitric oxide (NO) production within soybean nodules in response to flooding conditions. However, the physiological relevance of NO production by denitrification in B. japonicum-Glycine max symbiosis is still unclear. In this work, soybean plants were inoculated with B. japonicum strains lacking the nirK or norC genes which encode the copper-containing nitrite reductase and the c-type nitric oxide reductase enzymes, respectively. 14 days flooding increased nodule number of plants inoculated with the WT and norC strains, but not of plants inoculated with the nirK mutant. However, nodule dry weight was not affected by 14 days flooding regardless of the strain used for inoculation. Supporting this observation, individual nodule growth was significantly higher in plants inoculated with nirK than those inoculated with WT or norC after 14 days flooding. Nodule functioning was strongly inhibited by flooding since leghemoglobin content of the nodules induced by any of the strains was significantly decreased after 7 or 14 days flooding compared to control plants. However, this effect was more relevant in nodules of plants inoculated with the WT or norC mutant than in those inoculated with the nirK mutant. Nitrogen fixation was also estimated by analyzing nitrogen content derived from biological nitrogen fixation in shoots, using the ¹⁵N isotope dilution technique. By using this approach, we observed that the negative effect of 14 days flooding on nitrogen fixation was more pronounced in plants inoculated with the norC mutant. However, nitrogen fixation of plants inoculated with nirK showed the highest tolerance to 14 days flooding. These findings allowed us to demonstrate the previously proposed hypothesis which suggests that NO formed by copper-containing nitrite reductase in soybean nodules, in response to flooding, has a negative effect on nitrogenase activity. We propose that inoculation of soybeans with a B. japonicum nirK mutant, which does not produce NO from nitrate, increases the tolerance of symbiotic nitrogen fixation to flooding.     

Changes in forest soil organic matter pools after a decade of elevated CO2 and O3

The impact of rising atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) may be mitigated, in part, by enhanced rates of net primary production and greater C storage in plant biomass and soil organic matter (SOM). However, C sequestration in forest soils may be offset by other environmental changes such as increasing tropospheric ozone (O₃) or vary based on species-specific growth responses to elevated CO₂. To understand how projected increases in atmospheric CO₂ and O₃ alter SOM formation, we used physical fractionation to characterize soil C and N at the Rhinelander Free Air CO₂-O₃ Enrichment (FACE) experiment. Tracer amounts of ¹⁵NH₄⁺ were applied to the forest floor of Populus tremuloides, P. tremuloides-Betula papyrifera and P. tremuloides-Acer saccharum communities exposed to factorial CO₂ and O₃ treatments. The ¹⁵N tracer and strongly depleted ¹³C-CO₂ were traced into SOM fractions over four years. Over time, C and N increased in coarse particulate organic matter (cPOM) and decreased in mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) under elevated CO₂ relative to ambient CO₂. As main effects, neither CO₂ nor O₃ significantly altered ¹⁵N recovery in SOM. Elevated CO₂ significantly increased new C in all SOM fractions, and significantly decreased old C in fine POM (fPOM) and MAOM over the duration of our study. Overall, our observations indicate that elevated CO₂ has altered SOM cycling at this site to favor C and N accumulation in less stable pools, with more rapid turnover. Elevated O₃ had the opposite effect, significantly reducing cPOM N by 15% and significantly increasing the C:N ratio by 7%. Our results demonstrate that CO₂ can enhance SOM turnover, potentially limiting long-term C sequestration in terrestrial ecosystems; plant community composition is an important determinant of the magnitude of this response.     

Differential and successive effects of residue quality and soil mineral N on water-stable aggregation during crop residue decomposition

Residue quality has been shown to influence soil water-stable aggregation (WSA) during crop residue decomposition, but there is still little information about its interactive effect with soil mineral N availability. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of soil mineral N on WSA during the decomposition of two high-C/N crop residues (wheat straw with C/N = 125.6 and miscanthus straw with C/N = 311.3). The two crop residues were combined with three mineral N addition rates (0, 60, and 120 mg N kg⁻¹ dry soil). Respiration, soil mineral N content, and WSA (expressed as mean-weight diameter, MWD) were measured on several dates during a 56-d incubation. The effect of decomposing crop residues on WSA followed two phases. (i) Between 0 and 7 d, the increase in WSA was related to intrinsic residue quality with higher decomposability of the wheat straw resulting in higher WSA. (ii) Thereafter, and until the end of the experiment, mineral N addition rates had a predominant but negative influence on WSA. In this second phase, the average MWD of residue-treated soils was 0.92, 0.55, and 0.44 mm for the 0, 60 and 120 mg N kg⁻¹ dry soil addition rates, respectively. Mineral N addition which did result in higher crop residue decomposition did not lead to higher WSA. WSA during crop residue decomposition is therefore not simply positively related to the induced microbial activity, and changes in microbial community composition with differential effects on WSA must be involved. The impact of high-C/N crop residues inputs on WSA, initially assumed to be low, could actually be strong and long-lasting in situations with low soil mineral N content.     

Compartmentalization of the soil animal food web as indicated by dual analysis of stable isotope ratios (N/N and C/C)

The soil animal food web has become a focus of recent ecological research but trophic relationships still remain enigmatic for many taxa. Analysis of stable isotope ratios of N and C provides a powerful tool for disentangling food web structure. In this study, animals, roots, soil and litter material from a temperate deciduous forest were analysed. The combined measurement of δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C provided insights into the compartmentalization of the soil animal food web. Leaf litter feeders were separated from animals relying mainly on recent belowground carbon resources and from animals feeding on older carbon. The trophic pathway of leaf litter-feeding species appears to be a dead end, presumably because leaf litter feeders (mainly diplopods and oribatid mites) are unavailable to predators due to large size and/or strong sclerotization. Endogeic earthworms that rely on older carbon also appear to exist in predator-free space. The data suggest that the largest trophic compartment constitutes of ectomycorrhizal feeders and their predators. Additionally, there is a smaller trophic compartment consisting of predators likely feeding on enchytraeids and potentially nematodes.     

FACE对三系杂交籼稻汕优63根系活性影响的研究

2005、2006年利用我国惟一的农田开放式空气CO2浓度增高（FACE）研究平台,设计施N量为125kg·hm^-2（LN）、250kg·hm^-2（NN）处理,研究大气CO2浓度比对照高200umol·mol^-1的FACE处理对三系杂交籼稻汕优63根系活性的影响。结果表明：（1）FACE处理使汕优63不同生育时期单位干质量根系的总吸收面积、活跃吸收面积、α-萘胺氧化量等根系活性指标均极显著小于对照。由于FACE处理促进汕优63根系发生量的大幅度增加,因此分蘖期、拔节期其单穴根系活性与对照多无明显差异,到抽穗期FACE处理单穴根系活性显著大于对照;（2）拔节期、抽穗期汕优63每穴的不定根数、不定根总长度、根系体积、根干质量与单位干质量根系活性的关系密切,根量越大单位于质量根系活性越低;（3）不同生育时期汕优63植株含氮率与单位干质量的根系活性多呈正相关,植株碳氮比与单位干质量的根系活性多呈负相关;（4）FACE处理汕优63根系生长量大、植株含氮率低、碳氮比高等可能是造成其单位干质量根系活性低于对照的重要原因。     

施肥对稻田N2O排放的影响

肥料施用是影响稻田N20排放的重要因素之一。以国内外相关文献为基础,综述了肥料的种类、施用量、施用方式和施用时间对稻田N2O排放的影响,指出了有待研究的内容：加强对土壤N2O排放机理的研究;进一步研究肥料施用对稻田N2O排放的影响;进一步研究施肥管理措施对稻田温室气体（CH4和N2O）排放的交互影响,寻求科学合理、切实可行的减排措施。     

浙北平原不同种植年限蔬菜地土壤氮磷的积累及环境风险评价

长期过量施肥可导致蔬菜地土壤养分大量累积、养分利用效率下降和环境污染风险增加。以浙北平原不同种植年限蔬菜地土壤为研究对象,采用化学测试方法研究了菜地土壤氮和磷的积累及其淋失潜力的变化。结果表明,随着种植年限的增加,蔬菜地土壤全磷、有效磷（Olsen P）和NO3-N呈明显的积累;蔬菜种植年限为〈2、2～5、6～10、11～20、20～30和＆gt;30a的表土全P平均分别为0.66、0.75、1.07、1.49、2.40和2.12g·kg-1,有效P平均分别为13.2、37.8、42.2、70.2、137.9和101.7mg·kg-1,NO3-N平均分别为9.15、13.58、50.18、46.48、73.28和74.20mg·kg-1,同时土壤N和P垂直下移渐趋明显。土壤水溶性磷含量随土壤有效磷（OlsenP）积累的变化存在一个明显的突变点,相对应的土壤OlsenP临界值约为60mg·kg-1。随着种植年限增长,蔬菜地地表径流中氮和磷浓度呈明显增加,利用年限为20～30a的蔬菜地径流中可溶性P和NO3-N浓度分别约为利用年限〈2a蔬菜地的13.12和9.48倍。研究认为,长期超量施肥已导致这一地区蔬菜地土壤养分的过度积累,在蔬菜生产中应重视和提倡平衡施肥,控制土壤氮磷的积累。     

紫色土丘陵区非耕作季节不同种植模式下N P流失模型

为了解长江上游紫色土丘陵区非耕作季节N、P的流失特征,以长江上游紫色土丘陵区4种典型种植模式为研究对象,采用野外调查、室内分析和模型模拟相结合的方法,于2008年11月1日至12月31日研究了耕作季节后不同种植模式在每次降雨后的N、P流失特征及不完全混合模型的综合应用效果。结果表明,非耕作季节,紫色农耕地均表现出较大的N、P流失量,最大分别达到（0.491±0.079）kg·hm-2和（12.604±13.173）×10-3kg·hm-2。N的流失量均大于P的流失量,并且N、P主要通过地表径流流失。不同种植模式间N、P流失量有较大的差异,其中生姜种植模式的N、P流失量最大,大豆种植模式最小。不完全混合模型可很好应用于研究区域农耕地N、P流失。模型的有效系数均达到0.6以上,其中模拟N流失的有效系数高达0.958。这表明,非耕作季节农耕地N、P流失是区域农业面源污染的重要来源,不完全混合模型可成为该区域N、P流失预报和面源污染控制的重要手段。     

设施和露天栽培下有机菜地土壤氮素矿化和硝化作用的比较研究

矿化作用和硝化作用是土壤氮素转化的主要途径,通过室内培养试验,对设施和露天栽培方式下有机菜地土壤氮素的矿化与硝化作用进行了比较研究。结果表明,除培养第1d外,设施有机菜地土壤氮素矿化量、矿化率在整个培养期间都显著高于露天有机菜地土壤;设施有机菜地土壤硝化量、硝化率在培养前两周内高于露天有机菜地土壤;设施有机菜地土壤矿化与硝化作用总体比露天有机菜地土壤强烈。矿化作用可能与全氮、C/N、微生物活性关系密切,而硝化作用强弱可能与微生物活性有关。无论施肥与否,设施有机菜地土壤N2O排放速率在培养期间总体高于露天有机菜地土壤,前者N2O累积排放量显著高于后者,这可能与土壤C/N有关。     

木薯渣复合基质在辣椒穴盘育苗上的应用效果

为了综合利用木薯渣废弃资源,本研究以木薯渣作为基本原料,辅以不同比例的蔗渣、菌糠等,配制成9个配方的木薯渣复合基质,并进行理化性状分析和辣椒穴盘育苗试验。试验结果表明,绝大部分复合基质的容重、pH、C/N、电导率和大小孔隙比均在优良无土栽培基质要求的范围内;其中,复合基质配方2（67%木薯渣＋5%蔗渣）、配方7（62%木薯渣＋10%菌糠）和配方9（42%木薯渣＋30%菌糠）对辣椒穴盘育苗的效果最好,所对应的辣椒苗的株高、地上部鲜重和根鲜重均比其它基质配方高,辣椒苗根部结团效果亦较好。因此,利用木薯渣可以合成复合基质用于辣椒的无土栽培穴盘育苗,该研究结果将为木薯渣废弃资源的再利用提供了一条新的途径。