[1] The seasonal changes in evapotranspiration over a hill evergreen forest in northern Thailand (18°48 0 N, 98°54 0 E), in the Asian monsoon region, were simulated using a multilayer model and the boundary conditions above the canopy. The simulation considered the uncertainty in the leaf area index (LAI) and physiological parameters for both photosynthesis and stomatal conductance models. The parameters were based on the estimated LAI and determined by referring to the measured net photosynthesis rate and stomatal conductance for a single leaf. The simulated cumulative evapotranspiration and rainfall interception agreed with the values obtained from the water budget within these uncertainties. The sensitivity of these limits to both evaporation and transpiration was also investigated. The simulated transpiration peaked in the late dry season. The latent heat flux obtained with the eddy correlation technique showed that the forest continued to transpire in the late dry season. The heat pulse velocities also showed a peak in water use by individual trees in the late dry season. These results counter the view that evapotranspiration declines in the dry season, as has been reported previously for an evergreen forest and other vegetation in Thailand. The transpiration peak was thought to depend on the reduced wetness of the canopy, and the consequent lack of evaporation from it, and on the fact that there was little decline in stomatal conductance, even in the driest conditions.

Soil respiration and soil carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) concentration were investigated in a tropical monsoon forest in northern Thailand, from 1998 to 2000. Soil respiration was relatively high during the rainy season and low during the dry season, although interannual fluctuations were large. Soil moisture was widely different between the dry and wet seasons, while soil temperature changed little throughout the year. As a result, the rate of soil respiration is determined predominantly by soil moisture, not by soil temperature. The roughly estimated annual soil respiration rate was 2560 g C m Ϫ2 year Ϫ1 . The soil CO 2 concentration also increased in the rainy season and decreased in the dry season, and showed clearer seasonality than soil respiration did.

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The effects of compost application on soil carbon sequestration potential and carbon budget of a tropical sandy soil was studied. Greenhouse gas emissions from soil surface and agricultural inputs (fertiliser and fossil fuel uses) were evaluated. The origin of soil organic carbon was identified by using stable carbon isotope. The CO2, CH4 and N2O emissions from soil were estimated in hill evergreen forest (NF) plot as reference, and in the corn cultivation plots with compost application rate at 30 Mg ha−1 y−1 (LC), and at 50 Mg ha−1 y−1 (HC). The total C emissions from soil surface were 8·54, 10·14 and 9·86 Mg C ha−1 y−1 for NF, HC and LC soils, respectively. Total N2O emissions from HC and LC plots (2·56 and 3·47 kg N2O ha−1 y−1) were significantly higher than from the NF plot (1·47 kg N2O ha−1 y−1). Total CO2 emissions from fuel uses of fertiliser, irrigation and machinery were about 10 per cent of total CO2 emissions. For soil carbon storage, since 1983, it has been increased significantly (12 Mg ha−1) under the application of 50 Mg ha−1 y−1 of compost but not with 30 Mg ha−1 y−1. The net C budget when balancing out carbon inputs and outputs from soil for NF, HC and LC soils were +3·24, −2·50 and +2·07 Mg C ha−1 y−1, respectively. Stable isotope of carbon (δ13C value) indicates that most of the increased soil carbon is derived from the compost inputs and/or corn biomass. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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