Assessment of the C/N ratio as an indicator of the decomposability of organic matter in forest soils

Ostrowska, A.; Porębska, Grażyna

doi:10.1016/j.ecolind.2014.09.044

Cited by 92 publications

(57 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…The differential patterns between SOC and soil TN pools in the present study are likely due to N fertilization in the agricultural fields, where soil C:N ratios would be lowered owing to disproportionate accumulation of N (Li, Wen, Zhang, et al, 2017;Ostrowska & Porębska, 2015). This is supported by our results, that is, soil C:N ratios in the agricultural fields were lower compared with the ratio in the forests.…”

Section: Increase Of Soc and Tn Pools By Forage Grass Cultivationsupporting

confidence: 84%

“…This is the case in the present study, especially in the 0–10 cm horizon, probably due to the disproportionate increase in SOC pool relative to soil TN pool in the forests and forage grass fields. Additionally, the lower C:N ratios in the agricultural fields might indicate too high fertilizer N input (Ostrowska & Porębska, ). However, the difference in C:N ratio among the five land use types decreases as soil depth increases, likely owing to decreasing N fertilization effect as soil depth increases.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Forage grass cultivation increases soil organic carbon and nitrogen pools in a karst region, southwest China

Liu

Chen

et al. 2018

Land Degrad Dev

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Whether conservation agriculture systems can increase soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN) pools remains unresolved. We measured SOC and TN pools in maize–soybean rotation fields and three types of conservation agriculture systems with mature forests being selected for comparison in southwest China's karst areas. The three types of conservation agriculture systems were fields of mulberry, forage grass, and sugarcane. The objective was mainly to evaluate whether replacement of maize–soybean fields by the other three types of agricultural fields would significantly increase SOC and TN pools. Across the 0–30 cm soil profile, SOC and TN pools were not significantly higher in the mulberry and sugarcane fields than in the maize–soybean fields (47.42 ± 6.34 Mg C ha−1 and 5.47 ± 0.49 Mg N ha−1). Nevertheless, SOC and TN pools in the forage grass fields (74.12 ± 5.30 Mg C ha−1 and 7.09 ± 0.41 Mg N ha−1) were higher by 56.3 and 29.4% relative to the maize–soybean fields, but were lower by 38.3% and 21.8% compared to the forests, respectively. Microbial biomass C (MBC) and N (MBN) concentrations varied in similar patterns as SOC and TN pools. The MBC:SOC and MBN:TN ratios were higher in the forage grass fields, suggesting increased soil organic matter quality compared to the other types of agricultural fields. Our findings suggest that whether conservation agriculture can enhance SOC and TN pools largely depends on crop type with forage grass cultivation being identified as an efficient solution to promote SOC and TN pools.

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Section: Increase Of Soc and Tn Pools By Forage Grass Cultivationsupporting

confidence: 84%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Forage grass cultivation increases soil organic carbon and nitrogen pools in a karst region, southwest China

Liu

Chen

et al. 2018

Land Degrad Dev

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“…the relationship between enzyme activities and the c/n ratio confirms the importance of the quality of organic matter supplied, inter alia, by plants. the c/n ratio has been a long known parameter, used to assess a degree of organic matter decomposition and in the construction of indicators to assess the quality of forest soil fertility and habitats (Brożek et al 2001;Ostrowska, Porębska 2015).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The relationship between soil properties, enzyme activity and land use

Błońska

Lasota

Zwydak

2017

Forest Research Papers

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Abstract. the aim of this study was to assess the effects of different types of land use (forest, tillage and pasture) on soil properties, especially enzyme activity. Our investigation was carried out on 53 research plots with 11 plots in broadleaved forest stands, 12 plots in mixed broadleaved stands, 10 plots in mixed coniferous stands, 9 plots on tillage and 11 plots on pasture. the soil samples were collected from a depth of 0-15 cm after removing the organic horizon. Contents of organic carbon and nitrogen, pH and soil texture were investigated. Furthermore, dehydrogenase and urease activity were determined. Significant differences in the enzyme activity between forest and agricultural soils were observed, thus demonstrating that enzyme activity is influenced by the organic matter content of the soil. the highest enzyme activity was recorded in the forest soil within broadleaved stands, whilst the lowest activity was found in tillage soil, because tillage soil contained significantly less organic matter. High enzymatic activity of pasture soils is the combined result of vegetation type and the lack of plowing.

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“…The ratio may also be an indicator of the degree of decomposition and quality of organic matter in the sample (Ostrowska and Porebska, 2015)-but this effect is difficult to discern unless all material has the same initial C:N value, which is unlikely in catchments with heterogeneous vegetation. Over time as organic matter decays, carbon is lost via respiration as CO 2 and nitrogen is broken down during mineralization (Manzoni and Porporato, 2009).…”

Section: Carbon-nitrogen Relationshipsmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Decomposition rate is dependent on many factors including climate, litter quality, and the nature and abundance of the decomposer organisms (Aerts, 1997). Further, carbon and nitrogen losses are not linear (Ostrowska and Porebska, 2015). Carbon mass is typically lost faster than nitrogen mass in initial stages of decay (Prescott, 2005;Osman, 2012).…”

Section: Carbon-nitrogen Relationshipsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Particulate carbon and nitrogen dynamics in a headwater catchment in Northern Thailand: hysteresis, high yields, and hot spots

Ziegler

Benner

Kunkel

et al. 2016

Hydrological Processes

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Abstract:Rivers of South and Southeast Asia disgorge large suspended sediment loads, reflecting exceptionally high rates of erosion promoted by natural processes (tectonic and climatic) and anthropogenic (land-use change) activities that are characteristic of the region. While particulate carbon and nitrogen fluxes have been characterized in some large Asian rivers, less is known about the headwater systems where much sediment and organic material are initially mobilized. This study, conducted in the 74-km 2 Mae Sa Experimental Catchment in northern Thailand, shows that the Sa River is an important source for particulate organic carbon (POC) and particulate organic nitrogen (PON) transported to larger river systems and downstream reservoirs. However, the yields during three years of investigation varied greatly: 5.0-22.3 Mg POC km À2 y À1 and 0.48-2.02 Mg PON km À2 y À1. The 22.3 Mg POC km À2 y À1 yield is the highest reported for any river on the Asian continent. Stream samples collected during 12 storms showed that almost 3% of the total suspended solid load is POC 0.7 μm to 2.0 mm in size. This percentage is higher than other values for most large rivers on the continent. Further, we documented a strong pulse hysteretic behaviour in the stream, whereby peak fluxes of POC and PON are often delayed (anticlockwise hysteresis) or accelerated (clockwise hysteresis) relative to stream flow peaks (or are complex), complicating the prediction of storm-based or annual particulate carbon and nitrogen fluxes. Stream turbidity and total suspended sediment are reasonable proxies for POC and PON concentrations, while stream discharge is not a good predictor variable. Observed C:N ratios for measured particulate samples range from 3 to 83, with the high-end values likely associated with fresh (non-decomposed) vegetative material greater than 2 mm in diameter. The C:N ratio (weighted based on three sediment sizes) for 12 events ranges from 7.5 to 15.3. These modest values reflect the relatively low C:N ratios for small size fractions (0.7-0.63 μm) that comprise 50-90% of the TSS load in the events. Overall, organic material <0.63 μm contribute about 75% of the total POC load and 80% of the PON load. The annual C:N ratio for the river is approximately 10-11. Collectively, our findings indicate the occasionally high yields make the Sa River-and potentially other similar headwater rivers-a hot spot for POC and PON transported to downstream water bodies. Complex hysteresis patterns and high year-to-year variability hinders our ability to calculate and predict these yields without continuous, automated monitoring of discharge and turbidity.

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Assessment of the C/N ratio as an indicator of the decomposability of organic matter in forest soils

Cited by 92 publications

References 20 publications

Forage grass cultivation increases soil organic carbon and nitrogen pools in a karst region, southwest China

Forage grass cultivation increases soil organic carbon and nitrogen pools in a karst region, southwest China

The relationship between soil properties, enzyme activity and land use

Particulate carbon and nitrogen dynamics in a headwater catchment in Northern Thailand: hysteresis, high yields, and hot spots

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