Grazing modifies inorganic and organic nitrogen uptake by coexisting plant species in alpine grassland

Jiang, Lili; Wang, Shiping; Pang, Zhe; Wang, Changshun; Kardol, Paul; Zhou, Xiaoqi; Rui, Yichao; Lan, Zhi chun; Wang, Yanfen; Xu, Xingliang

doi:10.1007/s00374-015-1069-1

Cited by 32 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…We found that the grasslands dominated by sedges (e.g., Heleocharis uniglumis , Carex enervis , and Kobresia humilis ) had a larger decrease in soil pH than the grasslands dominated by grass species (e.g., Leymus chinensis , Stipa grandis , and Stipa purpurea ). This is because the sedge species generally show relatively high absorption rates for NH 4 + (Jiang et al, 2016), which can be replaced by H + , thus decreasing the soil pH (Berthrong et al, 2009). Grazing exclusion also led to significant decreases in the deep soil pH for forb and shrub species (e.g., Artemisia desertorum and Astragalus adsurgens ) in grasslands as a result of the deep roots.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Significant soil acidification caused by grazing exclusion across China’s grassland areas

et al. 2020

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Soil pH is strongly associated with soil biogeochemical cycles and biodiversity in terrestrial ecosystems. Grazing exclusion (GE) has been widely adopted as an effective practice to restore degraded grasslands. However, the effect of GE on soil pH is still poorly understood and remains inconclusive. We synthesized data for 63 sites from the peer‐reviewed literature and 43 additional field sites and investigated the differences in soil pH following grazing exclusion across China’s grasslands. The mean pH across all samples decreased by 0.13 units with grazing exclusion (mean pH 8.15 and 8.02 for the grazed and grazing exclusion groups, respectively, p < 0.001). The pH of the surface soil (0–20 cm) showed the greatest rates of decrease in grazing exclusion grasslands, whereas the pH of the deep soil layers (20–100 cm) showed a limited response to grazing exclusion. In general, the largest rate of decrease in soil pH occurred after medium‐term periods (5–15 years) of grazing exclusion, whereas a smaller rate of change was found over short‐ (≤5 years) and long‐term periods (≥15 years) of grazing exclusion. Of the environmental factors examined, the climatic conditions, accumulation of biomass and the soil carbon and nitrogen dynamics were important factors influencing soil pH following grazing exclusion. Our results indicate that grazing exclusion causes significant soil acidification, especially in surface soils and humid areas. Our results provide an important reference for the future management of China’s grasslands.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…show relatively high absorption rates for NH 4 + (Jiang et al, 2016), which can be replaced by H + , thus decreasing the soil pH (Berthrong et al, 2009). Grazing exclusion also led to significant decreases in the deep soil pH for forb and shrub species (e.g., Artemisia desertorum…”

Section: Factors Affecting Soil Phmentioning

confidence: 99%

Significant soil acidification caused by grazing exclusion across China’s grassland areas

et al. 2020

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“…Additionally, the changes in species composition under high grazing intensities can also affect the availability of nutrients. For example, grazing can increase the number of forbs, which can absorb more N than graminoids [6,30]. In addition, unpalatable and grazing-tolerant annual species become dominant under heavy grazing pressure, and those species usually have higher nutrient contents with lower leaf C:N ratios than perennial grass species [6,8,13,30].…”

Section: Effects Of Grazing On Stoichiometric Characteristics Of Plantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Grazing Affects the Ecological Stoichiometry of the Plant–Soil–Microbe System on the Hulunber Steppe, China

et al. 2019

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Grazing affects nutrient cycling processes in grasslands, but little is known by researchers about effects on the nutrient stoichiometry of plant–soil–microbe systems. In this study, the influence of grazing intensity (0, 0.23, 0.34, 0.46, 0.69, and 0.92 AU ha−1) on carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) and their stoichiometric ratios in plants, soil, and microbes was investigated in a Hulunber meadow steppe, Northeastern China. The C:N and C:P ratios of shoots decreased with grazing increased. Leaf N:P ratios <10 suggested that the plant communities under grazing were N-limited. Heavy grazing intensities increased the C:N and C:P ratios of microbial biomass, but grazing intensity had no significant effects on the stoichiometry of soil nutrients. The coupling relationship of C:N ratio in plant–soil–microbial systems was tightly significant compared to C:P ratio and N:P ratio according to the correlation results. The finding suggested grazing exacerbated the competition between plants and microorganisms for N and P nutrition by the stoichiometric changes (%) in each grazing level relative to the no grazing treatment. Therefore, for the sustainability of grasslands in Inner Mongolia, N inputs need to be increased and high grazing intensities reduced in meadow steppe ecosystems, and the grazing load should be controlled within G0.46.

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“…However, legume species (including Gueldenstaedtia diversifolia and Medicago ruthenica) have strong nitrogen fixation ability, but weak absorption efficiency for NH 4 + and NO 3 À (Wang et al 2012). The different uptake patterns of different species have been demonstrated by many studies in alpine meadows and other ecosystems (McKane et al 2002;Gao et al 2014;Jiang et al 2015;Li et al 2015). Thus, a decrease in the diversity of the functional groups might enhance the contents of different nitrogen forms in the soil.…”

Section: Effects Of Litter On Plant Diversitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Relationship of plant diversity with litter and soil available nitrogen in an alpine meadow under a 9‐year grazing exclusion

Zou

Luo

et al. 2016

Ecological Research

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Grazing exclusion is widely used globally to restore degraded grasslands. Plant diversity has important impacts on grassland ecosystem functions, including grassland productivity and carbon storage. In this study, we selected a Kobresia meadow on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau to investigate how grazing exclusion affects plant diversity. Inorganic nitrogen (NH 4 + and NO 3 À ) was also measured because its availability impacts plant growth. We found that plant diversity in the meadow was significantly lower under grazing exclusion (fenced meadow) for 9 years compared with moderate grazing. Accumulated litter was significantly higher under grazing exclusion (386.41 g m À2) compared with grazing (58.77 g m À2). Soil inorganic nitrogen at 0-5 cm depth was significantly higher under grazing exclusion (13.60 · 10 À2 g kg À1) than under grazing (9.40 · 10 À2 g kg À1

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Grazing modifies inorganic and organic nitrogen uptake by coexisting plant species in alpine grassland

Cited by 32 publications

References 59 publications

Significant soil acidification caused by grazing exclusion across China’s grassland areas

Significant soil acidification caused by grazing exclusion across China’s grassland areas

Grazing Affects the Ecological Stoichiometry of the Plant–Soil–Microbe System on the Hulunber Steppe, China

Relationship of plant diversity with litter and soil available nitrogen in an alpine meadow under a 9‐year grazing exclusion

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