Influence of nitrogen additions on litter decomposition, nutrient dynamics, and enzymatic activity of two plant species in a peatland in Northeast China

Song, Yanyu; Song, Chen; Ren, Jia; Tan, Wenwen; Jin, Shaofei; Jiang, Lei

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.12.311

Cited by 41 publications

(20 citation statements)

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“…Litter decomposition is a result of the combined effects of interactive chemical, biological, and physical processes (Aerts, 2006). The decomposition rate and nutrient release pattern are dependent on abiotic factors (e.g., climate conditions and soil physical and chemical properties) and biotic factors (e.g., litter quality and microbial community composition) (Prescott, 2005;Yu et al, 2015;Song et al, 2018;Lin et al, 2019). At the global scale, plant litter decomposition is controlled by climate and litter quality (Sun et al, 2004;Cornwell et al, 2008;Zhang et al, 2008); at the local scale, it is regulated by litter chemical properties and site soil conditions (Zhang et al, 2016;Zhu W. Y. et al, 2016;Ren et al, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Responses of Litter Decomposition and Nutrient Dynamics to Nitrogen Addition in Temperate Shrublands of North China

et al. 2021

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Plant litter decomposition is a crucial ecosystem process that regulates nutrient cycling, soil fertility, and plant productivity and is strongly influenced by increased nitrogen (N) deposition. However, the effects of exogenous N input on litter decomposition are still poorly understood, especially in temperate shrublands, which hinders predictions of soil C and nutrient dynamics under the context of global change. Temperate shrub ecosystems are usually N-limited and particularly sensitive to changes in exogenous N input. To investigate the responses of Vitex negundo and Spiraea trilobata litter decomposition to N addition, we conducted a field experiment in Vitex- and Spiraea-dominated shrublands located on Mt. Dongling in Beijing, North China. Four N treatment levels were applied: control (N0; no N addition), low N (N1; 20 kg⋅N⋅ha–1⋅year–1), moderate N (N2; 50 kg⋅N⋅ha–1⋅year–1), and high N (N3; 100 kg⋅N⋅ha–1⋅year–1). The litter decomposition in V. negundo was faster than that in S. trilobata, which may be due to the differences in their nutrient content and C/N ratio. N addition increased the amount of remaining N in the two litter types but had no effect on the remaining mass, C, or P. Nitrogen treatment did not affect the litter decomposition rates (k) of either litter type; i.e., N addition had no effect on litter decomposition in temperate shrublands. The neutral effect of N addition on litter decomposition may be primarily explained by the low temperatures and P limitation at the site as well as the opposing effects of the exogenous inorganic N, whereby exogenous N inhibits lignin degradation but promotes the decomposition of readily decomposed litter components. These results suggest that short-term N deposition may have a significant impact on N cycling but not C or P cycling in such shrub ecosystems.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Responses of Litter Decomposition and Nutrient Dynamics to Nitrogen Addition in Temperate Shrublands of North China

et al. 2021

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“…This study has some distinct points in comparison with traditional studies (Hou et al., 2020; Knorr et al., 2005; Song et al., 2018; Sun et al., 2018). First, our experiment is the first to fully distinguish the main effects of N, P and acid addition as well as their interactions on litter decomposition.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 79%

Forest soil acidification consistently reduces litter decomposition irrespective of nutrient availability and litter type

et al. 2021

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Nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and acid deposition are co‐occurring in many ecosystems, likely with complex interactive effects on litter decomposition. Few studies have been conducted to distinguish the interactive effects of these three factors on forest litter decomposition. Thus, we performed a 5‐year litter decomposition experiment with N, P, acid addition in a temperate forest of Changbai Mountain in China, including four litter types from Pinus koraiensis, Quercus mongolica, Tilia amurensis and their mixtures. Our results showed that acid addition consistently reduced litter decomposition rate, irrespective of nutrient addition or litter types. In contrast, N and P addition had less impact on litter decomposition. Litter decomposition rate linearly reduced with decreasing soil pH, but positively increased with soil N availability. No relationship was found between soil P availability and litter decomposition. Soil enzyme activity played a key role in regulating litter decomposition response, such as acid phosphatase, xylosidase, N‐cacetyl‐b‐D‐glucosaminidase and α‐1,4 glucosidase. Besides, low‐quality litter (i.e. high C concentration, C:N and C:P ratio) amplified the negative effect of soil acidification on litter decomposition. This study suggests that soil acidification consistently decelerates litter decomposition in temperate forests, which is independent of soil nutrient availability and litter types. The intensifying soil acidification with continuous N deposition in the future will greatly reduce litter nutrient return to soil, increasing the risk of multiple soil nutrient limitation. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.

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“…In this study, the N contents in the QAC and PSD litter were positively correlated with the decomposition rate ( Table 5). The litter decomposition rate is positively correlated with the litter N content early in litter decomposition (Song et al 2018), when litter N is necessary for the growth and development of decomposers. Therefore, the litter nutrient contents will affect the litter decomposition by affecting the activities of decomposers, so when the initial nitrogen content is higher, the activities of microorganisms are relatively high, and litter decomposition is fast.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Decomposition dynamics and ecological stoichiometry of Quercus acutissima and Pinus densiflora litter in the Grain to Green Program Area of northern China

Sun

Gao

et al. 2019

J. For. Res.

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Litter decomposition and ecological stoichiometry of nutrient release is an important part of material cycling and energy flow in forest ecosystems. In a study of the ecological stoichiometry and nutrient release during litter decomposition in a pine-oak forest ecosystem of the Grain to Green Program (GTGP) area of northern China, a typical pine and oak species (PDS: Pinus densiflora Sieb., QAC: Quercus acutissima Carr.) were selected in the Taiyi Mountain study area. The ecological stoichiometry characteristics of carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) and litter decomposition dynamics were studied by field sampling and quantitative analyses. The results showed the following. (1) The decomposition dynamics of both litters was slow-fast-slow. The most important climatic factor affecting the litter decomposition rate from May to October was precipitation and temperature from November to April of the following year. (2) Throughout the 300-day study, in both litters, C of the two litters was released, N first accumulated and was then released, and P exhibited a release-accumulate-release pattern. (3) C:P was significantly higher than C:N and N:P (p \ 0.05); the C:N of PSD litter was higher than that of QAC (p \ 0.05), but the N:P of QAC litter was higher than that of PSD litter (p \ 0.05). The C:N of both litters was very high in the study area, indicating that the nutrient release ability during litter decomposition in the two typical pine-oak forest ecosystems was relatively weak; therefore, more attention should be paid to nitrogen-fixing species and mixed forests in the GTGP area of northern China.

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Influence of nitrogen additions on litter decomposition, nutrient dynamics, and enzymatic activity of two plant species in a peatland in Northeast China

Cited by 41 publications

References 50 publications

Responses of Litter Decomposition and Nutrient Dynamics to Nitrogen Addition in Temperate Shrublands of North China

Responses of Litter Decomposition and Nutrient Dynamics to Nitrogen Addition in Temperate Shrublands of North China

Forest soil acidification consistently reduces litter decomposition irrespective of nutrient availability and litter type

Decomposition dynamics and ecological stoichiometry of Quercus acutissima and Pinus densiflora litter in the Grain to Green Program Area of northern China

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