Mineral type and land-use intensity control composition and functions of microorganisms colonizing pristine minerals in grassland soils

Brandt, Luise; Stache, Fabian; Poll, Christian; Bramble, De Shorn E.; Schöning, Ingo; Schrumpf, Marion; Ulrich, Susanne; Kaiser, Klaus; Mikutta, Robert; Mikutta, Christian; Oelmann, Yvonne; Konrad, Alexander; Siemens, Jan; Kandeler, Ellen

doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2023.109037

Cited by 4 publications

(6 citation statements)

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“…This could have promoted more efficient utilization of OM by the mineral‐associated microorganisms and consequently stimulated microbial biomass production (Cotrufo et al., 2013; Poeplau et al., 2019) and ultimately increased MAOM formation (Angst et al., 2021). This statement is supported by the finding of a positive relationship between PLFAs:MAOM‐C ratio and land use intensity (fertilization) in our companion study (Brandt et al., 2023). Brandt et al.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

“…Consequently, OM bound to clays is more desorbable and available for microbial consumption and mineralization than OM bound to oxides (Kleber et al., 2021). In a companion study, we observed a higher phospholipid‐derived fatty acids (PLFAs) to OC ratio on illite than on goethite (Brandt et al., 2023). This means illite supported a larger microbial biomass per MAOM‐C than goethite, which is in line with our idea that the OM bound to illite might have been more bioavailable than that bound to goethite.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 88%

“…A total of 3648 mineral containers were installed at all 300 sites between November 2015 and January 2016. The mineral containers had a surface area of 35 cm 2 and consisted of a plastic ring that framed a 50‐μm mesh which served to prevent root ingrowth and mineral losses but allowed for water passage and microbial colonization (Figure 1a; Brandt et al., 2023). Given the container design, translocation of OM into the containers can result from: (i) transport of DOM from soil OM decomposition or root exudates via the soil solution, (ii) transport of small (<50 μm) particulate material and microbes by percolating soil water and (iii) ingrowth of fungi followed by transport of OM and bacteria via fungal hyphae (see Frey et al., 2003; See et al., 2022).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…(a) Setup and dimensions of a mineral container; (b) schematic top view of the mineral container placement in 5 cm soil depth; (c) photo of a row of minerals container on a sand bed during installation in 2015; (d) photo of sampling a mineral container and the surrounding soil; (e) photo of an opened mineral container (reprinted from Brandt et al., 2023 with the permission from Elsevier).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Since oxides and clays both occur in the same particle size fraction and tend to associate with each other (Khomo et al., 2017; Kirsten et al., 2021), straightforward differentiation of their individual contributions to soil OC storage is difficult. In addition, MAOM might not only form from interaction of DOM with minerals, but also stem from residues of microorganisms that colonize the minerals (Angst et al., 2021; Cotrufo et al., 2013), with the colonization patterns varying between different mineral types (Brandt et al., 2023; Dong et al., 2022; Uroz et al., 2015). Field incubation of pristine minerals (Kandeler et al., 2019; Liebmann et al., 2022; Vieira et al., 2020) offers the opportunity to directly determine the contributions of oxides and clays to MAOM formation, but such an approach has not yet been applied along a gradient in land use and soil management intensity.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Formation of mineral‐associated organic matter in temperate soils is primarily controlled by mineral type and modified by land use and management intensity

Bramble,

Ulrich,

Schöning

et al. 2023

Global Change Biology

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Formation of mineral‐associated organic matter (MAOM) supports the accumulation and stabilization of carbon (C) in soil, and thus, is a key factor in the global C cycle. Little is known about the interplay of mineral type, land use and management intensity in MAOM formation, especially on subdecadal time scales. We exposed mineral containers with goethite or illite, the most abundant iron oxide and phyllosilicate clay in temperate soils, for 5 years in topsoils of 150 forest and 150 grassland sites in three regions across Germany. Results show that irrespective of land use and management intensity, more C accumulated on goethite than illite (on average 0.23 ± 0.10 and 0.06 ± 0.03 mg m−2 mineral surface respectively). Carbon accumulation across regions was consistently higher in coniferous forests than in deciduous forests and grasslands. Structural equation models further showed that thinning and harvesting reduced MAOM formation in forests. Formation of MAOM in grasslands was not affected by grazing. Fertilization had opposite effects on MAOM formation, with the positive effect being mediated by enhanced plant productivity and the negative effect by reduced plant species richness. This highlights the caveat of applying fertilizers as a strategy to increase soil C stocks in temperate grasslands. Overall, we demonstrate that the rate and amount of MAOM formation in soil is primarily driven by mineral type, and can be modulated by land use and management intensity even on subdecadal time scales. Our results suggest that temperate soils dominated by oxides have a higher capacity to accumulate and store C than those dominated by phyllosilicate clays, even under circumneutral pH conditions. Therefore, adopting land use and management practices that increase C inputs into oxide‐rich soils that are under their capacity to store C may offer great potential to enhance near‐term soil C sequestration.

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