Patterns of enzyme activities and nutrient availability within biocrusts under increasing aridity in Negev desert

Drahorad, Sylvie; Felix‐Henningsen, Peter; Siemens, Jan; Marschner, Bernd; Heinze, Stefanie

doi:10.1002/ecs2.4051

Cited by 8 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 56 publications

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“…The increase in soil nutrients and enzyme activity driven by BSCs is consistent with the results of some studies [ 30 , 31 ]. BSCs have a strong ability to proactively and passively fix nutrients [ 32 ]. In the initiative case, BSCs enhanced the chemical weathering of the underlying soil, fixed nutrients, and participated in the C and N cycle of the planted surface soil [ 33 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Responses of Soil C, N, P and Enzyme Activities to Biological Soil Crusts in China: A Meta-Analysis

Yang,

Yuan,

Guo

et al. 2024

Plants

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Biological soil crusts (BSCs) are often referred to as the “living skin” of arid regions worldwide. Yet, the combined impact of BSCs on soil carbon (C), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and enzyme activities remains not fully understood. This study identified, screened and reviewed 71 out of 2856 literature sources to assess the responses of soil C, N, P and enzyme activity to BSCs through a meta-analysis. The results indicated that BSC presence significantly increased soil C, N, P and soil enzyme activity, and this increasing effect was significantly influenced by the types of BSCs. Results from the overall effect showed that soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN), available nitrogen (AN), total phosphorus (TP), and available phosphorus (AP) increased by 107.88%, 84.52%, 45.43%, 27.46%, and 54.71%, respectively, and four soil enzyme activities (Alkaline Phosphatase, Cellulase, Sucrase, and Urease) increased by 93.65–229.27%. The highest increases in SOC, TN and AN content occurred in the soil covered with lichen crusts and moss crusts, and significant increases in Alkaline Phosphatase and Cellulase were observed in the soil covered with moss crusts and mixed crusts, suggesting that moss crusts can synergistically enhance soil C and N pool and enzyme activity. Additionally, variations in soil C, N, P content, and enzyme activity were observed under different environmental settings, with more pronounced improvements seen in coarse and medium-textured soils compared to fine-textured soils, particularly at a depth of 5 cm from the soil surface. BSCs in desert ecosystems showed more significant increases in SOC, TN, AN, and Alkaline Phosphatase compared to forest and grassland ecosystems. Specifically, BSCs at low altitude (≤500 m) with an annual average rainfall of 0–400 mm and an annual average temperature ≤ 10 °C were the most conducive to improving soil C, N, and P levels. Our results highlight the role of BSCs and their type in increasing soil C, N, P and enzyme activities, with these effects significantly impacted by soil texture, ecosystem type, and climatic conditions. The implications of these findings are crucial for soil enhancement, ecosystem revitalization, windbreak, and sand stabilization efforts in the drylands of China.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Responses of Soil C, N, P and Enzyme Activities to Biological Soil Crusts in China: A Meta-Analysis

Yang,

Yuan,

Guo

et al. 2024

Plants

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Patterns of enzyme activities and nutrient availability within biocrusts under increasing aridity in Negev desert

et al. 2022

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Biocrusts are crucial for the biogeochemical cycles of semiarid ecosystems and strongly influenced by environmental factors. We examined topcrusts (0-2 mm) and the underlying subcrust (2-35 mm depth) at two sites of the Negev with contrasting rainfall. The results show that sampling sites differing in moisture regime and sampling depth had a significant effect on soil properties. The microbial biomass, the concentrations of water-soluble carbon and nitrogen fractions, and the activities of eight enzymes of the carbon and nitrogen cycles decreased with decreasing available moisture and with increasing soil depth. The biomass-specific enzyme activity of topcrusts shows an increase in enzyme activity with increasing biomass in the same proportion. Biomassspecific enzyme activity revealed a strong nutrient demand and a high relative enzyme activity in subcrusts of the drier study area. Moreover, phosphatase activity was much higher in the biocrust of the drier study site. The ratios of carbon to nitrogen to phosphorous show a strong limitation of the latter two for the subcrusts in the Negev, while the ratio of water-extractable organic nitrogen to water-extractable organic carbon underlines the high importance of leaching for subcrusts in semiarid areas. We conclude that Negev topcrusts are highly effective zones of nutrient turnover, adopting to higher amounts of moisture with an increase in biomass and enzyme activity. The subcrusts are an important section of turnover and need to be included into studies on C, N, and P storage in crust covered ecosystems to reveal the processes in deeper soil.

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Soil depths and developmental stages of biological soil crusts are more important than shrub cover in structuring prokaryotic communities

Xu,

Kou,

Xiong

et al. 2023

CATENA

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Patterns of enzyme activities and nutrient availability within biocrusts under increasing aridity in Negev desert

Cited by 8 publications

References 56 publications

Responses of Soil C, N, P and Enzyme Activities to Biological Soil Crusts in China: A Meta-Analysis

Responses of Soil C, N, P and Enzyme Activities to Biological Soil Crusts in China: A Meta-Analysis

Patterns of enzyme activities and nutrient availability within biocrusts under increasing aridity in Negev desert

Soil depths and developmental stages of biological soil crusts are more important than shrub cover in structuring prokaryotic communities

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