Soil nutrients and water affect the age-related fine root biomass but not production in two plantation forests on the Loess Plateau, China

Chen, Lili; Mu, Xingmin; Yuan, Zhengqiang; Deng, Qiang; Chen, Yinglong; Yuan, Lois Y.; Ryan, L. P.; Kallenbach, Robert L.

doi:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2016.09.003

Cited by 39 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…This increased SOC was attributed to higher organic matter inputs in tree plantations than in bare land or young soils, due to high net primary production and the prevention of erosion by wind and water from planted trees [70,71]. Several chronosequence studies have reported that fine-root production increases [72] or decreases [73] with stand age. Based on a chronosequence of seven to 201 years since fire, Yuan et al [54] showed that fine-root biomass peaked in 94-year-old stands, while fine-root production peaked in 11-year-old stands.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Soil Aggregation and Organic Carbon Dynamics in Poplar Plantations

Fang

Chen

et al. 2018

Forests

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Soil resident water-stable macroaggregates (diameter (Ø) > 0.25 mm) play a critical role in organic carbon conservation and fertility. However, limited studies have investigated the direct effects of stand development on soil aggregation and its associated mechanisms. Here, we examined the dynamics of soil organic carbon, water-stable macroaggregates, litterfall production, fine-root (Ø < 1 mm) biomass, and soil microbial biomass carbon with stand development in poplar plantations (Populus deltoides L. ‘35’) in Eastern Coastal China, using an age sequence (i.e., five, nine, and 16 years since plantation establishment). We found that the quantity of water-stable macroaggregates and organic carbon content in topsoil (0–10 cm depth) increased significantly with stand age. With increasing stand age, annual aboveground litterfall production did not differ, while fine-root biomass sampled in June, August, and October increased. Further, microbial biomass carbon in the soil increased in June but decreased when sampled in October. Ridge regression analysis revealed that the weighted percentage of small (0.25 mm ≤ Ø < 2 mm) increased with soil microbial biomass carbon, while that of large aggregates (Ø ≥ 2 mm) increased with fine-root biomass as well as microbial biomass carbon. Our results reveal that soil microbial biomass carbon plays a critical role in the formation of both small and large aggregates, while fine roots enhance the formation of large aggregates.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Soil Aggregation and Organic Carbon Dynamics in Poplar Plantations

Fang

Chen

et al. 2018

Forests

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“…Mean annual precipitation is 560 mm and mean annual temperature is 9°C. The dry season includes winter, spring, and early summer, and most precipitation occurs in July and August (Chen et al, ). Authorities classify soils as calcic cambisols (Jiao et al, ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in rhizosphere bacterial and fungal community composition with vegetation restoration in planted forests

et al. 2019

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Soil microbial communities affect nutrient cycling and ecosystem functioning. However, the variations in microbial diversity and community composition within degraded landscapes remain unclear. Using high-throughput sequencing of bacterial 16S ribosomal RNA genes and internal transcribed spacer fungal sequences, we investigated the rhizosphere microbial diversity and community of coniferous Pinus tabulaeformis Carr. forests in degraded lands across a chronosequence that spanned over 60 years (10, 25, 40, and 60 years since restoration, four forest stands). We found significant differences in soil bacterial and fungal communities among stand ages. Actinobacteria, Proteobacteria, and Acidobacteria dominated the rhizosphere, whereas Basidiomycota, Ascomycota, and Zygomycota prevailed as fungal components.With stand development, bacterial diversity decreased, but fungal diversity increased.Nonmetric multidimensional scaling analysis separated bacterial community clusters well by stands. Fungal community clusters of 25-and 60-year-old stands overlapped.The dominant bacteria Acidobacteria showed the highest relative abundance at the 40-year-old stands. Soil microbial communities correlated significantly with the macro-nutrients (soil organic carbon, total nitrogen, and total phosphorous). Additionally, the relative abundance of Acidobacteria at the phylum level correlated positively with soil total phosphorous; Deltaproteobacteria at the class level correlated positively with soil organic carbon and total nitrogen. Thus, restoring vegetation in degraded temperate forests enhanced some macronutrients and influenced microbial communities. Our results revealed that restoring vegetation in degraded lands decreased the diversity of bacterial communities over time. In contrast, the soil fungal diversity increased after restoration, and fungal communities in the 25-and 60-year-old forest stands overlapped on degraded soils.

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“…Understanding the nature of microbes in deep soils is particularly important in the Loess Plateau because its deep soils can reach a depth of hundreds of meters (Chen, Yuan, Liu, Ji, & Hou, ). The tree species used for ecosystem restoration in this degraded region are generally the coniferous Pinus tabulaeformis and the deciduous Robinia pseudoacacia (Chen et al, ; Chen, Deng, Yuan, Mu, & Kallenbach, ). In general, conditions provided by different forest species support specific groups of soil microorganisms (Nielsen, Osler, Campbell, Burslem, & Wal, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vertical changes in bacterial community composition down to a depth of 20 m on the degraded Loess Plateau in China

et al. 2020

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Soil microbes are involved in the fundamental processes that underpin an ecosystem's function. However, little is known about the microbial communities that inhabit deep soil horizons, especially in degraded forest ecosystems. Here, we used high‐throughput sequencing to investigate the vertical distribution of soil bacterial communities to a depth of 20 m in Pinus tabulaeformis and Robinia pseudoacacia forests on the Loess Plateau, China. We found that bacterial richness declined from the topsoil to a depth of 2 m in P. tabulaeformis forests and declined from the topsoil to a depth of 1 m in R. pseudoacacia forests, and thereafter increased. The relative abundance of α‐Proteobacteria was higher in subsoils than in topsoils of P. tabulaeformis forests. It was highest at the depth of 20 or 14 m in both forest types, suggesting that α‐Proteobacteria can survive dry, alkaline, low‐nutrient environments. We also found a higher relative abundance of Acidobacteria in topsoils than in subsoils, indicating that Acidobacteria can grow well in nutrient‐rich environments. Our results suggest that soil bacterial communities respond to nutrient changes associated with soil depth and plant species. These findings revealed that soil microorganisms persisted in deep and carbon‐starved soils, especially for α‐Proteobacteria, which may be adapted to resource‐poor environments in deep soils.

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Soil nutrients and water affect the age-related fine root biomass but not production in two plantation forests on the Loess Plateau, China

Cited by 39 publications

References 43 publications

Soil Aggregation and Organic Carbon Dynamics in Poplar Plantations

Soil Aggregation and Organic Carbon Dynamics in Poplar Plantations

Changes in rhizosphere bacterial and fungal community composition with vegetation restoration in planted forests

Vertical changes in bacterial community composition down to a depth of 20 m on the degraded Loess Plateau in China

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