The detrital input and removal treatment (DIRT) network: Insights into soil carbon stabilization

Lajtha, Kate; Bowden, Richard D.; Crow, Susan E.; Fekete, István; Kotroczó, Zsolt; Plante, Alain F.; Simpson, Myrna J.; Nadelhoffer, Knute J.

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.05.388

Cited by 121 publications

(100 citation statements)

References 85 publications

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“…Our finding of reduced soil respiration, occurring even though root mass increased by 37%, indicates that microbial processing of existing SOC is strongly depressed. Root respiration at our site contributes approximately 15% of total soil respiration (Lajtha et al, 2018), and an increase in roots would lead to greater root respiration. However, because total soil respiration decreased, there must have been a very large reduction in the heterotrophic component of respiration that offset any increases in autotropic respiration.…”

Section: Propertymentioning

confidence: 99%

Long‐term Nitrogen Addition Decreases Organic Matter Decomposition and Increases Forest Soil Carbon

Bowden

Wurzbacher

Washko

et al. 2019

Soil Science Soc of Amer J

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Core Ideas N additions alter soil microbial community composition and reduce forest soil microbial biomass and enzyme activity. Litter decomposition and soil organic matter degradation was slowed by N additions. Reduced decomposition increases soil C, but long‐term effects on forest productivity are unknown. Eastern North American forests receive anthropogenically elevated nitrogen (N) deposition that alters soil processes and forest productivity. We examined N deposition effects on soil carbon (C) and N in temperate, N‐rich forest plots fertilized annually (100 kg N ha−1 y−1) since 1993. After nearly two decades, soil C in O, A, and upper 50 cm of B horizons of N‐addition plots was 17% greater (14.2 ± 0.7 kg C m−2) than control plots. Aboveground tree biomass growth and litterfall were not affected by fertilization. Fine root mass (0–1 mm) was 34% greater in N‐addition plots, but did not explain soil C increases. Rather, reduced decomposition of litter and soil organic matter drove C increases in N‐addition plots. Decomposition rates of black cherry, sugar maple, and mixed leaf litter were 43, 67, and 36%, greater, respectively, in control than N‐addition plots. Light fraction organic matter was greater in N‐addition plots than in control plots, due to either enhanced root production or decreased decomposition of soil organic matter. Soil respiration was reduced, and microbial biomass in O, A, and upper‐B horizons was lower in N‐addition plots than controls. The soil microbial community composition was also altered dramatically with N additions. Recalcitrant organic matter enzyme activity (peroxidase) was reduced in the O‐horizon by N addition. Available Ca, Mg, and K were reduced in O and A horizons by N fertilization. These results suggest that chronic elevated atmospheric N inputs can increase forest soil C storage by decreasing decomposition, however the long‐term stability of this additional C sequestration is unknown.

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Section: Propertymentioning

confidence: 99%

Long‐term Nitrogen Addition Decreases Organic Matter Decomposition and Increases Forest Soil Carbon

Bowden

Wurzbacher

Washko

et al. 2019

Soil Science Soc of Amer J

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“…The correlation between Soil 1 and Veg 1 can be due to higher production of leaf litter in areas with higher basal area, larger trees, and higher tree density, as observed in other studies on semideciduous seasonal forests (Werneck et al 2001;Nunes and Pinto 2007;Pinto et al 2008). Higher leaf litter input can promote microbial activity and in uence SOM stocks (Lajtha et al 2018;Silva-Sánchez et al 2019), whereas litter mineralization release important nutrients for tree growth. On the other hand, soil fertility was negatively correlated with forest strati cation, which was related with distance from the river.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 51%

“…The stabilization of soil organic matter (SOM) is a complex process, and can be in uenced by the available nutrients, soil texture and aggregation, and biological activity (Lajtha et al 2018;Wiesmeier et al 2019). The recalcitrant fraction of leaf litter that is not decomposed can contribute to SOM stocks (Berg and McClaugherty 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Further, forests with more developed canopies and higher tree density produce more leaf litter, and this greater input can promote local microbial activity (Nunes and Pinto 2007;Silva-Sánchez et al 2019). This process can be more complex in unmanaged old-growth forests due to the higher structural complexity on the soil surface, litter spatial distribution, stronger relationships between plants and soil, and responses of soil properties to this variation (Austin et al 2014;Lajtha et al 2018;Soares et al 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Decomposition and stabilization of the organic matter in an old-growth tropical riparian forest: effects of soil properties and vegetation structure

Fernandes

Souza

Tanaka

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Background: Nutrient cycling in tropical forests has large importance for primary productivity, and decomposition of litterfall is a major process influencing nutrient balance in forest soils. Although large-scale factors strongly influence decomposition patterns, small-scale factors can have major influences, especially in old-growth forests that have high structural complexity and strong plant-soil correlations. Methods: We evaluated decomposition rates and stabilization of soil organic matter using the Tea Bag Index in an old-growth riparian forest in southeastern Brazil. We buried 50 pairs of green and red tea at two distances from the watercourse to evaluate the effects of forest structure and soil properties on decomposition processes. Forest structure and soil properties were described using Principal Components Analysis (PCA). The main axes for each analysis were considered predictors of decomposition processes using a structural equations model.Results: Decomposition rates presented a large variation among tea bags and were positively correlated with forest structure, as characterized by higher basal area, larger trees, and tree density. Higher decomposition rates were probably correlated with higher litter production and microbial activity. On the other hand, stabilization factor was related mainly to soil chemical properties, with higher values with increased soil fertility as indicated by the PCA axes. Further analyses evaluated the effects of clay content, soil moisture, soil organic matter, soil base saturation, and soil fertility as predictors of the stabilization factor. These predictors were highly correlated, but clay content was the best predictor, explaining 79% of the variation among plots. Conclusions: These results showed that this old-growth forest presented high heterogeneity in both forest structure and soil properties at small spatial scales, that influenced decomposition processes and contributed to small-scale variation in nutrient cycling. Heterogeneity in ecological processes can contribute to the resilience of old-growth forests, strengthening ecosystem functions such as nutrient cycling and carbon fixation, and highlighting the importance of restoration strategies focused in the recovery of ecosystem processes

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“…Moreover, there are likely to be data-rich nodes within the networks that provide opportunities to prototype cross-disciplinary syntheses. The Reynolds Creek Experimental Watershed and CZO site, for example, has data sets that include airborne waveform LiDAR, hyperspectral and geophysical data (Ilangakoon et al, 2018;Mitchell et al, 2015), eddy flux measurements (Fellows et al, 2018), long-term and high-resolution surface climate data (Kormos et al, 2018), landscapescale SOM and soil inorganic carbon surveys (Stanbery et al, 2017;Will et al, 2017), and detrital input and removal experiments (Lajtha et al, 2018). These data provide unprecedented opportunities to constrain existing models and develop new ones surrounding multiscale controls on SOM.…”

Section: Opportunities For Maximizing Network Contributionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Leveraging Environmental Research and Observation Networks to Advance Soil Carbon Science

et al. 2019

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Soil organic matter (SOM) is a critical ecosystem variable regulated by interacting physical, chemical, and biological processes. Collaborative efforts to integrate perspectives, data, and models from interdisciplinary research and observation networks can significantly advance predictive understanding of SOM. We outline how integrating three networks—the Long‐Term Ecological Research with a focus on ecological dynamics, the Critical Zone Observatories with strengths in landscape/geologic context, and the National Ecological Observatory Network with standardized multiscale measurements—can advance SOM knowledge. This integration requires improved data dissemination and sharing, coordinated data collection activities, and enhanced collaboration between empiricists and modelers within and across networks.

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The detrital input and removal treatment (DIRT) network: Insights into soil carbon stabilization

Cited by 121 publications

References 85 publications

Long‐term Nitrogen Addition Decreases Organic Matter Decomposition and Increases Forest Soil Carbon

Long‐term Nitrogen Addition Decreases Organic Matter Decomposition and Increases Forest Soil Carbon

Decomposition and stabilization of the organic matter in an old-growth tropical riparian forest: effects of soil properties and vegetation structure

Leveraging Environmental Research and Observation Networks to Advance Soil Carbon Science

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