Turfgrass Selection and Grass Clippings Management Influence Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics

Law, Quincy D.; Trappe, Jon M.; Jiang, Yiwei; Turco, Ronald F.; Patton, Aaron J.

doi:10.2134/agronj2016.05.0307

Cited by 19 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Higher uptake of synthetic N fertilizers by plants leads to increased microbial mineralization of organic N, resulting in a greater supply of inorganic N in soils (Aber et al, 1998). Perennial plants such as turfgrasses can retain significantly more N in soils via litter as well as returning grass clippings to soils compared with removing the clippings after mowing (Law et al, 2017; Pérez‐Suárez et al, 2014). The higher total N in TF and KB compared with BG systems was probably due to their higher biomass production (Creme et al, 2017).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Soil Carbon Accumulation and Nutrient Availability in Managed and Unmanaged Ecosystems of East Tennessee

Singh¹,

Sorochan²,

Stier³

et al. 2019

Soil Science Soc of Amer J

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Native woodlot and grassland systems have been converted to a managed turfgrass system with urbanization. Turfgrass systems increased carbon sequestration and nitrogen availability compared with row crop systems. Cool‐season (C3) turfgrasses improved soil physical and chemical properties more than warm‐season (C4) grasses. In the last two decades, urban and suburban lands grew by 34% in the United States, with 16 to 20 million ha maintained under turfgrass systems. Side‐by‐side comparison of turfgrass systems with other managed and unmanaged ecosystems have not been comprehensively conducted in the climate transition zone of the United States, despite the environmental significance of land use changes. Our objective was to determine the relative effects of C3 and C4 turfgrasses on soil organic carbon (SOC) accumulation and nutrient availability, in comparison with managed row crop and unmanaged woodlot and grassland systems. Soil samples from depths of 0 to 5, 5 to 15, and 15 to 30 cm were collected during March 2017 at the University of Tennessee's East Tennessee Research and Education Center from seven ecosystems: (i) corn (Zea mays L.)–soybean (Glycine max L.) rotation, (ii) continuous soybean, (iii) tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea L.), (iv) Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.), (v) bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon L.), (vi) unmanaged grassland, and (vii) unmanaged woodlot. All turfgrass species were established in 2012 and were managed like low‐input residential lawns. Within the 30‐cm soil profile, turfgrass systems contained 4.2 kg m−2 SOC at the time of sampling, which was 33% more than croplands and 34% less than unmanaged systems, and the C4 turfgrass system contained 2.3 kg m−2 SOC and 0.4 mg kg−1 inorganic N, which were 56 and 57% lower than C3 systems, respectively. Results from this study highlight that low‐input lawns with suitable grass species can offer higher SOC stock and nutrient availability than conventional cropland systems.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Soil Carbon Accumulation and Nutrient Availability in Managed and Unmanaged Ecosystems of East Tennessee

Singh¹,

Sorochan²,

Stier³

et al. 2019

Soil Science Soc of Amer J

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“…by biological fixations and litter decomposition) and N-losses (i.e. by leaching mainly or ammonia volatilization) similarly to the C-accumulation dynamics (LAW et al, 2017). N-Biological fixation non-symbiotic can occur either into the soil or on phylosphere and it has an adaptive advantage in relation to symbiotic fixation due to the lower specificity to the plant species interaction (MENG et al, 2019).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Free-living diazotrophs drive castor bean nitrogen input in tropical semiarid soils

Fracetto

Barros

et al. 2019

Cienc. Rural

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There are few studies of microbial diversity in castor bean soils in tropical semiarid environmental. Castor bean products have been widely used around the world justifying the commercial importance of ricinoculture in Brazil’ northeastern semiarid. There is no fertilization or maintenance of litter on the soils from the present study, so we hypothesized that the free-living diazotrophs microorganisms drive the nitrogen (N) input into these soils. We evaluated the communities’ structure and diversity of diazotrophs in tropical semiarid soils with i-Castor bean 50 years of cultivation intercropping with maize (CB-50); ii-Only Castor bean 10 years of cultivation (CB-10) and iii-soil under Caatinga vegetation (CAA). Nitrogenase enzyme activity was performed by the acetylene reduction assay (ARA) and the community profile of nifH gene was separated by denaturing gradient gel polyacrylamide electrophoresis (DGGE). Diazotrophs diversity was estimated by the Shannon (H’) and Simpson (D) indexes. Based on the maintenance of soil N stocks and N-microbial biomass over time, the activity of free-living diazotrophs was determinant in the N-input into these soils. The nifH gene was present and its profiles grouped the CB-50 with CAA treatments, so it reinforced the N-fixing by diazotrophs, which presented a greater diversity in the cultivated soils, even after the land use change for the castor bean implementation.

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“…Common turfgrass management practices may positively or negatively influence SOC over time. Clippings were returned as turfgrasses on all these golf courses were mowed, which has been shown to benefit C and N cycling in turfgrass systems (Kopp & Guillard, 2002;Law, Trappe, Jiang, Turco, & Patton, 2017). More specifically, returning clippings and N fertilizer applications assist with increased plant growth and greater C accumulation (Conant et al, 2001;Selhorst & Lal, 2013).…”

Section: F I G U R Ementioning

confidence: 99%

Soil carbon sequestration in bermudagrass golf course fairways in Lubbock, Texas

Gautam¹,

Young

Sapkota

et al. 2020

Agronomy Journal

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Turfgrasses benefit the environment through conversion of CO2 into stable C stored in soils. Limited research on the sequestration potential of bermudagrass (Cynodon spp.) has been conducted in semiarid climates. The objective of this study was to evaluate soil physiochemical properties of golf courses in Lubbock, TX, to determine C sequestration potential and longevity. Soil was obtained from fairways of five golf courses ranging in age from 13 to 93 yr. Shallow (0–7.5 cm) and deeper (7.5–15 cm) soil depths were tested for soil pH, electrical conductivity, soil organic matter, soil organic C (SOC), inorganic C, total N, inorganic N, and texture. After ANOVA and mean separation, principal component analysis (PCA) was used to group golf courses by soil depth or age. Soil organic matter and SOC decreased with depth, but the rate of SOC accumulation (0.22 Mg C ha−1 yr−1) was lower when compared with previous studies. Maximal C (35.1 and 23.7 Mg C ha−1 in the upper and lower depths) was consistent with previous studies, indicating that C accumulated for a longer period of time. The PCA explained 52.7% of variability in soil physiochemical properties on two axes, but PCA more effectively differentiated soil sampling depth than golf course age. High variability in data among fairways at a single golf course likely resulted in limited grouping capabilities. Including a broader regional representation of golf courses or sampling golf courses between 40 and 70 yr to quantify soils near maximal accumulation would strengthen future studies.

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Turfgrass Selection and Grass Clippings Management Influence Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics

Cited by 19 publications

References 25 publications

Soil Carbon Accumulation and Nutrient Availability in Managed and Unmanaged Ecosystems of East Tennessee

Soil Carbon Accumulation and Nutrient Availability in Managed and Unmanaged Ecosystems of East Tennessee

Free-living diazotrophs drive castor bean nitrogen input in tropical semiarid soils

Soil carbon sequestration in bermudagrass golf course fairways in Lubbock, Texas

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