Carbon and nitrogen cycling during old-field succession: Constraints on plant and microbial biomass

Zak, Donald R.; Grigal, D. F.; Gleeson, Scott K.; Tilman, David

doi:10.1007/bf00002062

Cited by 180 publications

(144 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…The 16 species treatment is thus representative of high-diversity native vegetation, whereas one, two, and four species treatments have diversity similar to potential biomass crops (i.e., grasses grown as monocultures) and to other regional grasslands of anthropogenic origin (but might have lower productivity than biomass crops chosen because they have high productivity). Because soil N mineralization rates at our site (22) range from ∼34 to 80 kg N·ha −1 ·y −1 , addition of as much as ∼50 kg N·ha −1 ·y −1 would move a system from low to high soil N status. The five driest years of the past 150 y had growing season precipitation approximately 50% less than the mean, and the five wettest approximately 50% greater than the mean (23), placing our water treatments within this range of observed climatic variation.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biodiversity impacts ecosystem productivity as much as resources, disturbance, or herbivory

Tilman

Reich²,

Isbell

2012

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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429

292

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Although the impacts of the loss of biodiversity on ecosystem functioning are well established, the importance of the loss of biodiversity relative to other human-caused drivers of environmental change remains uncertain. Results of 11 experiments show that ecologically relevant decreases in grassland plant diversity influenced productivity at least as much as ecologically relevant changes in nitrogen, water, CO 2 , herbivores, drought, or fire. Moreover, biodiversity became an increasingly dominant driver of ecosystem productivity through time, whereas effects of other factors either declined (nitrogen addition) or remained unchanged (all others). In particular, a change in plant diversity from four to 16 species caused as large an increase in productivity as addition of 54 kg·ha −1 ·y −1 of fertilizer N, and was as influential as removing a dominant herbivore, a major natural drought, water addition, and fire suppression. A change in diversity from one to 16 species caused a greater biomass increase than 95 kg·ha −1 ·y −1 of N or any other treatment. Our conclusions are based on >7,000 productivity measurements from 11 long-term experiments (mean length, ∼ 13 y) conducted at a single site with species from a single regional species pool, thus controlling for many potentially confounding factors. Our results suggest that the loss of biodiversity may have at least as great an impact on ecosystem functioning as other anthropogenic drivers of environmental change, and that use of diverse mixtures of species may be as effective in increasing productivity of some biomass crops as fertilization and may better provide ecosystem services.biogeochemistry | community ecology N umerous experiments have found that biodiversity influences the primary productivity of ecosystems and other aspects of ecosystem functioning (1-6). It also is well established experimentally that productivity of many terrestrial ecosystems depends on the availability of limiting resources, such as soil nitrogen, water, and CO 2 , on herbivory and disease, and on disturbances such as fire and drought. However, little work has compared the magnitude of biodiversity effects on productivity to those of other drivers of ecosystem productivity. Indeed, the importance of biodiversity has been questioned recently because of some seemingly divergent results provided by observational vs. experimental studies of the effects of biodiversity on ecosystem functioning (1-3, 7-16). A recent observational study (10) concluded that "the influence of small-scale diversity on productivity in mature natural systems is a weak force, both in absolute terms and relative to the effects of other controls on productivity." A comparative study of 48 grassland sites on five continents found no consistent relation between diversity and productivity (9). Other studies have been interpreted as suggesting that biodiversity effects may be smaller than resource effects (12,14), and perhaps dependent on trophic interactions (15, 17) or other ecosystem features (18). Thus, the importa...

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biodiversity impacts ecosystem productivity as much as resources, disturbance, or herbivory

Tilman

Reich²,

Isbell

2012

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

Self Cite

429

292

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“…The positive relationship of the 16S rRNA gene to % C can be attributed to microbial heterotrophic metabolism (Zak et al, 1990). A similar relationship between nifH, nirS, nirK, and nosZ and % C can also be explained given the heterotrophic nature of the organisms which carry these genes (Knowles, 1982).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Addition of activated switchgrass biochar to an aridic subsoil increases microbial nitrogen cycling gene abundances

Ducey

Ippolito

Cantrell

et al. 2013

Applied Soil Ecology

180

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a b s t r a c tIt has been demonstrated that soil amended with biochar, designed specifically for use as a soil conditioner, results in changes to the microbial populations that reside therein. These changes have been reflected in studies measuring variations in microbial activity, biomass, and community structure. Despite these studies, very few experiments have been performed examining microbial genes involved in nutrient cycling processes. Given the paucity of research in this area, we designed a 6 month study in a Portneuf subsoil treated with three levels (1%, 2%, and 10% w/w ratio) of a biochar pyrolyzed from switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) at 350 • C and steam activated at 800 • C to measure the abundances of five genes involved in N cycling. Gene abundances were measured using qPCR, with relative abundances of these genes calculated based on measurement of the 16S rRNA gene. At the end of the 6 month study, all measured genes showed significantly greater abundances in biochar amended treatments as compared to the control. In soil amended with 10% biochar, genes involved in nitrogen fixation (nifH), and denitrification (nirS), showed significantly increased relative abundances. Lastly, gene abundances and relative abundances correlated with soil characteristics, in particular NO 3 -N, % N and % C. These results confirm that activated switchgrass-derived biochar, designed for use as a soil conditioner, has an impact on the treated soils microbial communities. We therefore suggest that future use of biochar as a soil management practice should take into account not only changes to the soil's physiochemical properties, but its biological properties as well.Published by Elsevier B.V.

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“…The time taken for the equilibrium state to develop was estimated to be 10 years following natural forest succession in Nigeria (0-10 cm, Aweto 1981), 30 years under eucalyptus and pine plantations in Congo (0-5 cm, Trouve et al 1996), 40-60 years under pine-oak stands in Massachusetts (0-15 cm, Compton et al 1998), and more than 60 years following natural forest succession in Minnesota (0-10 cm, Zak et al 1990). In our study, shrubs and trees had grown for 25 years since plantation.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of land use conversion on soil organic carbon sequestration in the loess hilly area, loess plateau of China

Chen

Gong

et al. 2006

Ecological Research

214

113

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Changes in land use may alter land cover, which results in carbon stock changes in biomass as well as in the soil. In China's loess plateau, vegetation restoration has been conducted since 1950s to control soil erosion and improve the ecosystem, with significant investment of money and manpower. Despite these efforts, soil erosion has still been severe. To reduce soil erosion and improve land quality, China initiated another state-funded project, Grain-for-Green, in 1999 in the loess plateau. However, it is not clear how effective this newly initiated project will be. In this study, we evaluated the effect of land-use conversion on soil organic carbon (SOC) and the potential effect of the current project on SOC sequestration in the Anjiapo catchment area of the loess hilly area of the loess plateau in China. This evaluation is based on SOC measurements in cropland versus in other converted land use types. We found that SOC sequestration mainly occurred in the surface soil after land use conversion took place. Land use conversion from cropland to shrubland or wild grassland (i.e. undisturbed land) was better for SOC sequestration than tree plantation in the semi-arid loess hilly area. By using the land use change in the study area as a scenario, the potential contribution of land use change on SOC sequestration due to the Grain-for-Green projectwas estimated. It was found that this project in the loess plateau of China would be helpful for SOC sequestration ifsuccessfully implemented.

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Carbon and nitrogen cycling during old-field succession: Constraints on plant and microbial biomass

Cited by 180 publications

References 36 publications

Biodiversity impacts ecosystem productivity as much as resources, disturbance, or herbivory

Biodiversity impacts ecosystem productivity as much as resources, disturbance, or herbivory

Addition of activated switchgrass biochar to an aridic subsoil increases microbial nitrogen cycling gene abundances

Effect of land use conversion on soil organic carbon sequestration in the loess hilly area, loess plateau of China

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