Dynamics of humus forms and soil characteristics along a forest altitudinal gradient in Hyrcanian forest

Bayranvand, Mohammad; Moslem, Akbarinia; Jouzani, Gholamreza Salehi; Gharechahi, Javad; Alberti, Giorgio

doi:10.3832/ifor3444-013

Cited by 12 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…The distinct effect of differences in climate along an elevational gradient on soil properties has been documented in many studies e.g., [26][27][28][29]. Generally, with increasing altitude, a decrease in temperature and an increase in precipitation are observed.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes of Soil Properties along the Altitudinal Gradients in Subarctic Mountain Landscapes of Putorana Plateau, Central Siberia

Gömöryová

Pichler

Merganič

et al. 2022

Land

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Changes of soil properties along elevational gradients were studied in a less accessible and explored forest-tundra ecotone in the NW part of Central Siberia. Data on soil physical and chemical properties were collected along three horizontal transects at an elevation of 100–420 m a.s.l., at two localities differing in the slope angle. At each transect, five soil pits were excavated to a depth of 0.3–0.4 m. Soil samples were taken from the depths of 0–0.1 m, 0.1–0.2 m, and 0.2–0.3 m. The results showed a pronounced effect of slope angle on the pattern of soil properties along the elevational gradient. At the locality with a gentle slope, soils exhibited 2.5 times larger thickness of the surface organic layer (SOL), higher pH, and Na+ content, and lower C, N, Ald, and Fed concentration indicating slower pedogenic processes on this site. On the other hand, at the locality with a steeper slope, soil properties were better differentiated between transects situated along elevational gradient especially at the depths of 0.1–0.2 and 0.2–0.3 m. However, a clear positive or negative trend with the altitude was observed only for some soil characteristics, e.g., SOL, C, N, or Ald concentrations on the Lama location.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes of Soil Properties along the Altitudinal Gradients in Subarctic Mountain Landscapes of Putorana Plateau, Central Siberia

Gömöryová

Pichler

Merganič

et al. 2022

Land

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“…After digging the profile, organic layer thickness [i.e., OL, OF, and OH (in some profiles)] was measured with tape from the forest-floor surface to the top of the mineral soil (Bayranvand et al, 2021a). Subsequently, composite litter samples including OL and OF layers were obtained (Bayranvand et al, 2017a).…”

Section: Sample Collection and Laboratory Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Distribution of Soil Extracellular Enzymatic, Microbial, and Biological Functions in the C and N-Cycle Pathways Along a Forest Altitudinal Gradient

et al. 2021

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The diverse chemical, biological, and microbial properties of litter and organic matter (OM) in forest soil along an altitudinal gradient are potentially important for nutrient cycling. In the present study, we sought to evaluate soil chemical, biological, microbial, and enzymatic characteristics at four altitude levels (0, 500, 1,000, and 1,500 m) in northern Iran to characterize nutrient cycling in forest soils. The results showed that carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) turnover changed with altitude along with microbial properties and enzyme activity. At the lowest altitude with mixed forest and no beech trees, the higher content of N in litter and soil, higher pH and microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN), and the greater activities of aminopeptidases affected soil N cycling. At elevations above 1,000 m, where beech is the dominant tree species, the higher activities of cellobiohydrolase, arylsulfatase, β-xylosidase, β-galactosidase, endoglucanase, endoxylanase, and manganese peroxidase (MnP) coincided with higher basal respiration (BR), substrate-induced respiration (SIR), and microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and thus favored conditions for microbial entropy and C turnover. The low N content and high C/N ratio at 500-m altitude were associated with the lowest microbial and enzyme activities. Our results support the view that the plain forest with mixed trees (without beech) had higher litter quality and soil fertility, while forest dominated by beech trees had the potential to store higher C and can potentially better mitigate global warming.

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“…The Amphi system is a twin humus form showing both characteristics of Mull (meA and maA horizons) and Moder (presence of OH layer) due to a seasonal alternation between high and low biological activity in Alpine and Mediterranean environments [5]. Except for Amphi, the accumulation in O horizons indicates a dysfunction in the process of organic matter decomposition and incorporation, which may result in a decrease in the carbon stabilization in the soil over a long time [25][26][27]. Moreover, the soil organic carbon persistence can be explained by the functional complexity involving the molecular diversity of the organic matter, the spatial heterogeneity and temporal variability of the soil system, and the biological components [28,29].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Humus Forms and Organic Matter Decomposition in the Swiss Alps

Semeraro,

Fazzari,

Kipf

et al. 2023

IJPB

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Humus forms and organic matter decomposition are influenced by climate, plants and soil decomposers. Yet, whether different humus forms could be experimentally linked to litter decomposition has still to be fully assessed. To assess the link between humus systems and organic matter decomposition, we worked in two regions of the Swiss Alps (Valais and Ticino) along elevational gradients by following a north/south exposure design. We quantified humus forms macrorests proportion types by the Ponge small-volume method and measured the decomposition of green tea and rooibos tea within the Parasystems and Terrosystems. We found that Parasystems and Terrosystems differed in tea decomposition rates, with a slower decomposition in Parasystems than in Terrosystems. We also observed that elevation, and hence, vegetation type (i.e., forest in the subalpine versus grassland in the alpine), drove humus form distribution, with Parasystems found in the alpine and subalpine in Ticino, while in Valais Parasystems were only found in the alpine and Terrosystems in the subalpine levels. Further analyses are however needed to identify other variables that best correlate with variation in decomposition processes within humus systems, such as soil decomposer community composition.

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Dynamics of humus forms and soil characteristics along a forest altitudinal gradient in Hyrcanian forest

Cited by 12 publications

References 33 publications

Changes of Soil Properties along the Altitudinal Gradients in Subarctic Mountain Landscapes of Putorana Plateau, Central Siberia

Changes of Soil Properties along the Altitudinal Gradients in Subarctic Mountain Landscapes of Putorana Plateau, Central Siberia

Distribution of Soil Extracellular Enzymatic, Microbial, and Biological Functions in the C and N-Cycle Pathways Along a Forest Altitudinal Gradient

Humus Forms and Organic Matter Decomposition in the Swiss Alps

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