Empirical evidence that soil carbon formation from plant inputs is positively related to microbial growth

Bradford, Mark A.; Keiser, Ashley D.; Davies, Christian A.; Mersmann, Calley Aileen; Strickland, Michael S.

doi:10.1007/s10533-012-9822-0

Cited by 237 publications

(168 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…It is a small pool (5-40 mg kg -1 ), but our study shows that it is a highly dynamic pool that responds to P addition as well as C input in form of rhizodeposits or straw. The strong response of MBP to C input by plants or residues is in agreement with other studies (Bradford et al, 2013, Malik et al, 2013. Although MBP increased during plant growth in our study, it is considered to be a potentially plant available P pool (Balota et al, 2003).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Plant and microbial-induced changes in P pools in soil amended with straw and inorganic P

Hoang

Marschner

2017

J. Soil Sci. Plant Nutr.

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The aim of this study was to determine the effect of soil amendments on P pools and their depletion by plants and microbes. The experiment was divided into two parts. In Part A, barley straw (C/P 255) was added alone or with inorganic P to reduce the C/P ratio to 127 or 25 (straw treatments). In three other treatments, the same amount of P was added as in the straw treatments as inorganic P (fertilizer treatments). The soil was incubated for three weeks. Then (Part B), wheat was grown for five weeks in one set of soils. Barley straw was added to another set to increase microbial growth and incubated moist for three weeks. P pools were measured at the end of Part A and Part B. At the end of Part A all P pools increased with P addition rate. P pools were greater in the fertilizer than the straw treatments except for microbial biomass P (MBP) which was greater in the straw treatments. After wheat growth, HCl-P, phosphatase-P, citrate-P, CaCl 2 -P were depleted compared to Part A, MBP was higher. Addition of barley straw in Part B induced depletion of HCl-P, and citrate-P, but increased phosphatase-P, CaCl 2 -P and MBP. It is concluded that the size of the P pools is mainly influenced by P addition rate not form in which P is added. The impact of growing plants on P pools differs from that of microbes stimulated by high C/P straw addition.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Plant and microbial-induced changes in P pools in soil amended with straw and inorganic P

Hoang

Marschner

2017

J. Soil Sci. Plant Nutr.

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“…3A), in which there was no herbivory. Greater allocation of 13 C belowground likely stimulates such processes as root exudation, with exudates being a dominant precursor of stable soil organic carbon (17,18). Thus, the carnivore-mediated effect on belowground allocation that we observed (Fig.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

Trophic cascade alters ecosystem carbon exchange

Hawlena

Reese

Bradford

et al. 2013

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

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Trophic cascades-the indirect effects of carnivores on plants mediated by herbivores-are common across ecosystems, but their influence on biogeochemical cycles, particularly the terrestrial carbon cycle, are largely unexplored. Here, using a 13 C pulse-chase experiment, we demonstrate how trophic structure influences ecosystem carbon dynamics in a meadow system. By manipulating the presence of herbivores and predators, we show that even without an initial change in total plant or herbivore biomass, the cascading effects of predators in this system begin to affect carbon cycling through enhanced carbon fixation by plants. Prolonged cascading effects on plant biomass lead to slowing of carbon loss via ecosystem respiration and reallocation of carbon among plant aboveground and belowground tissues. Consequently, up to 1.4-fold more carbon is retained in plant biomass when carnivores are present compared with when they are absent, owing primarily to greater carbon storage in grass and belowground plant biomass driven largely by predator nonconsumptive (fear) effects on herbivores. Our data highlight the influence that the mere presence of predators, as opposed to direct consumption of herbivores, can have on carbon uptake, allocation, and retention in terrestrial ecosystems.experimental ecosystem ecology | animal-mediated carbon cycling | carbon tracer experiment | carbon retention T rophic downgrading-the disproportionate loss of species occupying top trophic levels of ecosystems-is a symptom of global biodiversity decline (1). Cutting short trophic chains in ecosystems causes significant changes in plant community biomass, composition, and diversity (2). These changes come about because loss of carnivores leads to increased impacts of herbivores on plant biomass through changes in herbivore density and foraging strategies (3).It is becoming increasingly recognized that the cascading effects of carnivores may affect ecosystem carbon dynamics as well. By altering the impact of herbivores on plants, carnivores may indirectly regulate the amount and type of plant biomass available for photosynthetic carbon fixation and storage (3-5). Moreover, herbivory can trigger physiological adjustments in the remaining damaged plants, including reduction in photosynthetic rates and increased respiration (6-8). Accordingly, we hypothesized that carnivores should increase plant community carbon fixation and reduce respiration, thereby increasing carbon retention, by causing herbivores to reduce their foraging impacts on plants. We tested this hypothesis with a 13 CO 2 pulse-chase field experiment in a grassland ecosystem in northeastern Connecticut.Using established methods to discern indirect effects of carnivores on plants in ecosystems (9), we applied three experimental treatments in replicated 0.25-m 2 fine-mesh enclosures (Fig. S1): (i) plants only (control), (ii) plants and herbivores (+ herbivore), and (iii) plants, herbivores, and carnivores (+ carnivore). The first treatment served as a control for animal effects, the + he...

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“…The stronger effect sizes for extractable versus total soil nutrients may also suggest a 'microbial bottleneck' that generates a decoupling between plant inputs of labile nutrients and the formation of older, more stable SOM [33]. In other words, whereas plants may influence the distribution of inorganic nutrients in their surrounding soils, microbial biomass stoichiometry and substrate use efficiency determine whether these differences are translated into long-term changes in bulk SOM chemistry [34,35].…”

Section: (B) Plant Effects On Different Soil Propertiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pervasive and strong effects of plants on soil chemistry: a meta-analysis of individual plant ‘Zinke’ effects

Waring

Álvarez‐Cansino

Barry³

et al. 2015

Proc. R. Soc. B.

104

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Plant species leave a chemical signature in the soils below them, generating fine-scale spatial variation that drives ecological processes. Since the publication of a seminal paper on plant-mediated soil heterogeneity by Paul Zinke in 1962, a robust literature has developed examining effects of individual plants on their local environments (individual plant effects). Here, we synthesize this work using meta-analysis to show that plant effects are strong and pervasive across ecosystems on six continents. Overall, soil properties beneath individual plants differ from those of neighbours by an average of 41%. Although the magnitudes of individual plant effects exhibit weak relationships with climate and latitude, they are significantly stronger in deserts and tundra than forests, and weaker in intensively managed ecosystems. The ubiquitous effects of plant individuals and species on local soil properties imply that individual plant effects have a role in plant -soil feedbacks, linking individual plants with biogeochemical processes at the ecosystem scale.

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Empirical evidence that soil carbon formation from plant inputs is positively related to microbial growth

Cited by 237 publications

References 43 publications

Plant and microbial-induced changes in P pools in soil amended with straw and inorganic P

Plant and microbial-induced changes in P pools in soil amended with straw and inorganic P

Trophic cascade alters ecosystem carbon exchange

Pervasive and strong effects of plants on soil chemistry: a meta-analysis of individual plant ‘Zinke’ effects

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