Structure turnover times of grassland soils under different moisture regimes

Leuther, Frederic; Mikutta, Robert; Wolff, Maximilian; Kaiser, Klaus; Schlüter, Steffen

doi:10.1016/j.geoderma.2023.116464

Cited by 12 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 80 publications

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“…Furthermore, topsoils show the highest density of roots and the largest activity of soil biota, especially where root-restricting layers are present below plough depth (Bengough et al, 2011). Effects of root growth and soil biota activity on the VSD are species dependent and the result of several feedback mechanisms (Bodner et al, 2014;Leuther et al, 2023;Lucas et al, 2022;Lucas et al, 2019;Meurer et al, 2020a), which most likely contributes to the variance which cannot be explained by our RF models. In contrast, subsoils are less exposed to these processes and it seems that their structure can be better predicted with the covariates included in the analysis.…”

Section: Performance Of Random Forestsmentioning

confidence: 93%

Soil, Climate, Time and Site Factors as Drivers of Soil Structure Evolution in Agricultural Soils from a Temperate-Boreal Region

Klöffel¹,

Barron

Nemes

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Section: Performance Of Random Forestsmentioning

confidence: 93%

Soil, Climate, Time and Site Factors as Drivers of Soil Structure Evolution in Agricultural Soils from a Temperate-Boreal Region

Klöffel¹,

Barron

Nemes

et al. 2023

Preprint

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“…The structure of agricultural soils is not static but changes in response to various anthropogenic and natural factors (Bodner et al, 2013b;Ghezzehei and Or, 2003;Hirmas et al, 2018;Leuther et al, 2023). These factors are interlinked and, by altering soil structure, affect key soil hydrological…”

Section: Sammanfattningmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The opposite effect on these soil properties as well as an increase in pore connectivity has been attributed to the impact of repeated wet-dry cycles in soils containing a sufficient amount of clay and/or organic matter (Alletto and Coquet, 2009;Arthur et al, 2013;Bodner et al, 2013b;Carter, 1988;Hu et al, 2012;. These wet-dry cycles lead to swelling and shrinking of the soil matrix and thereby induce changes in soil structure, especially in the macropore region, which are mostly reversible (Bodner et al, 2013a;Diel et al, 2019;Leuther et al, 2023). However, it has been observed that these changes can also be irreversible, for example after periods of intense soil drying (Peng et al, 2007;Robinson et al, 2016).…”

Section: Short-term Seasonal Dynamicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The effects of climate-driven processes described above on soil structure and soil hydraulic properties seem mostly ephemeral (Leuther et al, 2023), although compelling evidence for this is still missing. Despite the comparatively small number of studies, there are indications that climate has the potential to profoundly shape soil structure over longer time scales.…”

Section: Long-term Dynamicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Soil structure and water functions in agricultural soils of the temperate-boreal zone in a changing climate

Klöffel

2024

Acta Universitatis Agriculturae Sueciae

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Climate change may affect the productivity of cropping systems in the temperateboreal zone by increasing the frequency of periods with water excess and shortage. Soils have the capacity to buffer such extreme weather events by regulating water storage and fluxes, which are mainly a function of soil structure. However, climate itself is linked to the evolution of soil structure through a multitude of processes (e.g., freezing and thawing, soil management). The main objective of this thesis was to improve our understanding of the effects of climate-driven processes on the porespace structure of agricultural soils in order to identify potential implications for soil water functions in the context of climate change. This was done using a wide range of approaches including a meta-analysis, a laboratory experiment, and the application of machine learning to a newly developed index of soil structure based on relative entropy. It was revealed that climate is an important driver of the structural pore space of arable soils in Sweden and Norway. Warmer and wetter regions showed a less developed structure compared to cooler and drier regions, in particular in the subsoil, although it remains unclear whether this was the result of direct or indirect climate-driven processes. With climate change, the number and intensity of freeze-thaw cycles is expected to increase in some parts of the temperateboreal zone. Results from this thesis show that this may lead to increased drainage rates in compacted soil layers under near-saturated conditions as well as improved pore connectivity, especially in fine-textured soils. Furthermore, most changes in pore-space structure induced by freezing and thawing were found for pores of diameters <200 μm. The findings are discussed in the context of wetter soil conditions, early summer droughts, and an intensification of agricultural practices expected for different parts of the temperate-boreal zone in the future.

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“…The distribution of POM is further modulated by land use (John et al 2005). While tillage practices on croplands lead to a vertical mixing of crop residues with soil it also reduces the amount of soil fauna like anecic earthworms, which were shown to incorporate POM into the soil matrix (Briones et al 2017; Leuther et al 2023; Wilkinson et al 2009; Yang et al 1999). On perennial grassland, permanently covered by vegetation, bioturbation rates and thus incorporation of POM into the soil matrix are higher compared to tilled croplands (Kraus et al 2022; Stolze et al 2022).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The distribution of particulate organic matter in the heterogeneous soil matrix - balancing between aerobic respiration and denitrification

Lucas,

Rohe,

Apelt

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Denitrification, a key process in soil nitrogen cycling, occurs predominantly within microbial hotspots, where denitrifiers use nitrate as an alternative electron acceptor. For accurate prediction of dinitrogen (N2) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from denitrification, a precise quantification of these microscale hotspots is required. Employing a unique combination of X-ray CT imaging, microscale O2measurements, and15N labeling, we were able to quantify hotspots of aerobic respiration and denitrification. We analyzed the dynamics of greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes, soil oxygen supply, and the distribution of particulate organic matter (POM) in intact soil samples from a grassland and a cropland under different moisture conditions. Our findings reveal that both free and occluded particulate organic matter (POM), identified through X-ray CT imaging, contribute to GHG emissions. The occluded POM, i.e. POM at distant locations to air-filled pores, emerged as a primary driver of denitrification within structured soils of both land uses. Thus, the higher denitrification rates in the grassland could be attributed to the higher content of occluded POM. Conversely, despite possessing compacted areas that could favor denitrification, the cropland had only small amounts of occluded POM to stimulate denitrification. This underlines the complex interaction between soil structural heterogeneity, organic carbon supply, and microbial hotspot formation and thus contributes to a better understanding of soil-related GHG emissions. In summary, our study provides a holistic understanding of soil-borne greenhouse gas emissions and emphasizes the need to refine predictive models for soil denitrification and N2O emissions by incorporating the microscale distribution of POM.

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Structure turnover times of grassland soils under different moisture regimes

Cited by 12 publications

References 80 publications

Soil, Climate, Time and Site Factors as Drivers of Soil Structure Evolution in Agricultural Soils from a Temperate-Boreal Region

Soil, Climate, Time and Site Factors as Drivers of Soil Structure Evolution in Agricultural Soils from a Temperate-Boreal Region

Soil structure and water functions in agricultural soils of the temperate-boreal zone in a changing climate

The distribution of particulate organic matter in the heterogeneous soil matrix - balancing between aerobic respiration and denitrification

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