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- Title
Microbial CO<sub>2</sub> production, CH<sub>4</sub> dynamics and nitrogen in a wetland soil (New York State, USA) associated with three plant species ( Typha, Lythrum, Phalaris).
- Authors
Welsch, M.; Yavitt, J. B.
- Abstract
Plants furnish soil with organic carbon (OC) compounds that fuel soil microorganisms, but whether individual plant species – or plants with unique traits – do so uniquely is uncertain. We evaluated soil microbial processes within a wetland in which areas dominated by a distinct plant species (cattail – Typha sp.; purple loosestrife – Lythrum salicaria L.; reed canarygrass – Phalaris arundinacea L.) co-mingled. We also established an experimental plot with plant shoot removal. The Phalaris area had more acidic soil pH (7.08 vs. 7.27–7.57), greater amount of soil organic matter (19.0% vs. 9.0–11.5%), and the slowest production rates of CO2 (0.10 vs. 0.21–0.46 μmol kg−1 s−1) and CH4 (0.040 vs. 0.054–0.079 nmol kg−1 s−1). Nitrogen cycling was dominated by net nitrification, with similar rates (17.2–18.9 mg kg−1 14 days−1) among the four sampling areas. In the second part of the study, we emplaced soil cores that either allowed root in-growth or excluded roots to evaluate how roots directly affect soil CO2 and CH4. The three plant species had similar amounts of root growth (ca 290 g m−2 year−1). Fungal biomass was similar in soils with root in-growth versus root exclusion, regardless of dominant plant species. Rates of soil CO2 production did not differ with root in-growth versus root exclusion, and added glucose increased CO2 production rates by only 35%. Root in-growth did lead to greater rates of CH4 production; albeit, addition of glucose had much greater effect on CH4 production (1.24 nmol kg−1 s−1) compared with controls without added glucose (0.058 nmol kg−1 s−1). Our data revealed relatively few subtle differences in soil characteristics and processes associated with different plant species; albeit, roots had little effect, even inhibiting some microbial processes. This research highlights the need for both field and experimental studies in long-established monocultures of plant species to understand the role of plant biodiversity in soil function.
- Subjects
NEW York (State); CARBON dioxide; NITROGEN; SOIL mechanics; SOILS; WETLAND ecology; PLANT species; TYPHA; LYTHRUM; PHALARIS
- Publication
European Journal of Soil Science, 2007, Vol 58, Issue 6, p1493
- ISSN
1351-0754
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1111/j.1365-2389.2007.00955.x