Earthworm density and biomass in relation to plant diversity and soil properties in a Palouse prairie remnant

2013 ◽  
Vol 72 ◽  
pp. 119-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Xu ◽  
J.L. Johnson-Maynard ◽  
T.S. Prather
Keyword(s):  
Soil Properties ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Palouse Prairie ◽  
Density And Biomass

scholarly journals Effect of Soil Diversity on Forest Plant Species Abundance: A Case Study from Central-European Highlands

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 534
Author(s):  
Pavel Samec ◽  
Jiří Volánek ◽  
Miloš Kučera ◽  
Pavel Cudlín
Keyword(s):  
Soil Properties ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
Plant Distribution ◽  
Soil Diversity ◽  
Abiotic Environment ◽  
Soil Group ◽  
Biogeographical Regions ◽  
Forest Distribution

Plant distribution is most closely associated with the abiotic environment. The abiotic environment affects plant species’ abundancy unevenly. The asymmetry is further deviated by human interventions. Contrarily, soil properties preserve environmental influences from the anthropogenic perturbations. The study examined the supra-regional similarities of soil effects on plant species’ abundance in temperate forests to determine: (i) spatial relationships between soil property and forest-plant diversity among geographical regions; (ii) whether the spatial dependencies among compared forest-diversity components are influenced by natural forest representation. The spatial dependence was assessed using geographically weighted regression (GWR) of soil properties and plant species abundance from forest stands among 91 biogeographical regions in the Czech Republic (Central Europe). Regional soil properties and plant species abundance were acquired from 7550 national forest inventory plots positioned in a 4 × 4 km grid. The effect of natural forests was assessed using linear regression between the sums of squared GWR residues and protected forest distribution in the regions. Total diversity of forest plants is significantly dependent on soil-group representation. The soil-group effect is more significant than that of bedrock bodies, most of all in biogeographical regions with protected forest representation >50%. Effects of soil chemical properties were not affected by protected forest distribution. Spatial dependency analysis separated biogeographical regions of optimal forest plant diversity from those where inadequate forest-ecosystem diversity should be increased alongside soil diversity.

scholarly journals Earthworms as an Ecological Indicator of Soil Recovery after Mechanized Logging Operations in Mixed Beech Forests

Forests ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 18
Author(s):  
Hadi Sohrabi ◽  
Meghdad Jourgholami ◽  
Mohammad Jafari ◽  
Farzam Tavankar ◽  
Rachele Venanzi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Properties ◽  
Soil Depth ◽  
Biological Properties ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Ecological Indicator ◽  
Traffic Intensity ◽  
Soil Biological Properties ◽  
Density And Biomass ◽  
Soil Recovery ◽  
The Impact

Soil damage caused by logging operations conducted to obtain and maximize economic benefits has been established as having long-term effects on forest soil quality and productivity. However, a comprehensive study of the impact of logging operations on earthworms as a criterion for soil recovery has never been conducted in the Hyrcanian forests of Iran. The aim of this study was to determine the changes in soil biological properties (earthworm density and biomass) and its recovery process under the influence of traffic intensity, slope and soil depth in various intervals according to age after logging operations. Soil properties were compared among abandoned skid trails with different ages (i.e., 3, 10, 20, and 25 years) and an undisturbed area. The results showed that earthworm density and biomass in the high traffic intensity and slope class of 20–30% at the 10–20 cm depth of the soil had the lowest value compared to the other treatments. Twenty-five years after the logging operations, the earthworm density at soil depth of 0–10 and 10–20 cm was 28.4% (0.48 ind. m−2) and 38.6% (0.35 ind. m−2), which were less than those of the undisturbed area, respectively. Meanwhile, the earthworm biomass at a soil depth of 0–10 and 10–20 cm was 30.5% (2.05 mg m−2) and 40.5% (1.54 mg m−2) less than the values of the undisturbed area, respectively. The earthworm density and biomass were positively correlated with total porosity, organic carbon and nitrogen content, while negatively correlated with soil bulk density and C/N ratio. According to the results, 25 years after logging operations, the earthworm density and biomass on the skid trails were recovered, but they were significantly different with the undisturbed area. Therefore, full recovery of soil biological properties (i.e., earthworm density and biomass) takes more than 25 years. The conclusions of our study reveal that the effects of logging operations on soil properties are of great significance, and our understanding of the mechanism of soil change and recovery demand that harvesting operations be extensively and properly implemented.

Woody plant encroachment into coastal grasslands: consequences for soil properties and plant diversity

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Eva Kinnebrew ◽  
Lena K. Champlin ◽  
Gillian L. Galford ◽  
Christopher Neill
Keyword(s):  
Soil Properties ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Woody Plant ◽  
Woody Plant Encroachment

The effect of tropical peat land-use changes on plant diversity and soil properties

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 1703-1712 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Agus ◽  
Z. R. Ilfana ◽  
F. F. Azmi ◽  
D. Rachmanadi ◽  
Widiyatno ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Soil Properties ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Tropical Peat

scholarly journals The Edge Effect on Plant Diversity and Soil Properties in Abandoned Fields Targeted for Ecological Restoration

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheunesu Ruwanza
Keyword(s):  
Soil Properties ◽  
Edge Effect ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Abiotic Factors ◽  
Woody Species ◽  
Limpopo Province ◽  
Old Fields ◽  
Old Field ◽  
Total N ◽  
Soil Measurements

Changes in biotic and abiotic factors may create opportunities for biodiversity recovery in abandoned agricultural fields. This study examined the natural/old field edge effect on plant diversity and soil properties at Lapalala Wilderness in Limpopo Province, South Africa. Detailed vegetation surveys and soil measurements were conducted in three old fields that share a natural/old field road edge boundary. On each site, three transects, each with four plots (10 × 10 m), located 10 m into the natural area and 10, 30 and 50 m into the old field from the edge, were setup. Plant diversity and composition measurements were conducted on each plot. Soil moisture and total N, C and P were measured at the center of each plot. Results indicate that abundance of some woody species was significantly (P < 0.001) higher close to the edge than far into the old fields. However, this was not the case for herbs and grasses which did not increase with edge proximity. All measured soil properties were significantly (P < 0.001) higher close to the edge than far into the old fields. The study concludes that both vegetation and soil properties are influenced by proximity to the edge.

scholarly journals Effects of Afforestation on Plant Diversity and Soil Quality in Semiarid SE Spain

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 1730
Author(s):  
Carmen Segura ◽  
María N. Jiménez ◽  
Emilia Fernández-Ondoño ◽  
Francisco B. Navarro
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Soil Properties ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Soil Quality Indicators ◽  
Higher Plant ◽  
Se Spain ◽  
Semiarid Environments ◽  
Edaphic Variables

Farmland afforestation has been promoted in recent decades and is one of the main strategies included in the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration to recover degraded areas. However, the impacts of afforestation on plant diversity and soil quality indicators are still not well-understood in semiarid environments. In this study, we assessed the relationships between plant diversity indicators (abundance, total richness, richness by functional groups, and Shannon diversity) and a large number of variables in 48 afforestation sites in southeast Spain. We considered associated environmental factors, such as geographical, climatic or edaphic variables, age, and land-use history. We compared plant diversity and soil properties following land-use change from cereal cropping to afforestation, which is one of the most common land-use changes in Mediterranean areas. Plant diversity in afforested sites was found to be dependent on previous land use, the proximity of natural vegetation, several soil properties (texture, pH, and total nitrogen), and plantation age. Afforested soils showed higher plant diversity and an improvement in edaphic parameters related to multifunctionality in semiarid ecosystems (i.e., soil organic carbon, nitrogen, and potassium) than arable cropped soils.

scholarly journals A positive correlation between plant diversity and productivity is indirectly caused by environmental factors driving spatial pattern of vegetation composition in semiarid sandy grassland

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 11795-11825
Author(s):  
X. A. Zuo ◽  
J. M. H. Knops ◽  
X. Y. Zhao ◽  
H. L. Zhao ◽  
Y. Q. Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Diversity ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Spatial Pattern ◽  
Soil Properties ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Vegetation Composition ◽  
Wet Meadow ◽  
Positive Correlation ◽  
Environment Gradients

Abstract. Although patterns between plant diversity and ecosystem productivity have been much studied, a consistent relationship has not yet emerged. Several different patterns have been observed both naturally and experimentally, likely caused by spatial variability of environmental factors and vegetation composition. In this study, we measured the vegetation cover, plant diversity, productivity, soil properties and site characteristics along an environment gradient of natural sandy grasslands (mobile dune, semi-fixed dune, fixed dune, dry meadow, wet meadow and flood plain grassland) in a semiarid area of Northern China. We used multivariate analysis to examine the relationships between environment factors, vegetation composition, plant diversity and productivity. We found a positive correlation between plant diversity and productivity. Vegetation composition had also a significantly positive correlation with plant diversity and productivity. Environment gradients in relation to soil properties and topography features affected the distribution patterns of species diversity, vegetation composition and productivity. However, environment gradients are a better determiner for vegetation composition and productivity than for species diversity. The analysis from optimization model of structural equation suggests that environmental factors determine vegetation composition, which in turn drives independently both plant diversity and productivity. Thus the positive correlation between plant diversity and productivity is not direct, but indirectly driven by the spatial pattern of vegetation composition determined by environment gradients in soil and topography.

scholarly journals Soil Available Phosphorus Loss Caused by Periodical Understory Management Reduce Understory Plant Diversity in a Northern Subtropical Pinus massoniana Plantation Chronosequence

Forests ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 231
Author(s):  
Dong Dai ◽  
Ashfaq Ali ◽  
Xin Huang ◽  
Mingjun Teng ◽  
Changguang Wu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Properties ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Soil Layer ◽  
Pinus Massoniana ◽  
Stand Age ◽  
Available Phosphorus ◽  
Soil Available Phosphorus ◽  
Understory Plants ◽  
Understory Diversity ◽  
Understory Plant

Clearing of understory plants is a common management method in plantation forests, but its long-term impact on soil properties and understory plant diversity is still poorly understood. In order to uncover the potential relationship between understory diversity and soil properties, we categorized understory plants into herbs and shrubs, and took soil depth into consideration. We measured the soil variables and investigated the understory plant diversity in four stand age-classes (9-year-old for young, 18-year-old for intermediate, 28-year-old for near-mature, and 48-year-old for mature) in a Pinus massoniana plantation. We aimed to examine how the diversity of herbs and shrubs changed with stand succession and to determine which of the three soil depths (0–10 cm, 10–20 cm, 20–40 cm) had the strongest explanation for the understory plant diversity. Furthermore, structural equation modeling (SEM) was performed to assess the direct and indirect effect of understory clearing and stand age on understory diversity. We found that understory clearing influenced the trend of diversity of herbs and shrubs with stand age, and understory diversity showed a strong correlation with soil physical properties in all three soil layers. The soil properties in the 10–20 cm soil layer related with the diversity of herbs and shrubs most, while the 20–40 cm soil layer properties related with them the least. Understory clearing reduced soil available phosphorus (AP). Understory clearing and stand age were found to benefit understory plant diversity directly and decreased the understory diversity indirectly via AP. Consequently, to improve our understanding of the impact of understory clearing and stand age on biodiversity, we should take into account its direct and indirect effects.

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