Comparing the effects of soil fauna on litter decomposition and organic matter turnover in sustainably and conventionally managed olive orchards

Geoderma ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 372 ◽  
pp. 114393 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adriano Sofo ◽  
Alba Nicoletta Mininni ◽  
Patrizia Ricciuti
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Soil Fauna ◽  
Organic Matter Turnover

scholarly journals Reduced soil fauna decomposition in a high background radiation area

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. e0247793
Author(s):  
Hallvard Haanes ◽  
Runhild Gjelsvik
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Statistical Models ◽  
Room Temperature ◽  
Soil Fauna ◽  
Mesh Size ◽  
Soil Parameters ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Naturally Occurring Radionuclides ◽  
Tube Shape

Decomposition of litter and organic matter is a very important soil ecosystem function where soil fauna play an important role. Knowledge of the responses in decomposition and soil fauna to different stressors is therefore crucial. However, the extent to which radioactivity may affect soil fauna is not so well known. There are some results showing effects on soil fauna at uranium mines and near Chernobyl from relatively high levels of anthropogenic radionuclides. We hypothesize that naturally occurring radionuclides affect soil fauna and thus litter decomposition, which will covary with radionuclide levels when accounting for important soil parameters. We have therefore used standardised litterbags with two different mesh sizes filled with birch leaves (Betula pubescens) to assess litter decomposition in an area with enhanced levels of naturally occurring radionuclides in the thorium (232Th) and uranium (238U) decay chains while controlling for variation in important soil parameters like pH, organic matter content, moisture and large grain size. We show that decomposition rate is higher in litterbags with large mesh size compared to litterbags with a fine mesh size that excludes soil fauna. We also find that litter dried at room temperature is decomposed at a faster rate than litter dried in oven (60⁰C). This was surprising given the associated denaturation of proteins and anticipated increased nutritional level but may be explained by the increased stiffness of oven-dried litter. This result is important since different studies often use either oven-dried or room temperature-dried litter. Taking the above into account, we explore statistical models to show large and expected effects of soil parameters but also significant effects on litter decomposition of the naturally occurring radionuclide levels. We use the ERICA tool to estimate total dose rate per coarse litterbag for four different model organisms, and in subsequent different statistical models we identify that the model including the dose rates of a small tube-shape is the best statistical model. In another statistical model including soil parameters and radionuclide distributions, 226Ra (or uranium precursory radionuclides) explain variation in litter decomposition while 228Ra (and precursors) do not. This may hint to chemical toxicity effects of uranium. However, when combining this model with the best model, the resulting simplified model is equal to the tube-shape dose-rate model. There is thus a need for more research on how naturally occurring radionuclides affect soil fauna, but the study at hand show the importance of an ecosystem approach and the ecosystem parameter soil decomposition.

Soil texture affects the coupling of litter decomposition and soil organic matter formation

2021 ◽  
pp. 108302
Author(s):  
Gerrit Angst ◽  
Jan Pokorný ◽  
Carsten W. Mueller ◽  
Isabel Prater ◽  
Sebastian Preusser ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Soil Texture ◽  
Soil Organic Matter Formation

scholarly journals Soil fertility relates to fungal‐mediated decomposition and organic matter turnover in a temperate mountain forest

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mathias Mayer ◽  
Boris Rewald ◽  
Bradley Matthews ◽  
Hans Sandén ◽  
Christoph Rosinger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Fertility ◽  
Mountain Forest ◽  
Organic Matter Turnover

Gasifier biochar effects on nutrient availability, organic matter mineralization, and soil fauna activity in a multi-year Mediterranean trial

2016 ◽  
Vol 215 ◽  
pp. 30-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evan A.N. Marks ◽  
Stefania Mattana ◽  
Josep M. Alcañiz ◽  
Emilio Pérez-Herrero ◽  
Xavier Domene
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Nutrient Availability ◽  
Soil Fauna ◽  
Organic Matter Mineralization

The long-term impact of low-intensity surface fires on litter decomposition and enzyme activities in boreal coniferous forests

2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kajar Köster ◽  
Frank Berninger ◽  
Jussi Heinonsalo ◽  
Aki Lindén ◽  
Egle Köster ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Organic Matter ◽  
Enzymatic Activity ◽  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Forest Fires ◽  
Biological Activities ◽  
Coniferous Forest ◽  
Fire Disturbance ◽  
Coniferous Forests ◽  
Long Term Impact

In boreal forest ecosystems fire, fungi and bacteria, and their interactions, have a pronounced effect on soil carbon dynamics. In this study we measured enzymatic activities, litter decomposition rates, carbon stocks and fungal and microbial biomasses in a boreal subarctic coniferous forest on a four age classes of non-stand replacing fire chronosequence (2, 42, 60 and 152 years after the fire). The results show that microbial activity recovered slowly after fire and the decomposition of new litter was affected by the disturbance. The percent mass loss of Scots pine litter increased with time from the last fire. Slow litter decomposition during the first post-fire years accelerates soil organic matter accumulation that is essential for the recovery of soil biological activities. Fire reduced the enzymatic activity across all the enzyme types measured. Carbon-degrading, chitin-degrading and phosphorus-dissolving enzymes showed different responses with the time elapsed since the fire disturbance. Microbial and enzymatic activity took decades before recovering to the levels observed in old forest stands. Our study demonstrates that slower post-fire litter decomposition has a pronounced impact on the recovery of soil organic matter following forest fires in northern boreal coniferous forests.

scholarly journals Climate and litter quality differently modulate the effects of soil fauna on litter decomposition across biomes

2013 ◽  
Vol 16 (8) ◽  
pp. 1045-1053 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pablo García-Palacios ◽  
Fernando T. Maestre ◽  
Jens Kattge ◽  
Diana H. Wall
Keyword(s):  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Litter Quality ◽  
Soil Fauna
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