Litter decomposition in southern Appalachian black locust and pine–hardwood stands: litter quality and nitrogen dynamics

1988 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 54-63 ◽  
Author(s):  
David L. White ◽  
Bruce L. Haines ◽  
Lindsay R. Boring
Keyword(s):  
Weight Loss ◽  
Leaf Litter ◽  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Litter Quality ◽  
Black Locust ◽  
Lignin Content ◽  
N Immobilization ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Absolute Increase ◽  
N Concentration

To compare litter decomposition and nitrogen (N) dynamics in 16-year-old black locust and pine-hardwood forest stands, weight loss, N concentration, and litter quality of the dominant species in each stand were monitored for 863 days, using litterbags. The species studied were Robiniapseudo-acacia L. (leaflets and rachises), Liriodendrontulipifera L., and Rubus spp. (leaves and stems) in the black locust stand and Kalmialatifolia L., Pinusrigida Mill., and L. tulipifera in the pine-hardwood stand. Between-stand comparison of L. tulipifera leaf litter indicated a significant stand effect on weight loss during the first 8 months but no significant stand effects on N concentration and net immobilization. Initial lignin content was highly correlated to percent weight remaining and net N immobilization after 331 and 863 days. All litter types exhibited an absolute increase in "lignin" that appeared to originate from the more soluble litter fraction. Robiniapseudo-acacia leaflets, P. rigida, K. latifolia, and Rubus stems decomposed slowly, but only the latter two species were in the net N immobilization phase at day 863. Rubus leaf litter decomposed rapidly, releasing 70% of its original N by day 331. The role of Rubus and other understory species in influencing organic matter and N accretion in these early successional systems is discussed. Robiniapseudo-acacia leaflets contained 81% of their original N at day 863. This retention of N, coupled with its greater potential to form recalcitrant material during decomposition, suggests a mechanism to explain the long-term effects of Robiniapseudo-acacia on N storage in the forest floor and soil.

Increased atmospheric CO2 and litter quality

1998 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
M Francesca Cotrufo ◽  
Björn Berg ◽  
Werner Kratz
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Composition ◽  
Leaf Litter ◽  
Decomposition Rate ◽  
Litter Quality ◽  
Castanea Sativa ◽  
Plant Litter ◽  
Decomposition Rates ◽  
Chemical Changes ◽  
Substrate Quality ◽  
N Concentration

There is evidence that N concentration in hardwood leaf litter is reduced when plants are raised in an elevated CO2 atmosphere. Reductions in the N concentration of leaf litter have been found for tree species raised under elevated CO2, with reduction in N concentration ranging from ca. 50% for sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa) to 19% for sycamore (Acer platanoides). However, the effects of elevated CO2 on the chemical composition of litter has been investigated only for a limited number of species. There is also little information on the effects of increased CO2 on the quality of root tissues. If we consider, for example, two important European forest ecosystem types, the dominant species investigated for chemical changes are just a few. Thus, there are whole terrestrial ecosystems in which not a single species has been investigated, meaning that the observed effects of a raised CO2 level on plant litter actually has a large error source. Few reports present data on the effects of elevated CO2 on litter nutrients other than N, which limits our ability to predict the effects of elevated CO2 on litter quality and thus on its decomposability. In litter decomposition three separate steps are seen: (i) the initial stages, (ii) the later stages, and (iii) the final stages. The concept of "substrate quality," translated into chemical composition, will thus change between early stages of decomposition and later ones, with a balanced proportion of nutrients (e.g., N, P, S) being required in the early decomposition phase. In the later stages decomposition rates are ruled by lignin degradation and that process is regulated by the availability of certain nutrients (e.g., N, Mn), which act as signals to the lignin-degrading soil microflora. In the final stages the decomposition comes to a stop or may reach an extremely low decomposition rate, so low that asymptotic decomposition values may be estimated and negatively related to N concentrations. Studies on the effects of changes in chemical composition on the decomposability of litter have mainly been made during the early decomposition stages and they generally report decreased litter quality (e.g., increased C/N ratio), resulting in lower decomposition rates for litter raised under elevated CO2 as compared with control litter. No reports are found relating chemical changes induced by elevated CO2 to litter mass-loss rates in late stages. By most definitions, at these stages litter has turned into humus, and many studies demonstrated that a raising of the N level may suppress humus decomposition rate. It is thus reasonable to speculate that a decrease in N levels in humus would accelerate decomposition and allow it to proceed further. There are no experimental data on the long-term effect of elevated CO2 levels, and a decrease in the storage of humus and nutrients could be predicted, at least in temperate and boreal forest systems. Future works on the effects of elevated CO2 on litter quality need to include studies of a larger number of nutrients and chemical components, and to cover different stages of decomposition. Additionally, the response of plant litter quality to elevated CO2 needs to be investigated under field conditions and at the community level, where possible shifts in community composition (i.e., C3 versus C4 ; N2 fixers versus nonfixers) predicted under elevated CO2 are taken into account.Key words: climate change, substrate quality, carbon dioxide, plant litter, chemical composition, decomposition.

Long-term responses of leaf litter decomposition to temperature, litter quality and litter mixing in plateau wetlands

2016 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 178-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guodong Liu ◽  
Jinfang Sun ◽  
Kun Tian ◽  
Derong Xiao ◽  
Xingzhong Yuan
Keyword(s):  
Leaf Litter ◽  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Litter Quality ◽  
Leaf Litter Decomposition ◽  
Litter Mixing ◽  
Plateau Wetlands

scholarly journals Test of validity of a dynamic soil carbon model using data from leaf litter decomposition in a West African tropical forest

2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 3003-3032
Author(s):  
G. H. S. Guendehou ◽  
J. Liski ◽  
M. Tuomi ◽  
M. Moudachirou ◽  
B. Sinsin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Carbon ◽  
Leaf Litter ◽  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Litter Quality ◽  
Predictive Ability ◽  
Temperature And Precipitation ◽  
Tropical Conditions ◽  
Litterbag Experiment ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Afzelia Africana

Abstract. We evaluated the applicability of the dynamic soil carbon model Yasso07 in tropical conditions in West Africa by simulating the litter decomposition process using as required input into the model litter mass, litter quality, temperature and precipitation collected during a litterbag experiment. The experiment was conducted over a six-month period on leaf litter of five dominant tree species, namely Afzelia africana, Anogeissus leiocarpa, Ceiba pentandra, Dialium guineense and Diospyros mespiliformis in a semi-deciduous vertisol forest in Southern Benin. Since the predictions of Yasso07 were not consistent with the observations on mass loss and chemical composition of litter, Yasso07 was fitted to the dataset composed of global data and the new experimental data from Benin. The re-parameterized versions of Yasso07 had a good predictive ability and refined the applicability of the model in Benin to estimate soil carbon stocks, its changes and CO2 emissions from heterotrophic respiration as main outputs of the model. The findings of this research support the hypothesis that the high variation of litter quality observed in the tropics is a major driver of the decomposition and needs to be accounted in the model parameterization.

Leaf litter decomposition in remote oceanic island streams is driven by microbes and depends on litter quality and environmental conditions

2016 ◽  
Vol 61 (5) ◽  
pp. 783-799 ◽  
Author(s):  
Verónica Ferreira ◽  
Pedro M. Raposeiro ◽  
Ana Pereira ◽  
Ana M. Cruz ◽  
Ana C. Costa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Leaf Litter ◽  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Litter Quality ◽  
Oceanic Island ◽  
Leaf Litter Decomposition

scholarly journals Leaf-litter decomposition and nutrient dynamics of five selected tropical tree species

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 32-38
Author(s):  
S. Bhattarai ◽  
B. Bhatta
Keyword(s):  
Weight Loss ◽  
Leaf Litter ◽  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Rate Constant ◽  
Decomposition Rate ◽  
Tree Species ◽  
Nutrient Dynamics ◽  
Decomposition Rate Constant ◽  
Tropical Tree Species ◽  
One Year

Leaf-litter decomposition in terrestrial ecosystems has a major role in recycling the nutrients to the soil. Nutrient dynamics is the way nutrients cycle in an ecosystem. The present study was conducted for five selected tropical tree species viz. Shorea robusta, Ficus hookeri, Mallotus philippensis, Artocarpus lakoocha and Dillenia pentagyna at Hetauda, Makawanpur. This paper aims to determine the litter decomposition rate-constant and nutrient mineralization pattern of the selected species. The litter-bag method was used to assess the decomposition and nutrient dynamics for one year. Both decomposition rate-constant and weight loss were highest for M. philippensis (% weight loss = 73.49; k = 0.33) and lowest for S. robusta (% weight loss = 54.01; k = 0.18). In general, weight remaining showed a strong negative correlation with N and P concentration but a slightly negative with K. However, the remaining weight of litter showed a strong positive correlation with C : N ratio, thus indicating a good predictor of mass loss and mineralization. The study showed that there was no net release of nitrogen during the one-year study period; however, the net P release was found to be highest for S. robusta followed by D. pentagyna and the net K release was highest in F. hookeri followed by A. lakoocha.

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