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Responses of soil nitrogen cycling to the interactive effects of elevated CO2 and inorganic N supply

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Abstract

Despite increasing interest in the effects of climate change on soil processes, the response of nitrification to elevated CO2 remains unclear. Responses may depend on soil nitrogen (N) status, and inferences may vary depending on the methodological approach used. We investigated the interactive effects of elevated CO2 and inorganic N supply on gross nitrification (using 15N pool dilution) and potential nitrification (using nitrifying enzyme activity assays) in Dactylis glomerata mesocosms. We measured the responses of putative drivers of nitrification (NH +4 production, NH +4 consumption, and soil environmental conditions) and of potential denitrification, a process functionally linked to nitrification. Gross nitrification was insensitive to all treatments, whereas potential nitrification was higher in the high N treatment and was further stimulated by elevated CO2 in the high N treatment. Gross mineralization and NH +4 consumption rates were also significantly increased in response to elevated CO2 in the high N treatment, while potential denitrification showed a significant increase in response to N addition. The discrepancy between the responses of gross and potential nitrification to elevated CO2 and inorganic N supply suggest that these measurements provide different information, and should be used as complementary approaches to understand nitrification response to global change.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Nadine Guillaumaud and Benjamin Moan for help with laboratory measurements, Jean-Christophe Lata, Jean-Louis Mabout and Lionel Saunois for help with plant harvesting. This study was funded by University and CNRS support of the Laboratoire d’Ecologie, Systématique, Evolution (UMR CNRS 8079), CNRS and INRA support of the Laboratoire d’Ecologie Microbienne (UMR CNRS 5557; USC INRA 1193), and the US National Science Foundation (DEB-0092642).

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  1. Audrey Niboyet

    Present address: Laboratoire Biogéochimie et Ecologie des Milieux Continentaux, UMR 7618 UPMC / CNRS, Ecole Normale Supérieure, 75230, Paris, France

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire Ecologie, Systématique, et Evolution, UMR 8079 Université Paris-Sud / CNRS / AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Sud, 91405, Orsay, France

    Audrey Niboyet, Laure Barthes, Annick Ambroise, Sandrine Fontaine & Paul W. Leadley

  2. Colorado Plateau Stable Isotope Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, 86011-5640, USA

    Bruce A. Hungate & Peter M. Price

  3. Laboratoire d’Ecologie Microbienne, UMR 5557 Université Lyon 1 / CNRS, USC 1193 INRA, Université de Lyon, 69622, Villeurbanne, France

    Xavier Le Roux

  4. UR874 Grassland Ecosystem Research Unit, INRA, 63100, Clermont-Ferrand, France

    Juliette M. G. Bloor

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  1. Audrey Niboyet
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Correspondence to Audrey Niboyet.

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Responsible Editor: Elizabeth (Liz) A. Stockdale.

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Niboyet, A., Barthes, L., Hungate, B.A. et al. Responses of soil nitrogen cycling to the interactive effects of elevated CO2 and inorganic N supply. Plant Soil 327, 35–47 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-009-0029-7

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