Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Assessment of changes in soil organic matter after invasion by exotic plant species

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Biology and Fertility of Soils Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Invasive exotic plants can modify soil organic matter (SOM) dynamics and other soil properties. We evaluated changes in particulate organic matter (POM) and carbon (C) mineralisation in adjacent plots invaded by Solidago gigantea, Prunus serotina, Heracleum mantegazzianum and Fallopia japonica, and non-invaded control plots on different soils in Belgium. Litter decomposition of S. gigantea and P. serotina was compared to that of the native species Epilobium hirsutum, Betula pendula and Fagus sylvatica. Disregarding the differences in site characteristics (soil texture, parental material and plant species), we argued that the invasion by S. gigantea and P. serotina enhance SOM dynamics by increasing C mineralisation in 2 out of 3 sites invaded by S. gigantea and in 1 out of 3 sites invaded by P. serotina; C in coarse POM (cPOM, 4,000–250 μm) and fine POM (fPOM, 250–50 μm) in 1 site invaded by S. gigantea and C content in total POM (tPOM, 4,000–50 μm) and the organo-mineral fraction (OMF, 0–50 μm) in 1 site invaded by P. serotina. H. mantegazzianum and F. japonica slowed down SOM dynamics by reducing C mineralisation in three out of four sites; C and nitrogen (N) of fPOM in the invaded compared with the non-invaded plots at one site invaded by H. mantegazzianum. However, N content of cPOM (4,000–250 μm) was higher in the invaded sites by F. japonica compared with the non-invaded plots. Our results indicated that the effects of invasion by exotic plant species were not species-specific but site-specific.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bremner JM, Mulvaney CS (1982) Nitrogen—total. In: Page AL, Miller RH, Keeney DR (eds) Methods of soil analysis part 2—chemical and microbiological properties, 2nd edn. American Society of Agronomy, SSSA, Madison, pp 595–623

    Google Scholar 

  • Cambardella CA, Elliot ET (1992) Particulate soil organic matter changes across a grassland cultivation sequence. Soil Sci Soc Am J 56:777–783

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chapuis-Lardy L, Vanderhoeven S, Dassonville N, Koutika LS, Meerts P (2006) The effects of the exotic invasive plant Solidago gigantea on soil phosphorus. Biol Fertil Soils 42:481–489

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ehrenfeld JG (2003) Effects of exotic plant invasions on soil nutrient cycling processes. Ecosystems 6:503–523

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gallardo A, Merino J (1993) Leaf decomposition in two Mediterranean ecosystems of Southwest Spain: influence of substrate quality. Ecology 74:152–161

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Giardina CP, Ryan MG, Hubbard RM, Binkley D (2001) Tree species and soil textural controls on carbon and nitrogen mineralization rates. Soil Sci Soc Am J 65:1272–1279

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Knicker H, Saggar S, Bäumler R, McIntosh PD, Kögel-Knabner I (2000) Soil organic matter transformations induced by Hieracium pilosella L. in tussock grassland of New Zealand. Biol Fertil Soils 32:194–201

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Koutika LS, Andreux F, Hassink J, Choné Th, Cerri CC (1999) Characterization of organic matter in topsoils under rain forest and pasture in the eastern Brazilian Amazon basin. Biol Fertil Soils 29:309–313

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Koutika LS, Hauser S, Henrot J (2001a) Soil organic matter in natural regrowth, Pueraria phaseoloides and Mucuna pruriens fallow. Soil Biol Biochem 33:1095–1101

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Koutika LS, Didden WAM, Marinissen JCY (2001b) Soil organic matter distribution as influenced by enchytraeid and earthworm activity. Biol Fertil Soils 33:294–300

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Koutika LS, Sanginga N, Vanlauwe B, Weise S (2002) Chemical properties and soil organic matter assessment in fallow systems in the forest margins benchmark. Soil Biol Biochem 34:757–765

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kourtev PS, Ehrenfeld JG, Häggblom M (2002) Exotic plant species alter the microbial community structure and function in the soil. Ecology 83:3152–3166

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kourtev PS, Ehrenfeld JG, Häggblom M (2003) Experimental analysis of the effect of exotic and native plant species on the structure and function of soil microbial communities. Soil Biol Biochem 35:895–905

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Levine JM, Montserrat Vila M, D’Antonio CM, Dukes JS, Grigulis K, Lavorel S (2003) Mechanisms underlying the impacts of exotic plant invasions. Proc R Soc Lond B 270:775–781

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nelson DW, Sommers LE (1982) Total carbon, organic carbon, and organic matter. In: Page AL, Miller RH, Keeney DR (eds) Methods of soil analysis part 2—chemical and microbiological properties, 2nd edn. American Society of Agronomy, SSSA, Madison, pp 539–579

    Google Scholar 

  • Saintenoy-Simon J (2003) Les plantes exotiques naturalisées et les espèces invasives en Wallonie. Parcs et Réserves 58:23–39

    Google Scholar 

  • Sikora LJ, Yakovchenko V, Cambardella CA, Doran JW (1996) Assessing soil quality by testing organic matter. In: Magdoff FR, Hanlon EA, Tabatabai MA (eds) Soil organic matter analysis and interpretation. SSSA Special Publication No. 46, Madison, WI, pp 41–50

    Google Scholar 

  • StatSoft, Inc. (2003) STATISTICA (data analysis software system). Version 6.1

  • Vanlauwe B, Nwokoe OC, Sanginga N, Merckx R (1999) Evaluation of methods for measuring microbial biomass C and N and their relationship with soil organic matter particle size classes for soils from the West-African moist savanna zone. Soil Biol Biochem 31:1071–1082

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Verloove F (2002) Ingeburgerde plantensoorten in Vlaanderen. Mededeling van het Instituut voor Natuurbehoud nr. 20, Brussels

  • Wander M (2004) Soil organic matter fractions and their relevance to soil function. In: Magdoff F, Weil R (eds) Advances in agroecology, CRC, Boca Raton, FL, pp 67–102

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors thank Prof. J. Herbauts (ULB, Belgium) for his comments and suggestions and Mrs. M.J. Milloux (Géosol, CST Université de Bourgogne, France) for the C and N analyses. Thanks to Dr. Hugo Rainey (WCS, Congo-Brazzaville) for reviewing the English. The research was supported by Brussels-Capital Government—“Research in Brussels” RIB-2003-013.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Lydie-Stella Koutika.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Koutika, LS., Vanderhoeven, S., Chapuis-Lardy, L. et al. Assessment of changes in soil organic matter after invasion by exotic plant species. Biol Fertil Soils 44, 331–341 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00374-007-0210-1

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00374-007-0210-1

Keywords

Navigation