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The measurement of woody root decomposition using two methodologies in a Sitka spruce forest ecosystem

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Abstract

Background and aims

The decomposition of roots is an important process in the loss of carbon (C) and the mineralization of nitrogen (N) in forest ecosystems. The early stage decomposition rate of Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr.) roots was determined using trenched plots and decomposition bags.

Methods

Stumps of known age were trenched and quadrants (50 cm by 50 cm) excavated from randomly selected stumps every 6 months over 4 years, while the mass loss from buried roots in decomposition bags, divided among four diameter categories (ranging from fine roots <2 mm to large roots >50 mm), was monitored for 27 months. The C and N concentrations of excavated samples at different time points were analysed.

Results

The change in total root necromass per quadrant showed a higher decomposition rate-constant (k) of 0.24 ± 0.068 year−1 than the k-value of roots in decomposition bags (0.07 ± 0.005 year−1). The C concentration (47.24 ± 0.609 %) did not significantly change with decomposition. There was a significant increase in the C:N ratio of roots in all diameter categories (fine: 48.92 %, small: 38.53 %, medium 11.71 %, large: 76.25 %) after 4 years of decomposition, driven by N loss. Root diameter accounted for 78 % of the variation in the N concentration of roots as decomposition progressed.

Conclusion

Though the trenched plot approach offered an alternative to the more common decomposition bag method for estimating root decomposition, high spatial variation and sampling difficulties may lead to an overestimation of the mass loss from trenched roots, thus, the decomposition bag method gives a more reliable decomposition rate-constant.

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Acknowledgements

This research was funded by the National Council for Forest Research and Development (COFORD) as part of the CARBiFOR II project. Thanks to Coillte Teoranta for granting permission to conduct the research in their forest. We are grateful to the entire CARBiFOR II project team and other colleagues who assisted with the manual excavations and sorting of root samples. We also would like to thank the staff of the Department of Forest Sciences, University of Helsinki, for assistance in conducting the C:N analysis in their laboratory. Finally, we thank Dr. Alfonso Escudero (Section Editor) and the independent reviewers for their constructive suggestions which helped to improve the manuscript.

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  1. UCD Forestry, School of Agriculture and Food Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland

    Samuel Olajuyigbe, Brian Tobin, Michael Hawkins & Maarten Nieuwenhuis

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  1. Samuel Olajuyigbe
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  2. Brian Tobin
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  4. Maarten Nieuwenhuis
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Correspondence to Samuel Olajuyigbe.

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Responsible Editor: Alfonso Escudero.

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Olajuyigbe, S., Tobin, B., Hawkins, M. et al. The measurement of woody root decomposition using two methodologies in a Sitka spruce forest ecosystem. Plant Soil 360, 77–91 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-012-1222-7

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