Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Response of soil respiration to simulated N deposition in a disturbed and a rehabilitated tropical forest in southern China

Plant and Soil Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Responses of soil respiration (CO2 emission) to simulated N deposition were studied in a disturbed (reforested forest with previous understory and litter harvesting) and a rehabilitated (reforested forest with no understory and litter harvesting) tropical forest in southern China from October 2005 to September 2006. The objectives of the study were to test the following hypotheses: (1) soil respiration is higher in rehabilitated forest than in disturbed forest; (2) soil respiration in both rehabilitated and disturbed tropical forests is stimulated by N additions; and (3) soil respiration is more sensitive to N addition in disturbed forest than in rehabilitated forest due to relatively low soil nutrient status in the former, resulting from different previous human disturbance. Static chamber and gas chromatography techniques were employed to quantify the soil respiration, following different N treatments (Control, no N addition; Low-N, 5 g N m−2 year−1; Medium-N, 10 g N m−2 year−1), which had been applied continuously for 26 months before the respiration measurement. Results showed that soil respiration exhibited a strong seasonal pattern, with the highest rates observed in the hot and wet growing season (April–September) and the lowest rates in winter (December–February) in both rehabilitated and disturbed forests. Soil respiration rates exhibited significant positive exponential relationship with soil temperature and significant positive linear relationship with soil moisture. Soil respiration was also significantly higher in the rehabilitated forest than in the disturbed forest. Annual mean soil respiration rate in the rehabilitated forest was 20% lower in low-N plots (71 ± 4 mg CO2-C m−2 h−1) and 10% lower in medium-N plots (80 ± 4 mg CO2-C m−2 h−1) than in the control plots (89 ± 5 mg CO2-C m−2 h−1), and the differences between the control and low-N or medium-N treatments were statistically significant. In disturbed forest, annual mean soil respiration rate was 5% lower in low-N plots (63 ± 3 mg CO2-C m−2 h−1) and 8% lower in medium-N plots (61 ± 3 mg CO2-C m−2 h−1) than in the control plots (66 ± 4 mg CO2-C m−2 h−1), but the differences among treatments were not significant. The depressed effects of experimental N deposition occurred mostly in the hot and wet growing season. Our results suggest that response of soil respiration to elevated N deposition in the reforested tropical forests may vary depending on the status of human disturbance.

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.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Aber JD, Nadelhoffer KJ, Steudler P, Melillo JM (1989) Nitrogen saturation in northern forest ecosystems. BioScience 39:378–386

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bekku YS, Nakatsubo T, Kume A, Adachi M, Koizumi H (2003) Effect of warming on the temperature dependence of soil respiration rate in arctic, temperate and tropical soils. Appl Soil Ecol 22:205–210

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boxman AW, Blanck K, Brandrud TE, Emmett BA, Gundersen P, Hogervorst RF, Kjonaas OJ, Person H, Timmermann V (1998) Vegetation and soil biota response to experimentally-changed nitrogen inputs in coniferous forest ecosystems of the NITREX project. For Ecol Manage 101:65–79

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bowden RD, Rullo G, Sevens GR (2000) Soil fluxes of carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane at a productive temperate deciduous forest. J Environ Qual 29:268–276

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bowden RD, Davidson E, Savage K, Arabia C, Steudler P (2004) Chronic nitrogen additions reduce total soil respiration and microbial respiration in temperate forest soils at the Harvard Forest. For Ecol Manage 196:43–56

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown S, Lenart MT, Mo JM, Kong GH (1995) Structure and organic matter dynamics of a human-impacted pine forest in a MAB reserve of subtropical China. Biotropica 27:276–289

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burton AJ, Pregitzer K, Crawford JN, Zogg G, Zak D (2004) Simulated chronic NO3- deposition reduces soil respiration in northern hardwood forests. Global Change Biol 10:1080–1091

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cleveland CC, Townsend AR (2006) Nutrient additions to a tropical rain forest drive substantial soil carbon dioxide losses to the atmosphere. PNAS 103:10316–10321

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Davidson EA, Ishida FY, Nepstad DC (2004) Effects of an experimental drought on soil emissions of carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and nitric oxide in a moist tropical forest. Global Biogeochem Cycle 10:718–730

    Google Scholar 

  • Dong YS, Peng GB, Li J (1996) Seasonal variations of CO2, CH4 and N2O fluxes from temperate forest soil. Acta Geogr Sin 51(supplement):120–128

    Google Scholar 

  • Fang YT, Zhu WX, Mo JM, Zhou GY, Gundersen P (2006) Dynamics of soil inorganic nitrogen and their responses to nitrogen additions in three subtropical forests, South China. J Environ Sci-China 18:752–759

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Galloway JN, Aber JD, Erisman JW, Seitzinger SP, Howarth RW, Cowling EB, Cosby BJ (2003) The nitrogen cascade. BioScience 53:341–356

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hall SJ, Matson PA (1999) Nitrogen oxide emissions after nitrogen additions in tropical forests. Nature 400:152–155

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Haynes BE, Gower ST (1995) Belowground carbon allocation in unfertilized and fertilized plantations in northern Wisconsin. Tree Physiol 15:317–325

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • He S, Yu Z (1984) The studies on the reconstruction of vegetation in tropical coastal eroded land in Guangdong. Trop Subtrop For Ecosyst 2:87–90. Science Press, Guangzhou, China. (in Chinese with English abstract)

    Google Scholar 

  • Holdridge LR (1967) Life zone ecology. Tropical Science Center, San Jose, Costa Rica

    Google Scholar 

  • Huang ZF, Fan ZG (1982) The climate of Ding Hu Shan. Trop Subtrop For Ecosyst 1:11–23. Science Press, Guangzhou, China (in Chinese with English abstract)

    Google Scholar 

  • Huang ZL, Ding MM, Zhang ZP, Yi WM (1994) The hydrological processes and nitrogen dynamics in a monsoon evergreen broad-leafed forest of Dinghu shan. Acta Phytoecol Sin 18:194–199 (in Chinese with English abstract)

    Google Scholar 

  • Keller M, Reiners WA (1994) Atmosphere exchange of nitrous oxide, nitric oxide, and methane under secondary succession of pasture to forest in the Atlantic lowlands of Costa Rica. Global Biogeochem Cycle 8:399–409

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Liu GH, Fu BJ, Chen LD, Guo XD (2000) Characteristics and distributions of degraded ecological types in China. Acta Ecol Sin 20:13–19 (in Chinese with English abstract)

    Google Scholar 

  • Lloyd J, Taylor JA (1994) On the temperature dependence of soil respiration. Funct Ecol 8:315–323

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Magill AH, Aber JD, Hendricks JJ, Bowden RD, Melillo JM, Steudler PA (1997) Biogeochemical response of forest ecosystems to simulated chronic nitrogen deposition. Ecol Appl 7:402–415

    Google Scholar 

  • Maier CA, Kress LW (2000) Soil CO2 evolution and root respiration in 11 year-old loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) plantations as affected by moisture and nutrient availability. Can J For Res 30:347–359

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matson PA, Lohse KA, Hall SJ (2002) The globalization of nitrogen deposition: consequences for terrestrial ecosystems. Ambio 31:113-119

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Micks P, Down MR, Magill AH, Nadelhoffer KJ, Aber JD (2004) Decomposition litter as a sink for 15N-enriched additions to an oak forest and a red pine plantation. For Ecol Manage 196:71–87

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mo JM, Brown S, Lenart M, Kong GH (1995) Nutrient dynamics of a human-impacted pine forest in a MAB Reserve of subtropical China. Biotropica 27:290–304

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mo JM, Brown S, Peng SL, Kong GH (2003) Nitrogen availability in disturbed, rehabilitated and mature forests of tropical China. For Ecol Manage 175:573–583

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mo JM, Peng SL, Brown S, Kong GH, Fang YT (2004) Nutrient dynamics in response to harvesting practices in a pine forest of subtropical China. Acta Phytoecol Sin 28:810–822 (in Chinese with English abstract)

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mo JM, Fang YT, Xu GL, Li DJ, Xue JH (2005) The short-term responses of soil CO2 emission and CH4 uptake to simulated N deposition in nursery and forests of Dinghushan in subtropical China. Acta Ecol Sin 25:682–690 (in Chinese with English abstract)

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mo JM, Brown S, Xue JH, Fang YT, Li ZA (2006) Response of litter decomposition to simulated N deposition in disturbed, rehabilitated and mature forests in subtropical China. Plant Soil 282:135–151

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mo JM, Brown S, Xue JH, Fang YT, Li ZA, Li DJ, Dong SF (2007) Response of nutrient dynamics of decomposing pine (Pinus massoniana) needles to simulated N deposition in a disturbed and a rehabilitated forest in tropical China. Ecol Res DOI 10.1007/s11284-006-0317-0

  • Raich JW, Nadelhoffer KJ (1989) Belowground carbon allocation in forest ecosystems: global trends. Ecology 70:1346–1354

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ren R, Mi FJ, Bai NB (2000) A chemometrics analysis on the data of precipitation chemistry of China. J Beijing Polytech Univ 26:90–95 (in Chinese with English abstract)

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sotta ED, Meir P, Malhi Y, Nobre AD, Hodnett M, Grace J (2004) Soil CO2 efflux in a tropical forest in the central Amazon. Global Change Biol 10:601–617

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tang XL, Liu SG, Zhou GY, Zhang DQ, Zhou CY (2006) Soil atmoshpheric exchange of CO2, CH4, and N2O in three subtropical forest ecosystems in southern China. Global Change Biol 12:546–560

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Townsend AR, Vitousek PM, Trumbore SE (1995) Soil organic matter dynamics along gradients in temperature and land use on the island of Hawaii. Ecology 76:721–733

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang Z, He D, Song S, Chen S, Chen D, Tu M (1982) The vegetation of Dinghushan Biosphere Reserve. Trop Subtrop For Ecosyst 1:77–141. Science Press, Guangzhou, China (in Chinese with English abstract)

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhang XJ, Xu H, Chen GX (2001) Major factors controlling nitrous oxide emission and methane uptake from forest soil. J Forest Res 12:239–242

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zheng X, Fu C, Xu X, Xiaodong Y, Huang Y, Chen G, Han S, Hu F (2002) The Asian nitrogen cycle case study. Ambio 31:79–87

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Zhou GY, Yan JH (2001) The influence of region atmospheric precipitation characteristics and its element inputs on the existence and development of Dinghushan forest ecosystems. Acta Ecol Sin 21:2002–2012 (in Chinese with English abstract)

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the constructive comments from two anonymous reviewers and the editor, which have greatly improved the quality of the paper. This study was founded by National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 30670392) and Key Project of Chinese Academy of Sciences Knowledge Innovation Program (KZCX2-YW-432-2, KSCX2-SW-133).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jiangming Mo.

Additional information

Responsible Editor: Hans Lambers.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Mo, J., Zhang, W., Zhu, W. et al. Response of soil respiration to simulated N deposition in a disturbed and a rehabilitated tropical forest in southern China. Plant Soil 296, 125–135 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-007-9303-8

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-007-9303-8

Keywords

Navigation