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Cropland Soil Carbon Dynamics

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Recarbonization of the Biosphere

Abstract

Humans began thousands of years ago to cultivate land for growing crops after clearing the previous vegetation cover and plowing the soil. The soil disturbance altered soil carbon (C) dynamics which has been recently exacerbated by the increase in crop intensification (i.e., fertilization, irrigation, mechanization). For example, conversion to croplands may release up to 36% of soil organic carbon (SOC) to 27-cm depth in temperate regions, and up to 30% of SOC to 48-cm depth in tropical regions. In 2000, about 12% of Earth’s ice-free land surface or 15 million km2 were covered by croplands. Climate, geology and land and crop management practices control the size of the cropland soil C pool. A major fraction (25–70%) of the carbon dioxide (CO2) fixed during plant photosynthesis in croplands by gross primary production (GPP) is respired autotrophically (Ra) back to the atmosphere. Globally, cropland GPP is about 14.8 Pg C year−1 (1 Pg = 1015 g). The remaining net primary production (NPP = GPP−Ra) is the main natural C input into cropland soils aside addition of manure and organic residues. Cropland NPP includes the production of biomass in foliage, shoots and roots, weed and seed production, root exudation, the C transfer to microorganisms that are symbiotically associated with roots, and the volatile organic carbon (VOC) emissions that are lost from leaves to the atmosphere. NPP enters soil by rhizodeposition and decomposition of plant litter but the major fraction is heterotrophically converted back to CO2 by soil respiration and some lost as methane (CH4). Aside decomposition, C losses from croplands occur also by fire, erosion, leaching, and most importantly harvest removing about 2.2 Pg C year−1 in the 1990s. Thus, a small amount of fixed C remains in cropland soils and accumulates in the SOC pool due to a combination of short- and long-term stabilization processes. Stabilization processes include physical protection of organic matter (OM) against decomposers and their enzymes, stabilization by organomineral complexes and organo-metal interactions, and some as biochemically recalcitrant black carbon (BC). Soil aggregation, in particular, may be the most important stabilization process in cropland topsoils. Site-specific factors including climate, physicochemical characteristics, soil and vegetation management determine the balance between C input and losses. Cropland soils can be recarbonized to some extent through adoption of recommended management practices (RMPs) such as conservation tillage, residue mulching and use of cover crops, practices which all contribute to soil C accumulation and sequestration by an additional transfer of C from the atmosphere to the soil. Whether cultivation of SOC-accreting crops can also contribute to the recarbonization of cropland soils needs additional research.

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Abbreviations

AM:

Arbuscular mycorrhiza

AUR:

Acid-unhydrolyzable residue

BC:

Black carbon

BIO:

Microbial biomass

CQT:

Carbon quality-temperature

DIC:

Dissolved inorganic carbon

DOC:

Dissolved organic carbon

DPM:

Decomposable plant material

ECM:

Ecto-mycorrhiza

ERM:

Ericoid mycorrhiza

EU:

European Union

FAO:

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

GPP:

Gross primary production

HI:

Harvest index

HUM:

Humified organic matter

NBP:

Net biome production

NPP:

Net primary production

NT:

No-tillage

OM:

Organic matter

PT:

Plow tillage

PTF:

Plant functional type

Ra :

Autotrophic respiration

RMP:

Recommended management practices

RothC:

Rothamsted carbon model

RPM:

Resistant plant material

SIC:

Soil inorganic carbon

SOC:

Soil organic carbon

SOM:

Soil organic matter

UK:

United Kingdom

USA:

United States of America

VOC:

Volatile organic carbon

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Global Soil Forum, IASS Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies, Berliner Strasse 130, 14467, Potsdam, Germany

    Klaus Lorenz

  2. Carbon Management and Sequestration Center, The Ohio State University, 2021 Coffey Road, Kottmann Hall 422b, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA

    Rattan Lal

Authors
  1. Klaus Lorenz
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  2. Rattan Lal
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Correspondence to Klaus Lorenz .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. OARDC, Carbon Management &, Ohio State University, Coffey Road 2021, Columbus, 43210, Ohio, USA

    Rattan Lal

  2. , Global Contract for Sustainability, IASS Inst. for Adv. Sust. Studies, Berliner Str. 130, Potsdam, 14467, Brandenburg, Germany

    Klaus Lorenz

  3. , Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum GFZ, Helmholtz-Zentrum Potsdam, Telegrafenberg, Potsdam, 14473, Germany

    Reinhard F. Hüttl

  4. , Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum GFZ, Helmholtz-Zentrum Potsdam, Telegrafenberg 309G, Potsdam, 14473, Brandenburg, Germany

    Bernd Uwe Schneider

  5. Walter-Flex-Str. 3, Bonn, 53113, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany

    Joachim von Braun

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Lorenz, K., Lal, R. (2012). Cropland Soil Carbon Dynamics. In: Lal, R., Lorenz, K., Hüttl, R., Schneider, B., von Braun, J. (eds) Recarbonization of the Biosphere. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4159-1_14

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