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Nutrient Addition Effects on Carbon Fluxes in Wet Grasslands With Either Organic or Mineral Soil

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Abstract

Little is known how soil type may interact with fertilization in affecting carbon fluxes in wet grasslands, habitats of high conservation value which have decreased in area due to agricultural intensification. A nutrient (NPK) addition experiment, with three treatment levels in a block design, was established to compare nutrient effects on particular carbon fluxes (plant production and nutrient contents, and plant and soil respiration) in two wet grasslands in the Czech Republic, with either organic or mineral soil. Between-site and treatment differences were tested by one and twoway ANOVA; temporal changes by repeated measures ANOVA. We hypothesized that the organic site would be more sensitive to nutrient additions. Aboveground biomass and total dark CO2 emissions increased significantly with nutrient addition in the organic, but not the mineral, site, thus supporting our hypothesis. Hay removal and the short duration of fertilization (3 years) may account for the lack of other significant effects. Soil properties (bulk density, C:N ratio, microbial community structure) likely underlie these differences between the wet grasslands, although site hydrology and plant species composition may also be important. Soil type, as well as the other factors, must be considered when restoring or managing for well-functioning, resilient wet grasslands.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Terezia Říhová and Aleš Kučera for helping with gas sampling and chemical analyses, and Miroslava Káplová who helped collect and analyze the plant samples. We also thank Ladislav Rektoris of the Třeboňsko Basin Biosphere Reserve for conducting vegetation surveys. The study was supported by grants from the Grant Agency of the Czech Republic (GACR: 526/06/0276; 526/09/1545) and the Grant Agency of the University of South Bohemia (GAJU:143/2010/P). The comments of an anonymous reviewer helped to greatly improve the text.

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  1. Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 31, CZ-370 05, České Budějovice, Czech Republic

    Keith R. Edwards, Tomáš Picek & Kateřina Máchalová Zemanová

  2. Faculty of Agriculture, University of South Bohemia, Studentská 13, CZ-370 05, České Budějovice, Czech Republic

    Hana Čížková & Alžbětá Stará

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  1. Keith R. Edwards
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Correspondence to Keith R. Edwards.

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Edwards, K.R., Picek, T., Čížková, H. et al. Nutrient Addition Effects on Carbon Fluxes in Wet Grasslands With Either Organic or Mineral Soil. Wetlands 35, 55–68 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-014-0592-4

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