Abstract
Soil nitrogen (N) pools and fluxes are strongly influenced by litter inputs in natural ecosystems. However, general responses of soil N pools and fluxes to litter inputs from both above- and belowground are still lacking at a global scale. Here, we compiled 2791 paired observations from 145 published articles to assess global effects of altered leaf litter and roots inputs on soil N pools and fluxes. We found that litter addition increased soil N pools and fluxes globally, with a 30.6% increase in soil microbial biomass N (MBN) pool, a 28.9% increase in dissolved organic N (DON) pool, a 15.8% increase in ammonia (NH4+) pool and a 12.6% increase in nitrous oxide (N2O) fluxes. In contrast, litter removal decreased soil MBN, DON and nitrate (NO3−) pools and N2O fluxes by 9.6%, 9.2%, 9.1% and 16.9%, respectively. Moreover, the increases in soil N pools in response to leaf litter addition and root removal were greater than their decreases in response to leaf litter removal. Soil N pools in forests, especially mixed forests, responded more positively to litter addition than those in grasslands. However, the negative effects of litter removal on soil N pools were contingent upon environmental conditions. In particular, the negative effects of litter removal on soil DON and NO3− pools were stronger in region with warmer and wetter climates and in soils with higher pH. Our synthesis highlights the globally positive effects of litter inputs on soil N pools and fluxes and the importance of litter type, climate factors and soil pH in understanding soil N pools and fluxes responses. These changes have important implications for soil N supply under global change-induced increases in litterfall.
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This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (32171641, 32022056, 32101509 and 31922052).
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Author Contributions: XN and FW conceived the idea; JY, XW, XZ and QW collected the data; JY and KY performed the data analyses; JY wrote the first version of the manuscript; JY, XN and FW made revisions.
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Yang, J., Wu, F., Wei, X. et al. Global Positive Effects of Litter Inputs on Soil Nitrogen Pools and Fluxes. Ecosystems 26, 860–872 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10021-022-00800-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10021-022-00800-6