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Soil organic C and nutrient contents under trees with different functional characteristics in seasonally dry tropical silvopastures

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Abstract

Aims

The selection of tree characteristics is critical for the outcome of the tree effects on soil fertility in silvopastoral pastures. This study aims to quantify the effects of trees on soil nutrient and C stocks, as well as assessing differences on the effects between legume (Albizia saman; Enterolobium cyclocarpum) and non-legume tree species (Tabebuia rosea; Guazuma ulmifolia).

Methods

In Central Nicaragua, soil was sampled (0–10 cm deep) in paired plots, under both a canopy and in open grassland, in 12 sites per tree species and analysed for organic C, total N stocks, available P and extractable K+, Ca2+ and Mg2+. To assess the effects of herbaceous composition and cattle to soil proprieties, we recorded the cover of plant groups and assessed the mass of dung in each plot.

Results

Soil organic C and N, available P and extractable K+ and Ca2+ were higher under the tree canopy than under paired open grassland. The basal area of trees was positively related with the canopy effect on soil variables, thus suggesting that the age or sizes of the trees are relevant factors associated with the content of soil C and nutrients. No specific effects related to the legume species group were detected.

Conclusions

Our results indicate that in fertile seasonally dry subtropical pastures, scattered trees have an overall effect on soil fertility, and that the magnitude of the effect depends more on the tree characteristics (i.e. basal area, crown area) than on whether the species is a legume or not.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the SILPAS project (funded by the Research Council of Norway, programme LAND, grant no. 184065/S30). We wish to thank the farmers in Muy Muy and Matiguás who kindly facilitated access to the study sites, as well as Hamilton Núñez, Nestor Pineda and Amilcar Aguilar (CATIE, Nicaragua) for their technical assistance in the field. Andreas Nieuwenhuyse (CATIE), Pere Rovira, Joan Romanyà and Noelia Arco (University of Barcelona) helped with the laboratory analysis and interpretation of the results. The first author (PC) is financially supported by a Ramón y Cajal Contract (Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, Spain).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre Tecnològic Forestal de Catalunya (CTFC), Ctra de St. Llorenç de Morunys, km 2, 25280, Solsona, Spain

    Pere Casals

  2. Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (CATIE), Cartago, Costa Rica

    Johanna Romero & Muhammad Ibrahim

  3. Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Norway, Norway

    Graciela M. Rusch

Authors
  1. Pere Casals
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  2. Johanna Romero
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  3. Graciela M. Rusch
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  4. Muhammad Ibrahim
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Pere Casals.

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Responsible Editor: Per Ambus.

Appendices

Appendix A

Table 5 Tree and site characteristics per each individual sampled species
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Appendix B

Table 6 Soil parameters differences between open grassland and under tree in the four tree species; mean (SE (n = 12). The significance from the Repeated Measures GLM was indicated (p-values <0.1 in bold) for the within-subject factor (Canopy) and their interactions with the covariable Basal area of the trees (Canopy × BA) and the functional group (Canopy × FG) and the species nested within functional group (Canopy × Sp(FG)) as between-subject factors. For each species, the significance of the differences of soil variables between under tree and under grassland plots from the paired t-student test was indicated (p-value)
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Casals, P., Romero, J., Rusch, G.M. et al. Soil organic C and nutrient contents under trees with different functional characteristics in seasonally dry tropical silvopastures. Plant Soil 374, 643–659 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-013-1884-9

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