Abstract
On the basis of different photosynthetic pathways, there is an obvious difference in δ13C values between C3 and C4 plants. In terms of this characteristic, we analyzed the organic carbon content (forestlands: 1.81% –16.00%; farmland: 0.43% –2.22%) and δ13C values (forestlands: -23. 86‰ -−27. 12‰; farmland: −19. 66‰ -−23.26‰) of three profile-soil samples either in farmland or in forestland near the Maolan Karst virgin forest, where there were developed plant C3 plants previously and now are C4 plants. Results showed that the deforestation has accelerated the decomposition rate of soil organic matter and reduced the proportion of active components in soil organic matter and thus soil fertility.
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This research project was jointly supported by the Foundation of Chinese Academy of Sciences for Innovation (Grant No. KZCX2-105) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 90202003 and 49772175).
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Qiming, L., Shijie, W., Hechun, P. et al. The variation of soil organic matter in a forest-cultivation sequence traced by stable carbon isotopes. Chin. J. Geochem. 22, 83–88 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02831548
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02831548