Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Impacts of plantation forest management on soil organic matter quality

  • SOILS, SEC 1 • SOIL ORGANIC MATTER DYNAMICS AND NUTRIENT CYCLING • RESEARCH ARTICLE
  • Published:
Journal of Soils and Sediments Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

Light fraction soil organic matter is characterized by rapid mineralization due to the labile nature of its chemical constituents and to the lack of protection by soil colloids. The changes in the size of light fraction soil organic matter constituents are useful early indicators of management-related carbon (C) and nutrient changes. However, previous studies have not assessed the impacts of forest management practices on the chemical composition and sources of organic matter in the light fraction. The change in the chemistry of light fraction soil organic matter may significantly affect turnover rate of organic matter in the whole soil and soil fertility. The aim of this study was to assess how different forest management practices would affect the chemical composition of light fraction soil organic matter.

Materials and methods

Soils in 0–5, 5–15, and 15–25-cm layers were sampled in 2009 from a 19-year-old second-rotation Pinus radiata D. Don plantation. Soils were subject to four different treatment combinations (stem-only and whole-tree harvesting residue management treatments were combined with the presence or absence of nitrogen (N)). The soil was physically separated into two pools based on density fractionation. The C and N concentrations in the whole soil, light, and heavy fractions were determined. Light fraction soil organic matter in upper soil (0–5 cm depth) was analyzed by solid-state CPMAS 13C NMR and GC/MS to determine the effects of forest management practices on the composition of organic C functional groups and the relative abundance of plant biomarkers.

Results and discussion

Long-term fertilization did not affect the C and N concentrations in the whole soil, light and heavy fractions, but increased the relative enrichment of alkyl C and alkyl-to-O-alkyl C ratio in the light fraction soil organic matter at the 0–5 cm depth, which may suggest increased decomposition of the light fraction. The relative abundance of cutin-derived compounds, which originate from the waxy coating of leaves, was greater in the light fraction soil organic matter in the fertilized plots than in the unfertilized plots. The relative abundance of major carbohydrates, labile components in the light fraction soil organic matter, decreased in the fertilized plots despite greater inputs from forest litter, compared to that in the unfertilized plots. Compared with whole-tree harvest plots, stem-only harvest plots had greater C concentrations in the light fraction soil organic matter at 0 to 25-cm layer and seemed to have a greater alkyl-to-O-alkyl ratio in the light fraction of soil organic matter, but the difference in alkyl-to-O-alkyl ratio due to harvest residue management was not significant (P < 0.05) at the 0–5 cm depth. Post-harvesting residue management did not significantly affect functional organic C groups as analyzed by CPMAS 13C NMR, or the relative abundance of cutin, suberin, lignin-derived compounds or major carbohydrates determined by GC/MS.

Conclusions

The analyses of light fraction soil organic matter suggest that long-term fertilization did not affect the C concentration of light fraction soil organic matter, but increased the relative enrichment of recalcitrant C possibly due to enhanced input of cutin-derived compounds, decreased decomposition of cutin-derived compounds, or increased decomposition of less recalcitrant compounds. Stem-only harvesting residue management enhanced C concentration in the light fraction soil organic matter; however, it did not significantly affect the relative abundance of recalcitrant or labile C components compared to whole-tree harvesting. The information on chemistry of light fraction soil organic matter may contribute to the future nutrient and soil C management in the second-rotation plantation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Boone RD (1994) Light-fraction soil organic matter: origin and contribution to net nitrogen mineralization. Soil Biol Biochem 26:1459–1468

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Carlyle JC (1993) Organic carbon in forested sandy soils: properties, processes, and the impact of forest management. New Zeal J Forest Sci 23:390–402

    Google Scholar 

  • Carter MR, Gregorich EG (2008) Soil sampling and methods of analysis. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL

    Google Scholar 

  • Compton JE, Boone RD (2002) Soil nitrogen transformations and the role of light fraction organic matter in forest soils. Soil Biol Biochem 34:933–943

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dubeux JJCB, Sollenberger LE, Comerford NB, Scholberg JM, Ruggieri AC, Vendramini JMB, Interrante SM, Portier KM (2006) Management intensity affects density fractions of soil organic matter from grazed bahiagrass swards. Soil Biol Biochem 38:2705–2711

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hewitt AE (1992) New Zealand soil classification. DSIR Land Resources, Lower Hutt, p 133

    Google Scholar 

  • Homann PS, Caldwell BA, Chappell HN, Sollins P, Swanston CW (2001) Douglas-fir soil C and N properties a decade after termination of urea fertilization. Can J Forest Res 31:2225–2236

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Huang Z, Xu Z, Chen C, Boyd S (2008) Changes in soil carbon during the establishment of a hardwood plantation in subtropical Australia. Forest Ecol Manag 254:46–55

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Huang Z, Clinton PW, Baisden WT, Davis MR (2011a) Long-term nitrogen additions increased surface soil carbon concentration in a forest plantation despite elevated decomposition. Soil Biol Biochem 43:302–307

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Huang Z, Clinton PW, Davis MR (2011b) Post-harvest residue management effects on recalcitrant carbon pools and plant biomarkers within the soil heavy fraction in Pinus radiata plantations. Soil Biol Biochem 43:404–412

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jandl R, Lindner M, Vesterdal L, Bauwens B, Baritz R, Hagedorn F, Johnson DW, Minkkinen K, Byrne KA (2007) How strongly can forest management influence soil carbon sequestration? Geoderma 137:253–268

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Janzen HH, Campbell CA, Brandt SA, Lafond GP, Townley-Smith L (1992) Light-faction organic matter in soils from long-term crop rotations. Soil Sci Soc Am J 56:1799–1806

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson DW, Curtis PS (2001) Effects of forest management on soil C and N storage: meta analysis. Forest Ecol Manag 140:227–238

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kimberley M, West G, Dean M, Knowles L (2005) The 300 index—a volume productivity index for radiata pine. New Zeal J Forest Sci 50:13–18

    Google Scholar 

  • Liu L, Greaver TL (2010) A global perspective on belowground carbon dynamics under nitrogen enrichment. Ecol Lett 13:819–828

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lorenz K, Lal R, Preston CM, Nierop KGJ (2007) Strengthening the soil organic carbon pool by increasing contributions from recalcitrant aliphatic bio(macro)molecules. Geoderma 142:1–10

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mathers NJ, Mendham DS, O’Connell AM, Grove TS, Xu Z, Saffigna PG (2003) How does residue management impact soil organic matter composition and quality under Eucalyptus globulus plantations in southwestern Australia? Forest Ecol Manag 179:253–267

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Neff JC, Townsend AR, Gleixner G, Lehman SJ, Turnbull J, Bowman WD (2002) Variable effects of nitrogen additions on the stability and turnover of soil carbon. Nature 419:915–917

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • O’Hara C, Bauhus J, Smethurst P (2006) Role of light fraction soil organic matter in the phosphorus nutrition of Eucalyptus globulus seedlings. Plant Soil 280:127–134

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Otto A, Simpson M (2006a) Evaluation of CuO oxidation parameters for determining the source and stage of lignin degradation in soil. Biogeochemistry 80:121–142

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Otto A, Simpson MJ (2006b) Sources and composition of hydrolysable aliphatic lipids and phenols in soils from western Canada. Org Geochem 37:385–407

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Otto A, Shunthirasingham C, Simpson MJ (2005) A comparison of plant and microbial biomarkers in grassland soils from the Prairie Ecozone of Canada. Org Geochem 36:425–448

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Powers RF, Andrew Scott D, Sanchez FG, Voldseth RA, Page-Dumroese D, Elioff JD, Stone DM (2005) The North American long-term soil productivity experiment: findings from the first decade of research. Forest Ecol Manag 220:31–50

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Preston CM, Newman RH (1995) A long-term effect of N fertilization on the 13C CPMAS NMR of de-ashed soil humin in a second-growth Douglas-fir stand of coastal British Columbia. Geoderma 68:229–241

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sarkhot D, Comerford N, Jokela E, Reeves J (2007) Effects of forest management intensity on carbon and nitrogen content in different soil size fractions of a North Florida Spodosol. Plant Soil 294:291–303

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sequeira CH, Alley MM, Jones BP (2011) Evaluation of potentially labile soil organic carbon and nitrogen fractionation procedures. Soil Biol Biochem 43:438–444

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Smaill SJ (2006) The effect of forest management practices on microbial community properties. PhD Thesis,University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand, 231 pp

  • Smaill S, Clinton P, Greenfield L (2008) Nitrogen fertiliser effects on litter fall, FH layer and mineral soil characteristics in New Zealand Pinus radiata plantations. Forest Ecol Manag 256:564–569

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith CT, Lowe AT, Skinner MF, Beets PN, Schoenholtz SH, Fang S (2000) Response of radiata pine forests to residue management and fertilisation across a fertility gradient in New Zealand. Forest Ecol Manag 138:203–223

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sollins P, Spycher G, Glassman CA (1984) Net nitrogen mineralization from light- and heavy-fraction forest soil organic matter. Soil Biol Biochem 16:31–37

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Strickland TC, Sollins P (1987) Improved method for separating light- and heavy-fraction organic material from soil. Soil Sci Soc Am J 51:1390–1393

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Swanston C, Homann PS, Caldwell BA, Myrold DD, Ganio L, Sollins P (2004) Long-term effects of elevated nitrogen on forest soil organic matter stability. Biogeochemistry 70:229–252

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tiessen H, Cuevas E, Chacon P (2004) The role of soil organic matter in sustaining soil fertility. Nature 371:783–785

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turchenek LW, Oades JM (1979) Fractionation of organo-mineral complexes by sedimentation and density techniques. Geoderma 21:311–343

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This study was financed by a Scion (New Zealand Forest Research Institute Limited) post-doctoral grant. I would like to thank Alan Leckie for his assistance in soil sampling, and Stefan Hill and Hank Krose for their help in NMR and GC/MS analyses.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Geographical Science, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, 350007, People’s Republic of China

    Zhiqun Huang & Yusheng Yang

  2. Scion, PO Box 29237, Fendalton, Christchurch, New Zealand

    Peter W. Clinton & Murray R. Davis

Authors
  1. Zhiqun Huang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Peter W. Clinton
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Murray R. Davis
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Yusheng Yang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Zhiqun Huang.

Additional information

Responsible editor: Chris Johnson

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Huang, Z., Clinton, P.W., Davis, M.R. et al. Impacts of plantation forest management on soil organic matter quality. J Soils Sediments 11, 1309–1316 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-011-0440-6

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-011-0440-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation