Abstract
Purpose
Soil nitrogen (N) availability plays an important role in determining ecosystem structure and function. However, the variation patterns of soil N availability under different vegetation restoration strategies along climatic gradients in the ecologically fragile karst region of China have been poorly understood.
Methods
Soil N variables, including total N (TN), inorganic N [ammonium (NH4+) and nitrate (NO3-)], and rates of net N mineralization and nitrification were measured following managed (plantation forest) and natural (spontaneous regeneration) vegetation restoration along a climatic gradient in the karst region of southwestern China.
Results
Compared to that in the cropland, soil TN and NH4+ concentrations significantly increased in both vegetation restoration strategies after 15 years of cropland abandonment. The net N mineralization and nitrification rates were lower in both vegetation restoration strategies compared with those in cropland and secondary forest. There were no significant differences in the soil N variables between the two vegetation restoration strategies. Furthermore, soil NO3− was positively correlated with mean annual temperature (MAT) following vegetation restoration, whereas the net nitrification rate was negatively correlated with MAT. Generally, soil pH was the main factor affecting soil inorganic N, whereas elevation, soil microbial abundance, SOC or C:N, and climatic factors mainly affected soil net N mineralization and nitrification rates.
Conclusion
Vegetation restoration was beneficial to soil N accumulation and is likely to decrease the risk of N loss in warmer regions given the reduced potential nitrification rate with increased MAT in the karst region of Southwest China.
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Data Availability
Data will be made available on request.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [grant numbers 41930652, 31870502, 32001231, and 42001049] and the National Natural Science Foundation of Guangxi Province [2018GXNSFBA138014].
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This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [grant numbers 41930652, 31870502, 32001231, and 42001049] and the National Natural Science Foundation of Guangxi Province [2018GXNSFBA138014].
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Hu, P., Zhao, Y., Xiao, D. et al. Dynamics of soil nitrogen availability following vegetation restoration along a climatic gradient of a subtropical karst region in China. J Soils Sediments 21, 2167–2178 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-021-02915-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-021-02915-0