Soil carbon release enhanced by increased litter input in a degraded semi-arid forest soil

Land use change may modify litter inputs to soil, with important consequences for belowground processes such as organic carbon (C) mineralization. In this study, we experimentally tested the effects of changes on litter quantity and quality on CO2 release in intensively used soils from the Chaco Forest. We applied leaf litter of two species (representing the highest and lowest litter C:N ratio of dominant woody species found in the system) in two doses (minimum and maximum litter fall recorded in the system) to the soil. We incubated the soil and measured CO2 release on different dates. Litter quantity rather than litter quality was the fundamental determinant of soil CO2 release rates in the Chaco forest. Accordingly, changes in litter input would have the potential to impact soil organic C dynamics, with positive feedback to the atmospheric C pool.

Automated summary

The study found that in the Chaco forest, the quantity rather than quality of litter was the key determinant of soil CO2 release rates. Changes in litter input have the potential to impact soil organic C dynamics, with positive feedback to the atmospheric C pool.