Review
Soil Science
Xuebing Zhang, Guangting Pei, Jianfei Sun, Yuxin Huang, Qingqing Huang, Haoxuan Xie, Junyu Mo, Minjun Zhao, Baoqing Hu
Summary: Alterations in aboveground plant litter inputs due to global climate change can strongly affect soil nitrogen cycling, soil processes, and functions. Litter addition significantly increased soil nitrogen pools, while litter removal decreased them. Litter addition also increased soil net nitrogen mineralization, dissolved organic nitrogen leaching, and nitrous oxide emission, while litter removal reduced net nitrogen mineralization and increased nitrate leaching. The response of soil nitrogen cycling to litter manipulation was influenced by soil nitrogen status, ecosystems, climates, and experimental conditions.
Article
Soil Science
Marie Spohn, Bjorn Berg
Summary: During the initial stages of leaf and needle litter decomposition, microorganisms face nitrogen and phosphorus scarcity. The aim of the study was to explore the import and release of nutrients into and from decomposing Norway spruce and Scots pine needle litter. The results show that nutrient import into decomposing plant litter is a quantitatively important process in temperate and boreal forests, alleviating stoichiometric imbalance and contributing to microbial nutrient acquisition.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Yang Zhang, Qing Zhang, Wenjun Yang, Yan Zhang, Ning Wang, Peixian Fan, Chao You, Linqian Yu, Qun Gao, Hui Wang, Peiming Zheng, Renqing Wang
Summary: The increase in nitrogen deposition and its diversity has significant impacts on the structure and function of temperate meadow steppe, affecting plant nutrient uptake, resorption, and litter decomposition, thereby altering the biogeochemical cycle. This study explored the effects of nitrogen deposition on nutrient cycling by closely examining plant nutrient uptake, resorption, and litter decomposition. The results showed that nitrogen deposition greatly influences the nutrient cycle of nitrogen and phosphorus, impacting the structure and function of grassland ecosystems.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Forestry
Lei Jiang, Shenggong Li, Huimin Wang, Xiaoqin Dai, Shengwang Meng, Xiaoli Fu, Jiajia Zheng, Han Yan, Ning Ma, Yafang Xue, Liang Kou
Summary: This study explored the responses of leaves and absorptive roots to nutrient deposition in Pinus massoniana and Schima superba forests in subtropical China. It found that nitrogen deposition had persistent negative effects on root decomposition, phosphorus deposition had a positive effect on leaf decomposition, and nitrogen-phosphorus deposition had a positive effect on leaf decomposition in the late stage. The study also found that the decomposition rates were correlated with acid phosphatase activity, indicating a microbial mechanism.
Article
Ecology
Xin Jing, Case M. Prager, Litong Chen, Haiyan Chu, Nicholas J. Gotelli, Jin-Sheng He, Yu Shi, Teng Yang, Biao Zhu, Aimee T. Classen, Nathan J. Sanders
Summary: The study found that the taxonomic composition of plants, soil bacteria, and soil fungi communities is related to local climate, with the effects of local climate on the spatial turnover of nutrient pools being mainly indirect through plant and soil bacteria species composition, but not through soil fungal species composition. Furthermore, the replacement component of soil bacterial beta-diversity and the richness difference of plant beta-diversity were identified as direct predictors of nutrient pools in alpine grasslands. These results suggest that conserving above- and belowground biodiversity can mitigate the impacts of local climate on the functions of climate-sensitive alpine grasslands.
GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Allison L. Gill, Peter B. Adler, Elizabeth T. Borer, Christopher R. Buyarski, Elsa E. Cleland, Carla M. D'Antonio, Kendi F. Davies, Daniel S. Gruner, W. Stanley Harpole, Kirsten S. Hofmockel, Andrew S. MacDougall, Rebecca L. McCulley, Brett A. Melbourne, Joslin L. Moore, John W. Morgan, Anita C. Risch, Martin Schutz, Eric W. Seabloom, Justin P. Wright, Louie H. Yang, Sarah E. Hobbie
Summary: This study found that nitrogen can accelerate early-stage decomposition of above-ground plant litter in temperate grasslands, but slow down late-stage decomposition. These findings have important implications for the effects of nitrogen on soil organic matter formation.
JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Agronomy
Quanchao Zeng, Zhe Chen, Wenfeng Tan
Summary: The study found that soil microbial communities in orchards are co-limited by C and P during litter decomposition, and the addition of alfalfa leaves plays a positive role in improving soil nutrients and regulating nutrient limitation.
Article
Ecology
Adrienne B. B. Keller, Christopher A. A. Walter, Dana M. M. Blumenthal, Elizabeth T. T. Borer, Scott L. L. Collins, Lang C. C. DeLancey, Philip A. A. Fay, Kirsten S. S. Hofmockel, Johannes M. H. Knops, Andrew D. B. Leakey, Melanie A. A. Mayes, Eric W. W. Seabloom, Sarah E. E. Hobbie
Summary: Increased nutrient inputs from anthropogenic activities are expected to enhance primary productivity in terrestrial ecosystems. However, changes in allocation between aboveground and belowground areas in response to nutrient additions have different effects on soil carbon storage. Roots play a major role in soil carbon storage, therefore understanding belowground net primary productivity (BNPP) and biomass responses to changes in nutrient availability is crucial for predicting carbon-climate feedbacks.
Article
Agronomy
Michelle Dobbratz, Jacob M. Jungers, Jessica L. M. Gutknecht
Summary: Intermediate wheatgrass (IWG) is a promising perennial grass crop, favored for its ability to take up nitrate and enhance water quality. However, the seasonal nitrogen demand and uptake patterns of IWG are not well understood. This study investigated the nitrogen dynamics of IWG stands at different growth stages and revealed strong seasonal nitrogen allocation patterns. The findings suggest that IWG can efficiently utilize nitrogen inputs and reduce nitrogen leaching, but careful consideration of seasonal nitrogen allocation is necessary for optimized nitrogen recommendations and best practices.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
C. K. Pei, Torre J. Hovick, Ryan F. Limb, Jason P. Harmon, Benjamin A. Geaumont
Summary: Ecologists consider biological invasions one of the primary drivers of global change. Invasive grass species have replaced native plants in many grasslands of North America, impacting bee and forb species richness. The presence of Kentucky bluegrass and smooth brome, along with human alterations to the landscape, has resulted in alterations to grassland plant communities, affecting diverse bee communities. Litter accumulation, grass cover, bare ground, and forb species richness interact with bee functional traits, emphasizing the importance of maintaining structural and compositional diversity in invaded grasslands to support diverse bee communities.
GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND CONSERVATION
(2023)
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Yuan Su, Kuanhu Dong, Changhui Wang, Xuejun Liu
Summary: Grazing significantly affects the decomposition of plant litter, but the intensity of grazing plays a role in determining the extent of this effect. This meta-analysis of published studies reveals that grazing promotes litter decomposition, but the magnitude of its effects decreases with increasing grazing intensity. The effects of grazing on litter decomposition vary depending on the type of litter, with a stronger positive effect on the decomposition of single root litter. Environmental and experimental factors also influence the responses of litter decomposition to grazing.
AGRICULTURE ECOSYSTEMS & ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Jiexiu Zhai, James T. Anderson, Guoxin Yan, Ling Cong, Yanan Wu, Liyi Dai, Jiakai Liu, Zhenming Zhang
Summary: The decomposition rate of plant litter is mainly controlled by litter quality and environmental factors. In this study, it was found that higher salinity under inundation conditions can lead to faster decomposition rates, while the ratio of nitrogen to phosphorous showed an upward trend during the process. Additionally, both water chemical oxygen demand and NH3-N concentration were inversely correlated with salinity.
ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ruirui Yang, Junyu Dong, Changchao Li, Lifei Wang, Quan Quan, Jian Liu
Summary: The study found that water level change and nutrient enrichment significantly affected the decomposition and nutrient dynamics of invasive plant litter. Increase in water level reduced the decomposition rate and nutrient release of litter in the nutrient control treatment, while the effect was less clear in the nutrient enrichment treatment, suggesting an interaction between water level change and nutrient enrichment.
Article
Soil Science
Jie Chen, Bin Jia, Shu Gang, Yawen Li, Fen-Can Li, Xiao Ming Mou, Yakov Kuzyakov, Xiao Gang Li
Summary: This study compares the effects of different plant communities on soil organic carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus mineralization in an alpine meadow. The results show that under shrubs, the rates of nitrogen and phosphorus mineralization in soil are significantly higher, while the increase in organic carbon mineralization is smaller. Furthermore, the decoupling of organic carbon and nutrient mineralization is driven by microbial stoichiometry.
BIOLOGY AND FERTILITY OF SOILS
(2022)
Article
Soil Science
Agustin Nuneza, Francesca Cotrufo, Meagan Schipanski
Summary: In semiarid agricultural systems, irrigation can increase soil organic matter (SOM), but its impact on the fate of crop residues left on the soil surface is important. Our study found that irrigation had a larger effect on C and N losses from litter, but a smaller effect on the formation of new SOM. Most of the litter-derived organic matter was found in the mineral associated OM pool.