Open AccessLong-term growth of temperate broadleaved forests no longer benefits soil C accumulation
Author(s) -
Yunpeng Ji,
Ke Guo,
Shibo Fang,
Xiaoniu Xu,
Zhigao Wang,
Shudong Wang
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
scientific reports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.24
H-Index - 213
ISSN - 2045-2322
DOI - 10.1038/srep42328
Subject(s) - topsoil , temperate climate , environmental science , temperate rainforest , carbon sequestration , biomass (ecology) , soil carbon , soil horizon , temperate forest , bulk density , soil water , agroforestry , soil science , agronomy , ecology , biology , ecosystem , carbon dioxide
It is widely recognized that the long-term growth of forests benefits biomass carbon (C) sequestration, but it is not known whether the long-term growth of forests would also benefit soil C sequestration. We selected 79 representative soil profiles and investigated the influence of the forest stand age on the soil C dynamics of three soil layers (0–10, 10–20 and 20–30 cm) in temperate broadleaved forests in East China. The results suggest that the soil C density in temperature broadleaved forests significantly changes with the stand age, following a convex parabolic curve. At an early stand age, the soil C density usually increases, reaching its peak value at a pre-mature stand age (approximately 50 years old). At later stand ages, the soil C density usually decreases. Therefore, our results reveal a turning point in the soil C density at a pre-mature stand age. The long-term growth of temperate broadleaved forests after pre-mature stand age no longer benefits soil C accumulation, probably promotes topsoil C loss. In addition, we found that the soil C density in the upper soil layer usually changes with the forest stand development more significantly than that in deeper soil layers.