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Plant litter chemistry and microbial priming regulate the accrual, composition and stability of soil carbon in invaded ecosystems
Author(s) -
Tamura Mioko,
Tharayil Nishanth
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
new phytologist
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.742
H-Index - 244
eISSN - 1469-8137
pISSN - 0028-646X
DOI - 10.1111/nph.12795
Subject(s) - ecosystem , soil water , humus , litter , soil organic matter , plant litter , soil carbon , soil biology , chemistry , agronomy , biology , ecology , environmental chemistry
Summary Soil carbon ( C ) sequestration, as an ecosystem property, may be strongly influenced by invasive plants capable of depositing disproportionately high quantities of chemically distinct litter that disrupt ecosystem processes. However, a mechanistic understanding of the processes that regulate soil C storage in invaded ecosystems remains surprisingly elusive. Here, we studied the impact of the invasion of two noxious nonnative species, P olygonum cuspidatum , which produces recalcitrant litter, and P ueraria lobata , which produces labile litter, on the quantity, molecular composition, and stability of C in the soils they invade. Compared with an adjacent noninvaded old‐field, P . cuspidatum ‐invaded soils exhibited a 26% increase in C , partially through selective preservation of plant polymers. Despite receiving a 22% higher litter input, P . lobata ‐invaded P inus stands exhibited a 28% decrease in soil C and a twofold decrease in plant biomarkers, indicating microbial priming of native soil C . The stability of C exhibited an opposite trend: the proportion of C that was resistant to oxidation was 21% lower in P . cuspidatum ‐invaded soils and 50% higher in P . lobata ‐invaded soils. Our results highlight the capacity of invasive plants to feed back to climate change by destabilizing native soil C stocks and indicate that environments that promote the biochemical decomposition of plant litter would enhance the long‐term storage of soil C . Further, our study highlights the concurrent influence of dominant plant species on both selective preservation and humification of soil organic matter.