Distribution of organic carbon and nitrogen in soil aggregates of aspen (Populus simonii Carr.) woodlands in the semi-arid Loess Plateau of China
Hailong Gao A , Liping Qiu A B , Yanjiang Zhang A , Liaohong Wang A , Xingchang Zhang A B and Jimin Cheng A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A State Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Dryland Farming in the Loess Plateau, Institute of Soil and Water Conversion, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China.
B Corresponding authors. Emails: qiulp79@163.com; zhangxc@ms.iswc.ac.cn.
Soil Research 51(5) 406-414 https://doi.org/10.1071/SR12250
Submitted: 1 September 2012 Accepted: 31 July 2013 Published: 25 September 2013
Abstract
The distribution and turnover of organic carbon (OC) and nitrogen (N) associated with aggregates in soils is critical for understanding the behaviour of C and N in soils. We collected soil samples from aspen (Populus simonii Carr.) woodland in the semi-arid Loess Plateau of China to investigate the distribution of aggregate-associated OC and N. The distribution of aggregates and aggregate-associated OC and N were measured, and OC and N stocks in each aggregate fraction were calculated. Across the sites and soil depths, microaggregates and the silt + clay fraction dominated the distribution of soil aggregates, which varied with site. Organic C and N accumulated mainly in the macro- and micro-aggregate fractions in loamy soils but in the silt + clay fractions in sandy soils. The OC and N stocks in the bulk soil of aspen woodland were determined by the OC and N stocks associated with silt + clay fraction. The results of this study indicate that soil texture may play an important role in assessing the distributions of soil OC and N in both bulk soils and aggregate size fractions in aspen woodland, especially in semi-arid regions. Furthermore, the establishment of aspen woodland would result in greater accumulation of OC and N in loam soils than in sandy soils.
Additional keywords: aggregates, aspen woodland, Loess Plateau, nitrogen, organic carbon.
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