Soil texture controls vegetation biomass and organic carbon storage in arid desert grassland in the middle of Hexi Corridor region in Northwest China
Yongzhong Su A B , Jiuqiang Wang A , Rong Yang A , Xiao Yang A and Guiping Fan A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Linze Inland River Basin Research Station, Key Laboratory of Inland River Basin Eco-hydrology, Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, China.
B Corresponding author. Email: suyzh@lzb.ac.cn
Soil Research 53(4) 366-376 https://doi.org/10.1071/SR14207
Submitted: 5 August 2014 Accepted: 4 February 2015 Published: 30 June 2015
Abstract
Soil texture plays an important role in controlling vegetation production and soil organic carbon (SOC) concentration in arid desert grassland ecosystems. However, little is known about the occurrence and extent of these textural effects in the arid desert grasslands of Northwest China. This study used 160 soil profiles taken from 32 desert grassland sites in similar topographical units (alluvial–diluvial fans) in the middle of Hexi Corridor region of Northwest China to investigate vegetation biomass, SOC storage, and soil texture of seven layers in the top 100 cm of soil. The mean aboveground biomass, below-ground biomass, and total biomass in arid desert grassland were 155.3, 95.3, and 256.3 g m–2, respectively. More than 95% of the below-ground biomass was distributed in the top 30 cm of soil. Spatially, vegetation biomass was positively related to soil clay content and silt + clay content. The mean SOC density in the top 100 cm was 2.94 kg m–2 and ~46.8% of the storage was concentrated in the top 30 cm. SOC concentrations and stocks were positively and significantly related to clay content and silt + clay content in the seven soil layers sampled from the top 100 cm. The soil silt + clay content explained 42–79% of the variation in SOC stocks in the different soil depths. In conclusion, soil texture appears to be an important control on vegetation productivity and SOC capacity in arid Hexi Corridor desert grassland soils.
Additional keywords: arid desert grassland, Northwest China, soil texture, SOC stock, vegetation biomass.
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