Gross N turnover and soil solution chemistry as influenced by fluctuations of soil water potential and water table in a Podzol and a fen soil [Elektronische Ressource] / Yao-Te Chen. Betreuer: Egbert Matzner

Chen

Informations

• Publié par: universitat_bayreuth
• Publié le: 01 janvier 2012
• Nombre de lectures: 10
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

Extrait

Gross N turnover and soil solution chemistry as
influenced by fluctuations of soil water potential
and water table in a Podzol and a fen soil

Dissertation

zur Erlangung des akademischen Grades Doktor der
Naturwissenschaften (Dr. rer. Nat.)

Vorgelegt der
Fakultät für Biologie / Chemie / Geowissenschaften
der Universität Bayreuth

von
Yao-Te Chen
Geboren am 18.04.1979 in Changhua (Taiwan)

Bayreuth, im Juli 2011

This doctoral thesis was prepared at the Department of Soil Ecology
University of Bayreuth, from April 2008 until June 2011 supervised
by Prof. Dr. Egbert Matzner.

This is a full reprint of the dissertation submitted to attain the
academic degree of Doctor of Natural Science (Dr. rer. nat.) and
approved by the Faculty of Biology, Chemistry and Geosciences of
the University of Bayreuth.

Action dean: Prof. Dr. Beate Lohnert
Date of submission: July 2011
thDate of defence (disputation): December 15 2011

Doctoral Committee:
stProf. Dr. Egbert Matzner 1 reviwer
ndProf. Dr. Gerhard Gebauer 2 reviewer
Prof. Dr. Bernd Huwe Chairman
Prof. Dr. Stefan Peiffer
Prof. Dr. Harold L. Drake

Table of Contents
1. Introduction .......................................................................................................................1
1.1 Motivation ..................1
1.2 Soil water potential .....................................................................................................1
1.3 Nitrogen cycle in soils 2
1.4 Effect of soil drying/rewetting on N turnover ..............................................................5
1.5 Effects of soil drying/rewetting on DON and DOC in forest soil .................................6
1.6 Effects of water table fluctuations on fen soil ..............................................................6
2. Objectives of this study ......................................................................7
3. Materials and methods .......................................8
3.1 Site description ...........................................................................8
3.1.1 Forest: Coulissenhieb II .........................................................................................8
3.1.2 Fen: Schlöppnerbrunnen ........................8
153.2 N pool dilution technique .........................................................................................9
3.3 Experimental design ................................. 11
3.3.1 Laboratory incubation of forest soils.................................... 11
3.3.2 Field experiment in forest site .............................................. 11
3.3.3 Laboratory incubation of fen soils ....................................... 12
3.3.4 Field experiment in fen site ................................................. 13
3.4 Analytical techniques................................................................................................ 14
4. Synthesis and discussion of the results ............. 15
4.1 Effects of decreasing water potential and rewetting on gross N turnover in forest soil
………………………………………………………………………………………15
4.2 Effects of soil drying/rewetting and irrigation on in situ DIN, DON and DOC fluxes in
forest soil .................................................................................................................. 20
4.3 Dynamics of N and C mineralization in a fen soil following water table fluctuations 23
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4.3.1 Response of N turnover to water table fluctuations .............................................. 23
4.3.2 Response of C mineralization to water table fluctuations ..... 26
4.3.3 C mineralization in relation to gross ammonification ........................................... 27
4.3.4 Response of DON and DOC to water table fluctuations ....... 28
4.4 Effects of drainage and flooding on in situ pore water chemistry in a fen soil............ 30
5. Conclusion ....................................................................................................................... 38
Study 1 - Effects of decreasing water potential on gross ammonification and nitrification in an
acid coniferous forest soil ...................... 53
Study 2 - Minor response of gross N turnover and N leaching to drying, rewetting and
irrigation in the top soil of a Norway spruce forest ................................................ 73
Study 3 - Dynamics of nitrogen and carbon mineralization in a fen soil following water table
fluctuations ........................................................................... 97
Appendix ............................................................ 125
Own contributions of the candidate ..................................................................................... 126
Publications ........................................................ 128
Acknowledgements ............................................................................ 129


II

Summary
Given the climate scenarios, the higher frequency of drying/rewetting cycles of soils in the
future can be expected. These changes of the meteorological conditions likely result in an
increasing frequent and intensive drought periods in summer, causing irregular and extreme
drought stress in forest soils or a drawdown of water table in wetland ecosystems, which may
influence the turnover of nutrients in soils to a larger extend than previously thought.
The question arises how these climate changes will influence N and C turnover in forest and
fen soils. A growing number of laboratory studies on drying/rewetting of soils have been
published during past decades, but many studies used either disturbed soil samples or intact
soil cores in laboratory. Although soil drying is a frequent phenomenon in the field, the long-
term effects of drying/rewetting and irrigation on in situ fluxes and concentrations of solutes
in forest and fen soils are unclear. Several studies have investigated the influence of soil water
content on net N turnover rather than gross rates. Net ammonification and nitrification include
two major processes: gross ammonification and gross nitrification on the one side and
microbial immobilization on the other side. To identify the response of specific processes to
soil drying, gross rates need to be measured.
This thesis focused on the impact of changing water potential or water table level on gross N
turnover rates and soil solution chemistry in two different ecosystems in South-Eastern
Germany.
In a Norway spruce forest, the effects of decreasing water potential and prolonged periods of
summer drought on soil gross N turnover were investigated by laboratory and field
experiments. Soil solutions and throughfall were collected and the cumulative in situ fluxes of
DIN, DON and DOC with forest floor percolates were calculated. In a minerotrophic fen, we
studied the response of N and C mineralization and soil solution chemistry to water table
fluctuations in a laboratory experiment. In the field, we collected the soil pore water in 3
depths to clarify the long-term effects of water table level on the concentrations of solutes.
Homogenized soil samples of the Oi+Oe, Oa and EA horizons were taken and adjusted to 6
different water potentials in the laboratory. In the field experiment, throughfall exclusion and
irrigation plots were established to simulate different precipitation patterns of a dry and wet
growing season. Gross N turnover rates were determined in undisturbed soil cores from
Oi+Oe and Oa+EA horizons during the drying period and after rewetting.
III

Soil drying decreased gross ammonification rates in the O horizon. The lowest rates were
found at the throughfall exclusion plots but the differences to the irrigation and control plots
-1 -1were not statistically significant. A substantial ammonification rate of 14 mg N kg soil day
was observed at 3.2 MPa (pF 4.5). The laboratory study showed that gross nitrification
decreased with decreasing water potential and was more sensitive to drying than
ammonification in the Oa horizon; however, this was not found in the field experiment. The
latter might result from the low rates and huge spatial variation, indicating the difference
between disturbed samples and intact soil cores. No rewetting pulse of gross ammonification
was observed, probably due to its short duration or due to the slow changes of the water
potential during the natural rewetting. Although the in situ fluxes of DIN increased at the
throughfall exclusion plots after rewetting, the cumulative DIN flux at the throughfall
exclusion plots did not significantly exceed that at the control plots. The lowest fluxes of
DON and DOC were observed at the throughfall exclusion plots because of the reduction of
input with throughfall. In the studies presented here, extended drought periods caused a
reduction of gross N turnover in forest soils but gross ammonification continued at
considerable rates at low water potential. The hypothesis of increased N turnover and fluxes
of DIN, DON and DOC as a consequenc