Changes in litter and nitrogen deposition differentially alter forest soil organic matter biogeochemistry

Abstract

Global climate change has altered forest productivity across the globe. Although extreme drought and temperature have lowered forest productivity in some regions, increased productivity has been observed in many forests over the last few decades due to increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide, temperature, and nitrogen (N) deposition. These factors can lead to changes in both the quantity and quality of litterfall and root inputs to soil. Additionally, few studies have investigated multifactorial treatments (e.g., detrital changes and N deposition), on soil carbon (C) sequestration. To investigate the long-term compositional changes to soil organic matter (SOM) in response to litter and N inputs, soil samples were collected from the University of Michigan Biological Station (UMBS) Detrital Input and Removal Treatment (DIRT) site after 15 years of experimental treatments. The samples were characterized using elemental analysis, targeted SOM compound analyses, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and microbial biomass and community composition measurements. The exclusions of C inputs (litter and/or roots) resulted in molecular-level biogeochemical changes, however, the soils at UMBS are seemingly more resistant to losses in soil C compared to other DIRT studies. Although the addition treatments (Double Litter, Double Wood, Double Litter + N, and N) led to increased soil C concentrations at UMBS, we found evidence for enhanced SOM decomposition occurring with litter additions. Notably, the observations made from the concurrent treatment of Double Litter + N demonstrated that the responses of individual treatments are not representative of simultaneous applications. Collectively, these results demonstrate that soil C biogeochemistry is sensitive to fluctuations in C and N deposition and overall, these processes are dictated by site-specific ecological properties.