Changes in soil properties following forest invasion of Black soils of the Aspen Parkland

Abstract

The objective of this study was to document the effect of forest invasion on Black soils of the Aspen Parkland in Saskatchewan. A prairie-forest transition zone less than 100-m wide was studied in an upland landscape (LM) with a strong eluvial regime and a lowland landscape (WQ) where strong leaching was restricted to depressional areas. A direct count of grass opal along each transect provided evidence that forest vegetation had invaded prairie as similar amounts of grass opal occurred under forest and prairie. Soil morphology and horizon development could be related to microrelief and to site productivity as inferred from grass opal content along the transects. Forest invasion affected soils differently in the two landscapes. At LM, forest invasion was accompanied by losses of clay and organic materials as soils were progressively transformed into leached and more acidic Luvisolic soils. Eluvial and illuvial development occurring under forest were most pronounced in microdepressions and concave portions of the transect. At WQ, leached acidic soils occurred only in a depression. Forested soils outside the depression maintained high levels of organic matter and high base status comparable to adjacent prairie soils. Alteration of Black soils following migration of forest vegetation onto prairie depends on large scale physiographical effects as well as smaller scale microrelief effects. This study indicates landscape control of water movement plays a vital role in soil development and regulation of ecosystem processes. Thus, the relationship among water, soil and landscape must be considered in environmental research and environmental impact studies. Key words: Prairie-forest transition, forest invasion, Aspen Parkland, biogenic opal, soil-landscape relationships