Abstract
Topographic and edaphic gradients usually arrange ecotonal boundaries. Although the interrelationships between vegetation and edaphic factors are relevant in most types of ecotones, they are not adequately documented. The clearly defined forest-agriculture land ecotone at the Proklest experimental site of the Training Forest Enterprise (T.F.E), Masaryk Forest Křtiny, Czech Republic presents an opportunity to investigate these inter-relationships. Our aim was to determine ecotone effects reflected by changes in soil reaction and other soil physical properties across this clearly defined forest-agriculture land ecotone. We selected eleven sampling spots: four in the forest zone, four in the agriculture land, and three in the ecotone zone between the forest and agriculture land. Every month from April to November, soil samples were collected at a depth of 5 cm. All the soil samples collected were examined for minimal air capacity, actual and potential soil reaction, and maximum capillary water capacity. The forest soil was slightly more acidic when compared to the agriculture soil, with the ecotone zone recording the lowest pH value. The maximum capillary water capacity was higher in the forest region than in the agriculture land with a sharp decline in the ecotone zone where the lowest value was recorded. The minimum air capacity was much higher in the forest region than in the agriculture land. There was a marked decline in the ecotone region where the lowest value was observed. Our results highlight the importance of soil as a factor affecting the distribution of plant communities along ecotones.
Highlights
Ecotone has been defined, explained, and identified by many scientists in various ways [1,2,3].In a nutshell and from a soil science point of view, they are dynamic boundaries where soil physical and chemical properties change gradually due to the change in habitat and biodiversity [4,5,6,7]
Comparisons of experimental data obtained from forest, ecotone, and agriculture land show significant differences in the values of potential soil reaction between the forest and ecotone, ecotone and agriculture land, forest, and agriculture for the month of April, June, and November
Similar trends were observed for actual soil reaction, maximum capillary water, and minimum air capacity
Summary
Ecotone has been defined, explained, and identified by many scientists in various ways [1,2,3].In a nutshell and from a soil science point of view, they are dynamic boundaries where soil physical and chemical properties (e.g., pH, salinity, capillary water, air capacity) change gradually due to the change in habitat and biodiversity [4,5,6,7]. Ecotone has been defined, explained, and identified by many scientists in various ways [1,2,3]. Ecotone is considered an imperative topic in ecological research since it is the most sensitive part of the interfered ecosystems lying between biomes. Natural ecotone is dynamic in nature and is very sensitive to environmental changes. It can shift location or grow weaker and stronger. Ecotone characteristics make it the most unstable part in any ecosystem. As reported by past studies, ecotones are more biologically diverse than nearby areas, which means they have a high conservation value [8,9,10,11,12,13]. There is a lack of strong evidence to support this claim or to refute it
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