Abstract
The total phenol content in decomposing litter not only acts as a crucial litter quality indicator, but is also closely related to litter humification due to its tight absorption to clay particles. However, limited attention has been focused on the total phenol dynamics in foliar litter in relation to forest gaps. Here, the foliar litter of six representative tree species was incubated on the forest floor from the gap center to the closed canopy of an alpine Minjiang fir (Abies faxoniana) forest in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River and eastern Tibetan Plateau. The dynamics of total phenol concentration in the incubated litter was measured from November 2012 to October 2014. Over two-year incubation, 78.22% to 94.06% of total phenols were lost from the foliar litter, but 52.08% to 86.41% of this occurred in the first year. Forest gaps accelerated the loss of total phenols in the foliar litter in the winter, although they inhibited the loss of total phenols during the growing season in the first year. In comparison with the effects of forest gaps, the variations of litter quality among different species were much stronger on the dynamics of total phenols in the second year. Overall, the loss of total phenols in the foliar litter was slightly higher in both the canopy gap and the expanded gap than in the gap center and under the closed canopy. The results suggest that the predicted decline in snow cover resulting from winter warming or vanishing gaps caused by forest regeneration will retard the loss of total phenol content in the foliar litter of alpine forest ecosystems, especially in the first decomposition year.
Highlights
Foliar litter is an important source of nutrients and energy inputs in forest ecosystems, and litter decomposition enriches the soil nutrient pool and supports ecosystem productivity [1,2]
The results revealed that forest gaps promoted and inhibited total phenol decomposition during the first winter and growing season, respectively, whereas different influences were observed in the second year due to interspecific differences
This study describes the characteristics of total phenol decomposition for six typical types of foliar litter in an alpine Minjiang fir forest in relation to season
Summary
Foliar litter is an important source of nutrients and energy inputs in forest ecosystems, and litter decomposition enriches the soil nutrient pool and supports ecosystem productivity [1,2]. Mainly occurring as secondary metabolites, accounts for approximately 25% of the leaf dry mass [3] and includes monopolymer flavonoids, phenolic acids and polymer tannins [4]. These phenols in foliar litter can enter and tightly absorb to clay particles, which results in the formation of humus and an accumulation of organic matter and nutrients in the PLOS ONE | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0148426. The Total Phenol Dynamics in Decomposing Litter soil [3,5,6]. Understanding the dynamics of total phenol during litter decomposition can help identify litter decomposition mechanisms in forest ecosystems. The dynamics of the total phenols in foliar litter remains poorly understood
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