THE DISTRIBUTION OF LABELLED SUGARS IN SOIL PARTICLE SIZE FRACTIONS AS A MEANS OF DISTINGUISHING PLANT AND MICROBIAL CARBOHYDRATE RESIDUES

Abstract

SummarySoils of the Countesswells and Insch series incubated with 14C labelled glucose or plant materials have been separated into clay (< 2 μm), silt, (2–20 μm), fine sand (20–250 μm) and coarse sand (>250μm) fractions and the distribution of individual labelled and unlabelled sugars was determined in each fraction.Both soils contained about 10–15 per cent clay, 18–23 per cent silt and about 60 per cent fine and coarse sand. For all soil samples the concentrations of sugars were usually greatest in the clay, slightly less in the silt, with values in the sand fractions being five or ten times lower, except when fresh plant material was present.In 14C glucose amended Insch soil, 55 per cent of the radioactivity in sugars (predominantly hexoses) occurred in the clay, 36 per cent in the silt, 3 per cent in the fine sand and 6 per cent in the coarse sand after 28 days incubation. For the Countesswells soil the values were 55, 42, 2 and 1 per cent respectively. In 14C ryegrass amended soil before incubation. 77 per cent of the radioactivity in sugars (predominantly glucose, arabinose and xylose) was in the coarse sand. After one year's incubation this had fallen to 59 per cent. In soil amended with 14C cereal rye straw the distribution of radioactivity in sugars after four years incubation was: clay, 21 per cent; silt, 43 per cent; fine sand, 21 per cent; coarse sand, 4 per cent.These distributions were compared with that of the naturally occurring sugars: clay, 31–42 per cent; silt, 40–43 per cent; fine sand, 3–11 per cent; coarse sand, 12–20 per cent.