Soil microbial properties under different vegetation types on Mountain Han

Science China Life Sciences, Jun 2013

This study investigated the influence of broadleaf and conifer vegetation on soil microbial communities in a distinct vertical distribution belt in Northeast China. Soil samples were taken at 0–5, 5–10 and 10–20 cm depths from four vegetation types at different altitudes, which were characterized by poplar (Populus davidiana) (1250–1300 m), poplar (P. davidiana) mixed with birch (Betula platyphylla) (1370–1550 m), birch (B. platyphylla) (1550–1720 m), and larch (Larix principis-rupprechtii) (1840–1890 m). Microbial biomass and community structure were determined using the fumigation-extraction method and phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) analysis, and soil fungal community level physiological profiles (CLPP) were characterized using Biolog FF Microplates. It was found that soil properties, especially soil organic carbon and water content, contributed significantly to the variations in soil microbes. With increasing soil depth, the soil microbial biomass, fungal biomass, and fungal catabolic ability diminished; however, the ratio of fungi to bacteria increased. The fungal ratio was higher under larch forests compared to that under poplar, birch, and their mixed forests, although the soil microbial biomass was lower. The direct contribution of vegetation types to the soil microbial community variation was 12%. If the indirect contribution through soil organic carbon was included, variations in the vegetation type had substantial influences on soil microbial composition and diversity.

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Soil microbial properties under different vegetation types on Mountain Han

Wang M, Qu L Y, Ma K M, et al. Soil microbial properties under different vegetation types on Mountain Han. Sci China Life Sci Soil microbial properties under different vegetation types on Mountain Han WANG Miao 0 1 QU LaiYe 1 MA KeMing 1 YUAN Xiu 1 0 University of Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing 100039 , China 1 State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-environmental Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing 100085 , China This study investigated the influence of broadleaf and conifer vegetation on soil microbial communities in a distinct vertical distribution belt in Northeast China. Soil samples were taken at 0-5, 5-10 and 10-20 cm depths from four vegetation types at different altitudes, which were characterized by poplar (Populus davidiana) (1250-1300 m), poplar (P. davidiana) mixed with birch (Betula platyphylla) (1370-1550 m), birch (B. platyphylla) (1550-1720 m), and larch (Larix principis-rupprechtii) (1840-1890 m). Microbial biomass and community structure were determined using the fumigation-extraction method and phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) analysis, and soil fungal community level physiological profiles (CLPP) were characterized using Biolog FF Microplates. It was found that soil properties, especially soil organic carbon and water content, contributed significantly to the variations in soil microbes. With increasing soil depth, the soil microbial biomass, fungal biomass, and fungal catabolic ability diminished; however, the ratio of fungi to bacteria increased. The fungal ratio was higher under larch forests compared to that under poplar, birch, and their mixed forests, although the soil microbial biomass was lower. The direct contribution of vegetation types to the soil microbial community variation was 12%. If the indirect contribution through soil organic carbon was included, variations in the vegetation type had substantial influences on soil microbial composition and diversity. - The microbial community mediates decomposition processes, regulates nutrient cycling, and influences soil functional diversity, and it potentially represents a mechanistic link between plant and ecosystem functions [1,2]. Currently, there is considerable interest in understanding the driving forces of the relationship between the soil microbial community and plant community [3]. The effects of aboveground plants on microbial parameters, including microbial community structure and function, i.e., catabolic capacity, have been studied [2,4,5]. However, the results of the studies are insufficient. Some studies [2,6] found a significant effect of plant diversity on soil microbial biomass and community structure while others did not find any discernible effect of plant diversity on these microbial properties [4,5]. Since plants have broad variations in their natural history and physiology [7], it is likely that differences in plant species create distinctive soil environments and biotic communities [8]. For example, broadleaf and conifer vegetation differ in their biochemical composition. Changes in plant species could alter the production and the composition of organic compounds in detritus, and thus alter the composition and function of heterotrophic microbial communities [2,9]. © The Author(s) 2013. This article is published with open access at Springerlink.com Previous studies suggest that the differences in heterotrophic microbial community structure and function in forest soil are mainly linked with the quality of soil organic matter [10–12]. The usability and biochemical composition of litterfall from dominant species affect soil organic matter to a large extent [13,14]. Zak et al. [15] indicated that microbial biomass and labile organic matter pools changed predictably across broad gradients of aboveground net primary production (NPP), supporting the idea that microbial growth in soil was constrained by C availability. Vegetation community composition, which is influenced by environmental forces, influence soil organisms in underground communities through litterfall and exudates [16]. Furthermore, biotic and environmental forces, which drive the activity, structure, and diversity of soil microbial communities, are controlled by many factors including plant species [17] and edaphic conditions [18,19]. Staddon et al. [20] studied the differences in soil microbes along a climate gradient, and suggested that microbial community structure [21] and catabolic diversity [22] were related to the change in temperature and moisture along the altitudinal gradient. Factors which represent nutrition utility such as C/N ratio [19] and available nitrogen [12], are regarded as the main determinants of soil microbial community structure. White et al. [23] maintained that pH was the most important factor impacting soil microbial community function in coniferous forests. There is a strong relationship between pH and abundance of soil PLFAs [18,24,25]. The coherent variability of (...truncated)


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Miao Wang, LaiYe Qu, KeMing Ma, Xiu Yuan. Soil microbial properties under different vegetation types on Mountain Han, Science China Life Sciences, 2013, pp. 561-570, Volume 56, Issue 6, DOI: 10.1007/s11427-013-4486-0