Evaluating the Persistence of Soil Carbon After a 30-Year Nitrogen Fertilization Experiment at the Fernow Experimental Forest, WV

Dataset · Mon Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 2024

DOI:https://doi.org/10.15485/2466174· OSTI ID:2466174

Kangi, Emel ^[1]; Ridgeway, Joanna ^[2]; DeHetre, Hannah ^[3]; Brzostek, Edward ^[3]

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1. West Virginia University; West Virginia University
2. Dartmouth College
3. West Virginia University

We sampled soils in a previously nitrogen (N)-fertilized watershed (Watershed 3), which received 35 kg N per hectare annually for 30 years, and a reference watershed (Watershed 7), 4 years after the end of a 30-year N fertilization experiment at the Fernow Experimental Forest in West Virginia. As N deposition has reduced soil pH and plant carbon (C) investments into the rhizosphere, we compared the extent to which removing these potential limitations to microbial decomposition by increasing soil pH, adding artificial root exudates, or elevating soil temperature would increase microbial decomposition (and soil C losses) in soils that have and have not received excess N inputs. As such, we incubated soils with and without the addition of artificial root exudates and dolomitic lime (2 amendment treatments and 1 untreated control), at three different temperatures (15, 20, and 25 C) to simulate warming. We measured soil respiration, enzyme activity (acid phosphatase, N -acetyl-β-glucosaminidase, beta-glucosidase, phenol oxidase, and peroxidase), and microbial biomass carbon in a 15-week microcosm experiment. All of the datasheets include the metadata for all of the treatment combinations from this incubation experiment (ID, incubation temperature, treatment, watershed).The "Soil_Chemistry_Data.csv" data includes (1) the ratio of dry soil weight (g) by wet (or fresh) soil weight (g) after 72 hours at 65 C, (2) the wet (or fresh) weight of the soil samples used to determine soil pH, and (3) soil pH, which was measured in CaCl2. Detailed methods for the measurements of soil pH are described in the datasheet itself.The "Respiration_Data.csv" data includes (1) respiration day for the measurement, and (2) cumulative CO2 respiration (mmol) measured in the microcosms on specific days.The "Microbial_Biomass_Data.csv" data includes (1) mmol microbial biomass carbon per g (dry weight) of soil in each microcosm.The "Enzyme_Data.csv" data includes (1) all extracellular soil enzyme activity (N-acetyl-glucosaminidase (NAG), acid phosphatase (AP), β-glucosidase (BG), phenol oxidase and peroxidase) that we measured in our microcosms.

• Research Organization: Environmental System Science Data Infrastructure for a Virtual Ecosystem; Quantitative, trait-based microbial ecology to accurately model the impacts of nitrogen deposition on soil carbon cycling in the Anthropocene
• Sponsoring Organization: U.S. DOE > Office of Science > Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
• DOE Contract Number: SC0019472
• OSTI ID: 2466174
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
EARTH SCIENCE > AGRICULTURE > SOILS > SOIL RESPIRATION
EARTH SCIENCE > LAND SURFACE > SOILS
EARTH SCIENCE > LAND SURFACE > SOILS > SOIL PH
Microbial biomass
Soil enzyme activity
carbon investments
microbial decomposition
nitrogen deposition
soil organic matter
temperate forests