Effects of the type of forest alteration on gross nitrogen mineralization in soils of southern India
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ORIGINAL PAPER
Effects of the type of forest alteration on gross nitrogen mineralization in soils of southern India Niharika Sharma1 · Sanjeev Kumar1
Received: 23 July 2018 / Accepted: 19 May 2019 © Northeast Forestry University 2020
Abstract Change in land-use practices can result in major shifts in the cycling of various elements, particularly nitrogen (N), which is prone to anthropogenic perturbations. For quantifying these shifts, accurate measurements of rates of biogeochemical transformations of N are needed. We used the (15N) isotope dilution technique to understand the effects of the types of forest alteration on (N) transformation rates by comparing gross N mineralization and ammonium (NH4+) consumption rates in soils of a managed forest, an unmanaged forest, and a rubber plantation in Kerala, India. Overall, nitrate (NO3−) dominated soils of the managed and unmanaged forests, whereas soils in the rubber plantation showed relatively higher NH4+ concentration. Total N (TN) and total organic carbon (TOC) concentrations were the highest under the rubber canopy (TN: 1.49 ± 0.02 mg N g−1; TOC: 7.96 ± 0.86 mg C g −1). In soils of all three forest types, gross N mineralization rates were higher compared to NH4+ consumption rates. Despite high TN and TOC concentrations, the rates of gross N mineralization and NH4+ consumption were considerably lower in the rubber plantation (mineralization: 1.08 ± 0.08 mg N kg−1 d−1; consumption: 0.85 ± 0.09 mg N kg−1 d−) compared to the managed (mineralization: 3.71 ± 0.35 mg N kg−1 d−1; Project funding: The funding for the present study was provided by the Department of Space, Government of India, India, under ISRO-GBP program. Corresponding editor: Zhu Hong. The online version is available at http://www.springerlink.com. * Sanjeev Kumar [email protected] 1
Geosciences Division, Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmedabad, Gujarat 380009, India
consumption: 2.20 ± 1.41 mg N kg−1 d−1) and unmanaged (mineralization: 2.20 ± 1.07 mg N kg−1 d−1; consumption: 1.39 ± 0.27 mg N kg−1 d−1) forests. The lower N H4+ consumption rates in the rubber plantation led to significantly higher (p
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