Soil organic carbon (SOC) mineralization is closely related to the terrestrial ecosystem carbon cycle and global climate change. Reasonable tillage and nutrient management can be adopted to improve the carbon accumulation and sequestration potential in soil. It is urgent to explore the relationship between tillage-nutrient management and SOC stability in the process of soil biochemistry, within the context of carbon sequestration and emission reduction. Therefore, this study aims to clarify the effects of tillage and nutrient management on SOC mineralization in fluvo-aquic soil of North China. A 15-year long-term positioning experiment was carried out on the tillage and nutrient management (2007-2022). Two main treatments were set: rotate plow without straw return (RP-S), and deep plow with straw return (DP+S). Three secondary treatments were set: controlled fertilization (CK), Conventional fertilization (CON), and Optimized fertilization (OPT), with a total of six treatments. Soil samples were collected at 0-20 cm depth in October 2022. Some parameters were measured, including the contents of SOC and activated carbon components, as well as the carbon pool management index. SOC mineralization rate was determined by the incubation method. A first-order kinetic model was used to calculate the potential mineralization and turnover rates. The structural equation model was fitted to reveal the turnover and sequestration of SOC under different tillage and nutrient management. The experimental results show that the C/N (SOC and TN ratio) generally shared a decreasing trend under the condition of RP-S, while the C/N generally shared an increasing first and then decreased trend under the condition of DP+S. Compared with the RP-S, DP+S treatments increased the contents of activated carbon components in soil, and the carbon pool management index (CPMI) increased significantly. Compared with CON, OPT significantly increased the content of SOC, with incremental rates of 12.35%. OPT significantly increased the readily oxidizable carbon (ROC) and CPMI with the condition of DP+S. SOC mineralization rates were the highest in the 1 d and then decreased rapidly. After 10 d incubation, SOC mineralization rates decreased slowdown until it stabilized. The SOC mineralization rate was in agreement with the logarithmic function. Nutrient management enhanced the mineralization rates of SOC in the fluvo-aquic soils in the following order: OPT, CON, CK. SOC mineralization rates in all treatments were consistent with the first-order kinetic model. DP+S significantly increased the cumulative mineralization rate (value of C0/SOC) by 23.59% (C0 is potential mineralizable organic carbon content in soil), while the OPT significantly reduced the value of C0/SOC by 22.12%. The accumulative mineralization of SOC (Ct is accumulation of soil organic carbon mineralization during cultivation time t) was significantly and positively correlated with the SOC, activated carbon components, and soil carbon pool management index (P<0.01), both of which were significantly and positively correlated with Potential mineralizable of SOC (C0) in the fluvo-aquic soils (P<0.05). Tillage management, microbial biomass carbon (MBC), and ROC were the direct factors of SOC mineralization and sequestration potential in soil. Tillage and fertilization management dominated the SOC mineralization by the contents of SOC and activated carbon components, then impacting soil carbon sequestration potential. According to the SOC accumulation content, the direct positive impact of long-term deep plow with straw return treatment on soil carbon sequestration potential can be fully counteracted by the indirect negative effect of the increase in SOC and activated carbon components on soil carbon sequestration potential. In conclusion, Long-term DP+S with OPT significantly improved the stability of soil structure and the SOC sequestration potential. Optimal fertilization reduced the cumulative SOC mineralization rate of soil and then enhanced the SOC accumulation and sustainable utilization of farmland resources. The finding can also provide ideal farmland management to optimize the combination of tillage and fertilization in fluvo-aquic soil of North China.
- Article type
- Year
- Co-author
This study aimed to explore the differences of phosphorus (P) morphology and phosphatase activity in different aggregates sizes, and to clarify the change mechanism of soil P component contents and availability under different long-term chemical P application rates, so as to provide the theoretical support for the efficient utilization of soil P and sustainable agricultural development.
Long-term field experiment with different chemical P fertilizer application rates were established in calcareous brown soil. Soil samples in the topsoil (0-20 cm) were collected, which were treated with three gradients of P fertilizer application rates of 0 (P0, control), 120 (P120) and 210 (P210) kg P2O5·hm-2 annually. The soil aggregate content, P component contents and alkaline phosphatase activity of different soil aggregate sizes were determined. The effects of long-term chemical P application on P morphology and phosphatase activity of different aggregates sizes in calcareous brown soil were analyzed.
Compared with P0, the stability and P component content of different aggregates in calcareous brown soil were significantly improved after long-term P application. The content of acid-soluble inorganic P (Pi-HCl) was the highest in different P components, while the content of water-soluble P (Pi-H2O), sodium bicarbonate organic P (Po-NaHCO3) and sodium hydroxide inorganic P (Pi-NaOH) were relatively low. The changes of inorganic P pools in all aggregates were higher than those in organic P pools under different treatments. Compared with P120 treatment, the inorganic P content in large aggregate (>2 mm), small aggregate (0.25-2 mm) and micro-aggregate (<0.25 mm) were reduced by 21.5%, 27.0% and 18.7%, respectively, and the organic P content decreased by 15.6%, 12.8% and 12.2%, respectively. There were significant differences in organic P contents among different aggregate sizes and P application rates. The labile P (LP) content changed largest in different P availability forms. There were extremely significant differences among different particle size and P application rate. The contribution rate of inorganic P in large aggregates (Pi,>2 mm) was the highest, ranging from 27.6% to 38.3%, while that of organic P in small aggregates (Po, 0.25-2 mm) was the lowest, ranging from 2.9% to 4.9%. The contribution rate of stable P (SP) content to total P content was the highest, accounting for 84.3-91.2%. The contribution rate of SP in large aggregates (SP,>2 mm) was the highest, ranging from 52.6% to 55.2%. Soil phosphatase activity was significantly different in soil aggregates, which increased with the increase of aggregate size. In large aggregates, the phosphatase activity was significantly increased with the increase of P application rate. In small aggregates, the phosphatase activity of P120 treatment was the highest, and it was a significant difference between them. However, there was no significant difference in phosphatase activity of micro-aggregates between different treatments. The results of correlation analysis showed that the aggregate size was negatively correlated with the content of organic P content significantly, and positively correlated with the activity of alkaline phosphatase significantly. Structural equation model (SEM) analysis results showed that the P application rate could directly affect the inorganic P content in soil and then affect the P availability in soil. Soil aggregate structural could direct influence on the organic P content and alkaline phosphatase activities, and indirectly affect the inorganic P content and P availability.
Long-term application of chemical P fertilizer significantly increased the content of aggregates, the content of P components in each size aggregates, and the activity of alkaline phosphatase in calcareous brown soil. The large aggregates contributed the most to the soil P availability. P application rate and soil aggregate regulated soil P availability synergistically. Therefore, the scientific P application and increasing the proportion of soil large aggregates were important to improve the availability of soil P utilization.
京公网安备11010802044758号