Stand age-related effects on soil respiration in a first rotation Sitka spruce chronosequence in central Ireland

The change of litter input can affect soil respiration (Rs) by influencing the availability of soil organic carbon and nutrients, regulating soil microenvironments, thus resulting in a profound influence on soil carbon cycle of the forest ecosystem. We conducted an aboveground litterfall manipulation experiment in different-aged Betula platyphylla forests (25-, 40- and 61-year-old) of the permafrost region, located in the northeast of China, during May to October in 2018, with each stand treated with doubling litter (litter addition, DL), litter exclusion (no-litter, NL) and control litter (CK). Our results indicated that Rs decreased under NL treatment compared with CK treatment. The effect size lessened with the increase in the stand age; the greatest reduction was found for young Betula platyphylla forest (24.46% for 25-year-old stand) and tended to stabilize with the growth of forest with the reduction of 15.65% and 15.23% for 40-and 61- year-old stands, respectively. Meanwhile, under DL treatment, Rs increased by 27.38%, 23.83% and 23.58% on 25-, 40- and 61-year-old stands, respectively. Our results also showed that the increase caused by DL treatment was larger than the reduction caused by NL treatment, leading to a priming effect, especially on 40- and 61-year-old stands. The change in litter input was the principal factor affecting the change of Rs under litter manipulation. The soil temperature was also a main factor affecting the contribution rate of litter to Rs of different-aged stands, which had a significant positive exponential correlation with Rs. This suggests that there is a significant relationship between litter and Rs, which consequently influences the soil carbon cycle in Betula platyphylla forests of the permafrost region, Northeast China. Our finding indicated the increased litter enhanced the Rs in Betula platyphylla forest, which may consequently increase the carbon emission in a warming climate in the future. It is of great importance for future forest management in the permafrost region, Northeast China.

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Changes in mean forest age in Canada’s forests could limit future increases in area burned but compromise potential harvestable conifer volumes

Canadian Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1139/cjfr-2016-0445 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 47 (6) ◽

pp. 755-764 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Yan Boulanger ◽

Martin Girardin ◽

Pierre Y. Bernier ◽

Sylvie Gauthier ◽

André Beaudoin ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Simulation Models ◽

Stand Age ◽

Almost Everywhere ◽

Age Related ◽

New Information ◽

Simple Simulation ◽

Regional Vulnerability ◽

Vegetation Feedbacks ◽

Burning Rates ◽

Negative Impacts

Forest fire activity is projected to increase with climate change in Canada, but vegetation feedbacks are usually not considered. Using new information on the selectivity or avoidance of fire as a function of stand age and composition, we ran simple simulation models that consider the changes in the regional age matrices induced by fire and harvesting to project future burn rates. We also projected estimated future regional vulnerability of timber supply to fire by considering these new burn rates. The inclusion of age-related feedbacks would have a large impact on projected increases in burn rates, mostly in a very fire active zone under aggressive climate forcing. Projected burn rates would still increase, but would be 50% less in 2100 than if projected without this biotic feedback in some zones. Negative feedbacks would be virtually nonexistent when potential burning rates are below 1%, whereas realized burning rates would be lowered by more than a 0.5 percentage point when potential burning rates exceed 2.5%. Including fire–vegetation feedbacks had virtually no impact on total volume harvested. As fire burns more old-growth coniferous stands, slightly negative impacts were projected on conifer harvested almost everywhere. These results underline the need to incorporate fire–vegetation feedbacks when projecting future burn rates.

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Comparison of soil respiration among three temperate forests in Changbai Mountains, China

Canadian Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1139/x10-010 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 40 (4) ◽

pp. 788-795 ◽

Cited By ~ 23

Author(s):

Xu Wang ◽

Yanling Jiang ◽

Bingrui Jia ◽

Fengyu Wang ◽

Guangsheng Zhou

Keyword(s):

Soil Respiration ◽

Soil Temperature ◽

Secondary Forest ◽

Temperature Response ◽

Stand Age ◽

Changbai Mountains ◽

Primary Forest ◽

Plantation Forest ◽

Successional Stage ◽

Coniferous Plantation

CO2 efflux from forest soils is an important process in the global carbon cycle; however, effects of stand age and successional status remain uncertain. We compared soil respiration and its relationship to soil carbon content, forest floor mass, root biomass, soil temperature, and soil moisture content among three temperate forest ecosystems in Changbai Mountains, northeastern China, from 2003 to 2005. Forest types included an old-growth, mixed coniferous and broad-leaved primary forest (MN), a middle-aged, broad-leaved secondary forest (BL), and a young coniferous plantation forest (CP). Average annual soil CO2 efflux at BL (1477.9 ± 61.8 g C·m–2·year–1) was significantly higher than at CP (830.7 ± 48.7 g C·m–2·year–1) and MN (935.4 ± 53.3 g C·m–2·year–1). Differences in soil temperature among those sites were not statistically significant but contributed to the differences in annual CO2 efflux. In addition, the temperature response of soil CO2 efflux was higher at MN (Q10 = 2.78) than that at BL (Q10 = 2.17) and CP (Q10 = 2.02). Our results suggest that successional stage affects soil respiration by the differences in substrate quantity and quality, environmental conditions, and root respiration.

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Effects of stand age on soil respiration in Pinus massoniana plantations in the hilly red soil region of Southern China

CATENA ◽

10.1016/j.catena.2019.03.038 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 178 ◽

pp. 313-321 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Kunyong Yu ◽

Xiong Yao ◽

Yangbo Deng ◽

Zhuangjie Lai ◽

Lingchen Lin ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Soil Respiration ◽

Southern China ◽

Pinus Massoniana ◽

Red Soil ◽

Stand Age ◽

Hilly Red Soil Region

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Soil respiration and net ecosystem productivity in a chronosequence of hybrid poplar plantations

Canadian Journal of Soil Science ◽

10.1139/cjss-2020-0006 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 100 (4) ◽

pp. 488-502

Author(s):

Scott X. Chang ◽

Zheng Shi ◽

Barb R. Thomas

Keyword(s):

Soil Respiration ◽

Soil Temperature ◽

Populus Deltoides ◽

Hybrid Poplar ◽

Stand Age ◽

Net Ecosystem Productivity ◽

Ecosystem Productivity ◽

Short Rotation ◽

C Dynamics ◽

Woody Crop

Forest stand age can affect ecosystem carbon (C) cycling and net ecosystem productivity (NEP). In Canada, establishment of short-rotation plantations on previously agricultural lands has been ongoing, but the effect of stand development on soil respiration (Rs) and NEP in such plantations is poorly understood. These types of data are essential for constraining ecosystem models that simulate C dynamics over the rotation of a plantation. We studied Rs (including autotrophic, Ra, and heterotrophic, Rh) and NEP in 2008 and 2009 in a chronosequence of 5-, 8-, 14-, and 16-yr-old (ages in 2009) hybrid poplar (Populus deltoides × Populus × petrowskyana var. Walker) plantations in northern Alberta. The highest Rs and NEP were generally found in the 14-yr-old stand. Seasonal variations in Rs were similar among the plantations, with most of the variation explained by soil temperature at the 10 cm depth in 2008 with far less explained in 2009, a much drier year. In diurnal measurements, hysteresis was found between soil respiration and soil temperature, with the patterns of hysteresis different among stand ages. Soil respiration in the 14-yr-old plantation had the greatest sensitivity to temperature changes. Stand age did not affect the Rh:Rs ratio, whereas the NEP exhibited strong inter-annual variability. We conclude that stand age was a major factor affecting Rs and NEP, and such effects should be considered in empirical models used to simulate ecosystem C dynamics to evaluate potentials for C sequestration and the C source–sink relationship in short-rotation woody crop systems.

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Response of soil respiration and its components to experimental warming and water addition in a temperate Sitka spruce forest ecosystem

Agricultural and Forest Meteorology ◽

10.1016/j.agrformet.2018.06.020 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 260-261 ◽

pp. 204-215 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Junliang Zou ◽

Brian Tobin ◽

Yiqi Luo ◽

Bruce Osborne

Keyword(s):

Soil Respiration ◽

Forest Ecosystem ◽

Sitka Spruce ◽

Spruce Forest ◽

Experimental Warming ◽

Water Addition

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Effects on understory biomass and forage 8–10 years after precommercial thinning of Sitka spruce – western hemlock stands in southeast Alaska

Canadian Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1139/cjfr-2019-0268 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 50 (2) ◽

pp. 215-225

Author(s):

Justin S. Crotteau ◽

Annelise Z. Rue-Johns ◽

Jeffrey C. Barnard

Keyword(s):

Forest Type ◽

Sitka Spruce ◽

Picea Sitchensis ◽

Wildlife Habitat ◽

Western Hemlock ◽

Stand Age ◽

Southeast Alaska ◽

Precommercial Thinning ◽

Clear Cutting ◽

Understory Biomass

In southeast Alaska, United States, multiple-use forest management objectives include both timber production and wildlife habitat. Following stand-replacing disturbances such as clear-cutting, Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carrière) and western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla (Raf.) Sarg.) naturally regenerate and competitively dominate resources, excluding understory biomass and biodiversity. Thinning may mitigate the effects of canopy closure and permit understory development, but evidence of the effect on understories 8–10 years after thinning is lacking. We report results 4–5 and 8–10 years after thinning experiments on the Tongass National Forest to demonstrate the effects of precommercial thinning (thinned versus control), stand age (15–25, 25–35, and 35–50 years), and weather on understory dynamics and Sitka black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus sitkensis Merriam, 1898) forage availability. Stand density negatively affected understory biomass, whereas temperature and precipitation positively interacted to increase biomass. Thinning had an enduring effect on understories, with biomass at least twice as great in thinned versus unthinned stands through year 10. We identified compositional differences from thinning as stand age class increased. Deer forage responded similarly to biomass, but thinning-induced differences faded with increased winter snowfall scenarios, especially in older stands. This study aids the understanding of stand overstory and understory development following silvicultural treatments in the coastal temperate rain forest of Alaska and suggests management implications and applications for balancing objectives throughout the forest type.

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Biomass partitioning in red pine (Pinus resinosa) along a chronosequence in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan

Canadian Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1139/x06-217 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 37 (1) ◽

pp. 93-102 ◽

Cited By ~ 49

Author(s):

J S King ◽

C P Giardina ◽

K S Pregitzer ◽

A L Friend

Keyword(s):

Net Primary Production ◽

Pinus Resinosa ◽

Biomass Partitioning ◽

Red Pine ◽

Stand Age ◽

Shoot Biomass ◽

Stand Development ◽

Individual Tree ◽

Coarse Root ◽

Age Related

Carbon (C) allocation to the perennial coarse-root system of trees contributes to ecosystem C sequestration through formation of long-lived live wood biomass and, following senescence, by providing a large source of nutrient-poor detrital C. Our understanding of the controls on C allocation to coarse-root growth is rudimentary, but it has important implications for projecting belowground net primary production responses to global change. Age-related changes in C allocation to coarse roots represent a critical uncertainty for modeling landscape-scale C storage and cycling. We used a 55 year chronosequence approach with complete above- and below-ground harvests to assess the effects of stand development on biomass partitioning in red pine (Pinus resinosa Ait.), a commercially important pine species. Averaged within site, individual-tree root/shoot ratios were dynamic across stand development, changing from 0.17 at 2-, 3-, and 5-year-old sites, to 0.80 at the 8-year-old site, to 0.29 at the 55-year-old site. The results of our study suggest that a current research challenge is to determine the generality of patterns of root-shoot biomass partitioning through stand development for both coniferous and hardwood forest types, and to document how these patterns change as a function of stand age, tree size, environment, and management.

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