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• 1. [Article] Climate Change Decreases Nitrogen Pools and Mineralization Rates in Northern Hardwood Forests

  Nitrogen (N) supply often limits the productivity of temperate forests and is regulated by a complex mix of biological and climatic drivers. In excess, N is linked to a variety of soil, water, and air ...

  Citation × Citation Citation Abstract Copy Title: Climate Change Decreases Nitrogen Pools and Mineralization Rates in Northern Hardwood Forests Author: Durán, Jorge, Morse, Jennifer L., Groffman, Peter M., Campbell, John L., Christenson, Lynn M., Driscoll, Charles T., Fahey, Timothy J., Fisk, Melany C., Likens, Gene E., Melillo, Jerry M., Mitchell, Myron J., Templer, Pamela H., Vadeboncoeur, Matthew A. Year: 2016 Nitrogen (N) supply often limits the productivity of temperate forests and is regulated by a complex mix of biological and climatic drivers. In excess, N is linked to a variety of soil, water, and air pollution issues. Here, we use results from an elevation gradient study and historical data from the long-term Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study (New Hampshire, USA) to examine relationships between changes in climate, especially during winter, and N supply to northern hardwood forest ecosystems. Low elevation plots with less snow, more soil freezing, and more freeze/thaw cycles supported lower rates of N mineralization than high elevation plots, despite having higher soil temperatures and no consistent differences in soil moisture during the growing season. These results are consistent with historical analyses showing decreases in rates of soil N mineralization and inorganic N concentrations since 1973 that are correlated with long-term increases in mean annual temperature, decreases in annual snow accumulation, and a increases in the number of winter thawing degree days. This evidence suggests that changing climate may be driving decreases in the availability of a key nutrient in northern hardwood forests, which could decrease ecosystem production but have positive effects on environmental consequences of excess N. Title: Climate Change Decreases Nitrogen Pools and Mineralization Rates in Northern Hardwood Forests Author: Durán, Jorge, Morse, Jennifer L., Groffman, Peter M., Campbell, John L., Christenson, Lynn M., Driscoll, Charles T., Fahey, Timothy J., Fisk, Melany C., Likens, Gene E., Melillo, Jerry M., Mitchell, Myron J., Templer, Pamela H., Vadeboncoeur, Matthew A. Year: 2016 Nitrogen (N) supply often limits the productivity of temperate forests and is regulated by a complex mix of biological and climatic drivers. In excess, N is linked to a variety of soil, water, and air pollution issues. Here, we use results from an elevation gradient study and historical data from the long-term Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study (New Hampshire, USA) to examine relationships between changes in climate, especially during winter, and N supply to northern hardwood forest ecosystems. Low elevation plots with less snow, more soil freezing, and more freeze/thaw cycles supported lower rates of N mineralization than high elevation plots, despite having higher soil temperatures and no consistent differences in soil moisture during the growing season. These results are consistent with historical analyses showing decreases in rates of soil N mineralization and inorganic N concentrations since 1973 that are correlated with long-term increases in mean annual temperature, decreases in annual snow accumulation, and a increases in the number of winter thawing degree days. This evidence suggests that changing climate may be driving decreases in the availability of a key nutrient in northern hardwood forests, which could decrease ecosystem production but have positive effects on environmental consequences of excess N. Close

• 2. [Article] Reduced Snow Cover Alters Root-microbe Interactions and Decreases Nitrification Rates in a Northern Hardwood Forest

  Snow cover is projected to decline during the next century in many ecosystems that currently experience a seasonal snowpack. Because snow insulates soils from frigid winter air temperatures, soils are ...

  Citation × Citation Citation Abstract Copy Title: Reduced Snow Cover Alters Root-microbe Interactions and Decreases Nitrification Rates in a Northern Hardwood Forest Author: Sorensen, Patrick O., Templer, Pamela H., Christenson, Lynn M., Durán, Jorge, Fahey, Timothy J., Fisk, Melany C., Groffman, Peter M., Morse, Jennifer L., Finzi, Adrien C. Year: 2016 Snow cover is projected to decline during the next century in many ecosystems that currently experience a seasonal snowpack. Because snow insulates soils from frigid winter air temperatures, soils are expected to become colder and experience more winter soil freeze-thaw cycles as snow cover continues to decline. Tree roots are adversely affected by snowpack reduction, but whether loss of snow will affect root-microbe interactions remains largely unknown. The objective of this study was to distinguish and attribute direct (e.g., winter snow-and/ or soil frost-mediated) vs. indirect (e.g., root-mediated) effects of winter climate change on microbial biomass, the potential activity of microbial exoenzymes, and net N mineralization and nitrification rates. Soil cores were incubated in situ in nylon mesh that either allowed roots to grow into the soil core (2 mm pore size) or excluded root ingrowth (50 μm pore size) for up to 29 months along a natural winter climate gradient at Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, NH (USA). Microbial biomass did not differ among ingrowth or exclusion cores. Across sampling dates, the potential activities of cellobiohydrolase, phenol oxidase, and peroxidase, and net N mineralization rates were more strongly related to soil volumetric water content (P < 0.05; R2 = 0.25–0.46) than to root biomass, snow or soil frost, or winter soil temperature (R2 < 0.10). Root ingrowth was positively related to soil frost (P < 0.01; R2 = 0.28), suggesting that trees compensate for overwinter root mortality caused by soil freezing by re-allocating resources towards root production. At the sites with the deepest snow cover, root ingrowth reduced nitrification rates by 30% (P < 0.01), showing that tree roots exert significant influence over nitrification, which declines with reduced snow cover. If soil freezing intensifies over time, then greater compensatory root growth may reduce nitrification rates directly via plant-microbe N competition and indirectly through a negative feedback on soil moisture, resulting in lower N availability to trees in northern hardwood forests. Title: Reduced Snow Cover Alters Root-microbe Interactions and Decreases Nitrification Rates in a Northern Hardwood Forest Author: Sorensen, Patrick O., Templer, Pamela H., Christenson, Lynn M., Durán, Jorge, Fahey, Timothy J., Fisk, Melany C., Groffman, Peter M., Morse, Jennifer L., Finzi, Adrien C. Year: 2016 Snow cover is projected to decline during the next century in many ecosystems that currently experience a seasonal snowpack. Because snow insulates soils from frigid winter air temperatures, soils are expected to become colder and experience more winter soil freeze-thaw cycles as snow cover continues to decline. Tree roots are adversely affected by snowpack reduction, but whether loss of snow will affect root-microbe interactions remains largely unknown. The objective of this study was to distinguish and attribute direct (e.g., winter snow-and/ or soil frost-mediated) vs. indirect (e.g., root-mediated) effects of winter climate change on microbial biomass, the potential activity of microbial exoenzymes, and net N mineralization and nitrification rates. Soil cores were incubated in situ in nylon mesh that either allowed roots to grow into the soil core (2 mm pore size) or excluded root ingrowth (50 μm pore size) for up to 29 months along a natural winter climate gradient at Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, NH (USA). Microbial biomass did not differ among ingrowth or exclusion cores. Across sampling dates, the potential activities of cellobiohydrolase, phenol oxidase, and peroxidase, and net N mineralization rates were more strongly related to soil volumetric water content (P < 0.05; R2 = 0.25–0.46) than to root biomass, snow or soil frost, or winter soil temperature (R2 < 0.10). Root ingrowth was positively related to soil frost (P < 0.01; R2 = 0.28), suggesting that trees compensate for overwinter root mortality caused by soil freezing by re-allocating resources towards root production. At the sites with the deepest snow cover, root ingrowth reduced nitrification rates by 30% (P < 0.01), showing that tree roots exert significant influence over nitrification, which declines with reduced snow cover. If soil freezing intensifies over time, then greater compensatory root growth may reduce nitrification rates directly via plant-microbe N competition and indirectly through a negative feedback on soil moisture, resulting in lower N availability to trees in northern hardwood forests. Close