Decomposition and nutrient release of grass and tree fine roots along an environmental gradient in southern Patagonia
Decomposition of fine roots is a fundamental ecosystem process that relates to carbon (C) and nutrient cycling in terrestrial ecosystems. However, this important ecosystem process has been hardly studied in Patagonian ecosystems. The aim of this work was to study root decomposition and nutrient rele...
| Autores principales: | , , |
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| Formato: | Artículo |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
| Publicado: |
Wiley
2018
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/aec.12672 http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/3937 https://doi.org/10.1111/aec.12672 |
| _version_ | 1855483333586190336 |
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| author | Gargaglione, Veronica Beatriz Bahamonde, Héctor Alejandro Peri, Pablo Luis |
| author_browse | Bahamonde, Héctor Alejandro Gargaglione, Veronica Beatriz Peri, Pablo Luis |
| author_facet | Gargaglione, Veronica Beatriz Bahamonde, Héctor Alejandro Peri, Pablo Luis |
| author_sort | Gargaglione, Veronica Beatriz |
| collection | INTA Digital |
| description | Decomposition of fine roots is a fundamental ecosystem process that relates to carbon (C) and nutrient cycling in terrestrial ecosystems. However, this important ecosystem process has been hardly studied in Patagonian ecosystems. The aim of this work was to study root decomposition and nutrient release from fine roots of grasses and trees (Nothofagus antarctica) across a range of Patagonian ecosystems that included steppe, primary forest and silvopastoral forests. After 2.2 years of decomposition in the field all roots retained 70–90% of their original mass, and decomposition rates were 0.09 and 0.15 year−1 for grass roots in steppe and primary forest, respectively. For N. antarctica roots, no significant differences were found in rates of decay between primary and silvopastoral forests (k = 0.07 year−1). Possibly low temperatures of these southern sites restricted decomposition by microorganisms. Nutrient release differed between sites and root types. Across all ecosystem categories, nitrogen (N) retention in decomposing biomass followed the order: tree roots > roots of forest grasses > roots of steppe grasses. Phosphorus (P) was retained in grass roots in forest plots but was released during decomposition of tree and steppe grass roots. Calcium (Ca) dynamics also was different between root types, since trees showed retention during the initial phase, whereas grass roots showed a slow and consistent Ca release during decomposition. Potassium (K) was the only nutrient that was rapidly released from both grass and tree roots in both grasslands and woodlands. We found that silvopastoral use of N. antarctica forests does not affect grass or tree root decomposition and/or nutrient release, since no significant differences were found for any nutrient according to ecosystem type. Information about tree and grass root decomposition found in this work could be useful to understand C and nutrient cycling in these southern ecosystems, which are characterized by extreme climatic conditions. |
| format | Artículo |
| id | INTA3937 |
| institution | Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA -Argentina) |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2018 |
| publishDateRange | 2018 |
| publishDateSort | 2018 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| publisherStr | Wiley |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | INTA39372018-11-21T13:57:05Z Decomposition and nutrient release of grass and tree fine roots along an environmental gradient in southern Patagonia Gargaglione, Veronica Beatriz Bahamonde, Héctor Alejandro Peri, Pablo Luis Nothofagus Ecosistema Carbono Medio Ambiente Raíces Degradación Fertilidad del Suelo Ecosystems Carbon Environment Roots Degradation Soil Fertility Región Patagónica Contenido de Nutrientes (Suelo) Decomposition of fine roots is a fundamental ecosystem process that relates to carbon (C) and nutrient cycling in terrestrial ecosystems. However, this important ecosystem process has been hardly studied in Patagonian ecosystems. The aim of this work was to study root decomposition and nutrient release from fine roots of grasses and trees (Nothofagus antarctica) across a range of Patagonian ecosystems that included steppe, primary forest and silvopastoral forests. After 2.2 years of decomposition in the field all roots retained 70–90% of their original mass, and decomposition rates were 0.09 and 0.15 year−1 for grass roots in steppe and primary forest, respectively. For N. antarctica roots, no significant differences were found in rates of decay between primary and silvopastoral forests (k = 0.07 year−1). Possibly low temperatures of these southern sites restricted decomposition by microorganisms. Nutrient release differed between sites and root types. Across all ecosystem categories, nitrogen (N) retention in decomposing biomass followed the order: tree roots > roots of forest grasses > roots of steppe grasses. Phosphorus (P) was retained in grass roots in forest plots but was released during decomposition of tree and steppe grass roots. Calcium (Ca) dynamics also was different between root types, since trees showed retention during the initial phase, whereas grass roots showed a slow and consistent Ca release during decomposition. Potassium (K) was the only nutrient that was rapidly released from both grass and tree roots in both grasslands and woodlands. We found that silvopastoral use of N. antarctica forests does not affect grass or tree root decomposition and/or nutrient release, since no significant differences were found for any nutrient according to ecosystem type. Information about tree and grass root decomposition found in this work could be useful to understand C and nutrient cycling in these southern ecosystems, which are characterized by extreme climatic conditions. EEA Santa Cruz Fil: Gargaglione, Veronica Beatriz. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Santa Cruz; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia Austral; Argentina Fil: Bahamonde, Héctor Alejandro. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Santa Cruz; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia Austral; Argentina Fil: Peri, Pablo Luis. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Santa Cruz; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia Austral; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina 2018-11-21T13:54:43Z 2018-11-21T13:54:43Z 2018-10-25 info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/aec.12672 http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/3937 1442-9985 1442-9993 https://doi.org/10.1111/aec.12672 eng info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess application/pdf Wiley Austral Ecology First published: 25 October 2018 |
| spellingShingle | Nothofagus Ecosistema Carbono Medio Ambiente Raíces Degradación Fertilidad del Suelo Ecosystems Carbon Environment Roots Degradation Soil Fertility Región Patagónica Contenido de Nutrientes (Suelo) Gargaglione, Veronica Beatriz Bahamonde, Héctor Alejandro Peri, Pablo Luis Decomposition and nutrient release of grass and tree fine roots along an environmental gradient in southern Patagonia |
| title | Decomposition and nutrient release of grass and tree fine roots along an environmental gradient in southern Patagonia |
| title_full | Decomposition and nutrient release of grass and tree fine roots along an environmental gradient in southern Patagonia |
| title_fullStr | Decomposition and nutrient release of grass and tree fine roots along an environmental gradient in southern Patagonia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Decomposition and nutrient release of grass and tree fine roots along an environmental gradient in southern Patagonia |
| title_short | Decomposition and nutrient release of grass and tree fine roots along an environmental gradient in southern Patagonia |
| title_sort | decomposition and nutrient release of grass and tree fine roots along an environmental gradient in southern patagonia |
| topic | Nothofagus Ecosistema Carbono Medio Ambiente Raíces Degradación Fertilidad del Suelo Ecosystems Carbon Environment Roots Degradation Soil Fertility Región Patagónica Contenido de Nutrientes (Suelo) |
| url | https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/aec.12672 http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/3937 https://doi.org/10.1111/aec.12672 |
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