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Soil disturbance alters plant community composition and decreases mycorrhizal carbon allocation in a sandy grassland.

Schnoor, Tim Krone LU ; Mårtensson, Linda-Maria LU and Olsson, Pål Axel LU (2011) In Oecologia 167. p.809-819
Abstract
We have studied how disturbance by ploughing and rotavation affects the carbon (C) flow to arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi in a dry, semi-natural grassland. AM fungal biomass was estimated using the indicator neutral lipid fatty acid (NLFA) 16:1ω5, and saprotrophic fungal biomass using NLFA 18:2ω6,9. We labeled vegetation plots with (13)CO(2) and studied the C flow to the signature fatty acids as well as uptake and allocation in plants. We found that AM fungal biomass in roots and soil decreased with disturbance, while saprotrophic fungal biomass in soil was not influenced by disturbance. Rotavation decreased the (13)C enrichment in NLFA 16:1ω5 in soil, but (13)C enrichment in the AM fungal indicator NLFA 16:1ω5 in roots or soil was not... (More)
We have studied how disturbance by ploughing and rotavation affects the carbon (C) flow to arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi in a dry, semi-natural grassland. AM fungal biomass was estimated using the indicator neutral lipid fatty acid (NLFA) 16:1ω5, and saprotrophic fungal biomass using NLFA 18:2ω6,9. We labeled vegetation plots with (13)CO(2) and studied the C flow to the signature fatty acids as well as uptake and allocation in plants. We found that AM fungal biomass in roots and soil decreased with disturbance, while saprotrophic fungal biomass in soil was not influenced by disturbance. Rotavation decreased the (13)C enrichment in NLFA 16:1ω5 in soil, but (13)C enrichment in the AM fungal indicator NLFA 16:1ω5 in roots or soil was not influenced by any other disturbance. In roots, (13)C enrichment was consistently higher in NLFA 16:1ω5 than in crude root material. Grasses (mainly Festuca brevipila) decreased as a result of disturbance, while non-mycorrhizal annual forbs increased. This decreases the potential for mycorrhizal C sequestration and may have been the main reason for the reduced mycorrhizal C allocation found in disturbed plots. Disturbance decreased the soil ammonium content but did not change the pH, nitrate or phosphate availability. The overall effect of disturbance on C allocation was that more of the C in AM fungal mycelium was directed to the external phase. Furthermore, the functional identity of the plants seemed to play a minor role in the C cycle as no differences were seen between different groups, although annuals contained less AM fungi than the other groups. (Less)
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author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Carbon cycling, Fatty acid, Grassland, Soil fungi, Stable isotope
in
Oecologia
volume
167
pages
809 - 819
publisher
Springer
external identifiers
  • wos:000295984800020
  • pmid:21614616
  • scopus:80054015080
ISSN
1432-1939
DOI
10.1007/s00442-011-2020-2
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
56f9d3fc-f36a-4b41-a0f7-4cdca465c77b (old id 1972157)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 10:48:21
date last changed
2022-04-04 21:29:10
@article{56f9d3fc-f36a-4b41-a0f7-4cdca465c77b,
  abstract     = {{We have studied how disturbance by ploughing and rotavation affects the carbon (C) flow to arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi in a dry, semi-natural grassland. AM fungal biomass was estimated using the indicator neutral lipid fatty acid (NLFA) 16:1ω5, and saprotrophic fungal biomass using NLFA 18:2ω6,9. We labeled vegetation plots with (13)CO(2) and studied the C flow to the signature fatty acids as well as uptake and allocation in plants. We found that AM fungal biomass in roots and soil decreased with disturbance, while saprotrophic fungal biomass in soil was not influenced by disturbance. Rotavation decreased the (13)C enrichment in NLFA 16:1ω5 in soil, but (13)C enrichment in the AM fungal indicator NLFA 16:1ω5 in roots or soil was not influenced by any other disturbance. In roots, (13)C enrichment was consistently higher in NLFA 16:1ω5 than in crude root material. Grasses (mainly Festuca brevipila) decreased as a result of disturbance, while non-mycorrhizal annual forbs increased. This decreases the potential for mycorrhizal C sequestration and may have been the main reason for the reduced mycorrhizal C allocation found in disturbed plots. Disturbance decreased the soil ammonium content but did not change the pH, nitrate or phosphate availability. The overall effect of disturbance on C allocation was that more of the C in AM fungal mycelium was directed to the external phase. Furthermore, the functional identity of the plants seemed to play a minor role in the C cycle as no differences were seen between different groups, although annuals contained less AM fungi than the other groups.}},
  author       = {{Schnoor, Tim Krone and Mårtensson, Linda-Maria and Olsson, Pål Axel}},
  issn         = {{1432-1939}},
  keywords     = {{Carbon cycling; Fatty acid; Grassland; Soil fungi; Stable isotope}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  pages        = {{809--819}},
  publisher    = {{Springer}},
  series       = {{Oecologia}},
  title        = {{Soil disturbance alters plant community composition and decreases mycorrhizal carbon allocation in a sandy grassland.}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00442-011-2020-2}},
  doi          = {{10.1007/s00442-011-2020-2}},
  volume       = {{167}},
  year         = {{2011}},
}