Experimental Warming of Typically Acidic and Nutrient-Poor Boreal Soils Does Not Affect Leaf-Litter Decomposition of Temperate Deciduous Tree Species
Date
2023-02-06
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MDPI
Abstract
Ongoing rapid climatic changes are expected to modify the structure, composition, and functioning of forest ecosystems. Studying the influence of such changes on biogeochemical processes is thus crucial for a fuller understanding of forest response to climate change. In a temperate forest of Quebec, Canada, we emulated climate change by warming the acidic, nutrient-poor, and dry soils of two mixedwoods by 3 to 4 ◦C using heating cables. Leaf-litter mass loss of the local red maple, sugar maple, large-tooth aspen, and American beech were monitored to assess the ability of these tree
species to condition boreal soils in the context of their northward migration under climate change. We hypothesized that decomposition rates of all leaf-litter types would be decreased equally by warming due to a drying effect of the soil and its surface, which is detrimental to microbial biomass
and activity. Our results suggest differences in decomposition rates between tree species as follows: sugar maple > red maple ≥ American beech = large-tooth aspen. There was no indication of a slower turnover in these marginal soils compared to other studies conducted on typical hardwood
soils. Moreover, no difference in litter mass loss was detected between treatments, likely due to a drying effect of the soil warming treatment. Results imply that climate change has a marginal influence on leaf-litter dynamics of temperate tree species on soils that are typical of the boreal forest.
However, some variables that could play an important role on litter decomposition in the context of climate change were not measured (e.g., plant phenology, understory composition and density, microbes) and thus, uncertainties remain. The soil drying effect by warming also needs to be further
documented and modeled. The study year was characterized by significant periods of water stress but was not considered an exceptional year in that regard. It would be relevant to test for leaf-litter dynamics during dry and wet summers and verify again our initial hypothesis of decreased leaf-litter
decomposition rates due to soil warming/drying.
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© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Version of Scholarly Record of this Article is published in Soil Systems, 2023, available online at: https://www.mdpi.com/2571-8789/7/1/14 . Keywords: climate change; temperate forests; acidic soils; warming; drying; leaf litter dynamics; boreal soils.
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Citation
Bélanger, N.; Chaput-Richard, C. Experimental Warming of Typically Acidic and Nutrient-Poor Boreal Soils Does Not Affect Leaf-Litter Decomposition of Temperate Deciduous Tree Species. Soil Syst. 2023, 7, 14. https:// doi.org/10.3390/soilsystems7010014