Relationships between cellulose decomposition, Jenny's k, forest-floor nitrogen, and soil temperature in Alaskan taiga forests

Forest-floor decomposition is compared among 16 Alaskan taiga forest stands. These include black spruce (Piceamariana (Mill.) B.S.P.), white spruce (Piceaglauca (Moench) Voss), and birch (Betulapapyrifera Marsh.), aspen {Populustremuloides Michx.), and balsam poplar (Populusbalsamifera L.) types, sp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Canadian Journal of Forest Research
Main Authors: Fox, J.F., Van Cleve, K.
Format: Text
Language:unknown
Published: Hosted by Utah State University Libraries 1983
Subjects:
Microorganisms
Tracheophyta: Plantae
Coniferopsida: Gymnospermae
Spermatophyta
Plantae
Betulaceae: Dicotyledones
Angiospermae
Salicaceae: Dicotyledones
Angiosperms
Dicots
Gymnosperms
Plants
Spermatophytes
Vascular Plants
Picea Glauca Picea Muriana Betula Papyrifera Populus Tremuloides Populus Balsamifera
Forest litter
decomposition
chemistry
Soil physics
temperature
Soil morphological features
soil temperature
Forest Sciences
taiga
Online Access:https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/aspen_bib/4176
https://doi.org/10.1139/x83-109
Description
Summary:Forest-floor decomposition is compared among 16 Alaskan taiga forest stands. These include black spruce (Piceamariana (Mill.) B.S.P.), white spruce (Piceaglauca (Moench) Voss), and birch (Betulapapyrifera Marsh.), aspen {Populustremuloides Michx.), and balsam poplar (Populusbalsamifera L.) types, spanning a wide range in decomposition rates, forest-floor microclimates, and litter quality. Jenny's index of decomposition rate, k, is reasonably well correlated with annual cellulose (filter-paper) decomposition differences among stands. Both estimates of decomposition rate are correlated with forest-floor heat sum and forest-floor nitrogen concentration. These between-site correlations support inferences based upon experimental work claiming that temperature and forest-floor chemical quality have a major influence upon the level of decomposition in a particular stand. Inferences about the factors regulating decomposition rate around an average level within one stand cannot legitimately be made from the same correlations. Moisture has not been considered in this analysis, but could also be important to between-stand differences in decomposition rate.

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