Belowground Carbon Allocation in a Mixed Conifer Forest in the Northern Rockies

Understanding how the exchange of carbon dioxide between vegetation and the atmosphere contributes to climate change is becoming an increasingly important issue for scientists, policy makers, and land owners. Forest ecosystems store approximately 50% of global terrestrial carbon with a significant amount in belowground pools. Knowledge about the amount of carbon allocated to belowground pools is lacking, especially seasonal allocation to fine root biomass and baseline values of forest soil carbon prior to management or land use change. We are collecting field observations to establish baseline soil carbon densities and seasonal fine root allocation in a mixed conifer forest of Northern Idaho. The observations will be analyzed for differences due to canopy cover, species composition, and soil moisture gradients. This project is part of a larger field experiment studying the effects of thinning on forest biogeochemical cycling. Data is forthcoming and we expect it to contribute to scientific knowledge about forest carbon storage in temperate coniferous forests