Opportunities and Best Practices to Support Sustainable Production for Small Growers and Post-Harvest Processors in Southern California

This article describes current practices and needs associated with water and gas conservation among Southern California greenhouse growers, Post-Harvest Processors (PHPs), and agricultural associations. Two communication forums were held with the goal of educating the local gas company and small growers and PHPs on the most compelling needs and best practices to support sustainability while improving profit. While some growers and PHPs have made significant investment in energy and water conservation advanced technologies, all participants expressed the desire to work with local utilities towards greater water and energy conservation opportunities that are customized to specific needs

Role of soil texture, clay mineralogy, location, and temperature in coarse wood decomposition—a mesocosm experiment

Of all the major pools of terrestrial carbon (C), the dynamics of coarse woody debris (CWD) are the least understood. In contrast to soils and living vegetation, the study of CWD has rarely relied on ex situ methods for elaborating controls on decomposition rates. In this study, we report on a mesocosm incubation experiment examining how clay amount (8%, 16%, and 24% clay), clay type (soil reconstructed with kaolinite vs. montmorillonite), wood placement (on litter layer surface, at the litter layer–soil interface, buried in the mineral soil), and laboratory incubation temperature (10°, 20°, or 30°C) control decomposition rates of highly standardized stakes and blocks of coarse aspen wood. Clay type effect was pronounced, with wood decomposing more quickly in kaolinite- than in montmorillonite-amended soils, perhaps due to a combined effect of moisture and microbial access to the substrate. Clay amount had only very limited effect on wood decomposition, which was a function of contact with the mineral soil (Surface \u3c Interface \u3c Mineral), perhaps due to greater contact with the decomposer community. Temperature effects were significant and dependent on interactions with clay type and wood placement. Effects of temperature on wood decomposition declined as the effects of soil variables increased, suggesting a hierarchy of controls on wood decomposition rates. Both water content and temperature had a strong effect on wood decomposition. Our results highlight that multiple interacting factors likely regulate wood decomposition processes. Multifactorial field experiments are needed to examine the physical, chemical, and biological factors controlling wood decompositio

Soil organic carbon quality in forested mineral wetlands at different mean annual temperature

Forested mineral soil wetlands (FMSW) store large stocks of soil organic carbon (SOC), but little is known on: (i) whether the quality of SOC stored in these soils (proportion of active versus more resistant SOC compounds) differs from SOC in upland soils; (ii) how the quality of SOC in FMSW varies with mean annual temperature (MAT); and (iii) whether SOC decomposition rates in these environments respond to warming and drying more strongly than those observed in upland soils. To address this substantial knowledge gap, we identified nine FMSW and fifteen paired upland forest sites across three bioregions in North America (sub-alpine in Colorado; north-temperate in Minnesota; and south-temperate in South Carolina) to test the following three hypotheses. First, FMSW store a higher proportion of active SOC compared with upland systems because long anaerobic periods favor the accumulation of labile substrates. Second, in FMSW, SOC quality decreases from cold to warm bioregions because high quality detritus accumulates preferentially at cool sites where decomposition is slow. Finally, decomposition of SOC in FMSW will respond more strongly to warming under aerobic conditions than SOC from upland forest soils because of higher accumulation of active SOC in FMSW. To test these hypotheses, we incubated FMSW and upland forest soils at two constant temperatures (10 and 30 °C) for 525-d under aerobic conditions and constant moisture. In contrast to our first hypothesis, we observed similarly rapid depletion of active SOC compounds at initial stages of incubation across FMSW and upland sites, and across the 525-d incubations we observed overall lower SOC decomposition rates in our FMSW soils. In line with our second hypothesis, and across FMWS and upland soils, we found greater SOC loss in the sub-alpine bioregion than both temperate regions. In contrast to our last hypothesis, we found no difference in the temperature sensitivity (Q10) of SOC decomposition in FMSW and upland forest soils. Critically, total SOC loss (g SOC per g soil) was larger in FMSW because of the large amount of SOC stored in these ecosystems, indicating that despite a lack of difference between FMSW and upland responses, the total release of C from FMSW that could result from global warming may be large. © 2008 Elsevier Ltd

Limited potential for terrestrial carbon sequestration to offset fossil-fuel emissions in the upper midwestern US

Many carbon dioxide (CO2) emission-reduction strategies currently under consideration rely on terrestrial carbon (C) sequestration to offset substantial proportions of CO2 emissions. We estimated C sequestration rates and potential land areas for a diverse array of land-cover changes in the Upper Midwest of the US, a “best case” region for this study because of its relatively modest CO2 emissions and the large areas of cropland potentially available for conversion. We then developed scenarios that apply some of the most widespread mitigation strategies to the region: the first, which aimed to offset 29% of regional CO2 emissions, required the unrealistic loss of two-thirds of working cropland; the second, which estimated the emission offset attainable by conversion of 10% of harvested croplands (5.8% of the US total), resulted in < 5% CO2 emissions reduction for the region (<1.1% of total US emissions). There is limited capacity for terrestrial C sequestration, so strategies should aim to directly reduce CO2 emissions to mitigate rising atmospheric CO2 concentrations

Temperature and vegetation effects on soil organic carbon quality along a forested mean annual temperature gradient in North America

Both climate and plant species are hypothesized to influence soil organic carbon (SOC) quality, but accurate prediction of how SOC process rates respond to global change will require an improved understanding of how SOC quality varies with mean annual temperature (MAT) and forest type. We investigated SOC quality in paired hardwood and pine stands growing in coarse textured soils located along a 22 °C gradient in MAT. To do this, we conducted 80-day incubation experiments at 10 and 30 °C to quantify SOC decomposition rates, which we used to kinetically define SOC quality. We used these experiments to test the hypotheses that SOC quality decreases with MAT, and that SOC quality is higher under pine than hardwood tree species. We found that both SOC quantity and quality decreased with increasing MAT. During the 30 °C incubation, temperature sensitivity (Q10) values were strongly and positively related to SOC decomposition rates, indicating that substrate supply can influence temperature responsiveness of SOC decomposition rates. For a limited number of dates, Q10 was negatively related to MAT. Soil chemical properties could not explain observed patterns in soil quality. Soil pH and cation exchange capacity (CEC) both declined with increasing MAT, and soil C quality was positively related to pH but negatively related to CEC. Clay mineralogy of soils also could not explain patterns of SOC quality as complex (2:1), high CEC clay minerals occurred in cold climate soils while warm climate soils were dominated by simpler (1:1), low CEC clay minerals. While hardwood sites contained more SOC than pine sites, with differences declining with MAT, clay content was also higher in hardwood soils. In contrast, there was no difference in SOC quality between pine and hardwood soils. Overall, these findings indicate that SOC quantity and quality may both decrease in response to global warming, despite long-term changes in soil chemistry and mineralogy that favor decomposition. © 2007 Blackwell Publishing Ltd

Examining Decomposition and Nitrogen Mineralization in Five Common Urban Habitat Types across Southern California to Inform Sustainable Landscaping

Urban landscaping conversions can alter decomposition processes and soil respiration, making it difficult to forecast regional CO2 emissions. Here we explore rates of initial mass loss and net nitrogen (N) mineralization in natural and four common urban land covers (waterwise, waterwise with mulch, shrub, and lawn) from sites across seven colleges in southern California. We found that rates of decomposition and net N mineralization were faster for high-N leaf substrates, and natural habitats exhibited slower rates of decomposition and mineralization than managed urban landcovers, especially lawns and areas with added mulch. These results were consistent across college campuses, suggesting that our findings are robust and can predict decomposition rates across southern California. While mechanisms driving differences in decomposition rates among habitats in the cool-wet spring were difficult to identify, elevated decomposition in urban habitats highlights that conversion of natural areas to urban landscapes enhances greenhouse gas emissions. While perceived as sustainable, elevated decomposition rates in areas with added mulch mean that while these transformations may reduce water inputs, they increase soil carbon (C) flux. Mimicking natural landscapes by reducing water and nutrient (mulch) inputs and planting drought-tolerant native vegetation with recalcitrant litter can slow decomposition and reduce regional C emissions

Examining Decomposition and Nitrogen Mineralization in Five Common Urban Habitat Types across Southern California to Inform Sustainable Landscaping

Urban landscaping conversions can alter decomposition processes and soil respiration, making it difficult to forecast regional CO2 emissions. Here we explore rates of initial mass loss and net nitrogen (N) mineralization in natural and four common urban land covers (waterwise, waterwise with mulch, shrub, and lawn) from sites across seven colleges in southern California. We found that rates of decomposition and net N mineralization were faster for high-N leaf substrates, and natural habitats exhibited slower rates of decomposition and mineralization than managed urban landcovers, especially lawns and areas with added mulch. These results were consistent across college campuses, suggesting that our findings are robust and can predict decomposition rates across southern California. While mechanisms driving differences in decomposition rates among habitats in the cool-wet spring were difficult to identify, elevated decomposition in urban habitats highlights that conversion of natural areas to urban landscapes enhances greenhouse gas emissions. While perceived as sustainable, elevated decomposition rates in areas with added mulch mean that while these transformations may reduce water inputs, they increase soil carbon (C) flux. Mimicking natural landscapes by reducing water and nutrient (mulch) inputs and planting drought-tolerant native vegetation with recalcitrant litter can slow decomposition and reduce regional C emissions