Fine roots, arbuscular mycorrhizal hyphae and soil nutrients in four neotropical rain forests: patterns across large geographic distances.

* It is commonly hypothesized that stand-level fine root biomass increases as soil fertility decreases both within and among tropical forests, but few data exist to test this prediction across broad geographic scales. This study investigated the relationships among fine roots, arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and soil nutrients in four lowland, neotropical rainforests. * Within each forest, samples were collected from plots that differed in fertility and above-ground biomass, and fine roots, AM hyphae and total soil nutrients were measured. * Among sites, total fine root mass varied by a factor of three, from 237+/-19 g m-2 in Costa Rica to 800+/-116 g m-2 in Brazil (0-40 cm depth). Both root mass and length were negatively correlated to soil nitrogen and phosphorus, but AM hyphae were not related to nutrients, root properties or above-ground biomass. * These results suggest that understanding how soil fertility affects fine roots is an additional factor that may improve the representation of root functions in global biogeochemical models or biome-wide averages of root properties in tropical forests

Influence of Nutrient Availability, Stand Age, and Canopy Structure on Isoprene Flux in a Eucalyptus saligna Experimental Forest

Eucalyptus plantations occupy approximately 10 million ha of land in the tropics and, increasingly, afforestation and reforestation projects are relying on this genus to provide rapid occupation of degraded sites, large quantities of high-quality wood products, and high rates of carbon sequestration. Members of the genus Eucalyptus are also very high emitters of isoprene, the dominant volatile organic compound emitted by trees in tropical ecosystems, which significantly influences the oxidative capacity of the atmosphere. While fertilization growth response of these trees has been intensively studied, little is known about how fertilization and tree age alter isoprene production from plantations of these trees. Here we examined the effects of fertilization and tree age on leaf-level isoprene flux from 2- and 6-year-old trees in a Eucalyptus saligna experimental forest in Hawaii. Leaf-level emission at a given canopy height did not differ between fertilized and unfertilized 6-year-old trees likely because leaf nitrogen content did not vary with fertilization. Across treatments, however, the standardized emission rate of isoprene (emission at a standard light and temperature) followed patterns of leaf N content and declined with canopy depth. Although leaf nitrogen content was similar between 2-year and 6-year fertilized trees, leaf-level emission rates declined with stand age. Surprisingly, despite differences in stand leaf area and leaf area distribution, modeled canopy-level isoprene flux was similar across stands varying in fertilization and tree age. Model results suggest that leaf area index was high enough in all treatments to absorb most of the light penetrating the canopy, leading to similar canopy flux rates despite the very different sized canopies

Variation in Isoprene Emission from Quercus rubra: Sources, Causes, and Consequences for Estimating Fluxes

Isoprene is the dominant volatile organic compound produced in many forest systems. Uncertainty in estimates of leaf level isoprene emission rate stems from an insufficient understanding of the patterns and processes controlling isoprene emission capacity in plant leaves. Previous studies suggest that variation in isoprene emission capacity is substantial; however, it is not known at what scale emission capacity is the most variable. Identifying the sources of variation in emission capacity has implications for conducting measurements and for model development, which will ultimately improve emission estimates and models of tropospheric chemistry. In addition, understanding the sources of variation will help to develop a comprehensive understanding of the physiological controls over isoprene emission. This study applied a variance partitioning approach to identify the major sources of variation in isoprene emission capacity from two populations of northern red oak (Quercus rubra) over three growing seasons. Specifically, we evaluated variation due to climate, populations, trees, branches, leaves, seasons, and years. Overall, the dominant source of variation was the effect of a moderate drought event. In the years without drought events, variation among individual trees (intraspecific) explained approximately 60% of the total variance. Within the midseason, isoprene emission capacity of sun leaves varied by a factor of 2 among trees. During the third year a moderate 20-day drought event caused isoprene emission capacity to decrease fourfold, and the relative importance of intraspecific variation was reduced to 24% of total variance. Overall, ambient temperature, light, and a drought index were poor predictors of isoprene emission capacity over a 0 to 14-day period across growing seasons. The drought event captured in this study emphasizes the need to incorporate environmental influences into leaf level emission models

Fine roots, arbuscular mycorrhizal hyphae and soil nutrients in four neotropical rain forests: patterns across large geographic distances.

* It is commonly hypothesized that stand-level fine root biomass increases as soil fertility decreases both within and among tropical forests, but few data exist to test this prediction across broad geographic scales. This study investigated the relationships among fine roots, arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and soil nutrients in four lowland, neotropical rainforests. * Within each forest, samples were collected from plots that differed in fertility and above-ground biomass, and fine roots, AM hyphae and total soil nutrients were measured. * Among sites, total fine root mass varied by a factor of three, from 237+/-19 g m-2 in Costa Rica to 800+/-116 g m-2 in Brazil (0-40 cm depth). Both root mass and length were negatively correlated to soil nitrogen and phosphorus, but AM hyphae were not related to nutrients, root properties or above-ground biomass. * These results suggest that understanding how soil fertility affects fine roots is an additional factor that may improve the representation of root functions in global biogeochemical models or biome-wide averages of root properties in tropical forests

BOREAS TGB-8 Photosynthetic Rate Data over the SSA-OBS and the SSA-OJP

The BOREAS TGB-8 team collected data to investigate the controls over NMHC fluxes from boreal forest tree species. This data set includes measurements of photosynthetic rates at mature jack pine and black spruce sites. The data were collected at the OJP and OBS tower flux locations in the BOREAS SSA. These areas contained mature stands of jack pine and black spruce and were the focal sites in the BOREAS program for studies of biosphere/atmosphere exchange from these two habitat types. The OBS site is situated in a black spruce/sphagnum bog with the largest trees 155 years old and 10-15 m tall. The OJP site is in a jack pine forest, 80 to 120 years old, which lies on a sandy bench of glacial outwash with the largest tree standing 15 m tall. Temporally, the data cover the period of 24-May-1994 to 19-Sep-1994. The data are stored in tabular ASCII files

Kudzu (Pueraria montana) invasion doubles emissions of nitric oxide and increases ozone pollution

The nitrogen-fixing legume kudzu (Pueraria montana) is a widespread invasive plant in the southeastern United States with physiological traits that may lead to important impacts on ecosystems and the atmosphere. Its spread has the potential to raise ozone levels in the region by increasing nitric oxide (NO) emissions from soils as a consequence of increasing nitrogen (N) inputs and cycling in soils. We studied the effects of kudzu invasions on soils and trace N gas emissions at three sites in Madison County, Georgia in 2007 and used the results to model the effects of kudzu invasion on regional air quality. We found that rates of net N mineralization increased by up to 1,000%, and net nitrification increased by up to 500% in invaded soils in Georgia. Nitric oxide emissions from invaded soils were more than 100% higher (2.81 vs. 1.24 ng NO-N cm−2 h−1). We used the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model to evaluate the potential impact of kudzu invasion on regional atmospheric chemistry and air quality. In an extreme scenario, extensive kudzu invasion leads directly to an increase in the number of high ozone events (above 70 ppb) of up to 7 days each summer in some areas, up from 10 to 20 days in a control scenario with no kudzu invasion. These results establish a quantitative link between a biological invasion and ozone formation and suggest that in this extreme scenario, kudzu invasion can overcome some of the air quality benefits of legislative control