Farooq Taimoor Hassan, Xincheng Xen, Shakoor Awais, Rashid Muhammad Haroon U, Bashir Muhammad Farhan, Nawaz Muhammad Farrakh, Kumar Uttam, Shahzad Sher Muhammad, Yan Wende
Bangor College China, a Joint Unit of Bangor University and Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, 410004, China.
National Engineering Laboratory for Applied Technology in Forestry and Ecology in South China, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, 410004, China.
Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2022 Feb;29(7):10250-10262. doi: 10.1007/s11356-021-16400-1. Epub 2021 Sep 13.
Forest ecosystem carbon (C) storage primarily includes vegetation layers C storage, litter C storage, and soil C storage. The precise assessment of forest ecosystem C storage is a major concern that has drawn widespread attention in global climate change worldwide. This study explored the C storage of different layers of the forest ecosystem and the nutrient enrichment capacity of the vegetation layer to the soil in the Castanopsis eyeri natural forest ecosystem (CEF) present in the northeastern Hunan province, central China. The direct field measurements were used for the estimations. Results illustrate that trunk biomass distribution was 48.42% and 62.32% in younger and over-mature trees, respectively. The combined biomass of the understory shrub, herb, and litter layers was 10.46 t·hm, accounting for only 2.72% of the total forest biomass. On average, C content increased with the tree age increment. The C content of tree, shrub, and herb layers was 45.68%, 43.08%, and 35.76%, respectively. Litter C content was higher in the undecomposed litter (44.07 %). Soil C content continually decreased as the soil depth increased, and almost half of soil C was stored in the upper soil layer. Total C stored in CEF was 329.70 t·hm and it follows the order: tree layer > soil layer > litter layer > shrub layer > herb layer, with C storage distribution of 51.07%, 47.80%, 0.78%, 0.25%, and 0.10%, respectively. Macronutrient enrichment capacity from vegetation layers to soil was highest in the herb layer and lowest in the tree layer, whereas no consistent patterns were observed for trace elements. This study will help understand the production mechanism and ecological process of the C. eyeri natural forest ecosystem and provide the basics for future research on climate mitigation, nutrient cycling, and energy exchange in developing and utilizing sub-tropical vegetation.
森林生态系统碳（C）储量主要包括植被层碳储量、凋落物碳储量和土壤碳储量。森林生态系统碳储量的精确评估是一个主要关注点，在全球气候变化研究中受到了广泛关注。本研究探讨了中国中部湖南省东北部的栲树林自然森林生态系统（CEF）中森林生态系统不同层次的碳储量以及植被层对土壤的养分富集能力。采用直接野外测量进行估算。结果表明，幼树和过熟树的树干生物量分布分别为48.42%和62.32%。林下灌木、草本和凋落物层的总生物量为10.46 t·hm，仅占森林总生物量的2.72%。平均而言，碳含量随树龄增加而增加。乔木、灌木和草本层的碳含量分别为45.68%、43.08%和35.76%。未分解凋落物中的凋落物碳含量较高（44.07%）。土壤碳含量随土壤深度增加而持续下降，几乎一半的土壤碳储存在上层土壤中。CEF中的总碳储量为329.70 t·hm，其顺序为：乔木层>土壤层>凋落物层>灌木层>草本层，碳储量分布分别为51.07%、47.80%、0.78%、0.25%和0.10%。从植被层到土壤的大量养分富集能力在草本层最高，在乔木层最低，而微量元素则未观察到一致的模式。本研究将有助于了解栲树林自然森林生态系统的生产机制和生态过程，并为未来亚热带植被开发利用中的气候缓解、养分循环和能量交换研究提供基础。
