Effect of the manipulation of aboveground litter on C and N soiil cycles in Congolese Eucalyptus plantations
Effet de la manipulation des litières aériennes sur les cycles du C et de N dans les sols en plantation d'Eucalyptus au Congo
Résumé
In the last decades, fast-growing plantations have emerged as an important option to supply a growing share of the increasing demand for woody forest products and as an alternative to reduce the pressure on tropical rainforests. A major stake is nowadays to ensure the sustainability of these plantations often established on poor soils with large amounts of biomass exported every 6-7 years. Aboveground litters may play a crucial role on the mineral and the organic soil fertility which drive short- and long-term productivity in these tropical ecosystems. The main objective of our study was to identify the mechanisms involved in the Eucalyptus growth response to aboveground litter removal or addition over the two first years after planting. Apart from measurements of tree growth, the dynamic of nitrogen (N) mineralization in decomposing harvest residues has been studied in several experiments. Nutrient fluxes in soil solutions were compared to nutrient stocks initially contained in ecosystem compartments and to nutrient content within trees at age two years. A complete recovery budget of 15N brought within residues at the harvest was made at the stand scale. The long-term impact of aboveground litter manipulations on soil OM stocks was also assessed. Standard soil analyses (C&N) as well as a complete partitioning of soil CO2 efflux were carried out. The qualitative and quantitative dynamics of dissolved OM received special attention. The results show that the rapid release of potassium and the more progressive release of N contained in aboveground litter largely explain tree growth differences observed among OM management treatments. Eucalyptus tree considerably benefit from the nutrient released throughout litter decomposition since losses by deep drainage were very low as a consequence of soil depth and of the very fast development of roots both in the deep soil layers and in the organic layer. Our study also highlighted the large contribution of the topsoil OM (0-15 cm) for the production of nitrate and dissolved OM in gravitational soil solutions. The use of 15N labelling demonstrated that N is initially retained within the organic layer probably by microbial immobilization; transferred in simultaneous and balanced ways between organic residues components (leaves, barks and branches); and finally transported in particulate OM toward the mineral topsoil layer by gravitational water, supplying thus the soil OM pool on which the soil fertility relies. The retention of aboveground litter contributed to maintain soil OM stocks after the clear-cutting while its removal led to an initial decrease in soil OM stocks at the beginning of the rotation, which seemed to be balanced thereafter by litterfall inputs. The addition of litter led to an increase in dissolved OM fluxes in the first 15 centimeters of the soil profile which remained insignificant in comparison with soil OM stocks and exhibited low interactions with soil OM. Despite the rapid recovery of the soil OM pool, some nutrients might limit the productivity of these plantations after several rotations, as a result of repeated biomass exportation. Consequently, the retention of organic residues at the harvest should be optimized and the exportation of woody biomass must be compensated by fertiliser addition, burning of organic residues must be prohibited and wild fires prevented
Ces dernières décennies, les plantations à croissance rapide sont apparues comme un moyen de répondre à la demande croissante en produits forestiers ligneux et comme une alternative à l'exploitation des forêts naturelles en zone tropicale. Un enjeu majeur est aujourd'hui de garantir la durabilité de ces plantations souvent installées sur sols pauvres et avec de fortes exportations de biomasse tous les 6-7 ans. Les litières présentes à la surface des sols peuvent jouer un rôle crucial sur la fertilité minérale et organique des sols qui conditionnent la productivité à court et long terme de ces écosystèmes tropicaux. L'objectif de ce travail était de comprendre par quels mécanismes le retrait ou l'ajout de litières influencent le développement de plantations d'Eucalyptus. En parallèle de mesures de croissance des arbres, la dynamique de minéralisation d'azote (N) au cours de la décomposition des rémanents a fait l'objet de plusieurs expérimentations. Les flux de nutriments en solution ont été comparés aux stocks initiaux dans les différents compartiments de l'écosystème et à la minéralomasse des arbres à la fin de l'étude. Un bilan de recouvrement de 15N apporté sous forme de rémanents lors de la plantation a été réalisé à l'échelle de la plantation. L'impact de la manipulation des litières sur les stocks de MO du sol a été évalué à partir d'analyses de sol ainsi que d'un partitionnement complet des sources de CO2 émis à la surface du sol. Les résultats de cette thèse montrent que la rétention des rémanents doit être optimisée et l'exportation de biomasse ligneuse compensée par l'apport de fertilisants, la pratique du brûlage doit être prohibée et les feux sauvages évités
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