Manure application decreases soil organic carbon priming by increasing mineral protection and nitrogen availability
Yalin Li,
Lei Wu,
Lingyun Tang,
Fengling Ren,
Xihe Wang,
Ping Zhu,
Nan Sun,
Minggang Xu
Affiliations
Yalin Li
State Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Arid and Semi-arid Arable Land in Northern China, Key Laboratory of Arable Land Quality Monitoring and Evaluation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs/Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China; Department of Soil and Water Sciences, College of Land Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Lei Wu
State Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Arid and Semi-arid Arable Land in Northern China, Key Laboratory of Arable Land Quality Monitoring and Evaluation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs/Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Lingyun Tang
State Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Arid and Semi-arid Arable Land in Northern China, Key Laboratory of Arable Land Quality Monitoring and Evaluation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs/Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Fengling Ren
State Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Arid and Semi-arid Arable Land in Northern China, Key Laboratory of Arable Land Quality Monitoring and Evaluation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs/Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Xihe Wang
Institute of Soil Fertilizer and Agricultural Water Saving, Xinjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Urumqi 830000, China
Ping Zhu
Institute of Resources and Environments, Jilin Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changchun 130119, China
Nan Sun
State Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Arid and Semi-arid Arable Land in Northern China, Key Laboratory of Arable Land Quality Monitoring and Evaluation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs/Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China; Corresponding author.
Minggang Xu
State Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Arid and Semi-arid Arable Land in Northern China, Key Laboratory of Arable Land Quality Monitoring and Evaluation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs/Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China; Shanxi Province Key Laboratory of Soil Environment and Nutrient Resources, Institute of Eco-Environment and Industrial Technology, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taiyuan 030031, China
Rational chemical fertilizer application, especially combined with manure or straw amendment, serves as a key strategy for facilitating soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration and soil fertility improvement. However, the effects of fertilization managements on the SOC priming induced by straw return remains unclear. Here, a microcosm was conducted to clarify the mechanisms of 13C-labeled maize straw addition effects on priming effect (PE) in two 29-year fertilized soils (Urumqi, UQ; Gongzhuling, GZL) subjected to four fertilization regimes (no fertilizer, CK; chemical fertilizers, NPK; combined application of NPK with straw, NPKS; combined application of NPK with manure, NPKM). Results showed that straw addition strongly increased native SOC decomposition by 15–44%, inducing positive PEs across sites and fertilization treatments. Compared to CK treatment, the NPK and NPKS treatments significantly increased PE by 26% and 98%, respectively, in the UQ soil, but had little effect on the PE in the GZL soil. The NPKM treatment strongly decreased PE by 51–55%, mainly due to the increased proportion of mineral-associated organic carbon (MAOC) and N availability, and decreased fungal abundances, as compared to the CK treatment in UQ and GZL soils. The PE intensities were significantly lower in GZL soil (5.1–11.7 mg CO2-C/g SOC) relative to UQ soil (13.7–54.8 mg CO2-C/g SOC), primarily due to the higher MAOC/SOC ratio and N availability in the former across fertilization regimes. Overall, manure application has the potential to mitigate soil C loss via priming, mainly resulting from enhanced SOC stabilization via mineral protection and increased N availability, thus facilitating SOC sequestration in agroecosystems.
