The distribution and availability of phosphorus fractions in restored cut slopes soil aggregates: a case study of subalpine road, Southwest China

Highlights

● There was no significant difference in soil aggregates TP along altitude gradient.

● Overall, PAC dropped steadily as aggregate size increased.

● In soil aggregate sizes, TPi > TPo > R-P at 3009,3347 and 3654 m except 3980 m.

● Active NaHCO₃-Pi was the main AP source.

● Proportion of small aggregate sizes was emphasized to increase AP storage.

Abstract

The distribution and availability of phosphorus (P) fractions in restored cut slope soil aggregates, along altitude gradients, were analyzed. Samples were collected at 3009, 3347, 3654 and 3980 m of altitude. We examined soil aggregates total phosphorus (TP), available phosphorus (AP) and phosphorus activation coefficient (PAC), and discovered that there was no significant difference in TP levels between all four altitudes samples (p > 0.05). However, there was a significant difference in AP at 3009, 3347 and 3980 m of altitude (p < 0.05). At the altitudes of 3009, 3347 and 3654 m, the AP accumulation in small size aggregates was more advantageous. Overall, PAC dropped steadily as soil aggregates sizes increased, as shown: PAC (3654 m) > PAC (3347 m) > PAC (3009 m) > PAC (3980 m). In all particle size soil aggregates, the distribution of the P fractions was as follows: total inorganic phosphorus (TPi) > total organic phosphorus (TPo) > residual phosphorus (R-P), at 3009, 3347 and 3654 m, but a different registry was observed at 3980 m of altitude: TPo > TPi > R-P. Through correlation and multiple stepwise regression analysis, it was concluded that active NaHCO₃-Pi was the main AP source. It was also suggested that more attention should be given to the ratio of small particle size aggregates to increase soil AP storage. In order to improve the activation capacity and supply of soil P, along with promotion of the healthy development of soil ecosystem on slope land, it was suggest that inorganic P fertilizer and P activator could be added to soil at both low (3009 m) and high altitudes (3980 m).

Graphical abstract

Keywords

Altitude gradient / Restored cut slopes / Soil aggregates / Phosphorus fraction / Available phosphorus

References

[1] Ai S H, Chen J, Gao D J, Ai Y W. (2020). Distribution patterns and drivers of artificial soil bacterial community on cut-slopes in alpine mountain area of southwest China. Catena, 194(3): 104695

[2] Audette Y, O’Halloran I P, Evans L J, Martin R C, Voroney R P. (2016). Kinetics of phosphorus forms applied as inorganic and organic amendments to a calcareous soil. II: Effects of plant growth on plant available and uptake phosphorus. Geoderma, 279: 70–76

[3] Bao S D (2000). Soil Agrochemical Analysis. Beijing: China Agriculture Press

[4] Chardon W J, Schoumans O F. (2007). Soil texture effects on the transport of phosphorus from agricultural land in river deltas of Northern Belgium, the Netherlands and North-West Germany. Soil Use and Management, 23(s1): 16–24

[5] Chen C R, Condron L M, Davis M R, Sherlock R R. (2003). Seasonal changes in soil phosphorus and associated microbial properties under adjacent grassland and forest in New Zealand. Forest Ecology and Management, 177(1–3): 539–557

[6] Cheng H, Zhu X, Sun R, Niu Y, Yu Q, Shen Y, Li S. (2020). Effects of different mulching and fertilization on phosphorus transformation in upland farmland. Journal of Environmental Management, 253: 109717

[7] Chulo F, Laekemariam F, Kiflu A. (2021). Changes in soil phosphorus pools and chemical properties under liming in nitisols of farawocha, south Ethiopia. Applied and Environmental Soil Science, 2021: 1–11

[8] Crews T E, Brookes P C. (2014). Changes in soil phosphorus forms through time in perennial versus annual agroecosystems. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 184: 168–181

[9] Cui H, Ou Y, Wang L, Wu H, Yan B, Li Y. (2019). Distribution and release of phosphorus fractions associated with soil aggregate structure in restored wetlands. Chemosphere, 223: 319–329

[10] Dao T H, Schomberg H H, Cavigelli M A. (2015). Tillage and rotational effects on exchangeable and enzyme-labile phosphorus forms in conventional and organic cropping systems. Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems, 101(2): 153–165

[11] De Schrijver A, Vesterdal L, Hansen K, De Frenne P, Augusto L, Achat D L, Staelens J, Baeten L, De Keersmaeker L, De Neve S, Verheyen K. (2012). Four decades of post-agricultural forest development have caused major redistributions of soil phosphorus fractions. Oecologia, 169(1): 221–234

[12] Du J, Liu K, Huang J, Han T, Zhang L, Anthonio C K, Shah A, Khan M N, Qaswar M, Abbas M, Huang Q, Xu Y, Zhang H. (2022). Organic carbon distribution and soil aggregate stability in response to long-term phosphorus addition in different land-use types. Soil Tillage Research, 215: 105195

[13] Fan Y X, Lu S X, He M, Yang L M, Hu W F, Yang Z J, Liu X F, Hui D F, Guo J F, Yang Y S. (2021). Long-term throughfall exclusion decreases soil organic phosphorus associated with reduced plant roots and soil microbial biomass in a subtropical forest. Geoderma, 404: 115309

[14] Garland G, Bünemann E K, Oberson A, Frossard E, Snapp S, Chikowo R, Six J. (2018). Phosphorus cycling within soil aggregate fractions of a highly weathered tropical soil: a conceptual model. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 116: 91–98

[15] Gregor M, Michael J B, Casey L D, Gianluca B, Zhang Y Q, Enzo L, Peter M K. (2020). Plant-available phosphorus in highly concentrated fertilizer bands: effects of soil type, phosphorus form, and coapplied potassium. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 68(29): 7571–7580

[16] Gu C H, Wilson S G, Margenot A J. (2020). Lithological and bioclimatic impacts on soil phosphatase activities in California temperate forests. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 141: 107633

[17] Han Y, Chen X W, Choi B. (2019). Effect of freeze-thaw cycles on phosphorus fractions and their availability in biochar-amended mollisols of northeast China (Laboratory Experiment). Sustainability (Basel), 11(4): 1006

[18] He X J, Chu C J, Yang Y C, Shu Z F, Li B H, Hou E Q. (2021). Bedrock and climate jointly control the phosphorus status of subtropical forests along two elevational gradients. Catena, 206: 105525

[19] He X J, Hou E Q, Veen G F, Ellwood M D F, Dijkstra P, Sui X H, Zhang S, Wen D Z, Chu C J. (2020). Soil microbial biomass increases along elevational gradients in the tropics and subtropics but not elsewhere. Global Ecology and Biogeography, 29(2): 345–354

[20] Hou E, Chen C, Luo Y, Zhou G, Kuang Y, Zhang Y, Heenan M, Lu X, Wen D. (2018). Effects of climate on soil phosphorus cycle and availability in natural terrestrial ecosystems. Global Change Biology, 24(8): 3344–3356

[21] Huang D H, Zhou L L, Fan H M, Jia Y F, Liu M B. (2021b). Responses of aggregates and associated soil available phosphorus, and soil organic matter in different slope aspects, to seasonal freeze-thaw cycles in Northeast China. Geoderma, 402: 115184

[22] Huang Y, Dai Z, Lin J, Qi Q, Luo Y, Dahlgren R A, Xu J. (2021a). Contrasting effects of carbon source recalcitrance on soil phosphorus availability and communities of phosphorus solubilizing microorganisms. Journal of Environmental Management, 298: 113426

[23] Jaisi D P, Blake R E, Liang Y H, Chang S J (2014). Investigation of compound-specific organic-inorganic phosphorus transformation using stable isotope ratios in phosphate. Applied Manure and Nutrient Chemistry for Sustainable Agriculture and Environment, Amsterdam: Springer

[24] Keller M, Oberson A, Annaheim K E, Tamburini F, Mader P, Mayer J, Frossard E, Bünemann E K. (2012). Phosphorus forms and enzymatic hydrolyzability of organic phosphorus in soils after 30 years of organic and conventional farming. Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science, 175(3): 385–393

[25] Khitrov N B, Chechuyeva O A. (1995). A technique for interpreting the macroscopic and microscopic structure of soil. Eurasian Soil Science, 27(11): 49–64

[26] Liu D, Ju W, Jin X, Li M, Shen G, Duan C, Guo L, Liu Y, Zhao W, Fang L. (2021). Associated soil aggregate nutrients and controlling factors on aggregate stability in semiarid grassland under different grazing prohibition timeframes. Science of the Total Environment, 777: 146104

[27] Liu K H, Liang X L, Li C M, Yu F M, Li Y. (2020). Nutrient status and pollution levels in five areas around a manganese mine in southern China. Frontiers of Environmental Science & Engineering, 14(6): 100

[28] Mahdi J, Mohsen J. (2020). Effect of organic and inorganic phosphorus fertilizers on phosphorus availability and its leaching over incubation time. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 27(35): 44045–44058

[29] Makarov M I, Haumaier L, Zech W, Malysheva T I (2004). Organic phosphorus compounds in particle-size fractions of mountain soils in the northwestern Caucasus. Geoderma, 118(1−2): 101−114

[30] Malik M A, Marschner P, Khan K S. (2012). Addition of organic and inorganic P sources to soil- effects on P pools and microorganisms. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 49: 106–113

[31] McCray J M, Wright A L, Luo Y G, Ji S N. (2012). Soil phosphorus forms related to extractable phosphorus in the everglades agricultural area. Soil Science, 177(1): 31–38

[32] McLaren T I, Smernik R J, McLaughlin M J, McBeath T M, Kirby J K, Simpson R J, Guppy C N, Doolette A L, Richardson A E. (2015). Complex forms of soil organic phosphorus-a major component of soil phosphorus. Environmental Science & Technology, 49(22): 13238–13245

[33] Milić S, Ninkov J, Zeremski T, Latković D, Šeremešić S, Radovanović V, Žarković B. (2019). Soil fertility and phosphorus fractions in a calcareous chernozem after a long-term field experiment. Geoderma, 339: 9–19

[34] Nishigaki T, Tsujimoto Y, Rakotoson T, Rabenarivo M, Andriamananjara A, Asai H, Andrianary H B, Rakotonindrina H, Razafimbelo T. (2021). Soil phosphorus retention can predict responses of phosphorus uptake and yield of rice plants to P fertilizer application in flooded weathered soils in the central highlands of Madagascar. Geoderma, 402: 115326

[35] Ohm M, Paulsen H M, Moos J H, Eichler-Löbermann B. (2017). Long-term negative phosphorus budgets in organic crop rotations deplete plant-available phosphorus from soil. Agronomy for Sustainable Development, 37(3): 17

[36] Özgül M, Turan M, Ketterings Q M. (2007). Short- and long-term phosphorus availability in four soil orders under indigenous vegetation in Turkey. Acta Agriculturæ Scandinavica. Section B, Soil and Plant Science, 57(4): 357–364

[37] Qiao L L, Li Y Z, Song Y H, Zhai J Y, Wu Y, Chen W J, Liu G B, Xue S. (2019). Effects of vegetation restoration on the distribution of nutrients, glomalin-related soil protein, and enzyme activity in soil aggregates on the loess plateau, China. Forests, 10(9): 796

[38] Ranatunga T D, Reddy S S, Taylor R W. (2013). Phosphorus distribution in soil aggregate size fractions in a poultry litter applied soil and potential environmental impacts. Geoderma, 192: 446–452

[39] Rodrigues M, Pavinato P S, Withers P J A, Teles A P B, Herrera W F B (2016). Legacy phosphorus and no tillage agriculture in tropical oxisols of the Brazilian savanna. The Science of the Total Environment, 542(Pt B): 1050–1061

[40] Sharma R, Bell R W, Wong M T F. (2015). Phosphorus forms in soil solution and leachate of contrasting soil profiles and their implications for P mobility. Journal of Soils and Sediments, 15(4): 854–862

[41] Shen P, He X H, Xu M G, Zhang H M, Peng C, Gao H J, Liu H, Xu Y M, Qin S, Xiao H J. (2014). Soil organic carbon accumulation increases percentage of soil Olsen-P to total P at two 15-year mono-cropping systems in northern China. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 13(3): 597–603

[42] Stutter M I, Shand C A, George T S, Blackwell M S A, Dixon L, Bol R, MacKay R L, Richardson A E, Condron L M, Haygarth P M. (2015). Land use and soil factors affecting accumulation of phosphorus species in temperate soils. Geoderma, 257-258: 29–39

[43] Suñer L, Galantini J. (2015). Texture influence on soil phosphorus content and distribution in semiarid pampean grasslands. International Journal of Plant and Soil Science, 7(2): 109–120

[44] Tazisong I A, He Z, Senwo Z N. (2013). Inorganic and enzymatically hydrolyzable organic phosphorus of alabama decatur silt loam soils cropped with upland cotton. Soil Science, 178(5): 231–239

[45] TiessenHMoir J O (1993). Characterization of available P by sequential extraction, In: Carter MR., ed. Soil Sampling and Methods of Analysis. Boca Raton: CRC Press

[46] Tiessen H, Stewart J W B, Cole C V. (1984). Pathways of phosphorus transformations in soils of differing pedogenesis. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 48(4): 853–858

[47] Turrión M B, Bueis T, Lafuente F, López O, San José E, Eleftheriadis A, Mulas R. (2018). Effects on soil phosphorus dynamics of municipal solid waste compost addition to a burnt and unburnt forest soil. Science of the Total Environment, 642: 374–382

[48] Vanesa L P, Barbara J C, Monika I, Donald S R, Beverley C W. (2021). Land use and landscape position influence soil organic phosphorus speciation in a mixed land use watershed. Journal of Environmental Quality, 50(4): 967–978

[49] Wan W J, Li X, Han S, Wang L, Luo X S, Chen W L, Huang Q Y. (2020). Soil aggregate fractionation and phosphorus fraction driven by long-term fertilization regimes affect the abundance and composition of P-cycling-related bacteria. Soil & Tillage Research, 196: 104475

[50] Wang R Z, Creamer C A, Wang X, He P, Xu Z W, Jiang Y (2016). The effects of a 9-year nitrogen and water addition on soil aggregate phosphorus and sulfur availability in a semi-arid grassland. Ecological Indicators, 61(Part 2): 806−814

[51] Wang R Z, Dorodnikov M, Dijkstra F A, Yang S, Xu Z W, Li H, Jiang Y. (2017). Sensitivities to nitrogen and water addition vary among microbial groups within soil aggregates in a semiarid grassland. Biology and Fertility of Soils, 53(1): 129–140

[52] Wang S Q, He X X, Ye S M. (2020). Soil aggregation and aggregate-associated carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus under different aged tea (Camellia sinensis L.) plantations in hilly region of southern Guangxi, China. Scientin Horticulturae, 262: 109007

[53] Wang W, Chen W C, Wang K R, Xie X L, Yin C M, Chen A L. (2011). Effects of long-term fertilization on the distribution of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus in water-stable aggregates in paddy soil. Agricultural Sciences in China, 10(12): 1932–1940

[54] Wei G X, Zhou Z F, Guo Y, Dong Y, Dang H H, Wang Y B, Ma J Z. (2014). Long-term effects of tillage on soil aggregates and the distribution of soil organic carbon, total nitrogen, and other nutrients in aggregates on the semi-arid loess plateau, China. Arid Land Research and Management, 28(3): 291–310

[55] Wu Q, Zhang S, Zhu P, Huang S, Wang B, Zhao L, Xu M. (2017). Characterizing differences in the phosphorus activation coefficient of three typical cropland soils and the influencing factors under long-term fertilization. PLoS One, 12(5): e0176437

[56] Wu X, Peng J, Liu P, Bei Q, Rensing C, Li Y, Yuan H, Liesack W, Zhang F, Cui Z. (2021). Metagenomic insights into nitrogen and phosphorus cycling at the soil aggregate scale driven by organic material amendments. Science of the Total Environment, 785: 147329

[57] Xiao R, Bai J H, Gao H F, Huang L B, Deng W. (2012). Spatial distribution of phosphorus in marsh soils of a typical land/inland water ecotone along a hydrological gradient. Catena, 98: 96–103

[58] Xu M, Gao P, Yang Z, Su L, Wu J, Yang G, Zhang X, Ma J, Peng H, Xiao Y. (2019). Biochar impacts on phosphorus cycling in rice ecosystem. Chemosphere, 225: 311–319

[59] Yang X Y, Chen X W, Guo E H, Yang X T. (2019). Path analysis of phosphorus activation capacity as induced by low-molecular-weight organic acids in a black soil of Northeast China. Journal of Soils and Sediments, 19(2): 840–847

[60] Zhang N N, Sun G, Zhong B, Wang E T, Zhao C Z, Wang Y J, Cheng W, Wu N. (2019). Impacts of wise grazing on physicochemical and biological features of soil in a sandy grassland on the Tibetan Plateau. Land Degradation & Development, 30(7): 719–729

[61] Zhang Y Q, Bhattacharyya R, Dalal R C, Wang P, Menzies N W, Kopittke P M. (2020). Impact of land use change and soil type on total phosphorus and its fractions in soil aggregates. Land Degradation & Development, 31(7): 828–841

[62] Zhang Y Q, Dalal R C, Bhattacharyya R, Meyer G, Wang P, Menzies N W, Kopittke P M. (2021). Effect of long-term no-tillage and nitrogen fertilization on phosphorus distribution in bulk soil and aggregates of a Vertisol. Soil & Tillage Research, 205: 104760

[63] Zhao Y, Li Y, Yang F. (2021). Critical review on soil phosphorus migration and transformation under freezing-thawing cycles and typical regulatory measurements. Science of the Total Environment, 751: 141614

[64] Zhou L L, Dong H, Huang D H, Fan H M, Jia Y F. (2020). Responses of available phosphorus in different slope aspects to seasonal freeze-thaw cycles in Northeast China. Soil & Tillage Research, 203: 104706

[65] Zhou Z M, Lin C Y, Li S W, Liu S P, Li F, Yuan B L. (2022). Four kinds of capping materials for controlling phosphorus and nitrogen release from contaminated sediment using a static simulation experiment. Frontiers of Environmental Science & Engineering, 16(3): 29

[66] Zhu J, Li M, Whelan M. (2018). Phosphorus activators contribute to legacy phosphorus availability in agricultural soils: a review. Science of the Total Environment, 612: 522–537

[67] Zhu J, Wu A, Zhou G. (2021b). Spatial distribution patterns of soil total phosphorus influenced by climatic factors in China’s forest ecosystems. Scientific Reports, 11(1): 5357

[68] Zhu M, Yang S, Ai S, Ai X, Jiang X, Chen J, Li R, Ai Y. (2020). Artificial soil nutrient, aggregate stability and soil quality index of restored cut slopes along altitude gradient in southwest China. Chemosphere, 246: 125687

[69] Zhu X Y, Fang X, Wang L F, Xiang W H, Alharbi H A, Lei P F, Kuzyakov Y. (2021a). Regulation of soil phosphorus availability and composition during forest succession in subtropics. Forest Ecology and Management, 502: 119706

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41971056) and the National Key R & D Program of China (No. 2017YFC0504903). The authors thank all the supporters and referees of the project for their constructive and instructive comments.

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

2023 Higher Education Press