Nitrous oxide emissions from three temperate forest types in the Qinling Mountains, China

Abstract

To understand soil N₂O fluxes from temperate forests in a climate-sensitive transitional zone, N₂O emissions from three temperate forest types (Pinus tabulaeformis, PTT; Pinus armandii, PAT; and Quercus aliena var. acuteserrata, QAT) were monitored using the static closed-chamber method from June 2013 to May 2015 in the Huoditang Forest region of the Qinling Mountains, China. The results showed that these three forest types acted as N₂O sources, releasing a mean combined level of 1.35 ± 0.56 kg N₂O ha⁻¹ a⁻¹, ranging from 0.98 ± 0.37 kg N₂O ha⁻¹ a⁻¹ in PAT to 1.67 ± 0.41 kg N₂O ha⁻¹ a⁻¹ in QAT. N₂O emission fluctuated seasonally, with highest levels during the summer for all three forest types. N₂O flux had a significantly positive correlation with soil temperature at a depth of 5 cm or in the water-filled pore space, where the correlation was stronger for temperature than for the water-filled pore space. N₂O flux was positively correlated with available soil nitrogen in QAT and PAT. Our results indicate that N₂O flux is mainly controlled by soil temperature in the temperate forest in the Qinling Mountains.

Keywords

Forest types / Greenhouse gases / N₂O fluxes / Qinling Mountains / Soil temperature

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