Soil carbon sequestration potential of permanent pasture and continuous cropping soils in New Zealand.

Understanding soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration is important to develop strategies to increase the SOC stock and, thereby, offset some of the increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide. Although the capacity of soils to store SOC in a stable form is commonly attributed to the fine (clay + fine silt) fraction, the properties of the fine fraction that determine the SOC stabilization capacity are poorly known. The aim of this study was to develop an improved model to estimate the SOC stabilization capacity of Allophanic (Andisols) and non-Allophanic topsoils (0-15 cm) and, as a case study, to apply the model to predict the sequestration potential of pastoral soils across New Zealand. A quantile (90th) regression model, based on the specific surface area and extractable aluminium (pyrophosphate) content of soils, provided the best prediction of the upper limit of fine fraction carbon (FFC) (i.e. the stabilization capacity), but with different coefficients for Allophanic and non-Allophanic soils. The carbon (C) saturation deficit was estimated as the difference between the stabilization capacity of individual soils and their current C concentration. For long-term pastures, the mean saturation deficit of Allophanic soils (20.3 mg C g-1 ) was greater than that of non-Allophanic soils (16.3 mg C g-1 ). The saturation deficit of cropped soils was 1.14-1.89 times that of pasture soils. The sequestration potential of pasture soils ranged from 10 t C ha-1 (Ultic soils) to 42 t C ha-1 (Melanic soils). Although meeting the estimated national soil C sequestration potential (124 Mt C) is unrealistic, improved management practices targeted to those soils with the greatest sequestration potential could contribute significantly to off-setting New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions. As the first national-scale estimate of SOC sequestration potential that encompasses both Allophanic and non-Allophanic soils, this serves as an informative case study for the international community.

Irrigating grazed pasture decreases soil carbon and nitrogen stocks.

The sustainability of using irrigation to produce food depends not only on the availability of sufficient water, but also on the soil's 'response' to irrigation. Stocks of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) are key components of soil organic matter (SOM), which is important for sustainable agricultural production. While there is some information about the effects of irrigation on soil C stocks in cropping systems, there is a paucity of such studies in pastoral food production systems. For this study, we sampled soils from 34 paired, irrigated and unirrigated pasture sites across New Zealand (NZ) and analysed these for total C and N. On average, irrigated pastures had significantly (P < 0.05) less soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) than adjacent unirrigated pastures, with differences of 6.99 t C ha-1 and 0.58 t N ha-1 in the uppermost 0.3 m. Differences in C and N tended to occur throughout the soil profile, so the cumulative differences increased with depth, and the proportion of the soil C lost from deeper horizons was large. There were no relationships between differences in soil C and N stocks and the length of time under irrigation. This study suggests SOM will decrease when pastures under a temperate climate are irrigated. On this basis, increasing the area of temperate pasture land under irrigation would result in more CO2 in the atmosphere and may directly and indirectly increase N leaching to groundwater. Given the large and increasing area of land being irrigated both in NZ and on a global scale, there is an urgent need to determine whether the results found in this study are also applicable in other regions and under different land management systems (e.g. arable).

Nitrous oxide emissions from in situ deposition of N-labeled ryegrass litter in a pasture soil.

During pasture grazing, freshly harvested herbage (litterfall) is dropped onto soils from the mouths of dairy cattle, potentially inducing nitrous oxide (NO) emissions. Although the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) recommends accounting for NO emissions from arable crop residues in national inventories, emissions from the litterfall of grazed pasture systems are not recognized. The objective of this study was to investigate the potential of litterfall to contribute to NO emissions in a field study located on a pasture site in Canterbury, New Zealand (43°38.50' S, 172°27.17' E). We applied N-labeled perennial ryegrass ( L.) to the surface of a pastoral soil (Temuka clay loam) and, for up to 139 d thereafter, quantified the contribution of herbage decomposition to NO production and soil N dynamics. Litterfall contributed to the N enrichment of soil NO-N and NO-N pools. After 49 d, N recovery as NO equated to 0.93% of the surface-applied litter N, with 38 to 75% of the cumulative NO flux occurring within 4 to 10 d of treatment application. Emissions of NO likely resulted from ammonification followed by a coupling of nitrification and denitrification during litter decomposition on the soil surface. The emission factor of the litter deposited in situ was 1.2 ± 0.2%, which is not substantially greater than the IPCC default emission factor value of 1% for crop residues. Further in situ studies using different pasture species and litterfall rates are required to understand the microbial processes responsible for litter-induced NO emissions.

Intensive cattle grazing affects pasture litter-fall: an unrecognized nitrous oxide source.

The rationale for this study came from observing grazing dairy cattle dropping freshly harvested plant material onto the soil surface, hereafter called litter-fall. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) guidelines include NO emissions during pasture renewal but do not consider NO emissions that may result from litter-fall. The objectives of this study were to determine litter-fall rates and to assess indicative NO emission factors (EFs) for the dominant pasture species (perennial ryegrass [ L.] and white clover [ L.]). Herbage was vacuumed from intensively managed dairy pastures before and after 30 different grazing events when cows (84 cows ha) grazed for 24 h according to a rotational system; the interval between grazing events ranged from 21 to 30 d. A laboratory incubation study was performed to assess potential EF values for the pasture species at two soil moisture contents. Finely ground pasture material was incubated under controlled laboratory conditions with soil, and the NO emissions were measured until rates returned to control levels. On average, pre- and postgrazing dry matter yields per grazing event were 2516 ± 636 and 1167 ± 265 kg DM ha (±SD), respectively. Pregrazing litter was absent, whereas postgrazing fresh and senesced litter-fall rates were 53 ± 24 and 19 ± 18 kg DM ha, respectively. Annually, the rotational grazing system resulted in 12 grazing events where fresh litter-fall equaed to 16 kg N ha yr to the soil. Emission factors in the laboratory experiment indicated that the EF for perennial ryegrass and white clover ranged from 0.7 to 3.1%. If such EF values should also occur under field conditions, then we estimate that litter-fall induces an NO emission rate of 0.3 kg NO ha yr. Litter-fall as a source of NO in grazed pastures requires further assessment.

Methane oxidation in freely and poorly drained grassland soils and effects of cattle urine application.

A sink for atmospheric methane (CH4) is microbial oxidation in soils. We report CH4 oxidation rates in freely and poorly drained soils on an intensively managed dairy farm. Following cattle urine application to half the plots (650 kg of nitrogen [N] ha(-1)) 31 chamber measurements were made over 100 d during autumn and winter. In the control plots, the freely and poorly drained soils' integrated CH4 oxidation rates averaged 1.8+/-0.2 and 0.6+/-0.1 kg CH4 ha(-1) yr(-1), respectively. In the poorly drained soil, the highest CH4 oxidation rates occurred when water-filled pore space (WFPS)<56% and CH4 oxidation rate declined by ninefold to near zero as WFPS increased from 56 to 68%. Urine application induced the freely and poorly drained soils' CH4 oxidation rates to decline for up to 2 mo by 0.7+/-0.2 and 0.4+/-0.1 kg CH4 ha(-1) yr(-1), respectively. The two soils' responses were thus not significantly different. After urine application, soil pore space CH4 concentration profiles suggested a simultaneous inhibition of bacteria that were CH4 oxidizers and stimulation of CH4 producers.

A comment on scaling methane emissions from vegetation and grazing ruminants in New Zealand.

Keppler et al. (2006, Nature 439, 187-191) showed that plants produce methane (CH4) in aerobic environments, leading Lowe (2006, Nature 439, 148-149) to postulate that in countries such as New Zealand, where grazed pastures have replaced forests, the forests could have produced as much CH4 as the ruminants currently grazing these areas. Estimating CH4 emissions from up to 85 million ruminants in New Zealand is challenging and, for completeness, the capacity of forest and pastoral soils to oxidise CH4 should be included. On average, the CH4 emission rate of grazing ruminants is estimated to be 9.6 ± 2.6 g m-2 year-1 (±standard deviation), six times the corresponding estimate for an indigenous forest canopy (1.6 ± 1.1 g m-2 year-1). The forest's soil is estimated to oxidise 0.9 ± 0.2 g m-2 year-1 more CH4 than representative soils beneath grazed pasture. Taking into account plant and animal sources and the soil's oxidative capacity, the net CH4 emission rates of forest and grazed ecosystems are 0.6 ± 1.1 and 9.8 ± 2.6 g m-2 year-1, respectively.

Dairy farm effluent effects on urine patch nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide emissions.

Dairy farm effluent (DFE) comprises animal feces, urine, and wash-down water collected at the milking shed. This is collected daily during the milking season and sprayed onto grazed dairy pastures. Urine patches in grazed pastures make a significant contribution to anthropogenic N(2)O emissions. The DFE could potentially mitigate N(2)O emissions by influencing the N(2)O to dinitrogen (N(2)) ratio, since it contains water-soluble carbon (WSC). Alternatively, DFE may enhance N(2)O emissions from urine patches. The application of DFE may also provide a substrate for the production of CO(2) in pasture soils. The effects of DFE on the CO(2) and N(2)O emissions from urine patches are unknown. Thus a laboratory experiment was performed where repeated DFE applications were made to repacked soil cores. Dairy farm effluent was applied at 0, 7, or 14 d after urine deposition. The urine was applied once on Day 0. Urine contained (15)N-enriched urea. Measurements of N(2)O, N(2), and carbon dioxide (CO(2)) fluxes, soil pH, and soil inorganic N concentrations were made. After 43 d the DFE had not mitigated N(2)O fluxes from urine patches. A small increase in the N(2)O flux occurred from the urine-treated soils where DFE was applied 1 wk after urine deposition. The amount of WSC applied in the DFE proved to be insignificant compared with the amount of soil C released as CO(2) following urine application. The priming of soil C in urine patches has implications for the understanding of soil C processes in grazed pasture ecosystems and the budgeting of C within these ecosystems.

Climate and vegetation controls on boreal zone energy exchange.

The boreal forest, one of the world's larger biomes, is distinct from other biomes because it experiences a short growing season and extremely cold winter temperatures. Despite its size and impact on the earth's climate system, measurements of mass and energy exchange have been rare until the past five years. This paper overviews results of recent and comprehensive field studies conducted in Canada, Siberia and Scandinavia on energy exchanges between boreal forests and the atmosphere. How the boreal biosphere and atmosphere interact to affect the interception of solar energy and how solar energy is used to evaporate water and heat the air and soil is examined in detail. Specifically, we analyse the magnitudes, temporal and spatial patterns and controls of solar energy, moisture and sensible heat fluxes across the land-atmosphere interface. We interpret and synthesize field data with the aid of a soil-vegetation-atmosphere transfer model, which considers the coupling of the energy and carbon fluxes and nutrient status. Low precipitation and low temperatures limit growth of many boreal forests. These factors restrict photosynthetic capacity and lower root hydraulic conductivity and stomatal conductance of the inhabitant forests. In such circumstances, these factors interact to form a canopy that has a low leaf area index and exerts a significant resistance to evaporation. Conifer forests, growing on upland soils, for example, evaporate at rates between 25 and 75% of equilibrium evaporation and lose less than 2.5 mm day-1 of water. The open nature of many boreal conifer forest stands causes a disproportionate amount of energy exchange to occur at the soil surface. The climatic and physiological factors that yield relatively low rates of evaporation over conifer stands also cause high rates of sensible heat exchange and the diurnal development of deep planetary boundary layers. In contrast, evaporation from broad-leaved aspen stands and fen/wetlands approach equilibrium evaporation rates and lose up to 6 mm day-1 .

Seasonal development of leaf area in a young, widely spaced Pinus radiata D. Don stand.

Measurements of needle elongation and needle death were made at two-week intervals during a year on 250 branch units spread throughout the crowns of six trees (three high-pruned, three low-pruned) in a widely spaced, 6- to 7-year-old Pinus radiata D. Don plantation in New Zealand. The trees were well supplied with nutrients and water. During the year, mean tree height increased by 1.2 m and the cross-sectional area of stem below the green crown (used to predict leaf area) for the average tree increased from 8.7 x 10(3) to 13.9 x 10(3) mm(2). The increase in stem cross-sectional area occurred throughout the year except for two months in early winter (May and June). Elongation of Age 0 needles began in Spring (October), continued through summer, and the mean date for 95% completion of elongation was in autumn (early May), approximately 200 days after elongation began. Mean maximum needle length in the canopy decreased with increasing branch order and was 136 and 94 mm for Order 1 and Order 3 units, respectively. Needle elongation was related to thermal time, using growing degree days with a base temperature of 6 degrees C. The mean maximum rate of needle elongation in the canopy was 0.11 m ( degrees C day)(-1) and this occurred in early summer (mid-December), 47 days after elogation started. Maximum needle length and the rate of elongation increased, and the time taken to reach 95% elongation decreased with increasing height in the canopy. A smaller autumn flush of needles started in summer (January) and the needles elongated linearly at a mean rate of 0.07 mm ( degrees C day)(-1) until the end of the growing season when temperatures fell below the base value. At the end of the year, the mean length of needles from the autumn flush was 66 mm. The density of needles did not change with height in the canopy and there were no significant changes seasonally. The mean density values for Age 1 and Age 0 needles were 336 and 286 kg m(-3), respectively. Dry weight per unit length did not change seasonally for Age 1 needles, but the mean values for Order 1 and Order 2 needles were 0.32 and 0.23 mg mm(-1), respectively. Dry weight per unit length for Age 0 needles increased during the growing season (October to February). This was particularly apparent for Order 1 needles where the mean value increased from 0.12 to 0.25 mg mm(-1). Death of Age 1 needles started in midsummer (mean date was January 24) which coincided with the time of maximum elongation of Age 0 needles, but there were differences in timing among individual trees. The mean rate of death was 1.7% day(-1) and the mean duration was 59 days. Leaf area index for the stand increased from 3.2 to 5.3 (all-surfaces basis) during the year. At the end, 92% of the leaf area had grown during the year and 60% of it was on Order 2 branch units. The models for needle elongation and needle death were used to scale up to seasonal changes in canopy leaf area index. Leaf area index peaked with increasing Age 0 leaf area to 6.1 in summer (January), fell to 4.7 in March as Age 1 needles died, then increased slightly again. The seasonal dynamics are consistent with the hypothesis of Cannell (1989) that the timing of maximum leaf area index within a year is optimal for maximizing biomass production.