Abundance and Dynamics of Soil Labile Carbon Pools Under Different Types of Forest Vegetation1

ABSTRACTSoil organic matter (SOM) in forest ecosystems is not only important to global carbon (C) storage but also to sustainable management of forestland with vegetation types, being a critical factor in controlling the quantity and dynamics of SOM. In this field experiment soil plots with three replicates were selected from three forest vegetation types: broadleaf, Masson pine (Pinus massoniana Lamb.), and Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata Hook.). Soil total organic C (TOC), two easily oxidizable C levels (EOC1 and EOC2, which were oxidized by 66.7 mmol L−1 K2 Cr2 O7 at 130–140 °C and 333 mmol L−1 KMnO4 at 25 °C, respectively), microbial biomass C (MBC), and water-soluble organic C (WSOC) were analyzed for soil samples. Soil under the broadleaf forest stored significantly higher TOC (P ≤ 0.05). Because of its significantly larger total soil C storage, the soil under the broadleaf forest usually had significantly higher levels (P ≤ 0.05) of the different labile organic carbons, EOC1, EOC2, MBC, and WSOC; but when calculated as a percentage of TOC each labile C fraction of the broadleaf forest was significantly lower (P ≤ 0.05) than one of the other two forests. Under all the three vegetation types temperature as well as quality and season of litter input generally affected the dynamics of different organic C fractions in soils, with EOC1, EOC2, and MBC increasing closely following increase in temperature, whereas WSOC showed an opposite trend.