Plant-microbial interactions
Article Abstract:
Studies of nitrogen use by conifers and microbes in conifer soils show that the production and uptake of NO3 are more important in conifer ecosystems than previously appreciated and that soil microbes rather than plants play the main biotic role in the retention of NO3 in conifer ecosystems. The physiological potential of organisms is affected by the variety of forms in which soluble nitrogen is available. Nitrogen availablity is defined by the transformation pathway it undergoes, preferential consumption by species and the heterogenicity of the soil medium which affects organism interactions.
Publication Name: Nature
Subject: Zoology and wildlife conservation
ISSN: 0028-0836
Year: 1997
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Conifer root discrimination against soil nitrate and the ecology of forest succession
Article Abstract:
The high incidence of failure when late-successional conifer species are replanted on disturbed forest sites can be explained by differences in the uptake rates of NO3 and NH4 by the plant roots. Empirical findings show that the uptake of NH4 is up to 20 times greater than the uptake of NO3. In most forest soils, disturbance generally increases soil pH, a new microbial environment appears which changes soil nitrogen from predominantly NH4 to mostly NO3. Late-successional conifers are poor competitors for inorganic nitrogen. These and other factors contribute to failure rates.
Publication Name: Nature
Subject: Zoology and wildlife conservation
ISSN: 0028-0836
Year: 1997
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High rates of nitrification and nitrate turnover in undisturbed coniferous forests
Article Abstract:
Large amounts of NO3 can be produced internally without subsequent nitrogen loss even in mature ecosystems with relatively tight nutrient cycles. In these systems, microbial assimilation of NO3 constitute an important mechanism for nitrogen retention. These findings contradict previous assumptions that nitrification rates are low in mature ecosystems and suggest that existing paradigms for nitrogen retention in forest ecosystems be modified to account for high rates of microbial assimilation of NO3.
Publication Name: Nature
Subject: Zoology and wildlife conservation
ISSN: 0028-0836
Year: 1997
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