EGU21-1655
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-1655
EGU General Assembly 2021
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Contrasting responses of soil phosphatase activity to nitrogen and phosphorus loadings: Implications for phosphorus management

Ji Chen1, Yiqi Luo2, Junji Cao3, Uffe Jørgensen1, Daryl Moorhead4, and Robert L. Sinsabaugh5
Ji Chen et al.
  • 1Aarhus Univeristy, Agroecology, Denmark (ji.chen.eco@gmail.com)
  • 2Center for Ecosystem Science and Society and Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA.
  • 3Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing 100029 China.
  • 4Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH 43606-3390, USA.
  • 5Department of Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA.

Human activity has caused imbalances in nitrogen (+N) and phosphorus (+P) loadings of ecosystems around the world, causing widespread P limitation of many biological processes. Soil phosphatases catalyze the hydrolysis of P from a range of organic compounds, representing an important P acquisition pathway. Therefore, a better understanding of soil phosphatase activity as well as the underlying mechanisms to individual and combined N and P loadings could provide fresh insights for wise P management. Here we show, using a meta-analysis of 188 published studies and 1277 observations that +N significantly increased soil phosphatase activity by 14%, +P significantly repressed it by 30%, and +N+P led to non-significant responses of soil phosphatase activity. Responses of soil phosphatase activity to +N were positively correlated with soil C and N content, whereas the reverse relationships were observed for +P and +N+P. Similarly, effects of +N on soil phosphatase activity were positively related to microbial biomass C, microbial biomass C:P, and microbial biomass N:P, whereas reverse relationships were observed for +P. Although we found no clear relationship between soil pH and soil phosphatase activity, +N-induced reductions in soil pH were positively correlated with soil phosphatase activity. Our results underscore the integrated control of soil and microbial C, N and P stoichiometry on the responses of soil phosphatase activity to +N, +P, and +N+P, which can be used to optimize future P management.

How to cite: Chen, J., Luo, Y., Cao, J., Jørgensen, U., Moorhead, D., and Sinsabaugh, R. L.: Contrasting responses of soil phosphatase activity to nitrogen and phosphorus loadings: Implications for phosphorus management, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-1655, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-1655, 2021.

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