Dry-Season Dynamics of Soil Inorganic Nitrogen Pools in Primary Lithocarpus xylocarpus Forest and Degraded Vegetation in Ailao Mountain, Yunnan Province
Abstract:The dry-season dynamics of soil inorganic nitrogen pools were investigated under three types of vegetation (Primary Lithocarpus xylocarpus forest, secondary oak forest and tea plantation), which represent three different intensities of disturbance. Pools of inorganic nitrogen in soils (0-15 cm) showed strong differences between the three types of vegetation. Organic material, total nitrogen reduced and C/N ratio fell with increasing intensity of disturbance, while nitrate loss potential rose. These results suggest that disturbance does not favor the retention of soil nutrient elements. The dry-season dynamics of the inorganic nitrogen pools were similar under the three vegetation types while the dynamics of NH+-N differed from that of NO3--N’s. NH4+-N was the major form of inorganic nitrogen, and NO3-N content only was 1.16%-3.44%, 0.58%-2.09% and 2.02%- 7.37% of NH4+-N content in the primary Lithocatpus xylocarpus forests, secondary oak forests and tea plantations.