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Harvard Forest REU Symposium Abstract 2013

  • Title: The Legacy of Land-Use History in Soil Carbon Stocks
  • Author: Christine J Pardo (Florida International University)
  • Abstract:

    The Legacy of Land-Use History in Soil Carbon Stocks



    Christine Joelle Pardo



    Soil is the largest terrestrial pool of carbon, with more than twice as much as the atmosphere or terrestrial vegetation. Long term studies show that the Harvard Forest ecosystem is a carbon sink. Improved knowledge of how forest soil carbon stocks vary over time and space will help inform land preservation targeted towards improving terrestrial carbon sinks to mitigate climate change. I sampled soils from a suite of permanent plots across the Prospect Hill Tract to examine changes in soil carbon over 20 years, and across historical variation on the Harvard Forest landscape. I predicted that carbon stock would increase over time. I also predicted lasting differences among land-use history categories. I sampled 34 of the original 137 plots from 1992. The full depth of the organic layer was collected, along with the top 15cm of the mineral soil. The samples were sieved, oven-dried at 70°C, and weighed. Sub-samples were analyzed for carbon content using an elemental analyzer. Carbon stock was then calculated for each sample, from the bulk density (sample volume divided by oven-dry mass) and carbon content. Changes over time and among historical land-use categories were tested with ANOVA. Between 1992 and 2013, carbon stock in the soil increased significantly. Continuously forested land had higher carbon stocks in the organic layer of the soil. Combined with belowground, understory, and aboveground data collected this summer, we can piece together the carbon sequestration potential at Harvard Forest.

  • Research Category: Conservation and Management; Group Projects; Large Experiments and Permanent Plot Studies; Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics

  • Figures:
    • Abstract Photo.jpg