The DOI matches its Crossref record.
Soil Carbon Dynamics beneath Switchgrass as Indicated by Stable Isotope Analysis
Abstract
Surface (0–40 cm) soil organic carbon (SOC) dynamics were studied beneath four switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) field trials in the southeastern United States. Soil organic carbon was partitioned into particulate organic matter (POM) and mineral‐associated organic matter (MOM). Most (75–90%) of the SOC at each study site was affiliated with MOM (<0.053 mm). Changes in stable carbon isotope ratios were used to derive carbon inputs to and losses from POM and MOM at each site. Inventories of existing SOC and new C 4‐derived SOC beneath switchgrass decreased with increasing soil depth. Approximately 5 yr after establishment, 19 to 31% of the existing SOC inventories beneath switchgrass had been derived from new C 4‐carbon inputs. Calculated turnover times of POM and MOM ranged from 2.4 to 4.3 yr and 26 to 40 yr, respectively. The turnover time of SOC in the POM fraction increased with decreasing mean annual temperature. A simple, two‐compartment model was parameterized to predict the potential for soil carbon sequestration under switchgrass. An example calculation with the model indicated a measurable and verifiable recovery of soil carbon (≈12% increase) on degraded lands through one decade of switchgrass production. The potential to sequester carbon through switchgrass cultivation will depend on initial soil carbon inventories, prevailing climate, soil type, and site management.
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In the citing paper
“In switchgrass crops planted across a temperature gradient in North America, SOC turnover rate, the proportion of switchgrassderived SOC, and net change in SOC all increased with temperature (Garten & Wullschleger, 2000).”
From Changes in soil organic carbon under biofuel crops (2009) · cites this paper as Garten & Wullschleger, 2000
In the citing paper
“As roots and rhizomes are a primary source of C to the soil in biofuel crops (Garten & Wullschleger, 2000;Wilhelm et al., 2004;Lemus & Lal, 2005), belowground allocation of C stands to play a critical role in driving changes in SOC.”
From Changes in soil organic carbon under biofuel crops (2009) · cites this paper as Garten & Wullschleger, 2000
In the citing paper
“Carbon sequestration by switchgrass has been nearly ubiquitous across a broad range of growing conditions throughout North America at rates of 1.7-10.1 Mg C ha -1 year -1 (6.2-37.0Mg CO 2 ha -1 year -1 ) [11,13,18,45].”
From Soil Carbon Storage by Switchgrass Grown for Bioenergy (2008) · cites this paper as [13]
In the citing paper
“although its residues have a fast C turnover [25]”
From Carbon Sequestration by Perennial Energy Crops: Is the Jury Still Out? (2015) · cites this paper as [25]
In the citing paper
“Although some papers recorded specific fractions of SOC [11, 45, 46], little information was available on parameters affecting SOC accumulation in slowly decomposable or ‘recalcitrant’ forms [25, 35, 47].”
From Carbon Sequestration by Perennial Energy Crops: Is the Jury Still Out? (2015) · cites this paper as [25]
In the citing paper
“For switchgrass, more C was allocated to the roots than to the rhizomes [25, 66, 71].”
From Carbon Sequestration by Perennial Energy Crops: Is the Jury Still Out? (2015) · cites this paper as [25]
In the citing paper
“C inputs originate from and feed into pools of different stability [45, 141], and initially, C is stored as particulate organic matter (POM) [139], which is a relatively slow SOC pool under switchgrass [25, 47].”
From Carbon Sequestration by Perennial Energy Crops: Is the Jury Still Out? (2015) · cites this paper as [25]
In the citing paper
“Particulate (POM) and mineral-associated organic matter (MOM) are formed in the soil, which stabilise SOC, e.g. limiting the access of soil microbes [25].”
From Carbon Sequestration by Perennial Energy Crops: Is the Jury Still Out? (2015) · cites this paper as [25]
In the citing paper
“The modelling of SOC fractionation seems essential for the persistence and sustainability of C sequestration, showing that initially new SOC is part of easily decomposable POM [139] and later part of the inter-aggregate fraction [25, 45].”
From Carbon Sequestration by Perennial Energy Crops: Is the Jury Still Out? (2015) · cites this paper as [25]
In the citing paper
“The opposite is evident: initial sequestration rates are low due to small inputs during the establishing phase [25, 43, 46, 60, 86, 106, 134], which could depend on the productivity and fertility of the soil, its former land use and planting material/success.”
From Carbon Sequestration by Perennial Energy Crops: Is the Jury Still Out? (2015) · cites this paper as [25]
In the citing paper
“The modelling of SOC fractionation seems essential for the persistence and sustainability of C sequestration, showing that initially new SOC is part of easily decomposable POM [139] and later part of the inter-aggregate fraction [25, 45].”
From Carbon Sequestration by Perennial Energy Crops: Is the Jury Still Out? (2015) · cites this paper as [25]
In the citing paper
“Soil organic C increased at rates ranging from 1.7 to 10.1 Mg C ha À1 yr À1 after switchgrass establishment throughout North America (Garten & Wullschleger, 2000;Zan et al., 2001;Frank et al., 2004;Lee et al., 2007).”
From Field-scale soil property changes under switchgrass managed for bioenergy (2011) · cites this paper as Garten & Wullschleger, 2000
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Sorted by citations
Development of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) as a bioenergy feedstock in the United States
McLaughlin, S. B., & Adams Kszos, L. (2005) · Biomass and Bioenergy · doi:10.1016/j.biombioe.2004.05.006 · Cited by 1,091
World crop residues production and implications of its use as a biofuel
Lal, R. (2005) · Environment International · doi:10.1016/j.envint.2004.09.005 · Cited by 1,004
Cherubini, F., Bird, N., Cowie, A., Jungmeier, G., Schlamadinger, B., & Woess-Gallasch, S. (2009) · Resources Conservation and Recycling · doi:10.1016/j.resconrec.2009.03.013 · Cited by 988
The Biology and Agronomy of Switchgrass for Biofuels
Parrish, D. J., & Fike, J. H. (2005) · Critical Reviews in Plant Sciences · doi:10.1080/07352680500316433 · Cited by 828
Bioenergy crops and carbon sequestration
Lemus, R., & Lal, R. (2005) · Critical Reviews in Plant Sciences · doi:10.1080/07352680590910393 · Cited by 455
Metadata
- Authors
- Garten, C. T., & Wullschleger, S. D.
- Affiliations
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory (US)
- Corresponding author
- Garten, C. T.
- Venue
- Journal of Environmental Quality
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2000-03
- Volume
- 29
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 645-653
- ISSN
- 0047-2425 (ISSN-L)
- 1537-2537
- OpenAlex
- W2116496130
- Cited by
- 154
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 3 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 13 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 3 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 6 · 2013: 5 · 2012: 10
- FWCI
- 12.28
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Environmental Quality (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- McGill University
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Soil Science › Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Agronomy and Crop Science › Bioenergy crop production and management
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Soil Science › Soil erosion and sediment transport
- Keywords
- soil organic carbon dynamics, switchgrass, particulate organic matter, mineral-associated organic matter, stable carbon isotopes, carbon turnover time, soil carbon sequestration, two-compartment model, degraded land, mean annual temperature, soil depth
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