Comparison of litterfall production in three forest types in Jeju Island, South Korea

Litterfall, which is influenced by physical and biological factors, is a major pathway for carbon and nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems. The purpose of this study was to investigate monthly litterfall production in three forests in Jeju Island differentiated by forest composition and precipitation: Cheongsu(Quercus glauca as the dominant species;low precipitation), Seonheulb(Q. glauca as the dominant species;high precipitation), and Seonheulm(Q. glauca and Pinus thunbergii as the dominant species;high precipitation). Litterfall was collected monthly from April to December 2015 and divided into leaf litter, twig, bark, seeds, and unidentified materials.Seasonal patterns of litterfall production varied across stands according to their species composition. However,the amount of leaf litterfall and total litterfall were comparable among stands, ranging from 362 to 375 g m-2 for leaf litter and 524 g m-2 to 580 g m-2 for total litterfall.Oak leaf litter in May was the highest in all stands, while needle litter was the highest in December in Seonheulm.High twig litterfall in July may be attributable to high rainfall with strong winds and storms during the rainy season. Although forest type and climate factor had no influence on litterfall amounts in this study, the pattern of litterfall production was species dependent, suggesting diverse effects on carbon and nutrient cycling in these forests.

Effects of torrefied wood chip and vermicompost application on vegetation growth and nutrient uptake in the Saemangeum reclaimed land

Background:In reclaimed land,the growth environment for plants may be unfavorable and the initial establishment and growth of seedlings could be limited because of low nutrient and water availability.Fertilization and control of understory vegetation that competes with seedlings may be of help in ameliorating soil physical and chemical properties,resulting in better seedling growth and reclamation success.However,the amount of nutrients understory vegetation absorbs in this ecological process has been rarely studied.Thus,we aimed to investigate the effect of soil amendment on biomass production and nutrient uptake by weeds in the nutrient-poor reclaimed area.We applied three levels of torrefied wood chip(TWC;0,2.5,and 5 Mg ha^(−1))and two levels of vermicompost(VC;0 and 2.7 Mg ha^(−1))as soil physical improvements and organic soil amendments in reclaimed land in the Republic of Korea,with Populus euramericana used as the crop tree.Results:TWC did not influence weed biomass,but 2.7 Mg ha^(−1) VC significantly increased weed biomass by 21%compared to 0 Mg ha^(−1) VC treatments.Nitrogen(N),phosphorus(P),potassium(K),calcium(Ca),magnesium(Mg),and sodium(Na)concentrations in weeds were the highest in control,but there was no statistical difference among treatments.However,VC treatment did marginally increase nutrient uptake in weeds,especially P,K,Ca,and Na.No treatments influenced crop tree height.Conclusion:We conclude that VC can be used as an organic source of nutrients in reclaimed soil and that weed management is necessary to increase treatment effects on crop trees in this salt-affected reclaimed land.