• Contact Us
    • Send Feedback
    • Login
    View Item 
    •   Home
    • Journal and Journal Articles
    • Journal and Journal Articles
    • View Item
    •   Home
    • Journal and Journal Articles
    • Journal and Journal Articles
    • View Item
    JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

    Browse

    Whole Repository
    CollectionsIssue DateRegionCountryHubAffiliationAuthorsTitlesSubject
    This Sub-collection
    Issue DateRegionCountryHubAffiliationAuthorsTitlesSubject

    My Account

    Login

    Welcome to the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture Research Repository

    What would you like to view today?

    Decomposition of plant material as an indicator of ecosystem disturbance in tropical land use systems

    Thumbnail
    View/Open
    S05ArtHauserDecompositionInthomNodev.pdf (291.7Kb)
    Date
    2005
    Author
    Hauser, S.
    Gang, E.
    Norgrove, L.
    Birang, M.
    Type
    Journal Article
    Metadata
    Show full item record
    Abstract/Description
    We report on an attempt to distinguish cropped from fallowed land and young from old fallow by the rate of decomposition of a standard material, to contribute towards the development of simple, yet reliable indicators of soil quality and agricultural sustainability on tropical soils. In three southern Cameroonian villages, Senna spectabilis leaves and wood were incubated in undisturbed bush fallow of about 4 years, young secondary regrowth of about 12 years and secondary forest of at least 25 years and in the same fallow age class after clearing and cropping. The decomposition of S. spectabilis leaves distinguished fallowed from cropped land throughout a period of 14 to 280 days after incubation, independent of the fallow type that was cleared and the location. Fallow types were distinguished over the same period, with higher leaf mass loss in secondary forest systems than young regrowth and bush fallow. In all cases mass loss followed significant logarithmic functions. Soil chemical properties were not correlated to leaf mass loss. Mass loss from S. spectabilis wood was not suitable to distinguish either undisturbed from cropped or one fallow age class from another. Significant differences between land uses occurred only at the end of the incubation period. Fallow types could not be distinguished from each other. S. spectabilis leaf decomposition may be developed into one component of a soil quality or soil function indicator if decomposition can be linked to crop yields in cleared sites and biomass accumulation in undisturbed sites and other soil properties.
    https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2004.12.037
    Multi standard citation
    Permanent link to this item
    https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12478/3348
    Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
    https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2004.12.037
    IITA Subjects
    Soil Health; Soil Fertility; Soil Information; Knowledge Management; Disease Control; Farm Management; Farming Systems; Plant Production; Integrated Soil Fertility Management
    Agrovoc Terms
    Soil Degradation; Soil Quality; Senna Spectabilis; Mass Loss; Fallow; Decomposition
    Regions
    Africa; Central Africa
    Countries
    Cameroon
    Collections
    • Journal and Journal Articles4835
    copyright © 2019  IITASpace. All rights reserved.
    IITA | Open Access Repository