Soil organic carbon as a key predictor of N in forest soils of Brazil

Abstract

Purpose Despite the ancillary knowledge that soil N is chiefly retained as soil organic matter, little is known about how it is affected by other soil and environmental factors, especially in the tropics. In this study, we performed a comprehensive survey of soils under native vegetation in Minas Gerais, Brazil, aiming to (a) measure soil Kjeldahl-N concentrations to a 1-m depth, (b) identify the main affecting factors of soil N retention, and (c) predict N through soil profile based on organic C (SOC) and its main conditioning factors.

Materials and methods Soils under 36 fragments of native forest and savanna were sampled at five depths (0–10, 10–20, 20–40, 40–60, and 60–100 cm) and characterized by physical and chemical analyses, including total N determined by the micro-Kjeldahl method. Single and multivariate regressions were used to predict N concentrations based on soil properties and climatic factors.

Results and discussion The average N concentrations ranged between 0.12 and 7.54 g kg−1, decreasing with depth, and can be predicted using SOC concentrations (R 2 = 0.86). Multivariate regressions using more input data, namely texture, cation exchange capacity (CEC), and altitude increased slightly R 2 values (0.68–0.90) for separate soil depths, but not for the whole dataset (R 2 = 0.85).

Conclusions We demonstrated that N can be adequately predicted based on SOC concentrations, for any depth and forest type. The implications of the stable SOC/N relation and their coupled cycles and the environmental factors affecting N retention in Brazilian weathered soils are further discussed.