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1,202 results for “litter”
Annual precipitation and photo-derived vegetation and litter cover (2013-2021) used for analysis in the manuscript “Growing grasses in the desert: Multi-scale Interactions and State Change Reversal in Drylands”
This dataset contains water year precipitation collected from meteorological stations, litter and vegetation cover values derived from overhead photos, and litter and soil accumulation in lateral photos in a long-term experiment (2013-2021) of cross-scale interactions (CSIs) at the Jornada Basin LTER site in southern New Mexico, U.S.A. Manipulations were initiated in 2013 at 15 experimental blocks, each with 4 treatment plots: plant-scale herbicide of mesquite shrubs, patch-scale connectivity modifiers (ConMods), herbicide + ConMods, control without manipulations. Litter, soil, and vegetation cover were estimated using repeat overhead photographs of microplots within treatment and control plots. Litter and soil accumulation were estimated from lateral photos of ConMods. This dataset utilized QuickBird imagery from 2011 to assess ground cover classes within the Jornada Basin, focusing on bare ground, herbaceous, and shrub cover. Daily precipitation data collected from 13 meteorological stations were used to calculate water year (1 October-30 September) precipitation from 2013 through 2021. This dataset provides supporting data for the manuscript "Growing grasses in the desert: Multi-scale Interactions and State Change Reversal in Drylands" by Peters et al.
Autumnal Litter Input in DIRT Litter Manipulation Experiment at Harvard Forest 2008
Climate change will alter forest ecosystem productivity, changing the quantity and quality of detrital inputs to soil and altering rates of soil organic matter (SOM) accumulation and stabilization. To examine changes in forest soil SOM pools, we have used the Detritus Input and Removal Treatments (DIRT) Project to alter organic matter input rates and sources (roots, leaves) to soils, allowing us to measure contributions of organic matter sources to long-term SOM storage at five temperate forests (Harvard Forest, HJ Andrews, Bousson (PA) Experimental Forest (BEF), U. Michigan Biological Station (UMBS), Síkfokut ILTER, Hungary). Organic matter inputs are altered by excluding or adding leaf inputs, or by excluding roots from forested plots. Soil respiration partitioning at HF, BEF, and UMBS shows that soil fertility controls the allocation of C to above- and belowground tissue. At UMBS, glacial outwash sandy soils are extremely low in N, and C released from root respiration plus root litter decomposition is 87% of total soil respiration. Conversely, at the N-rich BEF site, total belowground sources of CO2 are only 61% of soil respiration, with 47% attributed to root litter. These data suggest that at BEF, leaf litter, comprising only 39% of soil respiration, would be a more important source of long-term SOM than root litter. However, soil chemistry and radiocarbon data have shown us that long-term soil C storage is complex. The year 2010 represents the 20-year anniversary of the initiation of DIRT treatments at the Harvard Forest (2010), and we are therefore planning to conduct systematic sampling campaigns for a comprehensive study of changes in SOM quality after long-term manipulation of inputs. One objective is to quantify how 20 years of litter input alterations have affected SOM quantity and quality at the surface (0-20 cm) and deeper in the soil profile (20-100 cm). To uderstand these changes, we need to quantify the quantity and quality of aboveground litter inp
Litter Decomposition in Response to Nitrogen Addition and Soil Warming at Harvard Forest 2010-2012
The purpose of this study is to examine whether two environmental change stressors (warming and nitrogen deposition) differentially impact litter decomposition. We investigated this using a two year litterbag decomposition experiment at the chronic N amendment experiment and the Barre Woods Soil warming experiment, and measured litter decay dynamics, enzyme activities and litter chemistry. In both years mass loss of the mixed litter was suppressed under N addition, with most of the mass loss observed in the first year compared to the second year (70% and 30% of total mass loss, respectively). Both years showed either increased activity for some hydrolytic enzymes (e.g. cellobiohydrolase) or no difference (e.g. ß-N-acetylglucosaminidase) with increased N. The lignolytic enzymes (e.g. peroxidases) showed no difference in activity in the first year, but had a highly reduced activity in year 2 under elevated N conditions. Soil warming did not significantly affect litter mass loss, and only had an effect on the activity of a few enzymes. In the oak reciprocal litterbag study, decay of oak litter originating from the highest N addition plot was negatively affected by simulated N deposition in the first year of decomposition, while after two years, simulated N deposition negatively affected all litter, and litter originating from the highest N addition plot decayed more slowly than control litter even without added N (i.e. in the control plot). In addition, in the first year of decomposition lignolytic enzyme activities were suppressed in litter originating from the N addition treatments, but due to simulated N deposition in year two.
DIRT Litter Manipulation Experiment at Harvard Forest since 1990
The DIRT Experiment (Detritus Input and Removal Treatments) is a long-term study of controls on soil organic matter formation. Our goal is to assess how rates and sources of plant litter inputs control the accumulation and dynamics of organic matter and nutrients in forest soils over decadal time scales. Results from 11 years of field and laboratory studies demonstrate the relative importance of above- and belowground sources on soil organic matter (SOM) dynamics and show emerging long-term non-linear changes in soil carbon release and storage. Treatments established in a mixed hardwood stand in 1990 are: doubling annual aboveground litter (DL), exclusion of aboveground litter (NL), exclusion of root inputs by trenching (NR), and exclusion of aboveground litter and root inputs (NI), on replicated 3m x 3m plots (n=3 for treatments, 6 for controls). The O/A-less treatment, implemented in 1991, tracks the recovery of impoverished soil by replacing O and A horizon soil with B horizon material and allowing normal litter inputs thereafter. Comparison of data among treatments (soil respiration, soil solution chemistry, soil physical and chemical properties, and microfaunal and microbial community structure) allows us to determine the contributions of live roots, above-ground litter, and belowground detritus to SOM and nutrient dynamics in this forest soil. Similar experiments in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Oregon, and Hungarian forests provide information on these processes across climate and soil texture gradients. First-year soil respiration results from the Harvard Forest DIRT plots showed that live root respiration, production of aboveground litter (leaf, twig, other fine litter) and fine root detritus each constitute about one-third of C inputs to soil. Soil respiration is influenced more by root inputs than aboveground litter in this forest. CO2 efflux from root-excluded soils (NR, NI) declined to 32% of controls over the first 11 years of treatments as soil C became mo
Plant and litter cover estimates derived from overhead microplot photos in the Cross-Scale Interactions Study (CSIS) at Jornada Basin LTER, 2013-ongoing
This dataset contains plant and litter cover estimates derived from overhead photos collected from microplots in a long-term experiment (2013-present) of cross-scale interactions (CSIs) at the Jornada Basin LTER site in southern New Mexico, U.S.A. Experimental treatments were initiated in 2013 at 15 experimental blocks, each with 4 treatment plots: plant-scale herbicide of mesquite shrubs, patch-scale connectivity modifiers (ConMods), herbicide + ConMods, control without manipulations. Repeat, overhead (downward-looking) photographs of ten "microplots" in each plot were taken for estimation of litter, soil, and vegetation cover in the experimental treatment and control plots over time. Photographs were rotated and then cropped to provide standardized areas, and then were analyzed with USDA SamplePoint software to determine coverage by ~27 plant, litter or other cover classes on a 100 point grid. Raw and corrected cover estimates are provided. This study is ongoing and new data will be added annually. Cover estimates are derived from photos in EDI dataset knb-lter-jrn.210413004.
Litter and soil accumulation estimates derived from lateral microplot photos in the Cross-Scale Interactions Study (CSIS) at Jornada Basin LTER, 2013-2017
This dataset contains litter and soil vertical accumulation estimates derived from lateral photos of microplots in a long-term experiment (2013-2017) of cross-scale interactions (CSIs) at the Jornada Basin LTER site in southern New Mexico, U.S.A. Experimental treatments were initiated in 2013 at 15 experimental blocks, each with 4 treatment plots: plant-scale herbicide of mesquite shrubs, patch-scale connectivity modifiers (ConMods), herbicide + ConMods, control without manipulations. Repeat, lateral (side-looking) photographs of ten "microplots" in each ConMods and herbicide+ConMods plot were taken for estimation of litter, soil, and vegetation cover in the experimental treatment and control plots over time. Photographs were analyzed with SigmaScan software to determine vertical accumulation of litter and soil withing the microplots. This study is complete and ended in 2017. These vertical accumulation estimates are derived from photos in EDI dataset knb-lter-jrn.210413006.
Soil and litter microclimate data from NEON and LTER Sites Across Eight U.S. Ecoregions (CliMush Project), 2022–2023
Data include soil and litter measurements for moisture, pH, and carbon-to-nitrogen ratio. Samples were collected from 8 different ecoregions, as determined by NEON, at various NEON/LTER and/or other experimental sites. Soil cores and litter samples were taken in the spring and fall of 2022.
Leaf Litter Moisture Content at Harvard Forest HEM and LPH Towers 2006
Leaf litter was collected at the time of soil respiration measurements and its moisture content was measured in order to determine the contribution of leaf litter decomposition to measurements of total soil respiration including the litter layer. Leaf litter moisture has been shown to strongly affect CO2 release from organic soil layers (Borken et al. 2003).
Dataset of the manuscript "Assessing the influence of Eisenia andrei on the decomposition of Casuarina equisetifolia litter in vermicompost."
<p>Data generated during an experiment of decomposition of <em>Casuarina equisetifolia</em> litter by the application of vermicompost (VC) or the combination vermicompost + the earthworm <em>Eisenia andrei</em> (E).</p> <p>Six files are included:</p> <p>"<strong>readme.csv</strong>" is a file where we explain the meaning of each column (and in which units is expressed) in each of the other five files.</p> <p>"<strong>earthworm_N_biomass.csv</strong>" is a table with the number of <em>Eisenia andrei</em> individuals and the total earthworm fresh weight in each of the experimental units we sampled</p> <p><strong>"FTIR_spectra.csv" </strong>is a file with the raw spectral data we obtained from the litter by Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy combined with Attenuated Total Reflectance (FTIR-ATR). First column indicate the wavenumber (cm-1) and the other columns indicate the absorbance values of each litter sample for each wavenumber.</p> <p><strong>"litter_chemical_composition.csv"</strong> is a file with the raw data of the concentrations of different chemical elements measured in <em>C. equisetifolia</em> litter collected at different decomposition times.</p> <p><strong>"litter_mass_loss.csv"</strong> contains the dry weight data of the litter at time 0 and after each collection time, as well as the percentage of litter mass loss with time. .</p> <p>"<strong>mesofaunal_com.</strong><strong>csv</strong>" are the numbers of individuals of several groups of mesofaunal organisms (collembolans, mites, and others) we recovered in each of our experimental units.</p>
Temporal patterns of leaf litter inputs into a stream over a four-year period (2011-2014), Arbúcies, Catalonia, Spain.
Data based on estimations of leaf litter inputs from riparian trees into a stream reach over a 4 years period (2011-2014). Data was collected in Arbucies, Barcelona is a forested stream with no human pressure (i.e., pristine). Data contains values from 4 riparian tree species: AL (alder), AS (ash), BL (Black Locust) and BP (Black Poplar). Units are in mg. Estimations were extracted from sampling leaf litter input into the stream during the study period (30 samplings per year) and fitting Gaussian-type models (P<0.001, r2>0.60). Data also includes daily-basis discharge flow estimations based on discrete measure of flow using salt dilution technique and water level sensor data.
Oak litter decomposition parameters across 19 Nutrient Network grassland sites in response to NPK and herbivore exclusion treatments
These data are from a study examining how herbivory and nutrient supply affect long-term aboveground decomposition. A novel oak litter was decomposed across 19 grassland sites of the Nutrient Network distributed experiment. At each site, a full-factorial experiment of combined nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium plus micronutrients ('control' or 'NPK') and mammalian herbivore exclusion ('fencing') was carried out in a randomized block design. The duration of the decomposition experiment varied by site but litter bags were harvested at approximately annual intervals for up to seven years. Litter decay parameters were calculated using four alternative statistical models of litter decomposition. Covariate data describing site and plot-level abiotic and biotic characteristics were also measured, including climate, atmospheric nitrogen deposition, live and dead aboveground biomass, and percent cover.
Effects of Nitrogen Fertilization on Litter and Soil Decomposition: Gravimetric Soil Moisture
The influence of inorganic nitrogen (N) inputs on decomposition is poorly understood. Some prior studies suggest that N may reduce the decomposition of substrates with high concentrations of lignin via inhibitory effects on the activity of lignin-degrading enzymes, although such inhibition has not always been demonstrated. The purpose of E145 was to study the effects of nitrogen (N) addition on decomposition of seven substrates ranging in initial lignin concentrations (from 7.4 - 25.6%) over five years in eight different grassland and forest sites in central Minnesota.
Effects of ectomycorrhizal fungi on pine litter decomposition in temperate pine forests in California, Florida, and Minnesota
This experiment is designed to assess the generality of the effect of ECM fungi on leaf litter decomposition in temperate pine forests. To assess ECM fungal effects on decomposition, we established and ECM fungal knockdown experiment (via trenching) in nine temperate pine forests in California, Florida, and Minnesota. In litter bags incubated (July 2021-July 2022) in paired trenched and untrenched plots at each site we compared leaf litter decomposition (of native pine litter and a common Pinus strobus litter), fungal community composition (via high throughput sequencing), fungal abundance (via qPCR), decomposition enzyme expression, and soil nutrient availability. Contrary to widely cited theory and other results from a subset of our field sites, we found that ECM fungi either increased or did not impact pine litter decomposition in temperate pine forests.
Multiple Element Limitation in Northern Hardwood Ecosystems (MELNHE): Fresh Litter Chemistry
Freshly senesced leaf litter was collected during autumn in New Hampshire at the Bartlett Experimental Forest, Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, and Jeffers Brook as part of the Multiple Elementation Limitation in Northern Hardwood Ecosystems (MELNHE) study. Leaf litter was collected in October of 2009, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2021, and 2022 at peak litterfall (i.e., mid-October) during a rain-free period. These leaf-litter samples were analyzed for nutrient concentrations for use in resorption analyses. Besides adding 2021 and 2022 to the previous version of this data package, this version includes updated values for some samples from 2009 and 2010. Some were re-run to check unusual values, and 8 samples from 2010 for which fresh litter was not collected were estimated by analyzing litter samples collected in litter traps in the same plots in that year. These additions and corrections are indicated in the comments section of the data. These leaf litter samples correspond with green foliage samples collected in late July and early August of the same years: the green foliage EDI package can be found at the following citation: Zukswert, J.M., S.D. Hong, K.E. Gonzales, C.R. See, and R.D. Yanai. 2025. Multiple Element Limitation in Northern Hardwood Ecosystems (MELNHE): Foliar Chemistry 2008-2022 in Bartlett, Hubbard Brook, and Jeffers Brook ver 4. Environmental Data Initiative. https://doi.org/10.6073/pasta/ef3696a753150d0a420fd9009f73b1e9 (Accessed 2025-01-13). These data were gathered as part of the Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study (HBES). The HBES is a collaborative effort at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, which is operated and maintained by the USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station.
Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest: Litter and soil radiocarbon and selective metal measurements from Bear Brook, 1998–2023
Radiocarbon time series of archived litter and soil samples from Bear Brook (west of watershed 6) at lower elevation from 1998 to 2023. Additional measurements include total carbon and nitrogen for all samples, and selective dissolution metal concentrations for the Oa/A and mineral soil layers. Selective dissolution metals include pyrophosphate-extractable aluminum (Al); iron (Fe), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), and manganese (Mn); oxalate-extractable Al, Fe, Ca, Mg, and Mn; and dithionite-extractable Al, Fe, Ca, Mg, and Mn. All samples are from the Microbial Biomass and Activity Sampling Effort (Groffman and Martel, 2025, https://doi.org/10.6073/pasta/aff4a2074fd56102f62f13a19ce46f2d). These data were gathered as part of the Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study (HBES). The HBES is a collaborative effort at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, which is operated and maintained by the US Forest Service, Northern Research Station.
Leaf litter cover data on 1m x 1m plots from the long-term Small Mammal Exclusion Study (SMES) at Jornada Basin LTER, 1995-2020
This data package contains leaf litter cover data from plots with various levels of herbivore exclusion on the Jornada Experimental Range. Study sites were established in 1995; one in black grama grassland and the other in creosotebush shrubland to compare the impact of herbivores on ecosystem processes between these vegetation types. Parallel studies were established at the Sevilleta LTER site (New Mexico, USA) and Mapimi Biosphere Reserve (Durango, Mexico). Each study site is 1 km by 0.5 km in area. Four replicate experimental blocks were randomly located at the grassland study site to measure vegetation responses using exclusion treatments including a) all mammalian herbivores, including cattle, lagomorphs, and rodents, b) lagomorphs and cattle only, c) cattle only, and d) control accessible to all herbivores. Because grazing cattle are excluded from the entire creosote site, only three replicate experimental blocks were randomly located there including a) all mammalian herbivores, including lagomorphs, and rodents, b) lagomorphs only, and c) control accessible to all herbivores. Thirty-six sampling points were positioned at 5.8-meter intervals on a systematically located 6 by 6 point grid within each plot. A permanent one-meter by one-meter vegetation measurement quadrat is located at each of the 36 points. Each year in spring and fall from 1995-2005, the total percent cover of leaf litter in each quadrat was estimated by summing the percent of each 10 cm square within a quadrat (including 100 10-cm squares) containing leaf litter (See methods for a detailed explanation). After 2005, sampling frequency changed to every 5 years. This study is ongoing.
Fungal litter mat cover in Cannopy Trimming Experiment (CTE) plots responses to canopy opening, hurricanes and drought
Fungi that bind leaf litter into mats and produce white-rot via degradation of lignin and other aromatic compounds influence forest nutrient cycling and soil fertility. Over three and a half years beginning in June 2014, 6 months before the second iteration of the Canopy Trimming Experiment (CTE), we measured quarterly the extent of white-rot litter mats formed by basidiomycete fungi in the Luquillo Mountains of Puerto Rico in response to disturbances – a simulated hurricane treatment executed by canopy trimming and debris addition in December 2014 (CTE0, a mid-year drought in 2015, and two hurricanes 10 days apart in September 2017. Percent fungal litter mat cover ranged from 0.4% after hurricanes Irma and Maria to a high of 53% in forest with undisturbed canopy prior to the 2017 hurricanes, with means mostly between 10 - 45% of fungal litter mat cover in undisturbed forest. Drought decreased litter mat cover in both treatments, except in one undisturbed plot dominated by a drought-resistant fungus, Marasmius crinis-equi. Percent fungal litter mat cover sharply declined after real hurricanes and the simulated hurricane treatment (CTE). We found that solar radiation had a significant treatment effect and was strongly negatively correlated with percent litter mat cover within each of the four climatic seasons. Solar radiation was also strongly negatively correlated with relative humidity, throughfall, rain and litter wetness. However, rainfall was negatively correlated with litter mat cover, possibly due to erosion or saturation during high rainfall events. Canopy opening reduced leaf litterfall rates but did not affect litter mat cover. The main negative effect on basidiomycete fungi that bind leaf litter into mats was lower litter moisture associated with increased solar radiation from canopy opening and high leaf fall during drought. Variation in drought tolerance among basidiomycete fungal litter mat formers provided some resilience to drought. \<para\> Support f
Forest Transition Experiment - Leaf Litter in a Coastal Virginia Forest
Leaf litter collected in basket-based litter traps in forest transition plots
Data for predicting piglet survival until weaning using birth weight and within-litter birth weight variation as easily measured proxy predictors
<p>The data was used in the analysis presented in the manuscript: Predicting piglet survival until weaning using birth weight and within-litter birth weight variation as easily measured proxy predictors. The manuscript is published in <em>Animal</em> journal. The data is for piglet survival survival at different time-points from birth to weaning from two research farms.</p>
Invasive grass litter suppresses a native grass species and promotes disease
Plant litter can alter ecosystems and promote plant invasions by altering resource availability, depositing phytotoxins, and transmitting microorganisms to living plants. Transmission of microorganisms from invasive plant litter to live plants may gain importance as invasive plants, which often escape pathogens upon introduction to a new range, acquire new pathogens over time. It is unclear, however, if invasive plant litter affects native plant communities by promoting disease. Microstegium vimineum is an invasive grass that suppresses native populations, in part through litter production, and has acquired new fungal leaf spot diseases since its introduction to the United States. In a greenhouse experiment, we evaluated how M. vimineum litter and its pathogens mediated competition with the native grass Elymus virginicus. Microstegium vimineum litter promoted disease on E. virginicus and suppressed establishment and biomass of both species. Litter had stronger negative effects on E. virginicus than M. vimineum, increasing the relative biomass of M. vimineum. Live plant competition reduced biomass of both species and live M. vimineum increased disease incidence on E. virginicus. Altogether, invasive grass litter suppressed both species, ultimately favoring the invasive species in competition, and increased disease incidence on the native species.
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