Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Investigating Water Storage Dynamics of Litter Layer: Impact of Mixing and De-cay of Pine Needles and Oak Leaves

Version 1 : Received: 16 January 2024 / Approved: 16 January 2024 / Online: 16 January 2024 (14:19:36 CET)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Ilek, A.; Błońska, E.; Miszewski, K.; Kasztelan, A.; Zborowska, M. Investigating Water Storage Dynamics in the Litter Layer: The Impact of Mixing and Decay of Pine Needles and Oak Leaves. Forests 2024, 15, 350. Ilek, A.; Błońska, E.; Miszewski, K.; Kasztelan, A.; Zborowska, M. Investigating Water Storage Dynamics in the Litter Layer: The Impact of Mixing and Decay of Pine Needles and Oak Leaves. Forests 2024, 15, 350.

Abstract

Little is known about how the degree of mixing of forest-forming species affects forest floor hydrology. We evaluated the water storage capacity of the resulting litter layer by mixing litterfall of Scots pine and sessile oak and studying their decomposition time. We prepared 90 artificial samples containing pure pine litter, pure oak litter, and mixed pine-oak litter with varying shares of pine needles. These samples were subjected to 15 months of decomposition in soil. After every three months of decay, some samples were removed from the soil, and their water storage capacity, bulk density, and C:N ratio were evaluated. Our findings indicate that samples with the greatest water storage capacity had a low C:N ratio and a predominant share of oak leaves. Conversely, samples with a high C:N ratio and a predominant share of pine needles had the lowest water storage capacity. After 12 and 15 months of decomposition, the water storage capacity increased by more than 52% compared to the initial water capacity of the samples. The highest increase in water storage capacity (>40%) was observed in samples with a predominant share of oak leaves, while the lowest (approximately 28%) was recorded in samples with 80 and 100% of pine needles.

Keywords

forest hydrology; forest floor; pine-oak mixed forest; water properties; C:N ratio

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Forestry

Comments (0)

We encourage comments and feedback from a broad range of readers. See criteria for comments and our Diversity statement.

Leave a public comment
Send a private comment to the author(s)
* All users must log in before leaving a comment
Views 0
Downloads 0
Comments 0


×
Alerts
Notify me about updates to this article or when a peer-reviewed version is published.
We use cookies on our website to ensure you get the best experience.
Read more about our cookies here.