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Effects of Dry-Season N Input on the Productivity and N Storage of Mediterranean-Type Shrublands

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Abstract

Anthropogenic nitrogen (N) deposition is a globally important source of N that is expected to increase with population growth. In southern California, N input from dry deposition accumulates on vegetation and soil surfaces of chaparral and coastal sage scrub (CSS) ecosystems during the summer and fall and becomes available as a pulse following winter rainfall. Presumably, N input will act to stimulate the productivity and N storage of these Mediterranean-type, semi-arid shrublands because these ecosystems are thought to be N limited. To assess whether dry-season N inputs alter ecosystem productivity and N storage, a field experiment was conducted over a 4-year period where plots were exposed to either ambient N deposition (control) or ambient + 50 kgN ha−1 y−1 (added N) that was added as NH4NO3 during the fall dry-season of each year. Plots exposed to added N had significantly higher accumulation of NH4 and NO3 on ion exchange resins that was due in part to direct fertilization and N mineralization, and the increase in N availability lead to a significant increase in NO3 leaching in chaparral but not CSS. Nitrogen addition also lead to an increase in litter and tissue N concentration and a decline in the C:N ratio, but failed to alter the ecosystem productivity and N storage of the chaparral and CSS shrublands over the 4-year study period. The reasons for the lack of a treatment response are unknown; however, it is possible that these semi-arid shrublands are not N limited, cannot respond rapidly enough to capture the ephemeral N pulse, are limited by other nutrients, or the N response is dependent on the amount and/or distribution of rainfall. These results have important implications for understanding the potential effects of anthropogenic N deposition on the C and N cycling and storage of Mediterranean-type, semi-arid shrublands.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported in part by the NSF-CAREER (DEB-0133259) and NIH-NIGMS-SCORE (S06 GM 59833) programs. The authors thank the over 30 graduate and undergraduate student assistants whose effort made this research possible. Permission to use the SOFS and SMER research sites was graciously granted by the SDSU Field Station Programs.

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  1. Department of Biological Sciences, California State University, San Marcos, California, 92096, USA

    George L. Vourlitis, Sarah C. Pasquini & Robert Mustard

  2. Department of Botany and Plant Sciences, University of California, Riverside, California, 92521, USA

    Sarah C. Pasquini

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  1. George L. Vourlitis
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  2. Sarah C. Pasquini
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Correspondence to George L. Vourlitis.

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GLV conceived or designed study, performed research, analyzed data, contributed new methods or models, and wrote the article. SCP performed research, analyzed data, and contributed to the writing of the article. RM performed research, analyzed data, and contributed to the writing of the article.

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Vourlitis, G.L., Pasquini, S.C. & Mustard, R. Effects of Dry-Season N Input on the Productivity and N Storage of Mediterranean-Type Shrublands. Ecosystems 12, 473–488 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10021-009-9236-6

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