HR: 08:45h
AN: B51F-04    [Abstracts]
TI: Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics in a Chronosequence of Suburban Lawns
AU: * Jenkins, J C
EM: jennifer.c.jenkins@uvm.edu
AF: University of Vermont, Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources, 617 Main St., Burlington, VT 05405 United States
AU: Groffman, P M
EM: groffmanp@ecostudies.org
AF: Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Box AB, 65 Sharon Turnpike, Millbrook, NY 12545 United States
AB: Given the rate of suburban and exurban expansion in the US, conversion of land to residential use is likely to be an important contributor to regional ecosystem dynamics, but little is known about how suburban lands cycle C and N. In this study, we quantified turfgrass productivity, soil respiration, and soil C and N along a chronosequence of suburban lawns in South Burlington, VT ranging in age from 1 to 20 years. All lawns in the study were located in the same suburban development and established using identical home building and lawn seeding procedures; site preparation and topsoil origin were removed as potential sources of variability among lawns. Turfgrass productivity was not correlated with lawn age, and varied with lawn management practices as reported by homeowners. Soil N stocks in the upper soil layers increased linearly with lawn age up to 6 years. Soil C stocks were roughly constant with time in both the 0-10 cm and 10-20 cm soil layers, and soil C:N decreased linearly with lawn age up to ~10 years. These results contribute to our growing understanding of nutrient dynamics in turfgrass-dominated systems, and suggest that 'all else equal' housing age and land management are especially important drivers of C and N dynamics in suburban landscapes.
DE: 0414 Biogeochemical cycles, processes, and modeling (0412, 0793, 1615, 4805, 4912)
DE: 0428 Carbon cycling (4806)
DE: 0439 Ecosystems, structure and dynamics (4815)
DE: 0469 Nitrogen cycling
SC: Biogeosciences [B]
MN: Fall Meeting 2005