Abstract Losses in net primary production from soil degradation caused by agricultural land use is a serious and growing problem worldwide. Restoring degraded soils is crucial to stop the expanding footprint of land degradation and feed our growing human population. To return degraded and desertified landscapes to productivity, sandy soils must first be improved to enhance water and nutrient holding capacity. We used greenhouse experiments to examine the impact of incorporated coarse woodchips on water and nitrogen (N) cycling as well as biomass production in very sandy, degraded soils. Coarse woodchips incorporated into the soil increased soil water content by 350% and available water capacity by 185%. With woodchip amendments, soluble N losses were reduced by 90% under un-fertilized conditions but no significant differences were observed when fertilized. Biomass production was reduced by 60% when soils were amended with woodchips. More work is needed to examine the mechanisms behind the decrease in biomass production and to determine if the short-term effects of woodchip incorporation seen in this study are indicative of longer-term trends. These findings suggest that incorporating coarse wood chips into degraded soil increases soil water holding capacity and may provide a basis for enhancing some ecosystem processes.

中文翻译：

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使退化土壤恢复生产力：用粗木材料修正退化土壤中的水和氮循环

摘要 农业用地造成的土壤退化造成的净初级生产损失是世界范围内一个严重且日益严重的问题。恢复退化的土壤对于阻止土地退化的足迹扩大和养活我们不断增长的人口至关重要。为了使退化和荒漠化的景观恢复生产力，必须首先改善沙质土壤，以提高水和养分的保持能力。我们使用温室实验来检查掺入的粗木片对水和氮 (N) 循环以及非常沙质的退化土壤中的生物量产生的影响。混入土壤中的粗木片使土壤含水量增加了 350%，有效水容量增加了 185%。随着木片修正，在未施肥的条件下，可溶性氮损失减少了 90%，但在施肥时没有观察到显着差异。当用木片改良土壤时，生物质产量减少了 60%。需要做更多的工作来检查生物量生产减少背后的机制，并确定本研究中看到的木片掺入的短期影响是否预示着长期趋势。这些发现表明，将粗木屑掺入退化的土壤中可提高土壤持水能力，并可能为增强某些生态系统过程提供基础。需要做更多的工作来检查生物量生产减少背后的机制，并确定本研究中看到的木片掺入的短期影响是否预示着长期趋势。这些发现表明，将粗木屑掺入退化的土壤中可提高土壤持水能力，并可能为增强某些生态系统过程提供基础。需要做更多的工作来检查生物量生产减少背后的机制，并确定本研究中看到的木片掺入的短期影响是否预示着长期趋势。这些发现表明，将粗木屑掺入退化的土壤中可提高土壤持水能力，并可能为增强某些生态系统过程提供基础。