Abstract
Aims
Mixed-species plantations are generally thought to increase soil carbon stocks, but it is unclear whether they can enhance soil water-holding capacity. By quantifying the contribution of rainwater to soil water (CRSW) following three different scales of rainfall events in Pinus massoniana and Schima superba monoculture plantations and a mixed P. massoniana and S. superba plantation, we aimed to examine the variations in CRSW and influencing factors for different plantations.
Methods
Stable hydrogen isotope compositions of rainwater, soil water and groundwater were analyzed to assess the CRSW of three plantations following three rainfall events in a subtropical monsoon region in China. We further used regression analysis to quantify the relative importance of canopy openness, litter characteristics, soil physical properties and root biomass to the CRSW.
Results
The CRSW in the P. massoniana monoculture plantation and mixed plantation was higher than that in the S. superba monoculture plantation following the three rainfall events. No significant difference in the CRSW was found between the P. massoniana plantation and the mixed plantation within nine days following the 8.7 mm rainfall event. Furthermore, the CRSW was significantly higher in the mixed plantation than in the two monoculture plantations within 11 days following the 15.3 mm and 36.9 mm rainfall events. The most important factors affecting the CRSW were canopy openness and root biomass after the 8.7 mm rainfall event, whereas root biomass and litter characteristics acted as the primary regulatory factors after the 15.3 mm rainfall event. Under the 36.9 mm rainfall event, dry weight and saturation moisture capacity within the semi-decomposed litter layer had the greatest influence on the CRSW.
Conclusion
Mixed-species plantations in humid subtropical regions have a higher capacity to intercept and maintain heavy rainfall than their respective monoculture plantations, and thus can enhance their adaptation to extreme rainfall events, as well as after frequent droughts.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data availability
Not applicable.
Code availability
Not applicable.
References
Allen ST, Keim RF, Barnard HR, McDonnell JJ, Renée Brooks J (2017) The role of stable isotopes in understanding rainfall interception processes: a review. WIREs Water 4:e1187. https://doi.org/10.1002/wat2.1187
Barbier S, Gosselin F, Balandier P (2008) Influence of tree species on understory vegetation diversity and mechanisms involved—a critical review for temperate and boreal forests. For Ecol Manag 254:1–15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2007.09.038
Bernacchi CJ, VanLoocke A (2015) Terrestrial ecosystems in a changing environment: a dominant role for water. Annu Rev Plant Biol 66:599–622. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-arplant-043014-114834
Bose T, Sengupta S, Chakraborty S, Borgaonkar H (2016) Reconstruction of soil water oxygen isotope values from tree ring cellulose and its implications for paleoclimate studies. Quat Int 425:387–398. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2016.07.052
Brauman KA, Freyberg DL, Daily GC (2010) Forest structure influences on rainfall partitioning and cloud interception: a comparison of native forest sites in Kona, Hawai’i. Agric For Meteorol 150:265–275. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2009.11.011
Cavanaugh ML, Kurc SA, Scott RL (2011) Evapotranspiration partitioning in semiarid shrubland ecosystems: a two-site evaluation of soil moisture control on transpiration. Ecohydrology 4:671–681. https://doi.org/10.1002/eco.157
Chen H, Shao M, Li Y (2008) The characteristics of soil water cycle and water balance on steep grassland under natural and simulated rainfall conditions in the loess plateau of China. J Hydrol 360:242–251. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2008.07.037
Condit R (1998) The CTFS and the Standardization of Methodology. In Tropical Forest Census Plots. Springer, pp. 3–7. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-03664-8_1
Crockford RH, Richardson DP (2000) Partitioning of rainfall into throughfall, stemflow and interception: effect of forest type, ground cover and climate. Hydrol Process 14:2903–2920. https://doi.org/10.1002/1099-1085(200011/12)14:16/17<2903::AID-HYP126>3.0.CO;2-6
De Deurwaerder H, Hervé-Fernández P, Stahl C, Burban B, Petronelli P, Hoffman B, Bonal D, Boeckx P, Verbeeck H (2018) Liana and tree below-ground water competition—evidence for water resource partitioning during the dry season. Tree Physiol 38:1071–1083. https://doi.org/10.1093/treephys/tpy002
Deguchi A, Hattori S, Park H-T (2006) The influence of seasonal changes in canopy structure on interception loss: application of the revised gash model. J Hydrol 318:80–102. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2005.06.005
Deng L, Yan W, Zhang Y, Shangguan Z (2016) Severe depletion of soil moisture following land-use changes for ecological restoration: evidence from northern China. For Ecol Manag 366:1–10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2016.01.026
Dick J, Tetzlaff D, Bradford J, Soulsby C (2018) Using repeat electrical resistivity surveys to assess heterogeneity in soil moisture dynamics under contrasting vegetation types. J Hydrol 559:684–697. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2018.02.062
Edwards DP, Tobias JA, Sheil D, Meijaard E, Laurance WF (2014) Maintaining ecosystem function and services in logged tropical forests. Trends Ecol Evol 29:511–520. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2014.07.003
Ehleringer JR, Roden J, Dawson TE (2000) Assessing ecosystem-level water relations through stable isotope ratio analyses. In: Sala OE, Jackson RB, Mooney HA, Howarth RW (eds) Methods in ecosystem science. Springer, New York, pp 181–198
Fang X, Zhao W, Wang L, Feng Q, Ding J, Liu Y, Zhang X (2016) Variations of deep soil moisture under different vegetation types and influencing factors in a watershed of the loess plateau, China. Hydrol Earth Syst Sci 20:3309–3323. https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-3309-2016
Gaj M, Beyer M, Koeniger P, Wanke H, Hamutoko J, Himmelsbach T (2016) In situ unsaturated zone water stable isotope (2H and 18O) measurements in semi-arid environments: a soil water balance. Hydrol Earth Syst Sci 20:715–731. https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-715-2016
Gao X, Li H, Zhao X, Ma W, Wu P (2018) Identifying a suitable revegetation technique for soil restoration on water-limited and degraded land: considering both deep soil moisture deficit and soil organic carbon sequestration. Geoderma 319:61–69. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2018.01.003
Gerrits AMJ, Pfister L, Savenije HHG (2010) Spatial and temporal variability of canopy and forest floor interception in a beech forest. Hydrol Process 24:3011–3025. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.7712
Gong Z, Tang Y, Xu W, Mou Z (2019) Rapid sequestration of ecosystem carbon in 30-year reforestation with mixed species in dry hot valley of the Jinsha River. Int J Environ Res Public Health 16. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16111937
Gong C, Tan Q, Xu M, Liu G (2020) Mixed-species plantations can alleviate water stress on the loess plateau. For Ecol Manag 458:117767. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2019.117767
Green JK, Seneviratne SI, Berg AM, Findell KL, Hagemann S, Lawrence DM, Gentine P (2019) Large influence of soil moisture on long-term terrestrial carbon uptake. Nature 565:476–479. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-018-0848-x
Gremer JR, Andrews C, Norris JR, Thomas LP, Munson SM, Duniway MC, Bradford JB (2018) Increasing temperature seasonality may overwhelm shifts in soil moisture to favor shrub over grass dominance in Colorado plateau drylands. Oecologia 188:1195–1207. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-018-4282-4
Grossiord C, Sevanto S, Bonal D, Borrego I, Dawson TE, Ryan M, Wang W, McDowell NG (2018) Prolonged warming and drought modify belowground interactions for water among coexisting plants. Tree Physiol 39:55–63. https://doi.org/10.1093/treephys/tpy080
Gu L-P, Kong J-J, Chen K, Guo Y-Q (2019) Monitoring soil biological properties during the restoration of a phosphate mine under different tree species and plantation types. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 180:130–138. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoenv.2019.05.001
Gwak Y, Kim S (2017) Factors affecting soil moisture spatial variability for a humid forest hillslope. Hydrol Process 31:431–445. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.11039
Ilek A, Kucza J, Szostek M (2015) The effect of stand species composition on water storage capacity of the organic layers of forest soils. Eur J For Res 134:187–197. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10342-014-0842-2
Jin TT, Fu BJ, Liu GH, Wang Z (2011) Hydrologic feasibility of artificial forestation in the semi-arid loess plateau of China. Hydrol Earth Syst Sci 15:2519–2530. https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-15-2519-2011
Kooch Y, Samadzadeh B, Hosseini SM (2017) The effects of broad-leaved tree species on litter quality and soil properties in a plain forest stand. CATENA 150:223–229. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2016.11.023
Korres W, Reichenau TG, Fiener P, Koyama CN, Bogena HR, Cornelissen T, Baatz R, Herbst M, Diekkrüger B, Vereecken H, Schneider K (2015) Spatio-temporal soil moisture patterns—a meta-analysis using plot to catchment scale data. J Hydrol 520:326–341. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2014.11.042
Kühnhammer K, Kübert A, Brüggemann N, Deseano Diaz P, van Dusschoten D, Javaux M, Merz S, Vereecken H, Dubbert M, Rothfuss Y (2020) Investigating the root plasticity response of Centaurea jacea to soil water availability changes from isotopic analysis. New Phytol 226:98–110. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.16352
Levia DF, Frost EE (2003) A review and evaluation of stemflow literature in the hydrologic and biogeochemical cycles of forested and agricultural ecosystems. J Hydrol 274:1–29. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-1694(02)00399-2
Li X, Niu J, Xie B (2013) Study on hydrological functions of litter layers in North China. PLoS One 8:e70328. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0070328
Lin G, Phillips SL, Ehleringer JR (1996) Monosoonal precipitation responses of shrubs in a cold desert community on the Colorado plateau. Oecologia 106:8–17. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00334402
Liu B, Ma S (2016) Response of soil water dynamics to precipitation years under different vegetation types on the northern loess plateau, China. Journal of Arid Land 8:47–59. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40333-015-0088-y
Madoni P, Davoli D, Fontani N, Cucchi A, Rossi F (2001) Spatial distribution of microorganisms and measurements of oxygen uptake rate and ammonia uptake rate activity in a drinking water biofilter. Environ Technol 22:455–462. https://doi.org/10.1080/09593332208618275
Manrique-Alba À, Ruiz-Yanetti S, Moutahir H, Novak K, De Luis M, Bellot J (2017) Soil moisture and its role in growth-climate relationships across an aridity gradient in semiarid Pinus halepensis forests. Sci Total Environ 574:982–990. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.09.123
Martínez García G, Pachepsky YA, Vereecken H (2014) Effect of soil hydraulic properties on the relationship between the spatial mean and variability of soil moisture. J Hydrol 516:154–160. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2014.01.069
Metz JM, Annigh Fer P, Schall P, Zimmermann J, Kahl T, Schulze ED, Ammer C (2016) Site-adapted admixed tree species reduce drought susceptibility of mature European beech. Global Chang Biology 22:903–920. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.13113
Montenegro S, Ragab R (2012) Impact of possible climate and land use changes in the semi arid regions: a case study from north eastern Brazil. J Hydrol 434-435:55–68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2012.02.036
Park BB, Yanai RD, Vadeboncoeur MA, Hamburg SP (2007) Estimating root biomass in rocky soils using pits, cores, and allometric equations. Soil Sci Soc Am J 71:206–213. https://doi.org/10.2136/sssaj2005.0329
Qu W, Bogena HR, Huisman JA, Vanderborght J, Schuh M, Priesack E, Vereecken H (2015) Predicting subgrid variability of soil water content from basic soil information. Geophys Res Lett 42:789–796. https://doi.org/10.1002/2014GL062496
Rao W, Zhang W, Yong B, Tan H, Meredith K, Jin K, Zheng F, Wang S (2018) Identifying the source of atmospheric moisture over arid deserts using stable isotopes (2H and 18O) in precipitation. Hydrol Process 32:436–449. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.11431
Reverchon F, Bai SH, Liu X, Blumfield TJ (2015) Tree plantation systems influence nitrogen retention and the abundance of nitrogen functional genes in the Solomon Islands. Front Microbiol 6:1439–1439. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2015.01439
Robichaud PR (2000) Fire effects on infiltration rates after prescribed fire in northern Rocky Mountain forests, USA. J Hydrol 231-232:220–229. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-1694(00)00196-7
Rosenbaum U, Bogena HR, Herbst M, Huisman JA, Peterson TJ, Weuthen A, Western AW, Vereecken H (2012) Seasonal and event dynamics of spatial soil moisture patterns at the small catchment scale. Water Resour Res 48. https://doi.org/10.1029/2011WR011518
Sato Y, Kumagai TO, Kume A, Otsuki K, Ogawa S (2004) Experimental analysis of moisture dynamics of litter layers—the effects of rainfall conditions and leaf shapes. Hydrol Process 18:3007–3018. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.5746
Sherwood S, Fu Q (2014) Climate change. A drier future? Science 343:737–739. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1247620
Song X, Wang S, Xiao G, Wang Z, Liu X, Wang P (2009) A study of soil water movement combining soil water potential with stable isotopes at two sites of shallow groundwater areas in the North China plain. Hydrol Process 23:1376–1388. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.7267
Stocker BD, Zscheischler J, Keenan TF, Prentice IC, Peñuelas J, Seneviratne SI (2018) Quantifying soil moisture impacts on light use efficiency across biomes. New Phytol 218:1430–1449. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.15123
Sure A, Dikshit O (2019) Estimation of root zone soil moisture using passive microwave remote sensing: a case study for rice and wheat crops for three states in the indo-Gangetic basin. J Environ Manag 234:75–89. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2018.12.109
Tan H, Wen X, Rao W, Bradd J, Huang J (2016) Temporal variation of stable isotopes in a precipitation–groundwater system: implications for determining the mechanism of groundwater recharge in high mountain–hills of the loess plateau, China. Hydrol Process 30:1491–1505. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.10729
Tang Y, Song X, Zhang Y, Zhang Y, Han D, Ai L, Zhao T, Wang Y (2017) Using stable isotopes to understand seasonal and interannual dynamics in moisture sources and atmospheric circulation in precipitation. Hydrol Process 31:4682–4692. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.11388
Tang Y, Wu X, Chen Y (2018) Sap flow characteristics and physiological adjustments of two dominant tree species in pure and mixed plantations in the semi-arid loess plateau of China. J Arid Land 10:833–849. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40333-018-0027-9
Thompson SE, Harman CJ, Heine P, Katul GG (2010) Vegetation-infiltration relationships across climatic and soil type gradients. J Geophys Res 115. https://doi.org/10.1029/2009JG001134
Vereecken H, Huisman JA, Pachepsky Y, Montzka C, van der Kruk J, Bogena H, Weihermüller L, Herbst M, Martinez G, Vanderborght J (2014) On the spatio-temporal dynamics of soil moisture at the field scale. J Hydrol 516:76–96. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2013.11.061
Wang C, Fu B, Zhang L, Xu Z (2019) Soil moisture–plant interactions: an ecohydrological review. J Soils Sediments 19:1–9. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-018-2167-0
Wei X, Blanco JA (2014) Significant increase in ecosystem c can be achieved with sustainable forest management in subtropical plantation forests. PLoS One 9:e89688. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0089688
White JWC, Cook ER, Lawrence JR, Wallace SB (1985) The D/H ratios of sap in trees: implications for water sources and tree ring D/H ratios. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 49:237–246. https://doi.org/10.1016/0016-7037(85)90207-8
Winkler DE, Chapin KJ, Kueppers LM (2016) Soil moisture mediates alpine life form and community productivity responses to warming. Ecology 97:1553–1563. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-1197.1
Wu D, Wang T, Di C, Wang L, Chen X (2020a) Investigation of controls on the regional soil moisture spatiotemporal patterns across different climate zones. Sci Total Environ 726:138214. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.138214
Wu J, Zeng H, Zhao F, Chen C, Liu W, Yang B, Zhang W (2020b) Recognizing the role of plant species composition in the modification of soil nutrients and water in rubber agroforestry systems. Sci Total Environ 723:138042. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.138042
Xu Q, Liu S, Wan X, Jiang C, Song X, Wang J (2012) Effects of rainfall on soil moisture and water movement in a subalpine dark coniferous forest in southwestern China. Hydrol Process 26:3800–3809. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.8400
Yinglan A, Wang G, Liu T, Shrestha S, Xue B, Tan Z (2019) Vertical variations of soil water and its controlling factors based on the structural equation model in a semi-arid grassland. Sci Total Environ 691:1016–1026. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.07.181
Zeller L, Ammer C, Annighöfer P, Biber P, Marshall J, Schütze G, del Río GM, Pretzsch H (2017) Tree ring wood density of scots pine and European beech lower in mixed-species stands compared with monocultures. For Ecol Manag 400:363–374. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2017.06.018
Zhang B, Xu Q, Gao D, Jiang C, Liu F, Jiang J, Ma Y (2019) Higher soil capacity of intercepting heavy rainfall in mixed stands than in pure stands in riparian forests. Sci Total Environ 658:1514–1522. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.12.171
Zhang Q, Wei W, Chen L, Yang L, Luo Y, Cai A (2020a) Plant traits in influencing soil moisture in semiarid grasslands of the loess plateau, China. Sci Total Environ 718:137355. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.137355
Zhang Z, Jin G, Feng Z, Sun L, Zhou Z, Zheng Y, Yuan C (2020b) Joint influence of genetic origin and climate on the growth of Masson pine (Pinus massoniana lamb.) in China. Scientific reports 10: 4653. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-61597-9
Zhu Q, Lin H (2011) Influences of soil, terrain, and crop growth on soil moisture variation from transect to farm scales. Geoderma 163:45–54. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2011.03.015
Acknowledgments
We are grateful to the Huitong National Research Station of Forest Ecosystem for their support and contributions to this fieldwork.
Funding
The study was funded by the National Nonprofit Institute Research Grant of CAF (CAFYBB2017ZB003), the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2016YFD0600201) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31870716).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
Mingzhen Sui, Qing Xu, and Beibei Zhang conceived and designed research. Mingzhen Sui, Deqiang Gao, and Ying Zhang conducted experiments. Mingzhen Sui and Qing Xu analyzed data and wrote the manuscript. Mingzhen Sui, Beibei Zhang, Qing Xu, and Silong Wang writing-review and ending. All authors read and approved the manuscript.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Ethics approval
Not applicable.
Consent to participate
Not applicable.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could appear to influence the work reported in this paper.
Additional information
Responsible Editor: Janusz J. Zwiazek.
Publisher’s note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Supplementary Information
ESM 1
(DOCX 206 kb)
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Sui, M., Zhang, B., Xu, Q. et al. Effects of plantation types and patterns on rainfall partition in soil in a mid-subtropical region of China. Plant Soil 466, 223–237 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-021-05042-4
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-021-05042-4