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Manganese uptake by red maples in response to mineral dissolution rates in soil

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Abstract

Manganese (Mn) is an essential plant micronutrient that influences photosynthesis, ecosystem productivity, and soil carbon storage. Our objective was to quantify how Mn uptake by forest vegetation relates to Mn release into soil solution through mineral dissolution. A greenhouse pot experiment was conducted to quantify Mn uptake by red maple saplings as a function of mineral solubility to test whether Mn uptake was limited by the supply of Mn to soil solution. Differences in soil microbial community composition between treatments, particularly amongst Mn cycling bacteria and fungi, were also evaluated to assess potential microbial impacts on observed Mn fluxes. Plant Mn uptake was highest in systems supplied with dissolved Mn(II) because it was not kinetically limited by mineral weathering. Mn uptake was also higher in systems supplied with a fast-weathering substrate (shale containing Mn(II)-bearing pyrite) than a slow-weathering substrate (Mn(IV)-oxide). However, vegetation accumulated a decreasing proportion of available Mn with increasing solubility, indicating that uptake was tempered relative to solubility. The presence of bacterial phyla containing known Mn-oxidizing bacteria indicates the potential for Mn-oxidizing bacteria to influence Mn solubility within Mn-oxide and dissolved Mn treatments. A relatively low abundance of these bacteria points to their limited capacity to oxidize and retain Mn in the shale treatments, consistent with substantial Mn leaching. We conclude that Mn uptake was primarily controlled by dissolution rates of Mn-bearing minerals but modified by biological processes. The quantitative framework presented here can guide understanding of how biogeochemical processes control element cycling between plants and soils.

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Data availability

All sequence data were deposited with associated metadata in the NCBI Sequence Read Archive under BioProject PRJNA679332, with BioSample numbers SAMN16829904 through SAMN16829964. All other data are available in the main text or supporting information.

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Acknowledgements

This work was sponsored by the Laboratory Directed Research and Development Program of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, managed by UT-Battelle, LCC for the US Department of Energy under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725. Funding for this work was also provided by National Science Foundation grant EAR-1749849 to Herndon and through a Geological Society of America student grant to Kruse. The authors thank Chelsea Smith and Chris Blackwood for assistance with microbial sampling protocols, Christie Bahlai for statistical advice, and Nicholas Johnson for assistance with ICP use and maintenance.

Funding

This work was sponsored by the Laboratory Directed Research and Development Program of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, managed by UT-Battelle, LCC for the US Department of Energy under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725. Funding for this work was also provided by National Science Foundation grant EAR-1749849 to Herndon and through a Geological Society of America student grant to Kruse.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geology, Kent State University, Kent, OH, USA

    Sydney Kruse & Elizabeth Herndon

  2. Section of Minerals & Earth Sciences, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Carla Rosenfeld

  3. Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, USA

    Elizabeth Herndon

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  1. Sydney Kruse
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  2. Carla Rosenfeld
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  3. Elizabeth Herndon
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Contributions

SK conducted all experiments, processed and interpreted geochemical data, and wrote the manuscript. CR processed, analyzed, and interpreted all microbial data. EH provided funding, designed and oversaw the project, and contributed to geochemical data interpretation. All authors contributed to manuscript preparation.

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Correspondence to Elizabeth Herndon.

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Kruse, S., Rosenfeld, C. & Herndon, E. Manganese uptake by red maples in response to mineral dissolution rates in soil. Biogeochemistry 155, 147–168 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-021-00817-4

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