Summary
Peat cores, 0–60 cm depth, were taken on 14 occasions from three experimental plots where the water levels in the surrounding ditches had been artificially controlled for 14 years at 0, 20 and 50 cm below the surface. Numbers of aerobic and anaerobic ammonifying bacteria in the profile were significantly increased (P< 0.05) by lowering the water level from 0 to 50 cm. These increases occurred mainly in the surface 20 cm horizon, where 80%–90% of the ammonifying bacteria in the profile occurred. Mineral N in fresh samples, which was present almost entirely as ammonium, decreased sharply with depth below 20 cm, and on two occasions concentrations were significantly greater (P<0.05) in plots with water levels at 20 and 50 cm than in the flooded peat. Readily mineralized N, produced during waterlogged incubation at 30°C for 9 weeks, was significantly greater (P<0.05) on eight occasions in samples from plots with water levels at 20 or 50 cm than in those where the water level was at the surface. Calculations showed that the increases in N availability as a result of lowering the water-table could be attributed mainly to deeper rooting.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Anderson JPE, Domsch KH (1978) A physiological method for the quantitative measurement of microbial biomass in soil. Soil Biol Biochem 10:215–221
Boggie RB (1972) Effect of water-table height on root development of Pinus contorta on deep peat in Scotland. Oikos 23:304–312
Boggie R (1977) Water-table depth and oxygen content of deep peat in relations to root growth of Pinus contorta. Plant Soil 48:447–454
Boggie R, Miller HG (1976) Growth of Pinus contorta at different water-table levels in deep blanket peat. Forestry 49:123–131
Collins VG, D'Sylva BT, Latter PM (1978) Microbial populations in peat. In: Heal OW, Perkins DF (eds) Production ecology of British moors and montane grasslands. Springer, Berlin Heidelberg New York, pp 94–112
Crooke WM, Simpson WE (1971) Determination of ammonium in Kjeldahl digests of crops by an automated procedure. J Sci Food Agric 22:9–10
Darbyshire JF, Wheatley RE, Greaves MP, Inkson RHE (1974) A rapid method for estimating bacterial and protozoan populations in soil. Rev Ecol Biol Sol 11:465–475
Dickson DA, Savill PS (1974) Early growth of Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr. on deep oligotrophic peat in Northern Ireland. Forestry 47:57–88
Hart PBS, Sparling GP, Kings JA (1986) Relationship between mineralisable nitrogen and microbial biomass in a range of plant litters, peats and soils of moderate to low pH. NZ J Agric Res 29:681–686
Henriksen A, Selmer-Olsen AR (1970) Automated methods for determining nitrite and nitrate in water and soil extracts. Analyst 95:514–518
Isirimah NO, Keeney DR (1973) Nitrogen transformations in aerobic and waterlogged histosols. Soil Sci 115:123–129
Killham K (1986) Heterotrophic nitrification. Spec Publ Soc Gen Microbiol 20:117–126
Klemedtsson L, Svensson BH, Lindberg T, Rosswall T (1977) The use of acetylene inhibition of nitrous oxide reductase in quantifying denitrification in soils. Swed J Agric Res 7:179–185
Kroeckel L, Stolp H (1986) Influence of the water regime on denitrification and aerobic respiration in soil. Biol Fertil Soils 2:15–21
Lewis RF, Pramer D (1958) Isolation of Nitrosomonas in pure culture. J Bacteriol 76:524–528
Megraw SR, Knowles R (1987) Active methanotrophs suppress nitrification in a humisol. Biol Fertil Soils 4:205–212
Murphy J, Riley JP (1962) A modified single solution method for the determination of phosphate in natural waters. Anal Chim Acta 27:31–36
Parkinson D, Gray TRG, Williams ST (1971) Methods for studying the ecology of soil microorganisms. International Biological Programme Handbook. Blackwell, Oxford
Rosswall T, Granhall V (1980) Nitrogen cycling in a subarctic ombrotrophic mire. In: Sonesson M (ed) Ecology of a subarctic mire. Swed Nat Sci Res Counc, Stockholm, pp 209–234
Segeberg H von (1955) Zur Kenntnis der spezifischen Gewichte von Niedermoortorfen. Z Pflanzenernaehr Bodenkd 71:133–141
Smith SM, Zimmerman K (1981) Nitrous oxide production by non denitrifying soil nitrate reducers. Soil Sci Soc Am J 45:865–871
Sowden FJ, Morita H, Levesque M (1978) Organic nitrogen distribution in selected peats and peat fractions. Can J Soil Sci 58:237–249
Stanier RV (1947) Studies on non-fruiting myxobacteria. J Bacteriol 53:297–315
Wall LL, Gehrke CW, Neuner TE, Cathey RD, Rexroad PR (1975) Total protein nitrogen: Evaluation and comparison of four different methods. J Assoc Off Agric Chem 58:807–811
Williams BL (1974) Effect of water-table level on nitrogen mineralization in peat. Forestry 47:195–202
Williams BL (1984) The influence of peatland type and the chemical characteristics of peat on the content of readily mineralized nitrogen. In: Proc 7th Int Peat Congr, Dublin 1984, 4:410–418 Irish National Peat Society, Dublin
Williams BL, Sparling GP (1988) Microbial biomass carbon and readily mineralized nitrogen in peat and forest humus. Soil Biol Biochem (in press)
Williams RT, Crawford RL (1983) Microbial diversity of Minnesota peatlands. Microb Ecol 9:201–214
Zimenko TG, Misnik AG (1970) Effect of ground water level on ammonification and nitrification in peat bog soils. Mikrobiologiya 39:522–526
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Williams, B.L., Wheatley, R.E. Nitrogen mineralization and water-table height in oligotrophic deep peat. Biol Fert Soils 6, 141–147 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00257664
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00257664