Hannu Fritze. (1992). Effects of environmental pollution on forest soil microflora - a review. Silva Fennica vol. 26 no. 1 article id 5471. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.a15632

Keywords: soil respiration; forest soil; litter decomposition; acidification; lime; heavy metals; pollution; microflora; fungal hyphae

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The article is a literature review focusing on the reaction of soil respiration, litter decomposition and microflora of forest soils to various pollutants like acidic deposition, heavy metals and unusual high amounts of basic cations. There is a great deal of evidence indicating that environmental pollution affects soil microbial activity and community structure. Much of the data originates from experimental designs where high levels of pollutants were applied to the soil under field or laboratory conditions. Furthermore, many were short-term experiments designed to look for large effects. These experiments have an indicative value, but it has to be kept in mind that environmental pollution is a combination of many pollutants, mostly at low concentrations, acting over long periods of time. There is therefore consequently a demand for research performed in natural forest environments polluted with anthropogenic compounds.

Fritze, E-mail: hf@mm.unknown

Category : Research article

article id 53, category Research article

Saana Kataja-aho, Aino Smolander, Hannu Fritze, Sini Norrgård, Jari Haimi. (2012). Responses of soil carbon and nitrogen transformations to stump removal. Silva Fennica vol. 46 no. 2 article id 53. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.53

Keywords: biofuel; boreal forest; carbon; nitrogen; nutrient dynamics; stump removal

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We studied in central Finland whether stump harvesting after clear felling of coniferous forest poses further short-term changes in soil carbon and nitrogen dynamics when compared to the traditional site preparation method, mounding. Exposed mineral soil patches in Norway spruce (Picea abies) dominated clear-cut stands were sampled 1–5 years after the treatments. The extent of the exposed mineral soil surface was significantly larger at the stump removal sites when compared to the mounding sites. No differences were found in soil pH, organic matter content or total concentration of soil C between the treatments or treatment years. Total concentration of soil N was consistently higher and C:N ratio lower in the stump removal plots than in the mounded plots. Further, both net N mineralisation and nitrification were clearly increased in the stump removal plots one year after the treatments. Soil microbial activity (CO₂ production) was higher in the stump removal plots but similar difference was not found in sieved soil samples incubated in the laboratory. Fluxes of other important greenhouse gases (CH₄ and N₂O) did not seem to be affected by stump removal. The differences between the stump removal and mounding procedures were most obviously attributed to more substantial soil disturbance by stump pulling and/or differences in the microbial communities and quality of soil organic matter in the differently treated soil.

Kataja-aho, University of Jyväskylä, Dept. of Biological and Environmental Science, Jyväskylä, Finland E-mail: saana.m.kataja-aho@jyu.fi
Smolander, Finnish Forest Research Institute, Vantaa, Finland E-mail: as@nn.fi
Fritze, Finnish Forest Research Institute, Vantaa, Finland E-mail: hf@nn.fi
Norrgård, University of Jyväskylä, Dept. of Biological and Environmental Science, Jyväskylä, Finland E-mail: sn@nn.fi
Haimi, University of Jyväskylä, Dept. of Biological and Environmental Science, Jyväskylä, Finland E-mail: jh@nn.fi

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