Is coarse woody debris a net sink or source of nitrogen in the red spruce - Fraser fir forest of the southern Appalachians, USA?
Creed IF, Morrison DL, Nicholas NS. 2004. Is coarse woody debris a net sink or source of nitrogen in the red spruce - Fraser fir forest of the southern Appalachians, USA?. Canadian Journal of Forest Research. 34:716-727
Researchers examined a the role of carbon woody debris (CWD) on nitrogen saturation in a red spruce (Picea rubens) - Fraser fir (Abies fraseri) forest in the Noland Divide watershed, located in Great Smoky Mountains National Park in the summers of 1998 and 1998. The forest is in advanced stages of nitrogen saturation, due to high inputs of nitrogen by dry and cloud deposition. The objective of the study was to find out if CWD is a net sources or sink of nitrogen in the system. Researchers collected coarse woody debris (CWD) in GRSM, using N content in standing live trees and snags as a reference point-- to see if CWD may have an effect on the nitrogen (N) export signal in streams, and if the sequence of decay of CWD would reveal nitrogen dynamics within the system. Results showed that CWD was a net source of N in early stages of decay and a net store or sink of N in later stages of decay.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Creed, I; Morrison, D; Nicholas, N
- Units
- ARD , GRSM
- Keywords
- Abies fraseri, AIRBIB, APHN, Appalachian Highlands Network, ARD_Park-Air-Info_Collection, coarse woody debris (CWD), Deposition, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, GRSM, GRSM-00175, GRSM-00694, Nitrogen, Picea rubens, SER, Southeast Region, Southern Appalachians, Streams, Sulfur