Abstract:
To understand the characteristics of soil organic carbon and its correlations with soil properties in the
three original Pinus koraiensis forest types in XiaoXing' an Mountains of northeastern China, Picea sp. -
Abies sp. -Pinus koraiensis forests, Tilia sp. -Pinus koraiensis forests and Quercus mongolica-Pinus
koraiensis forests along elevation gradient were selected for this study, and soil samples were analyzed for
soil total organic carbon (TOC), easily-oxidized carbon (EOC), microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and
basic properties. Results showed that the contents of soil TOC, EOC and MBC in the three forest types
decreased with increase of soil depth. Exception of the depth of 10 - 20 cm, the soil TOC and EOC
concentration ranged in order as follows: Quercus mongolica-Pinus koraiensis forests Tilia sp. -Pinus
koraiensis forests Picea sp. -Abies sp. -Pinus koraiensis forests, it had the same trend as elevation
gradient. Soil MBC varied in different soil depths for the three forest types. Soil EOC, MBC and TOC
were all significantly related to total N and C/N, and were negatively significantly related to soil bulk
density. We concluded that the combined effects of forest type, elevation, and soil environment contributed
to the differences in the soil organic carbon found across the three original P. koraiensis forest types.