• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
• /
• v.97 no.2
• /
• pp.165-170
• /
• 2008

Litterfall has been recognized an important part of the forest ecosystem production, playing a major pathway in energy flow and nutrient cycling through the ecosystem. This study was carried out to examine the quantity and components, temporal variation, and spatial heterogeneity of the litterfall in the mixed broadleaved-Korean pine forest. The data were collected from the 9ha permanent experimental plot, of which on the center area, i.e. $150m{\times}150m$, the total number of 319 circular litterfall traps with the size of $0.5m^2$ were established to collect falling litterfall. The results showed that the annual amount of litterfall was totalized 3,033.7 kg/ha, occupying broad-leaves of 39.3%, conifer-leaves of 29.5%, others of 18.5%, branches of 10.4%, and seeds of 2.3%. The peak point of the litterfall production was made at the end of September, proportionating 32.2% of total amount. The analysis of semivariogram revealed the existence of high spatial heterogeneity, calculated the scale of spatial heterogeneity ranged from 11.6 m to 29.1 m. The result of proportion (C/[Co+C]) showed that spatial heterogeneity of autocorrelation in total spatial heterogeneity were from 97.0% to 100%. The relatively heavy branches and others had significant differences in litterfall production between the areas of canopy gap and closed canopy in the 95% probability level, but the other components did not show statistical differences.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
• /
• v.29 no.3
• /
• pp.205-212
• /
• 2006

Effects of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilization on nutrient dynamics and litterfall production were determined in adjacent 41-year-old plantations of Pinus rigida Miller and Larix kaempferi Gordon on a similar soil in Yangpyeong, Gyeongggi Province. Litterfall production were significantly different among sampling dates and between the tree species, whereas it was not significantly different among the treatments. Total annual litterfall production was 6,377 kg/ha for P. rigida and 4,778 kg/ha for L. kaempferi, respectively. Litterfall nutrient concentrations of L. kaempferi were higher than those of P. rigida. For both tree species, litterfall nutrient concentrations were highest in summer when the least litterfall production occurred, and lowest in late-autumn when the greatest litterfall production occurred, except for Ca in the L. kaempferi stand. The amount of total organic matter in the forest floor of P. rigida and L. kaempferi plantations were 24,296 kg/ha and 10,763 kg/ha, respectively. Forest floor N and P contents were 126, 10 kg/ha for P. rigida and 102, 8 kg/ha for L. kaempferi, respectively.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
• /
• v.35 no.2
• /
• pp.99-109
• /
• 2012

Litterfall dynamics in forests are assessed by estimating biomass production and decomposition. However, there have been few studies on how litter dynamics impact the health and management of ecosystems. Here, a new approach to measure and assess ecosystem function is presented based on conventional methods using littertraps, litterbags, and the mass on the forest floor. To assess the status of litter dynamics, the decay rate (k) was estimated from a litterbag experiment, and removal rates ($k_i$) were determined from mass balance on the forest floor at 21 sites on three mountains in South Korea. The $k_3$ (organic mass ratio of $O_i$ and $O_e+O_a$ + A horizons in November) values in an equilibrium state in South Korea were within the range of $k{\pm}0.174$ when considering the annual variation of litterfall production. This study also suggests that sampling sites for these types of studies should be in the middle, not at the ends, of steady slopes on the forest floor.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
• /
• v.30 no.1
• /
• pp.63-68
• /
• 2007

Litter production, nutrient contents of each component of litterfall and amount of nutrients returned to forest floor via litterfall were investigated from May 2005 through April 2006 in Quercus mongolica, Quercus variabilis and Pinus densiflora forests at Mt. Worak National Park. Total amount of litterfall during one year in Q. mongolica, Q. variabilis and P. densiflora forests was 542.7, 459.2 and $306.9\;g\;m^{-2}\;yr^{-1}$, respectively. Of the total litterfall, leaf litter, branch and bark, reproductive organ and the others occupied 50.3%, 22.7%, 10.1 % and 16.9% in Q. mongolica forest, 81.9%, 7.2%, 3.1% and 7.9% in Q. variabilis forest, 57.4%, 12.8%, 5.6% and 24.1 % in P. densiflora forest, respectively. Nutrients concentrations in oak litterfall were higher than those in needle litter. N, P, K, Ca and Mg concentration in leaf litterfall were 13.8, 1.1, 7.2, 4.2 and 1.3 mg/g for Q. mongolica forest, 10.5, 0.7, 3.2, 3.7 and 1.6 mg/g for Q. variabilis forest, 5.3, 0.4, 1.2, 2.8 and 0.6mg/g for P. densiflora forest, respectively. The amount of annual input of N, P, K, Ca and Mg to the forest floor via litterfall was 43.36, 2.89, 21.38, 23.31 and $5.62\;kg\;ha^{-1}\;yr^{-1}$ for Q. mongolica forest, 32.28, 2.01, 10.23, 20.29 and $7.78\;kg\;ha^{-1}\;yr^{-1}$ for Q. variabilis forest, 15.80, 1.04, 3.99, 9.70 and $2.10\;kg\;ha^{-1}\;yr^{-1}$ for P. densiflora forest, respectively.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
• /
• v.27 no.3
• /
• pp.261-265
• /
• 2009

Litter production, nutrient concentration of each component of litterfall and amount of nutrients input to forest floor via litterfall were investigated for three years from May 2005 through April 2008 in Pinus densiflora forest at Mt. Worak National Park. Amount of litterfall in 2005, 2006, 2007 were 3.070, 3.066, 3.099 ton $ha^{-1}yr^{-1}$, respectively. Average amount of litterfall for three years was $3.078{\pm}0.018\;ton\;ha^{-1}yr^{-1}$. Average percentage of leaf litter, branch and bark, reproductive organ and the miscellaneous for three years were 61.9, 10.4, 5.2, 22.5%, respectively. Average amount of N, P, K, Ca and Mg returned to forest floor via litterfall for three years in this P. densiflora forest were 18.014, 0.878, 4.240, 7.349 and 2.172 kg $ha^{-1}yr^{-1}$, respectively.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
• /
• v.7 no.3
• /
• pp.227-234
• /
• 2005

From published data of mature forests worldwide, Raich and Nadelhoffer suggested that total belowground carbon allocation (TBCA) could be estimated from the difference between annual rates of soil respiration and aboveground litterfall. Here we analyze new measurements of IRGA-based soil respiration and litterfall of natural mature oak forests dominated by Quercus mongolica in Korea. Rates of in situ soil respiration and aboveground litter production are highly and positively correlated. Our results disagree with the Raich and Nadelhoffer model far world forests. A regression analysis of the data from Q. mongolica forests produced the following relationship: annual soil respiration : 141 + 2.08 ${\times}$ annual litterfall. The least squares regression line has a more gentle slope (2.08) than the slope (2.92) described by Raich and Nedelhoffer for mature forests worldwide. The regression slope of our study indicates that, on average, soil respiration is about two times the aboveground litterfall-C, which further implies that TBCA is similar with annual aboveground litterfall-C at natural Q. mongolica forests in Korea. The non-zero Y-intercept (141) of the regression indicates that TBCA may be greater than litterfall-C where litterfall rate are relativery low. Over a gradient of litterfall-C ranging from 200-370 g C $m^{-2}yr^{-l}$, TBCA increased from 350-530 g C $m^{-2}yr^{-l}$.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
• /
• v.44 no.2
• /
• pp.81-89
• /
• 2020

In the forest ecosystems, litterfall is an important component of the nutrient cycle that regulates the accumulation of soil organic matter (SOM), the input and output of the nutrients, nutrient replenishment, biodiversity conservation, and other ecosystem functions. Therefore, a profound understanding of the major processes (litterfall production and its decomposition rate) in the cycle is vital for sustainable forest management (SFM). Despite these facts, there is still a limited knowledge in tropical forest ecosystems, and further researches are highly needed. This shortfall of research-based knowledge, especially in tropical forest ecosystems, may be a contributing factor to the lack of understanding of the role of plant litter in the forest ecosystem function for sustainable forest management, particularly in the tropical forest landscapes. Therefore, in this paper, I review the role of plant litter in tropical forest ecosystems with the aims of assessing the importance of plant litter in forest ecosystems for the biogeochemical cycle. Then, the major factors that affect the plant litter production and decomposition were identified, which could direct and contribute to future research. The small set of studies reviewed in this paper demonstrated the potential of plant litter to improve the biogeochemical cycle and nutrients in the forest ecosystems. However, further researches are needed particularly on the effect of species, forest structures, seasons, and climate factors on the plant litter production and decomposition in various types of forest ecosystems.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
• /
• v.102 no.2
• /
• pp.210-215
• /
• 2013

Litterfall production represents a major contribution of carbon and nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems. This study was carried out to determine the litterfall production in a broadleaved deciduous forest at the Mt. Keumsan Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) site, Southern Korea. Littefall was collected monthly or bimonthly from the site for 7 years from 2004 to2010. Leaf and reproductive (catkins) litters showed a seasonal variation, but litters of needle, branch, and barks were not changed across the seasons. Annual leaf litter of Quercus serrata and Carpinus laxiflora were significantly different (p<0.05) but that of C. cordata, Chamaecyparis obtusa, and Pinus thunbergii was not significantly changed for 7 years (p>0.05). Annual average litterfall production was 5,223 kg/ha, but annual variations were very large with minimum of 4,110 kg/ha/yr in 2004 and maximum of 6,002 kg/ha/yr in 2007. Total litterfall comprised of 2,323 kg/ha/yr in Q. serrata, 442 kg/ha/yr in C. laxiflora, 157 kg/ha/yr in C. cordata, 131 kg/ha/yr in Acer pseudosieboldianum, 390 kg/ha/yr in other deciduous tree species, 74 kg/ha/yr in P. thunbergii, 37 kg/ha/yr in C. obtusa, 672 kg/ha/yr in branches, 515 kg/ha/yr in miscellaneous, 448 kg/ha/yr in reproductive parts, and 54 kg/ha/yr in barks. respectively. The results indicate that litterfall production of the Mt. Keumsan LTER site was yearly fructurated with the positive linear relationship between leaf or total litterfall and annual mean temperature if no disturbance such as a typoon, and was lower than that of other Korean LTER sites.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
• /
• v.32 no.3
• /
• pp.159-165
• /
• 2009

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of thinning on fine root biomass and vertical distribution. and litterfall amount in a 50 year old Pinus koraiensis plantation in Chuncheon, Kangwon Province. Fine root (< 2 mm in diameter) biomass ($367\;g/m^2$) in the site 'OC_75', thinning once in 1975, was 68% of those in the site 'CON', no thinning after planting, and in the site 'TC_00', thinning twice in 1975 and 2000. There were no significant differences of dead roots among treatments. Diameter $0{\sim}1\;mm$ roots were vertically decreased only in the TC_00 site. The litterfall was very similar between OC_75 ($5.2\;Mg\;ha^{-1}\;yr^{-1}$) and TC_00 ($4.7\;Mg\;ha^{-1}\;yr^{-1}$), but the composition of litterfall was different: The proportion of leaves and branches was 80% and 13% in OC_75 and 56% and 36% in TC_00, respectively. Reduction of P. koraiensis density by thinning decreased leaf litter as well as fine roots of P. koraiensis, but increased fine roots production by neighboring understory plants offset the reduction of fine roots of P. koraiensis. We suggest that belowground as well as aboveground responses, including both over- and understory vegetation, should be considered to measure the responses of trees in thinned forest ecosystems.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
• /
• v.25 no.4
• /
• pp.573-580
• /
• 2011

Litter production, nutrient concentration of each component of litterfall and amount of nutrients input to forest floor via litterfall were investigated for four years from May 2005 through April 2009 in Quercus variabilis forest at Mt. Worak National Park. Amount of litterfall in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 were 5.181, 5.372, 5.314, 5.361 ton $ha^{-1}yr^{-1}$, respectively. Average amount of litterfall for four years was 5.307${\pm}$0.09 ton $ha^{-1}yr^{-1}$. Average percentage of leaf litter, branch and bark, reproductive organ and the miscellaneous for four years were 67.5${\pm}$1.9, 13.3${\pm}$0.8, 10.1${\pm}$0.5 and 9.1${\pm}$1.2%, respectively. Average amount of N, P, K, Ca and Mg returned to forest floor via litterfall for four years in this Q. variabilis forest were 44.47${\pm}$6.70, 2.50${\pm}$0.25, 12.26${\pm}$0.30, 17.23${\pm}$2.32 and 9.56${\pm}$0.54 kg $ha^{-1}yr^{-1}$, respectively.