| title: | Nitrogen and phosphorus budget in young silver birch stand on abandoned agricultural land. |
|---|---|
| reg no: | ETF5748 |
| project type: | Estonian Science Foundation research grant |
| subject: |
4.3. Sylviculture, Forestry |
| status: | accepted |
| institution: | EAU Faculty of Forestry |
| head of project: | Veiko Uri |
| duration: | 01.01.2004 - 31.12.2006 |
| description: | During the last decade extensive natural afforestation of agricultural land has taken place in Estonia. Namely, the amount of silver birch stands growing on former farmland is increasing, while the knowledge of the production of such areas and nutrient cycling in them as well as of their impact on the soil are yet scanty. Afforestation of agricultural land brings about various changes in the environment, incl. cycling of nitrogen and phosphorus which is qualitatively and quantitatively different for different tree species. The main aim of the present project is to assess the changes in nitrogen and phosphorus cycling as a consequence of the afforestation of agricultural land with silver birch. To characterise nitrogen and prosphorus cycling, the budget of these elements will be compiled. For this, the NP pools and fluxes will be estimated on former agricultural land afforestated with silver birch and, simultaneously, on an adjacent non-afforested land on a similar soil (control plot). As among the most common soils in southern and south-eastern Estonia is pseudopodzolic soil, a regenerated natural silver birch stand growing on this soil type is planned to establish as the experimental area. The following fluxes and pools will be assessed: annual NP demand of the stand and of the ground vegetation, NP retranslocation in the trees and in the ground vegetation, the amount of NP released in the decomposition of leaf and root litter, net nitrogen mineralisation, denitrification and leaching of nitrogen and phosphorus. The planned study would allow to clarify several changes related to afforestation of agricultural land such as accumulation of nutrients and carbon in biomass and in the soil, possible leaching of nutrients into soil water, etc. As a part of annual nutrient balance is assessed through biomass production, the proposed study would allow to estimate the production capacity of silver birch stands growing on former farmland. The results of the project would help optimise the afforestation of agricultural land and land use generally and would allow to assess the impact of afforestation process on the environment. |
| project group | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| no | name | institution | position | |
| 1. | Hardi Tullus | EPMÜ | õppeprorektor, professor | |
| 2. | Veiko Uri | EAU Faculty of Forestry | Assist. prof | |
| 3. | Aivo Vares | EPMÜ | teadur, doktorant | |