Understory Vegetation in Oil Palm Plantations Benefits Soil Biodiversity and Decomposition Rates
Understory Vegetation in Oil Palm Plantations Benefits Soil Biodiversity and Decomposition Rates
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DOI：
10.3389/ffgc.2018.00010
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发表时间：
2018-12-14
影响因子：
3.2
通讯作者：
Snaddon, Jake L.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Ashton-Butt, Adham;Aryawan, Anak A. K.;Snaddon, Jake L.
油棕是单位面积产量最高的植物油作物，对马来西亚和印度尼西亚等发展中国家的经济至关重要。然而，由于它对生物多样性的影响，它也备受争议。用于控制种植园林下植被的除草剂投入量很高，这可能会损害本地生物多样性，但对于保护油棕产量来说可能是不必要的。在这项研究中，我们研究了使用除草剂进行林下操作对土壤动物、凋落物分解率和土壤非生物变量的影响：pH、土壤有机碳、土壤含水量、氮、碳/氮比、钾和磷。林下植被通过三种处理进行处理：增强林下复杂性（不使用除草剂，发达的林下植被），正常林下复杂性（中间使用除草剂并进行一些手动去除）和降低林下复杂性（大量使用除草剂，没有林下植被）。处理两年后，增强处理和林下处理减少的土壤大型动物多样性高于正常处理。此外，增强林下处理的大型动物丰度和凋落物分解均高于减少林下处理。相比之下，处理之间的土壤肥力没有变化，这可能表明油棕和林下植被之间几乎没有竞争。应鼓励油棕种植园减少除草剂的使用，这不仅可以降低种植成本，还可以改善土壤生物多样性和生态系统功能。
Oil palm is the most productive vegetable oil crop per unit area and is crucial to the economy of developing countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia. However, it is also highly controversial due to the impact it has on biodiversity. Inputs of herbicides to control understory vegetation in plantations are high, which is likely to harm native biodiversity, but may be unnecessary in protecting oil palm yield. In this study we investigate the effects of understory manipulation using herbicides on soil fauna, litter decomposition rates, and soil abiotic variables: pH, soil organic carbon, soil water content, nitrogen, carbon/nitrogen ratio, potassium, and phosphorous. Understory vegetation was manipulated in three treatments: enhanced understory complexity (no herbicides, developed understory), normal understory complexity (intermediate herbicide use with some manual removal) and reduced understory complexity (heavy herbicide use, no understory vegetation). Two years after treatment, soil macrofauna diversity was higher in the enhanced than the normal, and reduced understory treatment. Furthermore, both macrofauna abundance and litter decomposition was higher in the enhanced than the reduced understory treatment. By contrast, soil fertility did not change between treatments, perhaps indicating there is little competition between oil palms, and understory vegetation. The reduction of herbicide use should be encouraged in oil palm plantations, this will not only reduce plantation costs, but improve soil biodiversity, and ecosystem functioning.