Managing Agroecosystems for Soil Microbial Carbon Use Efficiency: Ecological Unknowns, Potential Outcomes, and a Path Forward

Agricultural systems are increasingly managed for improving soil carbon (C) accumulation. However, there are limits to C returns in agricultural systems that constrain soil C accumulation capacity. Increasing the efficiency of how soil microbes process C is gaining interest as an important managemen...

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Autores principales: Kallenbach, Cynthia M., Wallenstein, Matthew D., Schipanksi, Meagan E., Grandy, A. Stuart
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Frontiers Media S.A. 2019
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6543778/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31178846
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2019.01146
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author Kallenbach, Cynthia M.
Wallenstein, Matthew D.
Schipanksi, Meagan E.
Grandy, A. Stuart
author_facet Kallenbach, Cynthia M.
Wallenstein, Matthew D.
Schipanksi, Meagan E.
Grandy, A. Stuart
author_sort Kallenbach, Cynthia M.
collection PubMed
description Agricultural systems are increasingly managed for improving soil carbon (C) accumulation. However, there are limits to C returns in agricultural systems that constrain soil C accumulation capacity. Increasing the efficiency of how soil microbes process C is gaining interest as an important management strategy for increasing soil C and is a key feature of soil C dynamics in many new microbial-explicit models. A higher microbial C use efficiency (CUE) may increase C storage while reducing C system losses and is a fundamental trait affecting community assembly dynamics and nutrient cycling. However, the numerous ecological unknowns influencing CUE limit our ability to effectively manage CUE in agricultural soils for greater soil C storage. In this perspective, we consider three complex drivers of agroecosystem CUE that need to be resolved to develop effective C sequestration management practices in the future: (1) the environment as an individual trait moderator versus a filter, (2) microbial community competitive and faciliatory interactions, and (3) spatiotemporal dynamics through the soil profile and across the microbial lifecycle. We highlight ways that amendments, crop rotations, and tillage practices might affect microbial CUE conditions and the variable outcomes of these practices. We argue that to resolve some of the unknowns of CUE dynamics, we need to include more mechanistic, trait-based approaches that capitalize on advanced methods and innovative field research designs within an agroecosystem-specific context. By identifying the management-level determinants of CUE expression, we will be better positioned to optimize CUE to increase soil C storage in agricultural systems.
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spelling pubmed-65437782019-06-07 Managing Agroecosystems for Soil Microbial Carbon Use Efficiency: Ecological Unknowns, Potential Outcomes, and a Path Forward Kallenbach, Cynthia M. Wallenstein, Matthew D. Schipanksi, Meagan E. Grandy, A. Stuart Front Microbiol Microbiology Agricultural systems are increasingly managed for improving soil carbon (C) accumulation. However, there are limits to C returns in agricultural systems that constrain soil C accumulation capacity. Increasing the efficiency of how soil microbes process C is gaining interest as an important management strategy for increasing soil C and is a key feature of soil C dynamics in many new microbial-explicit models. A higher microbial C use efficiency (CUE) may increase C storage while reducing C system losses and is a fundamental trait affecting community assembly dynamics and nutrient cycling. However, the numerous ecological unknowns influencing CUE limit our ability to effectively manage CUE in agricultural soils for greater soil C storage. In this perspective, we consider three complex drivers of agroecosystem CUE that need to be resolved to develop effective C sequestration management practices in the future: (1) the environment as an individual trait moderator versus a filter, (2) microbial community competitive and faciliatory interactions, and (3) spatiotemporal dynamics through the soil profile and across the microbial lifecycle. We highlight ways that amendments, crop rotations, and tillage practices might affect microbial CUE conditions and the variable outcomes of these practices. We argue that to resolve some of the unknowns of CUE dynamics, we need to include more mechanistic, trait-based approaches that capitalize on advanced methods and innovative field research designs within an agroecosystem-specific context. By identifying the management-level determinants of CUE expression, we will be better positioned to optimize CUE to increase soil C storage in agricultural systems. Frontiers Media S.A. 2019-05-24 /pmc/articles/PMC6543778/ /pubmed/31178846 http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2019.01146 Text en Copyright © 2019 Kallenbach, Wallenstein, Schipanksi and Grandy. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
spellingShingle Microbiology
Kallenbach, Cynthia M.
Wallenstein, Matthew D.
Schipanksi, Meagan E.
Grandy, A. Stuart
Managing Agroecosystems for Soil Microbial Carbon Use Efficiency: Ecological Unknowns, Potential Outcomes, and a Path Forward
title Managing Agroecosystems for Soil Microbial Carbon Use Efficiency: Ecological Unknowns, Potential Outcomes, and a Path Forward
title_full Managing Agroecosystems for Soil Microbial Carbon Use Efficiency: Ecological Unknowns, Potential Outcomes, and a Path Forward
title_fullStr Managing Agroecosystems for Soil Microbial Carbon Use Efficiency: Ecological Unknowns, Potential Outcomes, and a Path Forward
title_full_unstemmed Managing Agroecosystems for Soil Microbial Carbon Use Efficiency: Ecological Unknowns, Potential Outcomes, and a Path Forward
title_short Managing Agroecosystems for Soil Microbial Carbon Use Efficiency: Ecological Unknowns, Potential Outcomes, and a Path Forward
title_sort managing agroecosystems for soil microbial carbon use efficiency: ecological unknowns, potential outcomes, and a path forward
topic Microbiology
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6543778/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31178846
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2019.01146
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