Mission Kearney Foundation of Soil Science…使命科尔尼土壤科学基金会.pdfVIP

2006-2011 Mission Kearney Foundation of Soil Science: Understanding and Managing Soil-Ecosystem Functions Across Spatial and Temporal Scales Progress Report: 2009018, 1/1/2010-12/31/2010 Soil Functions in Wildland – Alfalfa Ecosystems of Owens Valley Area, California * Patricia Menchaca and Robert C. Graham Project Objectives (i) Determine how alfalfa cultivation changes soil properties relative to native ecosystems. (ii) Evaluate soil responses to crop abandonment. Approach and Procedures Work during this funding period focused on locating sites and the completion of field sampling. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and private land owners allotted a limited time to access sites; so we worked to complete fieldwork according to the time limitation and before soils became frozen in the winter. Lab analyses thus far include total carbon for selected field sites and some bulk density measurements. Two sites within the Owens Valley have been located and sampled. One site is located near Big Pine, CA which is owned by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and managed by a private individual and the second is in Hammil Valley, CA. which is owned and managed by a private individual (Figure 1). The Big Pine site includes an alfalfa field that has been cultivated since 1931, a wildland area, and an area that has been abandoned for approximately 70 years. (Figure 2). The Hammil Valley site includes alfalfa fields that have been under cultivation for approximately 12, 30, 60, and 100 years, and a wildland area (Figure 3). Within each field, a representative one-hectare plot was selected for detailed sampling. Twenty cores of one-meter depth have been collected in each one-hectare plot u