Transformation of thicket to savanna reduces soil quality in the Eastern Cape, South Africa

Plant and Soil

Volumn 265, Issue 1-2, 2004, Pages 153-163

  Mills, Anthony ^a,b   Fey, Martin ^a  

^a STELLENBOSCH UNIVERSITY   (South Africa)

^b SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL BIODIVERSITY INSTITUTE   (South Africa)

Author keywords

Soil crusting; Soil organic matter; Soil quality; Succession; Thicket

Indexed keywords

SAVANNA; SOIL CRUST; SOIL ORGANIC MATTER; SOIL QUALITY;

AFRICA; EASTERN CAPE; EASTERN HEMISPHERE; SOUTH AFRICA; SOUTHERN AFRICA; SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA; WORLD;

CAPRA HIRCUS; POACEAE; PORTULACARIA AFRA;

EID: 14744271783     PISSN: 0032079X     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1007/s11104-005-0534-2     Document Type: Article

References (54)

1. Allsopp N 1999 Effects of grazing and cultivation on soil patterns and processes in the Paulshoek area of Namaqualand. Plant Ecol. 142, 179-187.
2. Anser G P, Archer S, Hughes R F, Ansley R J and Wessman C A 2003 Net changes in regional woody vegetation cover and carbon storage in Texas Drylands, 1937-1999. Glob. Ch. Biol. 9, 316-335.
3. Archer S, Scifres C, Bassham C R and Maggio R 1988 Autogenic succession in a subtropical savanna: conversion of grassland to thorn woodland. Ecol. Monogr. 58, 111-127.
4. Belsky A J, Amundson R G, Duxbury J M, Riha S J, Ali A R and Mwonga S M 1989 The effects of trees on their physical, chemical, and biological environments in a semi-arid savanna in Kenya. J. App. Ecol. 26, 1005-1024.
5. Birch H F 1958 The effect of soil drying on humus decomposition and nitrogen availability. Plant Soil 10, 9-31.
6. Blair N and Crocker G J 2000 Crop rotation effects on soil carbon and physical fertility of two Australian soils. Aust. J. Soil Res. 38, 71-84.
7. Bradford J M and Huang C 1992 Mechanisms of crust formation: Physical components. In Soil Crusting: Chemical and Physical Processes. Eds. M E Sumner and B A Stewart. pp. 55-72. Lewis Publishers, Boca Raton.
8. Bray R H and Kurtz L T 1945 Determination of total, organic and available forms of phosphorus in soils. Soil Sci. 59, 39-45.
9. Chan K Y, Bowman A and Oates A 2001 Oxidizable organic carbon fractions and soil quality changes in an oxic Paleustalf under different pasture leys. Soil Sci. 166, 61-67.
10. Cook G D, So H B and Dalal R C 1992 Structural degradation of two vertisols under continuous cultivation. Soil Till. Res. 24, 47-64.
11. Council for Geoscience 1997 Geological map of the Republic of South Africa and the Kingdoms of Lesotho and Swaziland. Council for Geoscience, Pretoria.
12. Du Plessis H M and Shainberg I 1985 Effect of exchangeable sodium and phosphogypsum on the hydraulic properties of several South African soils. S. Afr. J. Plant Soil 2, 179-186.
13. Everard D A 1987 A classification of the subtropical transitional thicket in the Eastern Cape, based on syntaxonomic and structural attributes. S. Afr. J. Bot. 53, 329-338.
14. FAO 1998 World reference base for soil resources. Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations, Rome.
15. Frost W E and Edinger S B 1991 Effects of tree canopies on soil characteristics of annual rangeland. J. Range Manag. 44, 286-288.
16. Gewin V L, Kennedy A C, Veseth R and Miller B C 1999 Soil quality changes in eastern Washington with Conservative Reserve Program (CRP) take-out. J. Soil Water Conserv. 54, 432-438.
17. Golchin A, Clarke P, Oades J M and Skjemstad J O 1995 The effects of cultivation on the composition of organic matter and structural stability of soils. Aust. J. Soil Sci. 33, 975-993.
18. Guralnick L J, Rorabaugh, P A and Hanscom Z 1984 Influence of photoperiod and leaf age on Crassulacean Acid Metabolism in Portulacaria afra (L.) Jacq. Plant Phys. 75, 454-457.
19. Guralnick L J, Rorabaugh, P A and Hanscom Z 1984 Seasonal shifts of photosynthesis in Portulacaria afra (L.) Jacq. Plant Phys. 76, 643-646.
20. Haynes R J and Swift R S 1990 Stability of soil aggregates in relation to organic constituents and soil water content. J. Soil Sci. 41, 73-83.
21. Hillel D 1998 Environmental Soil Physics. Academic Press, London.
22. Hudak A T, Wessman C A and Seastedt T R 2003 Woody overstorey effects on soil carbon and nitrogen pools in South African savanna. Aust. Ecol. 28, 173-181.
23. Jenkinson D S 1981 The fate of plant and animal residues in soil. In The chemistry of soil processes. Eds. D J Greenland and M H B Hayes. John Wiley and Sons, New York.
24. Kellman M 1979 Soil enrichment by neotropical savanna trees. J. Ecol. 67, 565-577.
25. Lechmere-Oertel R G 2003 The effects of goat browsing on ecosystem patterns and processes in succulent thicket, South Africa. PhD thesis, University of Port Elizabeth, Port Elizabeth.
26. Lloyd J W, van den Berg E C and Palmer A R 2002 Patterns of transformation and degradation in the Thicket Biome, South Africa. TERU Report 39, University of Port Elizabeth, Port Elizabeth.
27. Low A B and Rebelo A G 1996 Vegetation of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Pretoria.
28. McIntyre D S 1958 Soil splash and the formation of surface crusts by raindrop impact. Soil Sci. 85, 261-266.
29. Miller W P and Baharuddin M K 1986 Relationship of soil dispersibility to infiltration and erosion of southeastern soils. Soil Sci. 142, 235-240.
30. Mills A J 2003 Reciprocal relationships between vegetation structure and soil properties in selected biomes of South Africa. PhD thesis, University of Stellenbosch, Stellenbosch.
31. Mills A J and Fey M V 2004 A simple laboratory method for measuring the tendency of soils to crust. Soil Use Management (in press).
32. Moorhead D L and Callaghan T 1994 Effects of increasing ultraviolet B radiation on decomposition and soil organic matter dynamics: a synthesis and modelling study. Biol. Fert. Soils 18, 19-26.
33. Mworia J K, Mnene W N, Musembi, D K and Reid R S 1997 Resilience of soils and vegetation subjected to different grazing intensities in a semi-arid rangeland of Kenya. Afr. J. Range For. Sci. 14, 26-31.
34. Oades J M 1993 The role of biology in the formation, stabilisation and degradation of soil structure. Geoderma 56, 377-400.
35. Rhoades J D 1982 Soluble Salts. In Methods of Soil Analysis. Part 2. Chemical and Microbiological Properties. Eds. A L Page, R H Miller and D R Keeney. pp. 167-180. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, Wisconsin.
36. Richards L A 1953 Modulus of rupture as index of crusting of soil. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. Proc. 17, 321-323.
37. Robinson D A and Phillips C P 2001 Crust development in relation to vegetation and agricultural practice on erosion susceptible, dispersive clay soils from central and southern Italy. Soil Till. Res. 60, 1-9.
38. Robles M D and Burke I C 1998 Soil organic matter recovery on conservation reserve program fields in southeastern Wyoming. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 62, 725-730.
39. Roos P C and Allsopp N 1997 Soil nutrient ecology associated with Acacia sieberana at different tree densities in a South African savanna. Afr. J. Range For. Sci. 14, 39-44.
40. Schlesinger W H, Reynolds J F, Cunningham G L, Huenneke L F, Jarrell W M, Virgina R A and Whitford W G 1990 Biological feedbacks in global desertification. Science 247, 1043-1048.
41. Scholes R J and Archer S R 1997 Tree-grass interactions in savannas. Ann. Rev. Ecol. Sys. 28, 517-544.
42. Seitlheko E M, Allen B L and Wester D B 1993 Effect of three grazing intensities on selected soil properties in semi-arid west Texas. Afr. J. Range For. Sci. 10, 82-85.
43. Shainberg I 1992 Chemical and mineralogical components of crusting. In Soil Crusting: Chemical and Physical Processes, Eds. M E Sumner and B A Stewart. pp. 33-53. Lewis Publishers, London.
44. Soil Classification Working Group 1991 Soil Classification: A taxonomic system for South Africa. The Department of Agricultural Development, Pretoria.
45. Sombroek W G 1986 Introduction to the symposium. In Assessment of Soil Surface Sealing and Crusting, Eds. F Callebaut, D Gabriels and M De Boodt. pp. 1-7. State University of Ghent, Ghent, Belgium.
46. Sumner M E 1998 Soil Chemistry: Past, Present and Future. In Future prospects for soil chemistry. Eds. D L Sparks and S A Boyd. Soil Science Society of America. Madison, Wisconsin.
47. Theron J J 1951 The influence of plants on the mineralisation of nitrogen and the maintenance of organic matter in the soil. J. Agric. Sci. 41, 289-296.
48. Theron J J 1963 The mineralisation of nitrogen in soils under grass. S. Afr. J. Agric. Sci. 6, 155-164.
49. Thomas G W 1982 Exchangeable Cations. In Methods of Soil Analysis. Part 2. Chemical and Microbiological Properties. Eds. A L Page, R H Miller and D R Keeney. pp. 167-180. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, Wisconsin.
50. Thurow T L, Blackburn W H, Warren S D and Taylor C A 1987 Rainfall interception by midgrass, shortgrass, and live oak mottes. J. Range Manage. 40, 455-460.
51. Ting I P and Hanscom Z 1977 Induction of acid metabolism in Portulacaria afra. Plant Phys. 59, 511-514.
52. Tisdall J M and Oades J M 1982 Organic matter and water-stable aggregates in soils. J. Soil Sci. 33, 141-163.
53. Vetaas O R 1992 Micro-sites effects of trees and shrubs in dry savannas. J. Veg. Sci. 3, 337-344.
54. Watt J M and Breyer-Brandwijk M G 1962 The medicinal and poisonous plants of southern and eastern Africa. E. & S. Livingstone Ltd., Edinburgh.