Effects of fertilization, mowing, and irrigation on C cycling in turfgrass

Residential areas represent a notable and growing category of land use in the United States, but the significance of residential land to C cycling is unclear. Differences in vegetation structure and species composition, as well as modified hydrologic, edaphic, and climatic circumstances, suggest that C cycling in residential vegetation may be quite different from that in native ecosystems. There is some evidence to this effect, one example being the rapid accumulation of C observed in soil under turfgrass (Qian et al. 2003). Turfgrass is a ubiquitous part of the residential landscape, and its high productivity suggests that turfgrass likely plays a major role in residential C cycling. We have initiated a study exploring the effects of management on C cycling in a turfgrass system similar to what might be found in residential areas. A randomized-block, split-plot design is being used to test two irrigation levels, two mowing heights, and three rates of N fertilization. Here, we present preliminary results from measurements of above- and below-ground productivity, root turnover, soil respiration, and leachate N and C content.