Sabit Erşahin

Substratum Properties and Mosses in Semi-Arid Environments. A Case Study from North Turkey

Abstract We investigated moss flora distribution and their relationship to substrates of a semi-arid environment in Cankiri, northwest Turkey. Moss samples were taken from soil surfaces, rock, and tree barks. Soil samples were taken from underneath mosses at 17 sites and soil texture, CaCO3, pH, electrical conductivity, and soil organic matter were measured. Rock samples were collected from 15 different rock types and some mosses were collected from the oak barks. Identification of the moss specimens revealed the presence of 58 taxa belonging to 23 genera and 10 families — three species included in the Red Data Book of European Bryophytes. The relationship between moss occurrence patterns and terrestrial variables was evaluated by multiple linear regression analysis. No significant relationship could be established between Syntrichia ruralis and any of the studied terrestrial variables. Silt content correlated to the greatest number of moss taxa while pH could correlate with only one taxon. Grimmia trichophylla and Syntrichia ruralis were the most abundant species within the collected mosses and Tortula revolvens and Ceratodon purpureus were specific to calcareous soils in the study area.

Terrestrial Ecosystem Carbon Dynamics as Influenced by Land Use and Climate

Recent increases in atmospheric CO2 concentration and increased climate variations enforced us to improve our understanding of the terrestrial biosphere to improve human-ecosystem harmony in regard with processes and feedbacks that have functions in the earth system as a whole. Terrestrial ecosystems are principal components of the main carbon pools and land use has a decisive impact on these pools. Studies showed that converting forest and grasslands to farmlands and urban areas can result in considerable amount of carbon losses to atmosphere. However, emitted amounts may depend on the geographical region as well as type of vegetation cover of the converted areas. Recent studies showed that feedbacks between climate change and vegetation is more complicated than it was thought. Combined with these feedbacks, the land use changes may have an intricate impact on carbon exchange between atmosphere and biosphere. Studies showed that the consequences of changes in land use are beyond the expected in terms of ecosystem functioning and environmental quality. Complex interactions among climate, soil, plant productivity, and land management should be understood well to balance ecosystem functions and human welfare. In this literature review, we discussed interactions and feedbacks among terrestrial ecosystems and global carbon balance in regard with global climate change.

Soil Security for Ecosystem Management

The threat of abrupt climate change by increase in atmospheric concentration of CO2 and other greenhouse gases has enhanced the interest and urgency of identifying strategies for reducing and sequestering anthropogenic emissions. The latter are caused by land use conversion that began with the dawn of settled agriculture several millennia ago, and by fossil fuel combustion that began with the onset of the industrial revolution in about 1750. Emissions from land use conversion during the pre-industrial era until about 1850 are estimated at *320 Pg. Since 1850, emissions from fossil fuel combustion are estimated at *350 Pg and those from land use conversion at *150 Pg. These and other anthropogenic activities have caused drastic perturbation of the global carbon cycle with increase in the atmospheric C pool and an attendant decrease in the pedologic, biotic, and geologic (fossil fuel) pools. Together, the pedologic pool (4,000 Pg to 3 m depth) and the biotic pool (620 Pg), called the terrestrial pool, is the third largest pool, after the oceanic (38,000 Pg) and the geologic (*5,000 Pg). The depletion of the terrestrial C pool has created a C sink capacity which can be filled by conversion to a restorative land use and adoption of recommended soil, plant, and animal management practices. The process of transfer of atmospheric CO2 into the pedologic and biotic pools is called carbon sequestration. This natural process contrasts with that of the geoengineering techniques of carbon capture and storage (CCS) involving geologic and oceanic storage and mineral carbonation of CO2 into calcite etc. The strategy of biosequestration, in addition to being cost-effective, has numerous ancillary benefits. It is a truly win–win option. Specifically, it improves soil quality, enhances agronomic productivity, and advances food security. Improvement in soil quality by C sequestration is related to generation and stabilization of micro-aggregates created through formation of organo-mineral complexes. The strategies of biosequestration involve development of a positive ecosystems C budget in soil by mulch farming, conservation R. Lal (&) Carbon Management and Sequestration Center, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA e-mail: lal.1@osu.edu S. Kapur and S. Ers ahin (eds.), Soil Security for Ecosystem Management, SpringerBriefs in Environment, Security, Development and Peace 8, DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-00699-4_1, The Author(s) 2014 1 agriculture, no-till systems, integrated nutrient management including biological N fixation and mycorrhizae use of amendments including biochar, and adoption of complex farming systems such as agroforestry. There is no silver bullet or panacea, and the choice of a practice/strategy depends on site-specific conditions.

Agrophysical assessment of alluvial calcareous soils of the Çumra region of Central Anatolia in Turkey

Some physical (density, coefficient of filtration, particle-size composition, etc.) and chemical (contents of carbonates, organic carbon, nitrogen, etc.) properties of an alluvial calcareous soil were studied in Central Anatolia (Konya province, Çumra region). These heavy-textured (medium clay) soils with a low content of organic carbon (less than 1%) have favorable agrophysical properties due to the stable structure of the pore space. The studies of the water regime of soils under drop irrigation confirm the favorable hydrological properties of these soils. The use of the known agrophysical estimates (after Medvedev, the index of the optimal water regime, etc.) has revealed the high dispersal of the data related to the low humus content in these heavy-textured soils. The favorable structure of the pore space is suggested to be stipulated by the active activity of the numerous and diverse representatives of soil biota. Four phyla predominate in the microbio-logical composition of the soils studied; among them, Actinobacteria is the dominant. The composition of this phylum is dominated by the elevated number of both higher (Streptomyces) and lower (three species of Rhodococcus) actinobacteria. The high biodiversity of bacteria against the background of their great total number and the developed trophic interactions in the microbial community promote the well-balanced production of specific metabolites, including gaseous ones (CO2, H2). This circumstance allows this clayey soil to function rather actively while protecting the pore space against compaction and maintaining the optimal density, porosity, and hydrological properties.

Land Degradation in the Çelikli Basin, Turkey

The relationship between soil degradation and wheat yield was analyzed in the Çelikli basin, Turkey. Geographic information system (GIS) and factor analysis techniques were used for evaluations. Wheat yield has changed between 600 and 3780 kg ha−1. Soil penetration resistance (PR) was below 2 MPa in 34.92% of the topsoils and was over 2 MPa in the entire of subsoils. The soil loss changed from 0 to 152.8 ton ha−1 year−1. Soils in the study area were generally low in plant-available water (PAW) content. Compared to P, K content was sufficient in top and subsoils in most of the study area. The results showed that B and Zn contents were low, and Cu, Mn, Fe, and Cd contents were adequate. Boron content was less than 0.5 mg kg−1 in 85.5% of the cultivated and 82.9% of the grassland, and Zn was less than 0.5 mg kg−1 in 99.7% of the study area. Low organic matter, low water-holding capacity, high penetration resistance, and deficiency of some macroand micronutrients were the most important limiting factors of wheat yield. Crop rotation and P, B, and Zn application can help restore soil productivity in cultivated areas of the study area.

Evaluation of Soil Degradation Impact on Wheat Yield by Geographical Information System

Soil degradation and its relation to wheat yield were analyzed in a 1041.2-ha catchment in Ustic soil moisture regime in north-central Anatolia, Turkey. The soils in the study area were sampled based on a randomized sampling scheme, using 142 samples from topsoil and 115 samples from subsoil. All the soil samples were analyzed for sand, silt, clay, coarse material (material with a diameter of >2 mm), soil organic matter, phosphorous, nitrogen, boron, zinc, iron, electrical conductivity, pH, hydraulic conductivity, and cation exchange capacity. Wheat yield was measured at 115 sampling locations. Data were evaluated by global information system (GIS) will and variable reduction (factor analysis) techniques. The majority of the soil properties exhibited high variation with a skewed distribution. Low organic-matter content, high penetration resistance, low water-holding capacity, and deficiency in some macro- and microelements were the most important factors limiting wheat yield.