Table 1.
Soil physicochemical characteristics along an elevational gradient on the Changbai Mountains, northeastern China.
| Properties 1 | 1,690 m a.s.l. | 1,800 m a.s.l. | 1,910 m a.s.l. | 2,020 m a.s.l. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SMC | 44.0 ± 1.17a | 37.6 ± 0.89b | 33.4 ± 1.06b | 36.0 ± 5.29b |
| pH | 5.5 ± 0.15a | 4.6 ± 0.15b | 4.6 ± 0.09b | 4.7 ± 0.08b |
| NH4+-N (mg/kg) | 0.7 ± 0.13c | 2.0 ± 0.06a | 0.8 ± 0.03c | 1.4 ± 0.12b |
| NO3−-N (mg/kg) | 1.9 ± 0.07a | 0.4 ± 0.02b | 0.2 ± 0.01c | 0.2 ± 0.00c |
| SOC (g/kg) | 10.3 ± 0.63a | 10.1 ± 0.36a | 9.4 ± 0.60a | 9.5 ± 0.67a |
| TN (g/kg) | 9.9 ± 0.08c | 19.3 ± 0.86a | 11.0 ± 0.51c | 14.6 ± 0.83b |
| TK (g/kg) | 3.1 ± 0.28b | 4.7 ± 0.19a | 4.6 ± 0.40a | 3.3 ± 0.13b |
| AK (mg/kg) | 17.7 ± 0.63b | 24.0 ± 0.60a | 13.9 ± 0.60d | 15.1 ± 0.33c |
| AP (mg/kg) | 11.7 ± 0.31c | 17.0 ± 0.22a | 15.1 ± 0.22b | 10.3 ± 0.53d |
| MBC (mg/kg) | 516.5 ± 4.90b | 569.4 ± 5.73b | 675.5 ± 3.68a | 527.1 ± 4.11c |
| MBN (mg/kg) | 69.0 ± 2.05d | 89.3 ± 2.94a | 84.7 ± 2.05ab | 76.8 ± 2.45c |
| Sand (%) | 94.7 ± 4.50a | 96.7 ± 6.24a | 95.2 ± 4.92a | 95.2 ± 4.92a |
| Silt (%) | 1.1 ± 0.08c | 0.6 ± 0.05d | 0.5 ± 0.03d | 1.6 ± 0.04a |
| Clay (%) | 4.3 ± 0.22c | 4.8 ± 0.25ab | 5.1 ± 0.08a | 4.5 ± 0.34bc |
1
Values represent means ± standard deviations (n = 3). Different letters indicate significant (P < 0.05) differences between individual means assessed by one-way ANOVA followed by Tukey’s HSD post-hoc testing. SMC, soil moisture content; NH4+-N, Ammonium nitrogen; NO3−-N, Nitrate nitrogen; SOC, soil organic cabon; TN, total nitrogen; TK, Total potassium; AK, Effective potassium; AP, Effective phosphorus; MBC, Microbial biomass carbon; MBN, Microbial biomass nitrogen.