Articles | Volume 6, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-6-523-2020
https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-6-523-2020
Original research article
 | 
05 Nov 2020
Original research article |  | 05 Nov 2020

Nitrogen availability determines the long-term impact of land use change on soil carbon stocks in grasslands of southern Ghana

John Kormla Nyameasem, Thorsten Reinsch, Friedhelm Taube, Charles Yaw Fosu Domozoro, Esther Marfo-Ahenkora, Iraj Emadodin, and Carsten Stefan Malisch

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Cited articles

Adamczyk, B., Karonen, M., Adamczyk, S., Engström, M. T., Laakso T., Saranpä, P., Kitunen, V., Smolander, A., and Simonc, J.: Tannins can slow-down but also speed-up soil enzymatic activity in a boreal forest, Soil Biol. Biochem., 107, 60–67, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2016.12.027, 2017. 
Adamczyk, S., Kitunen, V., Lindroos, A. J., Adamczyk, B., and Smolander, A.: Soil carbon and nitrogen cycling processes and composition of terpenes five years after clear-cutting a Norway spruce stand: Effects of logging residues, For. Ecol. Manag., 381, 318–326, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2016.09.034, 2016. 
Adjolohoun, S., Bindelle, J., Adandedjan, C., and Buldgen, A.: Some suitable grasses and legumes for ley pastures in Sudanian Africa: the case of the Borgou region in Benin, Biotechnol. Agron. Soc. Environ., 12, 405–419, 2008. 
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Long-term studies on the impact of land use change and crop selection on soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks in sub-Saharan Africa are scarce. Accordingly, this study analysed the impact of converting natural grasslands to a range of low-input production systems in a tropical savannah on SOC stocks. Apart from the cultivation of legume tree and/or shrub species, all land management techniques were detrimental. Grazed grasslands in particular had almost 50 % less SOC than natural grasslands.
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