The Effect of Warming and Nitrogen Addition on Soil Aggregate Enzyme Activities in a Desert Steppe

Xin Zhang and Guodong Han ()
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Xin Zhang: Key Laboratory of Grassland Resources of the Ministry of Education, Key Laboratory of Forage Cultivation, Processing and High Efficient Utilization of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Grassland Germplasm Innovation and Sustainable Utilization, College of Grassland Science, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot 010011, China
Guodong Han: Key Laboratory of Grassland Resources of the Ministry of Education, Key Laboratory of Forage Cultivation, Processing and High Efficient Utilization of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Grassland Germplasm Innovation and Sustainable Utilization, College of Grassland Science, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot 010011, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 13, 1-18

Abstract: Soil enzymes secreted by microorganisms play a key role in carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) metabolism in soil organic matter. As major drivers of climate change, warming and nitrogen addition affect soil physicochemical properties and enzyme activity, but their combined effects on these parameters across different soil aggregate size scales in desert steppes remain unclear. This study used a 2 × 2 factorial split-plot design (control; warming; nitrogen addition: warming + nitrogen addition) conducted from 2006 in Inner Mongolia’s desert steppe. Soil samples were collected in 2018–2019, and aggregates were fractionated into >2000 μm, 250–2000 μm, and <250 μm sizes using a modified dry-sieving method. Physicochemical properties and enzyme activities were measured. Our results show that warming significantly reduced the total nitrogen (TN) and organic carbon (SOC) content in aggregates, while nitrogen addition significantly decreased the pH value in aggregates but had no significant impact on other soil nutrient content indicators. For soil enzyme activity, warming significantly reduced the activity of Urease and Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP) in soil aggregates, and nitrogen addition significantly reduced the activity of Urease, ALP, and β-glucosidase (BG) in aggregates. However, the size of the aggregates had a significant impact on the activity of Urease and BG. The influence of soil physicochemical properties on different enzyme activities varied across different years. These findings indicate that under the global change scenario, the physicochemical properties and enzyme activity of desert steppe soils are affected by warming and nitrogen addition to varying degrees, and the impact of these two factors shows significant differences across different years. Moreover, the interactive effects of warming and nitrogen addition did not simply result in an additive effect influenced by single factors.

Keywords: desert steppe; climate change; soil aggregates enzyme (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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