Soil structure and carbon cycling

Samples from the surface horizons of six virgin soils were collected and separated into density fractions. Based on the spatial distribution of organic materials within the mineral matrix of soil, the soil organic matter (SOM) contained in various density fractions was classified as: (a) free particulate OM, (b) occluded particulate OM, and (c) colloidal or clay-associated OM. The compositional differences noted among these three components of SOM were used to describe the changes that OM undergoes during decomposition when it enters the soil, is enveloped in aggregates and eventually is incorporated into microbial biomass and metabolites and associated with clay minerals. The occluded organic materials, released as a result of aggregate disruption, were in various stages of decomposition and had different degrees of association with mineral particles. Changes in the degree of association of occluded organic materials and mineral particles with decomposition are discussed and form the basis of a model which illustrates the simultaneous dynamics of microaggregates and their organic cores. This model indicates a major role for carbohydrate-rich plant debris in formation and stabilization of microaggregates.