Effect of Reclaiming Duration and Land Usage on Organic Carbon and Phosphorus in Coastal Saline Soils in Eastern Zhejiang Province.

Objective Reclaiming the saline coastal soils in eastern China is crucial for ensuring food security. Given the significance of soil carbon in soil quality, this paper investigates the change in soil organic carbon and phosphorus in the soil following initiation of reclamation. Method The experiment was conducted in the northern regions of Hangzhou Bay and Yueqing Bay in eastern Zhejiang province. Soil samples were collected from vegetable fields, orchards, and paddy fields to measure their organic carbon, phosphorus, and other soil properties, from which we analyzed the relationship between soil organic carbon, phosphorus composition, reclamation duration, and land usage. A non-reclaimed soil was taken as the control. Result As reclamation time elapsed, soil pH decreased while total organic carbon (TOC), total phosphorus (TOP), and available phosphorus increased. Fifty years of reclamation led to a reduction in soil pH in Hangzhou Bay and Yueqing Bay by 1.72 to 2.36 and 1.14 to 2.24, respectively. This was accompanied by significant increases in organic carbon and TOP by 126.46% to 294.97% and 130.37% to 266.14%, and available phosphorus by 17.66% to 100.00% and 39.31% to 87.20%, respectively. The decrease in soil pH among different land usages was ranked in the order of wasteland > paddy field > orchard > vegetable field; the increase in soil organic carbon followed the order of paddy field > orchard > vegetable field > wasteland; and the increase in TOP and available phosphorus followed the order of wasteland < paddy field < orchard < vegetable land. Reclamation also significantly increased different forms of soil organic carbon. Over time, the ratio of free particulate organic carbon to organic carbon (fPOC/TOC) in micro-aggregates decreased initially and then gradually increased, while the ratio of occluded particulate organic carbon to organic carbon (oPOC/TOC) increased gradually. The ratio of mineral-associated organic carbon to organic carbon (MOC/TOC) initially increased significantly and then decreased slowly. Land usage had a notable impact on the MOC/TOC ratio, with paddy fields showing the highest influence, followed by orchards and vegetable fields. The impact of land usage on TOP and available phosphorus was more significant than reclamation time. Except for residual phosphorus and HCl-P, other forms of phosphorus increased with reclamation time. It was also found that with the increase in reclamation time, the fraction of residual phosphorus and HCl-P decreased, while the fraction of phosphorus in other forms increased. TOC and organic carbon in different forms exhibited a strong correlation, but no correlation was found between TOP and phosphorus. Conclusion Reclamation of the coastal saline soils results in continuous changes in composition and content of organic carbon and phosphorus, characterized by decreasing pH, increasing organic carbon and phosphorus. Land usage has a more substantial impact on the change in organic carbon and phosphorus than reclamation history. Growing rice promotes organic carbon sequestration, whereas vegetable cultivation enhances phosphorus accumulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]