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Lehmann Lab

Section of Soil and Crop Sciences

Soil organic matter properties and carbon sequestration

Our  program on soil organic matter properties and carbon sequestration spans research from molecular interactions at high spatial resolution to global-scale assessments and modeling, includes basic and applied questions, and uses high-resolution electron microscopy as well as farmer and stakeholder surveys. We continue to be interested in resolving basic questions about the nature of soil organic matter, how we can increase soil organic carbon globally, and how it affects nutrient cycling and soil fertility.

 

In the last few years, we contributed to several knowledge gains, including the following ones:

Humic substances do not exist in soil, and humification is not a suitable explanation for organic matter formation.

Organic matter in soil is composed of a complex mixture of relatively small and recognizable biomolecules in heterogeneous spatial arrangement rather than of complex and large compounds.

Persistence of soil organic matter can be explained by a combination of interactions with minerals and lack of microbial activity rather than very stable carbon forms with slow turnover times.

Featured recent publication: Woolf D and Lehmann J 2019 Microbial models with minimal mineral protection can explain long-term soil organic persistence. Scientific Reports 9, 6522 (supporting online material)

 

In the next few years, we will mainly focus on the following questions:

Why does organic matter persist in soil even though microorganisms can in principle mineralize it very quickly?

What is the importance of organo-organic interactions for the stabilization of organic carbon in soil?

How does ammonia gas interact with organic matter?

What happens to soil in space?

 

 

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