Biogeosciences www.biogeosciences.net 1726-4170 1726-4189 7 2 2010 10.5194/bg-7-409-2010 http://www.biogeosciences.net/7/409/2010/ http://www.biogeosciences.net/7/409/2010/bg-7-409-2010.html http://www.biogeosciences.net/7/409/2010/bg-7-409-2010.pdf 409 425 2010-02-02 Soil organic carbon dynamics under long-term fertilizations in arable land of northern China W. J. Zhang X. J. Wang M. G. Xu mgxu@caas.ac.cn S. M. Huang H. Liu C. Peng Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Crop Nutrition and Fertilization, Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi, 830000, China Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20740, USA Inst. of Soil and Fertilizer, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhengzhou, Henan 450002, China Inst. of Soil and Fertilizer & Agricultural sparing water, Xinjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Urumqi 830091, China Inst. of Soil and Fertilizer, Jilin Academy of Agricultural Sciences, ChangChun, 130001, China Soil carbon sequestration is a complex process influenced by agricultural practices, climate and soil conditions. This paper reports a study of long-term fertilization impacts on soil organic carbon (SOC) dynamic from six long-term experiments. The experiment sites are located from warm-temperate zone with a double-cropping system of corn (<i>Zea mays</i> L.) – wheat (<i>Triticum Aestivium</i> L.) rotation, to mild-temperate zones with mono-cropping systems of continuous corn, or a three-year rotation of corn-wheat-wheat. Mineral fertilizer applications result in an increasing trend in SOC except in the arid and semi-arid areas with the mono-cropping systems. Additional manure application is important to maintain SOC level in the arid and semi-arid areas. Carbon conversion rate is significant lower in the warm-temperate zone with double cropping system (6.8%–7.7%) than that in the mild-temperate areas with mono-cropping systems (15.8%–31.0%). The conversion rate is significantly correlated with annual precipitation and active accumulative temperature, i.e., higher conversion rate under lower precipitation and/or temperature conditions. 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