Glomalin-related soil protein evolution after prescribed burning of scrub in mountain soils (Central Pyrenees, NE-Spain)

Abstract

The effects of prescribed burning of bushes on the soil are evaluated in the short term, at 5 and 9 years, using glomalin fractions as indicators. This evaluation is carried out for three soil thicknesses (0-1, 1-2 and 2-3 cm) and in quadruplicate at each sampling time. The glomalin values (total, residual and labile), although higher, in absolute value, in the shallowest cm of soil, rarely show significant differences in depth. Immediately after burning, soils double their total and residual glomalin content with respect to control or unburned soils; these values decrease with time. Labile glomalin, which is not significantly affected immediately after burning, is reduced by half after a few years. In short, a series of changes in the different glomalin fractions are identified, despite the low severity of this type of burning.