Effects of long-term exposure to enriched CO2 on the nutrient-supplying capacity of a grassland soil

Altered soil nutrient cycling under future climate scenarios may affect pasture production and fertilizer management. We conducted a controlled-environment study to test the hypothesis that long-term exposure of pasture to enriched carbon dioxide (CO2) would lower soil nutrient availability. Perennial ryegrass was grown for 9 weeks under ambient and enriched (ambient + 120 ppm) CO2 concentrations in soil collected from an 11.5-year free air CO2 enrichment experiment in a grazed pasture in New Zealand. Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fertilizers were applied in a full factorial design at rates of 0, 12.5, 25 or 50 kg N ha−1 and 0, 17.5 or 35 kg P ha−1. Compared to ambient CO2, under enriched CO2 without P fertilizer, total plant biomass did not respond to N fertilizer, and tissue N/P ratio was increased indicating that P was co-limiting. This limitation was alleviated with the lowest rate of P fertilizer (17.5 kg P ha−1). Plant biomass in both CO2 treatments increased with increasing N fertilizer when sufficient P was available. Greater inputs of P fertilizer may be required to prevent yield suppression under enriched CO2 and to stimulate any response to N.