[Soluble organic carbon in plant litters on Loess Plateau: content and biodegradability]

The litters of eight plant species from the Loess Plateau were cut into pieces with 2 mm and 1 cm in size, and extracted with distilled water and 0.01 mol x L(-1) CaCl2 to determine the soluble organic carbon (SOC) content. In the meantime, a 7-day indoor incubation test was conducted at (25 +/- 3) degrees C to investigate their biodegradability. The SOC content and the ratio of SOC to total carbon (SOC/TC) in the litters were 18.20-156.82 g x kg(-1) and 4.21%-32.84%, respectively. Shrub litter had a slightly higher SOC content than tree litter, while grass litter had the lowest SOC content. After 7-day incubation, the biodegradation rate of SOC in the plant litters ranged from 44.5% to 80.6% (62.9% on average), and decreased in the order of shrub > tree > grass. By the end of the incubation, the proportion of soluble organic matter in solution had a significant increasing trend, which was related to the rapid biodegradation of labile composition in the litters. The higher content and higher biodegradation rate of SOC in plant litters might play important roles in nutrient cycling and energy flow during the vegetation restoration on Loess Plateau.