Greenhouse gas emissions, soil chemistry, organic carbon pool and microbial biomass after soil disturbances in a boreal drained peatland forest

This dataset contains data used in the manuscript "Soil disturbances affect greenhouse gas emissions, organic carbon pool and microbial community in a drained peatland forest".

Experiment was conducted in a peatland forest study site Ränskälänkorpi peatland forest located in Asikkala municipality in Southern Finland (N61o10.966’, E25o15.985’; Fig 1A), which has been drained for forestry before 1960’s. The annual mean temperature is +3.8 oC and the annual mean precipitation is 600 mm. This site is dominated by Norway spruce (Picea abies), Scot pine (Pinus sylvestris) and pubescent birch (Betula pubescens). The ground vegetation consists of forest mosses (Hylocomium splendens, Pleurozium schreberi, Dicranum polysetum etc.), dwarf shrubs (mainly Vaccinium myrtillus and Vaccinium vitis-idaea) as well as forbs such as Dryopteris carthusiana, Gymnocarpium dryopteris, Trientalis europaea, and Oxalis acetosella. The peat layer is mainly more than 1 m, consists of sedge (Carex) and wood dominated peat. 

In March 2021, the site was divided into three blocks with different harvesting treatments:  clearcut (6.1 ha), selection harvesting (ca. 60% basal area harvested; 10.0 ha) and non-harvested control (7.3 ha) to study the effects of forest management on tree growth, hydrology and soil processes. In September 2021, soil disturbance treatments were established: 1) 50 kg residues of fresh branches and needles load on soil (2 x 1 m); 2) topsoil removal of ground vegetation and 0-20 cm depth soil layer removed (2 x 1 m); 3) control without disturbance as reference. The three disturbance treatment plots were located close to each other within a few meters, they are replicated in four different locations of each canopy treatment block (3 disturbance treatments x 3 canopy treatments x 4 replicates). 

Dataset "GHG flux" contains CO2, CH4 and N2O fluxes, water table, soil temperature measured during growing season (May - October) from September 2021 to October 2023. 

Dataset "Soil biochemical property" contains soil chemical parameters (pH, C and N content, NH4 and NO3 concentration, condensed tannins concentration), proportation of stable and labile soil organic carbon fractions, fungal biomass marker (ergosterol) and necromass marker (chitin), PLFA fungal and bacteria biomass, enzyme activities. Soil samples were collected immediately after the experiment was established in September 2021 (T0), then repeated in September 2022 (1 year treatment) and September 2023 (2 years treatment).