Search

The population density and taxonomic structure of micromycetes were monitored for six months in a model experiment with natural and mechanically fragmented (fine and coarse) samples of sphagnum. Sphagnum fragmentation favored an increase in the number of micromycetes only during the first week of the experiment. On the average, the number of micromycetes in fine-fragmented samples was two times greater than that in the coarse-fragmented samples. The diversity of micromycetes increased in the fragmented samples of sphagnum owing to the activation of some species, which remained in the inactive state as spores in the peat before fragmentation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantitative estimates of the rate of transformation of moss residues of two species ( Sphagnum angustifolium and Sphagnum fuscum) in the peat soils (Histosols) were obtained for two oligotrophic bogs with different hydrological conditions in the southern taiga of Western Siberia. The coefficients of decomposition rate ( k) significantly differed for the studied species; the decomposition of Sphagnum fuscum proceeded much slower. The most intense decomposition was observed in the first year of transformation ( k = 0.06 and 0.16-0.66 for Sph. fuscum and Sph. angustifolium, respectively); then, the rate of moss decomposition decreased. Despite the great amount of fungal mass in the moss residues (exceeding the bacterial biomass by 3-10 times), the rate of the initial decomposition was very low. The hydrological conditions affected the intensity of this process-in the peat of the Kirsanovskoe bog with the low level of bog water, losses of the mass of sphagnum moss were 1.1-1.6 times greater as compared to those in the Bakcharskoe bog. For Sph. angustifolium, the level of bog water was more important than for Sphagnum fuscum, whereas for Sphagnum fuscum, the composition of organic matter played a decisive role in the rate of decomposition of moss residues. The activity of the microflora also depended on the level of bog water, which was manifested in a greater abundance of bacteria in the peat of the Kirsanovskoe bog. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a model experiment, the abundance of microorganisms was monitored for half a year in native and mechanically comminuted samples of live and dead sphagnum using the method of luminescent microscopy. The effect of the mechanical comminution was more pronounced for live sphagnum than for its waste. Mechanical comminution of live sphagnum stimulated a 2- to 4-fold increase in the total microbial biomass and a twofold increase in the emission of CO owing to the active development of fungi and bacteria. The abundance of microorganisms and the intensity of the CO flow increased with the degree of sphagnum comminution. As a result of the mechanical treatment of live sphagnum, its destruction occurred, which is indicated by the significant decrease in the C : N ratio. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]