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Soil microbial carbon-use efficiency (CUE), described as the ratio of growth over total carbon (C) uptake, i.e. the sum of growth and respiration, is a key variable in all soil organic matter (SOM) models and critical to ecosystem C cycling. However, there is still a lack of consensus on microbial CUE when estimated using different methods. Furthermore, the significance of many fundamental drivers of CUE remains largely unknown and inconclusive, especially for tropical ecosystems. For these reasons, we determined CUE and microbial indicators of soil nutrient availability in seven tropical forest soils along an altitudinal gradient (circa 900–2200 m a.s.l) occurring at Taita Hills, Kenya. We used this gradient to study the soil nutrient (N and P) availability and its relation to microbial CUE estimates. For assessing the soil nutrient availability, we determined both the soil bulk stoichiometric nutrient ratios (soil C:N, C:P and N:P), as well as SOM degradation related enzyme activities. We estimated soil microbial CUE using two methods: substrate independent 18O-water tracing and 13C-glucose tracing method. Based on these two approaches, we estimated the microbial uptake efficiency of added glucose versus native SOM, with the latter defined by 18O-water tracing method. Based on the bulk soil C:N stoichiometry, the studied soils did not reveal N limitation. However, soil bulk P limitation increased slightly with elevation. Additionally, based on extracellular enzyme activities, the SOM nutrient availability decreased with elevation. The 13C-CUE did not change with altitude indicating that glucose was efficiently taken up and used by the microbes. On the other hand, 18O-CUE, which reflects the growth efficiency of microbes growing on native SOM, clearly declined with increasing altitude and was associated with SOM nutrient availability indicators. Based on our results, microbes at higher elevations invested more energy to scavenge for nutrients and energy from complex SOM whereas at lower elevations the soil nutrients may have been more readily available.

Climate change may affect the carbon sink function of peatlands through warming and drying. Fine-root biomass pro-duction (FRBP) of sedge fens, a widespread peatland habitat, is important in this context, since most of the biomass is below ground in these ecosystems.We examined the response of fine-root biomass production, depth distribution (10 cm intervals down to 60 cm), chem-ical characteristics, and decomposition along with other main litter types (sedge leaves, Sphagnum moss shoots) to an average May-to-October warming of 1.7 degrees C above ambient daily mean temperature and drying of 2-8 cm below ambi-ent soil water-table level (WL) in two sedge fens situated in Northern and Southern Boreal zones. Warming was in-duced with open top chambers and drying with shallow ditching. Finally, we simulated short-term organic matter (OM) accumulation using net primary production and mass loss data. Total FRBP, and FRBP in deeper layers, was clearly higher in southern than northern fen. Drying significantly in-creased, and warming marginally increased,total FRBP, while warming significantly increased, and drying marginally increased, the proportional share of FRBP in deeper layers. Drying, especially, modified root chemistry as the relative proportions of fats, wax, lipids, lignin and other aromatics increased while the proportion of polysaccharides decreased. Warming did not affect the decomposition of any litter types, while drying reduced the decomposition of sedge leaf litter. Although drying increased OM accumulation from root litter at both fens, total OM accumulation decreased at the southern fen, while the northern fen with overall lower values showed no such pattern.Our results suggest that in warmer and/or modestly drier conditions, sedge fen FRBP will increase and/or be allocated to deeper soil layers. These changes along with the altered litter inputs may sustain the soil carbon sink function through OM accumulation, unless the WL falls below a tipping point.