A potential source of soil ecoenzymes: From the phyllosphere to soil via throughfall

Soil ecoenzymes play an important role in the decomposition and formation of soil organic matter, and are often considered to be derived from soil microbial and plant root activities. This study found another potentially-important source, transfer of ecoenzymes in phyllosphere to soil via throughfall. Throughfall samples were collected in five subtropical forests, and six ecoenzymes were determined therein. Data from this study showed that the ecoenzyme activity in throughfall was significantly higher than that in rainfall. Although this study has the limitation of a single measurement, it is the first report of the potential importance of ecoenzymes in throughfall in forest ecosystems.