CHED 1083 |
| Fire has been a part of natural ecosystems and is a way of managing grasslands, creating stability in the systems by removing decaying vegetation. Lack of fires deprive plants of enough space and light in order to grow, therefore some grasslands become unproductive. The total concentration of phosphorus in soils is usually low, ranging from 0.02 and 0.10%. Burning of grasslands influence soil nutrients by directly adding nutrients from the burned biomass and by altering the activity of microbes in the soil environment. In previous studies, phosphorus showed an increase in the soil after prescribed burns. Soil samples from a grassland restoration in Maryland were analyzed for phosphorus after a prescribed burn via dilute-acid extraction and colorimetric analysis. An increase in levels of phosphorus is expected as phosphorus gets regenerated in the soil after a burn due to ash from the burn and microbes that turn organic phosphorus into phosphate. |
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Undergraduate Research Poster Session: Environmental Chemistry
2:00 PM-4:00 PM, Monday, April 7, 2008 Morial Convention Center -- Hall A, Poster
Division of Chemical Education |