Controls on soil solution chemistry in a subalpine forest in north- central Colorado

A long-term research project was established in the Loch Vale Watershed in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. Using lysimeters, the concentration and flux of major solutes in the Oie and B horizons were estimated in an old-growth forest and in an adjacent site disturbed by a snow avalanche. In the forested site, most solutes were highly concentrated during the initial stages of snowmelt. Rates of N mineralization and nitrification as well as concentrations of NO₃ were higher in the second year after forest disturbance indicating a delayed nitrification response. Although precipitation inputs and theoretical mineral weathering can explain the total annual solute flux, the effects of forest soil solutes may be important during the initial stages of snowmelt and following large-scale disturbance. -from Authors