N dynamics of leaf and root litter decomposition

Litter nitrogen (N) release during decomposition crucially influences ecosystem N cycling and the amount of N available to plants and other soil organisms. However, the role of initial litter traits in affecting patterns of temporal N release from litters and determining the fate of N in the soil is still poorly understood.
Here, we measured litter N release during the 12-month decomposition of 15N-labelled leaf and root litters of 12 common Mediterranean herbaceous species. We further traced the fate of N during decomposition of the litters into the soil and measured the inorganic N content in the soil solution as well as total N in the particulate (POM) and mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) fractions at the end of the incubation.
While most litters exhibited a very rapid initial N release, they were also quite variable in their N dynamics. As such they differed in the quantity and temporal patterns of N release, the accumulation of inorganic N in the soil solution, as well as i..., , , # Data on N Dynamics of Leaf and Root Litter Decomposition

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.msbcc2g89](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.msbcc2g89)

## Description of the data and file structure

This repository contains three datasets generated for the study entitled:

**The afterlife effects of leaf and root litter traits on soil N cycling**
(Accepted in *Journal of Ecology*)

In this experiment, we used *15*N-labeled leaf and root litters from 12 common Mediterranean herbaceous species to explore (i) how initial litter chemistry influences litter mass loss and nitrogen (N) release during 12 months of decomposition and (ii) how the released N partitions into soil inorganic N pools and stable soil organic matter (SOM) fractions.

The three datasets included are:

1. **`data_initial_traits`**: Initial chemical and stoichiometric traits of the litters.
2. **`data_decomposition`**: Time-series measurements of litter mass loss, litter N and C changes, and resin-captured inorganic N.
3. **`data_...