Dataset for manuscript entitled: Switchgrass cropping systems affect soil carbon and nitrogen and microbial diversity and activity on marginal lands

Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.), as a dedicated bioenergy crop, can provide cellulosic feedstock for biofuel production while improving or maintaining soil quality. However, comprehensive evaluations of how switchgrass cultivation and nitrogen (N) management impact soil and plant parameters remain incomplete. We conducted field trials in three years (2016–2018) at six locations in the North Central Great Lakes Region to evaluate the effects of cropping systems (switchgrass, restored prairie, undisturbed control) and N rates (0, 56 kg N ha-1 yr-1) on biomass yield and soil physicochemical, microbial, and enzymatic parameters. Switchgrass cropping system yielded an aboveground biomass 2.9–3.3 times higher than the other two systems (Jayawardena et al., In submission) but our study found that this biomass accumulation didn’t reduce soil dissolved organic C (DOC), total dissolved N (TDN), or bacterial diversity. The annual aboveground biomass removal for bioenergy feedstock, however, redu...