I. Data Set Descriptors A. Title: Christopher B. Craft. 2005. Root Decomposition and root in-growth rates for GCE marsh sites 6-9 from June 2003 to June 2004. Georgia Coastal Ecosystems LTER Data Catalog (data set ORG-GCEM-0508b; http://gce-lter.marsci.uga.edu/public/app/dataset_details.asp?accession=ORG-GCEM-0508b) B. Accession Number: ORG-GCEM-0508b C. Description 1. Originator(s): Name: Christopher B. Craft Address: Indiana University - School of Public and Environmental Affairs Room 408. MSB II. Bloomington, Indiana 47405 Country: USA Email: ccraft@indiana.edu 2. Abstract: Rates of decomposition and root in-growth were measured in four tidal marshes of the Georgia coast (USA) that vary in freshwater input. Replicate nylon mesh bags containing roots of dominant plant species were buried 20cm deep in marsh sediments at stream-side levee and marsh plain locations within GCE sampling sites 6, 7, 8 and 9 in June 2003. Dry weight, carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus content, and root in-growth were measured initially and every three months to evaluate the effects of freshwater input on root decomposition and growth rates. This study was part of the GCE-LTER soil monitoring program. 3. Study Type: Monitoring 4. Study Themes: Organic Matter/Decomposition 5. LTER Core Areas: Organic Matter 6. Georeferences: none 7. Submission Date: Aug 16, 2005 D. Keywords: carbon, decomposition, marshes, nitrogen, Organic Matter, phosphorus, plants, roots, roots, sediments II. Research Origin Descriptors A. Overall Project Description 1. Project Title: Georgia Coastal Ecosystems LTER Project 2. Principal Investigators: Name: James T. Hollibaugh Address: Dept. of Marine Sciences University of Georgia Athens, Georgia 30602-3636 Country: USA Email: aquadoc@uga.edu 3. Funding Period: May 01, 2000 to May 01, 2006 4. Objectives: To investigate the linkages between coastal and distant upland areas in central Georgia mediated by surface and ground water delivery to the coastal zone. This will be addressed by examining the relationship between variability in environmental factors driven by river flow, primarily salinity, and ecosystem processes and structure. 5. Abstract: We propose to establish a Long Term Ecological Research site on the central Georgia coast in the vicinity of Sapelo Island. This is a barrier island and marsh complex with the Altamaha River, one of the largest and least developed rivers on the east coast of the US, as the primary source of fresh water. The proposed study would investigate the linkages between local and distant upland areas mediated by water - surface water and ground water - delivery to the coastal zone. We would explicitly examine the relationship between variability in environmental factors driven by river flow, primarily salinity because we can measure it at high frequency, and ecosystem processes and structure. We will accomplish this by comparing estuary/marsh complexes separated from the Altamaha River by one or two lagoonal estuary/marsh complexes that damp and attenuate the river signal. This spatial gradient is analogous to the temporal trend in riverine influence expected as a result of development in the watershed. We will implement a monitoring system that documents physical and biological variables and use the time trends and spatial distributions of these variables and of their variance structure to address questions about the factors controlling distributions, trophic structure, diversity, and biogeochemistry. An existing GIS-based hydrologic model will be modified to incorporate changes in river water resulting from changes in land use patterns that can be expected as the watershed develops. This model will be linked to ecosystem models and will serve as an heuristic and management tool. Another consequence of coastal development is that as river flow decreases, groundwater flow increases and becomes nutrified. We will compare the effects of ground water discharge from the surficial aquifer in relatively pristine (Sapelo Island) versus more urbanized (mainland) sites to assess the relative importance of fresh water versus nutrients to productivity, structure and biomass turnover rate in marshes influenced by groundwater. We will also investigate the effect of marine processes (tides, storm surge) on mixing across the fresh/salt interface in the surficial aquifer. Additional physical studies will relate the morphology of salt marsh - tidal creek channel complexes to tidal current distributions and exchange. These findings will be incorporated into a physical model that will be coupled to an existing ecosystem model. The land/ocean margin ecosystem lies at the interface between two ecosystems in which distinctly different groups of decomposers control organic matter degradation. The terrestrial ecosystem is largely dominated by fungal decomposers, while bacterial decomposers dominate the marine ecosystem. Both groups are important in salt marsh-dominated ecosystems. Specific studies will examine, at the level of individual cells and hyphae, the relationship bacteria and fungi in the consortia that decompose standing dead Spartina and other marsh plants and examine how, or if, this changes along the salinity gradient. 6. Funding Source: NSF OCE 9982133 B. Sub-project Description 1. Site Description a. Geographic Location: GCE6 -- Dean Creek, Sapelo Island, Georgia, USA GCE7 -- Carrs Island, Georgia, USA GCE8 -- Alligator Creek, Georgia, USA GCE9 -- Rockdedundy Island, Georgia, USA Coordinates: GCE6 -- NW: 081 17 58.28 W, 31 23 38.66 N NE: 081 15 51.76 W, 31 23 38.66 N SE: 081 15 51.76 W, 31 22 15.61 N SW: 081 17 58.28 W, 31 22 15.61 N GCE7 -- NW: 081 29 36.59 W, 31 20 55.59 N NE: 081 28 33.24 W, 31 20 55.59 N SE: 081 28 33.24 W, 31 20 03.71 N SW: 081 29 36.59 W, 31 20 03.71 N GCE8 -- NW: 081 25 34.58 W, 31 19 04.11 N NE: 081 24 38.28 W, 31 19 04.11 N SE: 081 24 38.28 W, 31 18 14.63 N SW: 081 25 34.58 W, 31 18 14.63 N GCE9 -- NW: 081 20 48.23 W, 31 21 29.31 N NE: 081 19 35.38 W, 31 21 29.31 N SE: 081 19 35.38 W, 31 20 21.02 N SW: 081 20 48.23 W, 31 20 21.02 N b. Physiographic Region: GCE6 -- Barrier island GCE7 -- Lower coastal plain GCE8 -- Lower coastal plain GCE9 -- Barrier island c. Landform Components: GCE6 -- Intertidal salt marsh, sand beach, maritime forest GCE7 -- Freshwater tidal marsh, devegetated fields GCE8 -- Brackish tidal marsh GCE9 -- Intertidal salt marsh d. Hydrographic Characteristics: GCE6 -- Site contains Dean Creek and borders Doboy Sound, and is subject to 2-3m semi-diurnal tides GCE7 -- Site contains Hammersmith Creek and borders the South Champney River, and is subject to 2-3m semi-diurnal tides GCE8 -- Site contains the Altamaha River, and is subject to 2-3m semi-diurnal tides GCE9 -- Site contains Crooked Creek and borders the Little Mud River, and is subject to 2-3m semi-diurnal tides e. Topographic Attributes: GCE6 -- Flat, with elevations ranging from 0-3m above mean low tide GCE7 -- Flat, with elevations ranging from 0-3m above mean low tide GCE8 -- Flat, with elevations ranging from 0-3m above mean low tide GCE9 -- Flat, with elevations ranging from 0-3m above mean low tide f. Geology, Lithology and Soils: GCE6 -- unspecified GCE7 -- unspecified GCE8 -- unspecified GCE9 -- unspecified g. Vegetation Communities: GCE6 -- Vegetation is mostly short and tall Spartina alterniflora, with small amounts of Juncus and Borrichia. GCE7 -- dominated by Zizaniopsis GCE8 -- Fringe of tall Spartina alterniflora and S. cynosuroides at creek banks. High marsh has narrow band of medium height S. alterniflora backed by vast expanses of Juncus. GCE9 -- Low marsh is tall Spartina alterniflora, high marsh has a small amount of medium Spartina alterniflora and lots of Juncus. Some hammocks with upland vegetation. h. History of Land Use and Disturbance: none recorded i. Climate: Climate summary for Sapelo Island, Georgia, based on NWS data from 1980-2010: Daily-aggregated Values: Mean (sample standard deviation) mean air temperature: 20.09°C (7.28°C) minimum air temperature: 15.02°C (7.96°C) maximum air temperature: 24.82°C (6.98°C) total precipitation: 3.26mm (10.3mm) Yearly-aggregated Daily Values: Mean (sample standard deviation) total precipitation (1980-2010): 1124mm (266mm) 2. Experimental or Sampling Design a. Design Characteristics: This study is part of the GCE-LTER soil monitoring program. Four marshes that varied in freshwater input were selected for sampling. Within each marsh nylon bags containing fresh roots were buried and sampled at three month intervals. We used salinity as a proxy for freshwater input. b. Permanent Plots: none c. Data Collection Duration and Frequency: Root decomposition bags were deployed at randomly-selected locations in the tidal freshwater marsh (site 7), brackish marsh Site 8) and two salt marshes (sites 6 and 9) in June 2003, then replicate bags were removed every 3 months for analysis. Beginning of Observations: Jun 22, 2003 End of Observations: Jun 12, 2004 3. Research Methods a. Field and Laboratory Methods: Method 1: Root Bag Deployment -- Nylon mesh (2 mm by 2 mm) bags, 30 cm long by 7 cm wide, were filled with 10 grams of fresh roots collected from the dominant vegetation of the levee and plain of the tidal freshwater marsh (site 7), brackish marsh Site 8) and two salt (S. alterniflora) marshes (sites 6 and 9). Sixteen bags each, containing the native roots, were deployed on the levee and sixteen were deployed on the marsh plain at each site for a total of 128 bags. Bags were buried to depth of 20 cm in June 2003. Method 2: Root Decomposition -- Approximately every three months, four bags each were retrieved from the levee and the marsh plain at each site. Bags were dried at 70°C to a constant weight and weighed. Prior to deployment of the bags, a subset of four bags from each marsh and within marsh location was dried immediately (time 0) to determine initial dry mass. Soil temperature (n=5 per marsh location) was measured seasonally at the same time that roots bags were retrieved by inserting a temperature probe 10 cm into the soil. Method 3: Root Composition Analysis -- Subsamples of ground roots were analyzed for organic C and total N using a Perkin-Elmer 2400 CHN analyzer. Samples were tested for presence of carbonates adding a drop of dilute (0.1 N) HCl then observing whether effervescence occurred. Samples containing carbonates were pretreated with 0.1 N HCl prior to CHN analysis. Total P was determined by colorimetric analysis following digestion in nitric-perchloric acid (see Sommers, L.E. and D.W. Nelson. 1972. Determination of total phosphorus in soils: a rapid perchloric acid digestion procedure. Soil Science Society of America Proceedings. 36:902-904.). Method 4: Root In-Growth Measurement -- Root in-growth also was determined as described by Blum (Blum, L.K. 1993. Spartina alterniflora root dynamics in a Virginia marsh. Marine Ecology - Progress Series 102:169-178.). Root production was calculated as the sum of new roots that grew into each bag during the one year study. b. Instrumentation: Method 1: none Method 2: Electronic Balance Manufacturer: Ohaus (Model: ARC120) Parameter: mass (Readability: 0.01g, Range: 0.01g-3.1kg) Method 3: CHN Analyzer Manufacturer: Perkin Elmer (Model: 2400) Parameter: Organic Carbon Parameter: Total Nitrogen Spectrophotometer Manufacturer: Spectronic (Model: Genesis 5) Last Calibration: Dec 30, 2003 Method 4: Electronic Balance Manufacturer: Ohaus (Model: ARC120) Parameter: mass (Readability: 0.01g, Range: 0.01g-3.1kg) c. Taxonomy and Systematics: Method 1: not applicable Method 2: not applicable Method 3: not applicable Method 4: not applicable d. Permit History: Method 1: not applicable Method 2: not applicable Method 3: not applicable Method 4: not applicable 4. Project Personnel a. Personnel: Christopher B. Craft b. Affiliations: Indiana University at Bloomington, Bloomington, Indiana III. Data Set Status and Accessibility A. Status 1. Latest Update: 20-Jun-2013 2. Latest Archive Date: 18-Nov-2011 3. Latest Metadata Update: 20-Jun-2013 4. Data Verification Status: Reviewed by GCE-LTER IM B. Accessibility 1. Storage Location and Medium: Stored at GCE-LTER Data Management Office Dept. of Marine Sciences Univ. of Georgia Athens, GA 30602-3636 USA on media: electronic data download (WWW) or compact disk 2. Contact Person: Name: Wade M. Sheldon, Jr. Address: Dept. of Marine Sciences University of Georgia Athens, Georgia 30602-3636 Country: USA Email: sheldon@uga.edu 3. Copyright Restrictions: not copyrighted 4. Restrictions: All publications based on this data set must cite the contributor and Georgia Coastal Ecosystems LTER project, and two copies of the manuscript must be submitted to the GCE-LTER Information Management Office. a. Release Date: Affiliates: Aug 16, 2005, Public: Aug 16, 2006 b. Citation: Data provided by the Georgia Coastal Ecosystems Long Term Ecological Research Project, supported by funds from NSF OCE 9982133 (data set ORG-GCEM-0508b) c. Disclaimer: The user assumes all responsibility for errors in judgement based on interpretation of data and analyses presented in this data set. 5. Costs: free electronic data download via WWW, distribution on CD may be subject to nominal processing and handling fee IV. Data Structural Descriptors A. Data Set File 1. File Name: ORG-GCEM-0508b_2_0.CSV 2. Size: 158 records 3. File Format: ASCII text (comma-separated value format) 3a. Delimiters: single comma 4. Header Information: 5 lines of ASCII text 5. Alphanumeric Attributes: mixed case 6. Quality Control Flag Codes: I = invalid value (out of range), Q = questionable value 7. Authentication Procedures: 8. Calculations: 9. Processing History: Software version: GCE Data Toolbox Version 3.6.0 (05-Jun-2013) Data structure version: GCE Data Structure 1.1 (29-Mar-2001) Original data file processed: ORG-GCEM-0508b.TXT (158 records) Data processing history: 19-Dec-2005: new GCE Data Structure 1.1 created ('newstruct') 19-Dec-2005: 158 rows imported from ASCII data file 'ORG-GCEM-0508b.TXT' ('imp_ascii') 19-Dec-2005: 13 metadata fields in file header parsed ('parse_header') 19-Dec-2005: data structure validated ('gce_valid') 19-Dec-2005: Q/C flagging criteria applied, 'flags' field updated ('dataflag') 19-Dec-2005: automatically assigned study date metadata descriptors based on the range of date values in date/time columns (add_studydates) 19-Dec-2005: imported Dataset, Project, Site, Study, Status, Supplement metadata descriptors from the GCE Metabase ('imp_gcemetadata') 19-Dec-2005: updated 66 metadata fields in the Data, Dataset, Project, Site, Status, Study, Supplement sections ('imp_gcemetadata') 15-Nov-2011: imported Dataset, Project, Site, Study, Status, Supplement metadata descriptors from the GCE Metabase ('imp_gcemetadata') 15-Nov-2011: updated 57 metadata fields in the Dataset, Project, Site, Status, Study, Supplement sections ('imp_gcemetadata') 18-Nov-2011: imported Dataset, Project, Site, Study, Status, Supplement metadata descriptors from the GCE Metabase ('imp_gcemetadata') 18-Nov-2011: updated 57 metadata fields in the Dataset, Project, Site, Status, Study, Supplement sections ('imp_gcemetadata') 20-Jun-2013: converted dates in column(s) Date to format yyyy-mm-dd 20-Jun-2013: flags for columns Days_Buried, Root_Dry_Weight, Carbon_Percent, Nitrogen_Percent, Phosphorus_Total and Root_Growth converted to data columns, flag codes updated in metadata ('flags2cols') 20-Jun-2013: updated 6 metadata fields in the Data sections ('addmeta') 20-Jun-2013: updated 15 metadata fields in the Status, Data sections to reflect attribute metadata ('updatecols') 20-Jun-2013: parsed and formatted metadata ('listmeta') B. Variable Information 1. Variable Name: column 1. Site column 2. Date column 3. Days_Buried column 4. Flag_Days_Buried column 5. Location_Code column 6. Replicate column 7. Wetland_Type column 8. Plant_Species column 9. Root_Dry_Weight column 10. Flag_Root_Dry_Weight column 11. Carbon_Percent column 12. Flag_Carbon_Percent column 13. Nitrogen_Percent column 14. Flag_Nitrogen_Percent column 15. Phosphorus_Total column 16. Flag_Phosphorus_Total column 17. Root_Growth column 18. Flag_Root_Growth 2. Variable Definition: column 1. GCE-LTER site number column 2. Calendar date of measurement column 3. Number of days the bags were in the plot before removal column 4. QA/QC flags for Number of days the bags were in the plot before removal (flagging criteria, where "x" is Days_Buried: x<0="I") column 5. Sampling location code (levee or plain) column 6. Measurement replicate number column 7. Wetland type code (tidal fresh, brackish, or salt) column 8. Plant species used for root samples column 9. Measured dry weight of roots in bags removed from plots column 10. QA/QC flags for Measured dry weight of roots in bags removed from plots (flagging criteria, where "x" is Root_Dry_Weight: x<0="I") column 11. Percent carbon in dried roots column 12. QA/QC flags for Percent carbon in dried roots (flagging criteria, where "x" is Carbon_Percent: x<0="I", x>100="I") column 13. Percent nitrogen in dried roots column 14. QA/QC flags for Percent nitrogen in dried roots (flagging criteria, where "x" is Nitrogen_Percent: x<0="I", x>100="I") column 15. Total phosphorus in dried roots column 16. QA/QC flags for Total phosphorus in dried roots (flagging criteria, where "x" is Phosphorus_Total: x<0="I") column 17. Dry weight of new root growth in bags column 18. QA/QC flags for Dry weight of new root growth in bags (flagging criteria, where "x" is Root_Growth: x<0="I") 3. Units of Measurement: column 1. none column 2. yyyy-mm-dd column 3. days column 4. none column 5. none column 6. none column 7. none column 8. none column 9. g column 10. none column 11. % column 12. none column 13. % column 14. none column 15. ug/g column 16. none column 17. g column 18. none 4. Data Type a. Storage Type: column 1. integer column 2. alphanumeric column 3. floating-point column 4. alphanumeric column 5. alphanumeric column 6. integer column 7. alphanumeric column 8. alphanumeric column 9. floating-point column 10. alphanumeric column 11. floating-point column 12. alphanumeric column 13. floating-point column 14. alphanumeric column 15. floating-point column 16. alphanumeric column 17. floating-point column 18. alphanumeric b. Variable Codes: Site: 1 = GCE1 (Eulonia), 2 = GCE2 (Four Mile Island), 3 = GCE3 (North Sapelo), 4 = GCE4 (Meridian), 5 = GCE5 (Folly River), 6 = GCE6 (Dean Creek), 7 = GCE7 (Carrs Island), 8 = GCE8 (Aligator Creek), 9 = GCE9 (Rockdedundy Island), 10 = GCE10 (Hunt Camp) Location_Code: Levee = streamside levee, Plain = marsh plain Wetland_Type: TFW = tidal freshwater, Salt = saltwater, Brack = brackish water Plant_Species: Cutgrass = Zizaniopsis milacea, TSpart = Spartina alterniflora (tall form), SSpart = Spartina alterniflora (short form), SCyno = Spartina cynosuroides, Juncus = Juncus roemerianus c. Numeric Range: column 1. 6 to 9 column 2. (none) column 3. 0 to 354 column 4. (none) column 5. (none) column 6. 1 to 4 column 7. (none) column 8. (none) column 9. 0.37 to 2.09 column 10. (none) column 11. 25.41 to 44.29 column 12. (none) column 13. 0.35 to 1.21 column 14. (none) column 15. 183.69 to 1769.22 column 16. (none) column 17. 0 to 0.48 column 18. (none) d. Missing Value Code: 5. Data Format a. Column Type: column 1. numerical column 2. text column 3. numerical column 4. text column 5. text column 6. numerical column 7. text column 8. text column 9. numerical column 10. text column 11. numerical column 12. text column 13. numerical column 14. text column 15. numerical column 16. text column 17. numerical column 18. text b. Number of Columns: 18 c. Decimal Places: column 1. 0 column 2. 0 column 3. 0 column 4. 0 column 5. 0 column 6. 0 column 7. 0 column 8. 0 column 9. 2 column 10. 0 column 11. 2 column 12. 0 column 13. 2 column 14. 0 column 15. 2 column 16. 0 column 17. 2 column 18. 0 6. Logical Variable Type: column 1. coded value (discrete) column 2. datetime (none) column 3. calculation (continuous) column 4. coded value (none) column 5. coded value (none) column 6. ordinal (discrete) column 7. coded value (none) column 8. coded value (none) column 9. data (continuous) column 10. coded value (none) column 11. calculation (continuous) column 12. coded value (none) column 13. calculation (continuous) column 14. coded value (none) column 15. calculation (continuous) column 16. coded value (none) column 17. calculation (continuous) column 18. coded value (none) 7. Flagging Criteria: column 1. x<6="Q", x>9="Q", x<1="I", x>10="I" column 2. none column 3. x<0="I" column 4. none column 5. flag_notinlist(x,{"Levee","Plain"})="Q" column 6. x>4="Q", x<1="I" column 7. flag_notinlist(x,{"TFW","Salt","Brack"})="Q" column 8. flag_notinlist(x,{"Cutgrass","TSpart","SSpart","SCyno","Juncus"})="Q" column 9. x<0="I" column 10. none column 11. x<0="I", x>100="I" column 12. none column 13. x<0="I", x>100="I" column 14. none column 15. x<0="I" column 16. none column 17. x<0="I" column 18. none C. Data Anomalies: V. Supplemental Descriptors A. Data Acquisition 1. Data Forms: Field notes in loose leaf paper format, later entered into Excel spreadsheets. 2. Form Location: notebooks and datasets maintained by Chris Craft at Indiana University 3. Data Entry Validation: not specified B. Quality Assurance/Quality Control Procedures: QA/QC flags are generated automatically according to domain criteria specified for each data column. A flag column is generated and appended to the data table if any flags are assigned to any value, listing the flags for each column on each row. C. Supplemental Materials: unspecified D. Computer Programs: Sigma Plot 9.01, Microsoft Excel 2003 E. Archival Practices: Data sets and documentation are stored in structured binary (Matlab 5.x files) and delimited ASCII text formats, and archived on magnetic tape and CD at the GCE LTER Information Management Office at the University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA F. Publications: not specified G. History of Data Set Usage 1. Data Request History: not specified 2. Data Set Update History: none 3. Review History: none 4. Questions and Comments from Users: none