Subsoils - defined as soil below 30 cm or B-horizon - contribute to more than half of the total soil carbon stocks and store substantial amounts of nutrients and water. Despite their critical ecosystem services including long-term storage of carbon, nutrient and water acquisition by plants, and serving as a reservoir of biodiversity distinct from the topsoil, they remain under-represented in research. However, understanding these functions and how management practices can promote these is essential in the face of increasing climate variability and uncertainty.
In this session, we aim to bring together studies working across disciplines to shed light on the role of subsoils in terrestrial ecosystems. We invite studies exploring subsoil processes through experimental, observational, and modeling approaches, including those that integrate soil–plant–atmosphere interactions. As this session aims to recognise the importance of subsoil, we encourage results from single experiments, modelling, commentaries or reviews that include deep soil horizons and highlight its role in climate change mitigation, nutrient cycling, and ecosystem resilience.
Wulf Amelung