UK Topsoil Carbon and Nitrogen Fractions from 100 Countryside Survey Samples

100 topsoil samples from Great Britain provide measurements for seven soil organic matter fractions, including free-light fraction, occluded particulate fraction, and mineral-associated organic matter. The data detail carbon and nitrogen content per gram of soil from the UKCEH Countryside Survey collected in 2019-2020.

Use Cases

• Model relationships between soil organic carbon (SOC) and mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) fractions to predict carbon sequestration potential.
• Analyze the distribution of total soil nitrogen (TN) across the free-light fraction (LF) and occluded particulate fraction (OF) to assess nitrogen cycling.
• Compare carbon content in particulate organic matter (POM) versus soil organic matter (SOM from loss-on-ignition) to validate fractionation methods.
• Investigate correlations between the seven measured fractions (e.g., LF, OF, MAOM) to understand soil organic matter composition dynamics.

Strengths

• Provides measurements for seven distinct soil organic matter fractions per sample, enabling detailed compositional analysis.
• Data originates from the standardized UKCEH Countryside Survey, ensuring consistent sampling and laboratory methodology.
• Focuses on 100 topsoil samples (0-15 cm depth) from Great Britain, offering a spatially distributed snapshot.

Limitations

• Limited to 100 samples, which may restrict statistical power for granular geographic or land-use comparisons.
• Temporal coverage is a single snapshot from 2019-2020, preventing analysis of trends or changes over time.
• Dataset description indicates it has been withdrawn, which may imply issues with data availability or versioning.

Provenance

Source

Environmental Information Data Centre via the UKCEH Countryside Survey.

Collection Method

Laboratory analysis of collected topsoil samples measuring carbon and nitrogen content of specified fractions.

Time Range

2019-2020

Freshness

null

Geography

Great Britain