Influence of Management on Soil Organic Carbon Dynamics in Northern Mixed‐Grass Rangeland

Understanding grazing management effects on soil organic carbon (SOC) accumulation and chemical composition is important to provide effective soil C management options for rangelands. Impacts of grazing on the distribution of soil C between labile and recalcitrant pools are also important to understand C storage potentials in rangelands. If grazing results in greater incorporation of organic matter into recalcitrant soil C pools, then grazing may enhance long-term soil C storage. Environmental conditions such as drought and climate change also influence C sequestration. Research conducted at the High Plains Grasslands Research Station near Cheyenne, Wyoming, on a northern mixed-grass prairie has addressed the role of grazing and climatic conditions on C cycling and the sustainability of this rangeland ecosystem. The chapter summarizes the effects of grazing management and climatic conditions on the potential for C sequestration by a mixed-grass ecosystem.