Soil Nitrogen

AUS-TMS-FOR-SON General Moderate confidence

Benchmark Value

No specific value — see range
Range: 1000 to 1500 mg/kg
Optimal Range: 1000 to 1500
Direction: Higher is desirable ↑
Form: OptimalRange

Scoring Curve

Scoring curve unavailable

The scoring engine could not generate a curve for this benchmark context. The primary form is CompositeFramework, but the benchmark data may be missing required fields (e.g., optimal range bounds for an OptimalRange benchmark). This is typically a data quality issue in the benchmark pipeline.

Contributing Benchmarks

CompositeFramework Primary MaximumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard MinimumOnly Guard MaximumOnly Guard Point Guard MinimumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard MaximumOnly Guard Point Guard OptimalRange Guard Point Guard MinimumOnly Guard MaximumOnly Guard Point Guard MinimumOnly Guard MaximumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard

Evidence & Context

It is proposed that maintaining soil N at or above the reference value of 1000 mg/kg, potentially up to 1500 mg/kg (or even 2500 mg/kg if supported by further data from exceptionally healthy native sites), would be conducive to robust ecological function and sustainable forestry.

Metric Definition:

Optimal range of total soil nitrogen concentration in topsoil supporting robust ecological function and sustainable production forestry.

Benchmark Definition:

Range of soil nitrogen concentrations considered optimal for ecological health and sustainable production forestry in TMS.

Justification:

Based on natural N levels in healthy native savanna woodlands and potential benefits of higher N levels if sustainably managed.

Sources (1)

Preview of Butterbach-Bahl, K., Kiese, R., Liu, C., & Werner, C. (2014). Nitrogen and greenhouse gas dynamics in managed and natural savanna and pasture ecosystems in northern Australia. Biogeosciences, 11(21), 6047-6062.
Butterbach-Bahl, K., Kiese, R., Liu, C., & Werner, C. (2014). Nitrogen and greenhouse gas dynamics in managed and natural savanna and pasture ecosystems in northern Australia. Biogeosciences, 11(21), 6047-6062. Journal

N$_2$O, NO, N$_2$ and CO$_2$ emissions from tropical savanna and grassland of northern Australia: an incubation experiment with intact soil cores

View Source

Supporting Sources (19)

Additional references from the underlying research that informed this benchmark.

Preview of (PDF) Soil and Landscape Grid of Australia - ResearchGate
(PDF) Soil and Landscape Grid of Australia - ResearchGate
Contextual Support

(PDF) Soil and Landscape Grid of Australia - ResearchGate

View Source
Preview of Australia's tropical savannas: vast, ancient and rich landscapes - CSIRO Research Publications Repository, accessed May 11, 2025,
Australia's tropical savannas: vast, ancient and rich landscapes - CSIRO Research Publications Repository, accessed May 11, 2025,
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Williams RJ, Duff GA, Bowman DMJS, Cook GD. Australia's tropical savannas: vast, ancient and rich landscapes. In: David Keith, editor/s. Australian vegetation. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press; 2017. 368-388.

View Source
Preview of bg.copernicus.org
bg.copernicus.org
Contextual Support Journal

bg.copernicus.org

View Source
Preview of Contrasting strategies of nutrient demand and use between savanna and forest ecosystems in a neotropical transition zone - BG
Contrasting strategies of nutrient demand and use between savanna and forest ecosystems in a neotropical transition zone - BG
Contextual Support Journal

Delta15N values of tropical savanna and monsoon forest species reflect root specialisations and soil nitrogen status - PubMed

View Source
Preview of Does rapid utilization of elevated nutrient availability allow eucalypts to dominate in the tropical savannas of Australia? - PubMed Central
Does rapid utilization of elevated nutrient availability allow eucalypts to dominate in the tropical savannas of Australia? - PubMed Central
Contextual Support Journal

Does rapid utilization of elevated nutrient availability allow eucalypts to dominate in the tropical savannas of Australia? - PubMed Central

View Source
Preview of Effect of fire and tree‐grass patches on soil nitrogen in Australian tropical savannas
Effect of fire and tree‐grass patches on soil nitrogen in Australian tropical savannas
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Effect of fire and tree‐grass patches on soil nitrogen in Australian tropical savannas

View Source
Preview of Hoop pine - Araucaria (plantations), accessed July 19, 2025,
Hoop pine - Araucaria (plantations), accessed July 19, 2025,
Contextual Support Journal

www.scionresearch.com

View Source
Preview of Landscape Monitoring for Landscape Research | Landscape ..., accessed July 22, 2025,
Landscape Monitoring for Landscape Research | Landscape ..., accessed July 22, 2025,
Contextual Support Government

Litchfield Savanna SuperSite | Fire Regime Impact | TERN | NT

View Source
Preview of Litchfield Savanna SuperSite | Fire Regime Impact - TERN Australia, accessed July 24, 2025,
Litchfield Savanna SuperSite | Fire Regime Impact - TERN Australia, accessed July 24, 2025,
Contextual Support Government

Land Ecosystem Atmosphere Program (LEAP) - Litchfield Supersite - Resources - The University of Western Australia

View Source
Preview of Liu, X. et al. (2023). Fire regime has a greater impact on soil microbial abundance than on soil organic carbon in a tropical savanna. Wildlife Research.
Liu, X. et al. (2023). Fire regime has a greater impact on soil microbial abundance than on soil organic carbon in a tropical savanna. Wildlife Research.
Contextual Support

Short‐term impact of fire on the total soil microbial and nitrifier communities in a wet savanna

View Source
Preview of Modelling Scale-dependent Processes and Impacts of Agricultural Disturbances on Tropical Savanna Ecosystems in Northern Australia - MSSANZ, accessed July 19, 2025
Modelling Scale-dependent Processes and Impacts of Agricultural Disturbances on Tropical Savanna Ecosystems in Northern Australia - MSSANZ, accessed July 19, 2025
Contextual Support Journal

www.mssanz.org.au

View Source
Preview of Plantation tree growth responses to P, N, K and minor and trace elements on low fertility savanna soils - ResearchGate, accessed May 16, 2025,
Plantation tree growth responses to P, N, K and minor and trace elements on low fertility savanna soils - ResearchGate, accessed May 16, 2025,
Contextual Support Journal

Agnote - Northern Territory Government

View Source
Preview of Recent insights in soil nutrient cycling: perspectives from Pinus and Eucalyptus forest studies around the world
Recent insights in soil nutrient cycling: perspectives from Pinus and Eucalyptus forest studies around the world
Contextual Support Government

Recent insights in soil nutrient cycling: perspectives from Pinus and Eucalyptus forest studies around the world

View Source
Preview of Review of C:N Ratios in Vegetation, Litter and Soil Under Australian Native Forests and Plantations - DCCEEW
Review of C:N Ratios in Vegetation, Litter and Soil Under Australian Native Forests and Plantations - DCCEEW
Contextual Support Journal

Review of C:N Ratios in Vegetation, Litter and Soil ... - DCCEEW

View Source
Preview of Soil and Landscape Grid National Soil Attribute Maps - Total Nitrogen (3" resolution) - Release 2 - CSIRO Data Access Portal, accessed August 5, 2025,
Soil and Landscape Grid National Soil Attribute Maps - Total Nitrogen (3" resolution) - Release 2 - CSIRO Data Access Portal, accessed August 5, 2025,
Contextual Support Government

Geology | Norfolk Island National Park | Parks Australia

View Source
Preview of Soil management for sustainable agriculture : background papers from a workshop organized by the Research Review Committee of th, accessed July 7, 2025
Soil management for sustainable agriculture : background papers from a workshop organized by the Research Review Committee of th, accessed July 7, 2025
Contextual Support Government

Soil management guides - NSW Department of Primary Industries

View Source
Preview of Soil organic carbon content at a range of north Australian tropical savannas with contrasting site histories - OPUS at UTS, accessed May 16, 2025,
Soil organic carbon content at a range of north Australian tropical savannas with contrasting site histories - OPUS at UTS, accessed May 16, 2025,
Contextual Support Journal

opus.lib.uts.edu.au

View Source
Preview of Soil Research - CSIRO PUBLISHING, accessed May 16, 2025,
Soil Research - CSIRO PUBLISHING, accessed May 16, 2025,
Contextual Support Journal

Litchfield Savanna BASE Contextual, Soil Physico-Chemical Data ..., accessed May 20, 2025,

View Source
Preview of Wildfire effects on soils and soil processes - CSIRO Publishing, accessed July 24, 2025,
Wildfire effects on soils and soil processes - CSIRO Publishing, accessed July 24, 2025,
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

The dynamics of microbial biomass C [MBC (a, b)] and N [MBN (c, d)]...

View Source

Context

  • Region Australia
  • Biome Tropical Monsoonal Savannas
  • Land Use Production Forestry
  • Assessment Not Stated
  • Evidence Type HealthyOperationalRange

Lifecycle

  • Status Active
  • Version 1
  • Effective From 9 Jun 2026

Notes

Focus is on efficient nitrogen cycling and conservation rather than achieving artificially high absolute N concentrations. AssessmentContext defaulted to 'Not Stated' because the source document did not state one.

Related Benchmarks

Other benchmarks in the AUS-TMS-FOR-SON family.

1000 mg/kg Moderate
Production Forestry · Not Stated
Point Active v1
— mg/kg Moderate
Production Forestry · Not Stated
CompositeFramework Active v1