Increase in Soil Carbon Pool Stability Rather Than Its Stock in Coastal Saline—Alkali Ditches following Reclamation Time

Extensive drainage ditches are constructed to reduce soil salinity in reclaimed saline–alkali farmland, consequently forming plant growth hotspots and impacting soil carbon stocks therein. However, the investigation into changes in soil carbon stocks remains limited in these ditches. To address this, soil samples were collected from drainage ditches, which originated from the reclamation of saline–alkali farmland, at different reclamation years (the first, seventh, and fifteenth year). Moreover, fractions were separated from soil samples; a particle size separation method (particulate organic matter, POM; mineral–associated organic matter, MAOM) and a spatio–temporal substitution method were conducted to analyze the variations in soil carbon components and the underlying mechanisms. The results indicate that there were no significant variations in the contents and stocks of soil organic carbon (SOC) and soil inorganic carbon (SIC) following the increase in reclamation time. However, in the POM fraction, the SOC content (SOCPOM) and stock significantly decreased from 2.24 to 1.12 g kg−1 and from 19.02 to 12.71 Mg ha−1, respectively. Conversely, in the MAOM fraction, the SOC content (SOCMAOM) and stock significantly increased from 0.65 to 1.70 g kg−1 and from 5.30 to 12.27 Mg ha−1, respectively. The different changes in SOCPOM and SOCMAOM, as well as the result of the structural equation model, showed a possible transformation process from SOCPOM to SOCMAOM in the soil carbon pool under the driving force of reclamation time. The results in terms of the changes in soil carbon components demonstrate the stability rather than the stock of the soil carbon pool increase in coastal saline–alkali ditches following the excavation formation time. Although more long time series and direct evidence are needed, our findings further provide a case study for new knowledge about changes in the soil carbon pool within saline–alkali ditches and reveal the potential processes involved in the transformation of soil carbon components