Converting evergreen broad-leaved forests into tea and Moso bamboo plantations affects labile carbon pools and the chemical composition of soil organic carbon

[Display omitted] •Conversion from EBF to TP and MBP altered chemical structure of SOC and labile C pools.•Conversion from EBF to TP and MBP had negative effects on the content of SOC.•Management practices (rational fertilization and sod cultivation) are recommended. This study aimed to explore the effects of conversion from evergreen broad-leaved forests (EBFs) to tea plantations (TPs) and Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys heterocycla var. pubescens) plantations (MBPs) and the subsequent long-term intensive management on the soil carbon pool and the chemical composition of soil organic carbon (SOC). Soil samples from three layers (0–10, 10–30 and 30–60 cm, respectively) were collected from adjacent EBFs, TPs and MBPs in An’ji County, Zhejiang Province, China. The physico-chemical properties of soils, including bulk density, SOC and its different fractions were determined. The chemical composition of SOC was also measured using 13C-nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR). The results showed that conversion from EBFs to TPs and MBPs decreased the concentrations of water soluble organic carbon (WSOC), light and heavy fraction organic carbon (LFOC, HFOC) and humus carbon (HC) (P