Conservative allocation strategy of multiple nutrients among major plant organs: From species to community

Abstract

1. Nutrient allocation is an important aspect of plant resource uptake and use, which is related to life-history strategies. Although to date considerable attention has focused on plant allocation of nitrogen and phosphorus, comparatively little information is available on the allocation of various other nutrients and their up-scaling from the species to community level.2. We measured 10 nutrient elements in the leaves, branches and fine roots of 551 plant species growing in eight forest ecosystems in China, ranging from cold temperate to subtropical forests. We estimated the scaling relationship of multiple nutrients among plant organs at the species level and scaled-up the relationship to the community level by combining this information with that of community structure.3. Nutrient allocation among plant organs was conserved in different functional groups and biomes across broad environmental gradients. Nutrient partitioning between organs with similar function tended to be isometric, whereas partitioning between organs with distinct functions tended to be allometric. The scaling relationship between above-and below-ground organs remained consistent, whereas the scaling relationship within above-ground organs changed after scaling up from the species to the community level, with the relative change in nutrients being consistently smaller in the more active organs.4. Synthesis. The pattern of multiple nutrient allocation among organs showed a degree of conservatism across plant functional groups and biomes, with disproportional changes in nutrient content between functionally distinct organs and a lower relative change in more active organs. This conservative strategy implies the existence of general rules that constrain plant nutrient allocation.

Plant functional traits involved in the assembly of canopy–recruit interactions

“…For each species, 30 saplings (15 located underneath canopy plants, and 15 located in open interspaces) and 10 adults were chosen distanced at least 10 m along 100 m long parallel transects distributed in the surroundings of the three plots of each community. Since environmental conditions and soil properties are similar at PFJ and MFJ, we assumed that traits do not differ within species in these two communities (Zhao et al, 2020).…”

Leaf Multi-Element Network Reveals the Change of Species Dominance Under Nitrogen Deposition

“…An elemental analyzer (Vario Max CN Element Analyser, Elementar, Hanau, Germany) was used to measure N concentration. A microwave digestion system (Mars Xpress Microwave Digestion system, CEM, Matthews, NC, United States) and an inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer (ICP-OES, Optima 5300 DV, Perkin Elmer, Waltham, MA, United States) were used to determine the concentration of P, K, Ca, Mg, S, Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, Li, Na, Al, Ti, Co, Ni, Sr, and Ba (Zhang et al, 2018b;Zhao et al, 2020). Citrus leaf (GBW-10020) as a standard substance was measured to adjust random errors during digestion and measurement.…”

“…Species have a relatively stable elemental composition and interrelationships in an organ under a specific environmental condition through long-term adaptation without disturbance (Sterner and Elser, 2002). Changes in elements can, therefore, reflect the allocation and adaptation strategies of plants (Zhang et al, 2018a;Zhao et al, 2020). Commonly, early studies about the function of mineral elements in plant growth and development did not consider mutual effects among elements (Chapin, 1980;An et al, 2005).…”

Variation and evolution of C:N ratio among different organs enable plants to adapt to N‐limited environments

“…The ecological stoichiometry of plant organs differs significantly because different organs have different functions and activities (Zhang, Zhao, et al, 2018;Zhao et al, 2019). More metabolically active organs tend to be allocated more nutrients (e.g., N, P, K, and Ca) to maintain high functioning, such as photosynthesis in the leaf (Reich, Walters, & Ellsworth, 1997) and absorption capacity of the root (Yuan, Chen, & Reich, 2011).…”