Effects of long-term CO2 enrichment on forage quality of extensively managed temperate grassland

Seibert, Ruben; Donath, Tobias W.; Moser, Gerald M.; Laser, H.; Grünhage, Ludger; Schmid, Thomas; Müller, Christoph

doi:10.1016/j.agee.2021.107347

Cited by 9 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 46 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Future reductions in the forage quality of sourveld and sweetveld will depend on how other major climate change drivers (temperature and precipitation) interact with the carbon fertilisation effect (CFE) to alter the balance between plant growth-driven demand for, and soil supply of, nutrients, primarily N. 6,7,12 The CFE would be most pronounced when resources and environmental conditions do not restrict plant growth. 19 However, the effects of multi-way interactions between climate drivers on plants and soils, particularly on forage quality, are poorly understood; these interactions can be complex, multiplicative 20,21 , and speciesspecific 22 . Given these uncertainties and the current growth limitations prevailing in sour-and sweetveld 11,12 , we tentatively predict the following potential shifts in plant quality (leaf [N], digestibility, and fibre content) under climate change.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Elevated temperatures combined with the CFE could stimulate grass production, lowering the N content and digestibility of herbage. 8 However, extreme and prolonged droughts and heat waves, both of which will become more frequent with climate change 5,16 , will limit carbon assimilation and nutrient availability by curtailing microbial decomposition and nutrient cycling 19,20 . The consequences of climate change in semi-arid regions are still uncertain 21 but it is not likely that sweetveld will experience a consistent large directional change in productivity and forage quality in the future.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Will the grass be greener on the other side of climate change? (with corrigendum)

Morris

Kirkman

Zacharias³

2022

S. Afr. J. Sci.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Increasing atmospheric [CO2] is stimulating photosynthesis and plant production, increasing the demand for nitrogen relative to soil supply with declining global foliar nitrogen concentrations as a consequence. The effects of such oligotrophication on the forage quality of sweetveld, mixed veld, and sourveld grasslands in South Africa, which support livestock production and native ungulates, are unknown. Soil characteristics and the herbage quality of an abundant grass are described from baseline historical (mid- 1980s) data collected across a sweet-mixed-sour grassland gradient in KwaZulu-Natal. Sourveld occurred on the most acidic, dystrophic soils and exhibited a pronounced decline in leaf nitrogen, digestibility, and other macronutrients during winter, in sharp contrast to sweetveld, on nutrient-rich soils, where forage quality varied little seasonally. In a carbon-enriched, warmer, and most likely drier future climate, we predict that forage quality will not be substantially altered in sweetveld where soil nutrients and temperature are not limiting but that sourveld could become ‘sourer’ because soil nutrients will be inadequate to match higher plant production promoted by elevated [CO2] and warmer and longer growing seasons. Reassessing historical data and seasonal and spatial monitoring of forage quality will enable assessment of past and future impacts of climate change on grassland forage quality.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Will the grass be greener on the other side of climate change? (with corrigendum)

Morris

Kirkman

Zacharias³

2022

S. Afr. J. Sci.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Future reductions in the forage quality of sourveld and sweetveld will depend on how other major climate change drivers (temperature and precipitation) interact with the carbon fertilisation effect (CFE) to alter the balance between plant growth-driven demand for, and soil supply of, nutrients, primarily N. 6,7,12 The CFE would be most pronounced when resources and environmental conditions do not restrict plant growth. 19 However, the effects of multi-way interactions between climate drivers on plants and soils, particular on forage quality, are poorly understood; these interactions can be complex, multiplicative 20,21 , and species-specific 22 . Given these uncertainties and the current growth limitations prevailing in sour- and sweetveld 11,12 , we tentatively predict the following potential shifts in plant quality (leaf [N], digestibility, and fibre content) under climate change.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Will The Grass Be Greener On The Other Side Of Climate Change?

Morris

Kirkman

Zacharias³

2022

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Increasing atmospheric [CO2] is stimulating photosynthesis and plant production, increasing the demand for nitrogen relative to soil supply with declining global foliar nitrogen concentrations as a consequence. The effect of such oligotrophication on the forage quality of sweetveld, mixedveld, and sourveld grasslands in South Africa, which support livestock production and native ungulates, are unknown. Soil characteristics and the herbage quality of an abundant grass are described from baseline historical (mid 1980s) data collected across a sweet-mixed-sour grassland gradient in KwaZulu-Natal. Sourveld occurred on the most acidic, dystrophic soils and exhibited a pronounced decline in leaf N, digestibility, and other macronutrients during winter, in sharp contrast to sweetveld, on nutrient-rich soils, where forage quality varied little seasonally. In a carbon enriched, warmer, and most likely drier future climate, we predict that forage quality will be little altered in sweetveld where soil nutrients and temperature are not limiting but that sourveld could become ‘sourer’ because soil nutrients will be inadequate to match higher plant production promoted by elevated [CO2] and warmer and longer growing seasons. Reassessing historical data and seasonal and spatial monitoring of forage quality will enable past and future impacts of climate change on grassland forage quality to be assessed.SignificanceGrassland forage quality will likely decline with elevated [CO2] and warming, particularly in sourveld.Climate change could deepen and widen the sourveld winter forage bottleneck, necessitating greater supplementary feeding of livestock.

show abstract

“…Declining grain protein under CO 2 enrichment does not simply derive from dilution of organic nitrogen by additional biomass: in non-leguminous C 3 plants, CO 2 enrichment decreased nitrogen concentration about twice as much as the concentrations of other elements and almost three times more than the increase in carbon (Gifford et al, 2000; Loladze, 2014; Myers et al, 2014; Seibert et al, 2021; Taub et al, 2008; Uddling et al, 2018). Plants in which CO 2 enrichment did not stimulate growth still had lower nitrogen concentrations (Broberg et al, 2017; Feng et al, 2015; Wujeska-Klause et al, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Genetic adaptation to ammonium sustains wheat grain quality and alleviates acclimation to CO₂enrichment

Kasemsap,

Bloom

2023

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Plants synthesize protein through assimilating inorganic nitrogen. Yet, the extent to which soil nitrogen sources alter crop responses to atmospheric CO2remains uncertain. We assessed wheat (Triticum aestivumL.) biomass under CO2enrichment in genotypes that demonstrated a preference for ammonium (NH4+) or nitrate (NO3−), and contrasting degrees of NH4+tolerance. Nitrogen-form preference, but not NH4+tolerance, correlated with CO responses. Notably, NH4+-preferring genotypes maintained higher biomass and sustained grain nitrogen concentrations, thus avoiding CO2acclimation, the decline in biomass stimulation after prolonged exposure to CO2enrichment. Furthermore, NH4+nutrition accelerated flowering and increased spike biomass. Breeding for NH4+-adapted genotypes may not only improve climate resilience, but also potentially accelerate development and increase yield without any penalty on grain quality. Because wheat provides 20% of the protein and carbohydrate in the human diet, our study provided strategies to sustain food security under the atmospheric conditions anticipated in the future.HighlightBreeding for NH4+-adapted genotypes may not only improve climate resilience, but also potentially accelerate development and increase yield without any penalty on grain quality under elevated CO2atmospheres.

show abstract

Effects of long-term CO2 enrichment on forage quality of extensively managed temperate grassland

Cited by 9 publications

References 46 publications

Will the grass be greener on the other side of climate change? (with corrigendum)

Will the grass be greener on the other side of climate change? (with corrigendum)

Will The Grass Be Greener On The Other Side Of Climate Change?

Genetic adaptation to ammonium sustains wheat grain quality and alleviates acclimation to CO₂enrichment

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

Effects of long-term CO2 enrichment on forage quality of extensively managed temperate grassland

Cited by 9 publications

References 46 publications

Will the grass be greener on the other side of climate change? (with corrigendum)

Will the grass be greener on the other side of climate change? (with corrigendum)

Will The Grass Be Greener On The Other Side Of Climate Change?

Genetic adaptation to ammonium sustains wheat grain quality and alleviates acclimation to CO2enrichment

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

Genetic adaptation to ammonium sustains wheat grain quality and alleviates acclimation to CO₂enrichment