N:P Ratio and the Nature of Nutrient Limitation in Calluna-Dominated Heathlands

Oheimb, Goddert von; Power, Sally A.; Falk, Kirsten; Friedrich, Uta; Mohamed, Abdelmenam; Krug, Angelika; Boschatzke, Nora; Härdtle, Werner

doi:10.1007/s10021-010-9320-y

Cited by 71 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…Probably due to the chronic high deposition of nitrogen from the atmosphere, there has been a change in the former fluctuation of the cover of the grass to a more stable situation where D. flexuosa, and lately also Molinia caerulea, are often the dominating species in nutrient-poor inland ecosystems such as wet and dry heath. The same scenario has been observed in a number of western European countries (Bobbink et al 2003) and (von Oheimb et al 2010).…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 79%

A Native Species with Invasive Behaviour in Coastal Dunes: Evidence for Progressing Decay and Homogenization of Habitat Types

Nielsen¹,

Degn

Damgaard³

et al. 2011

AMBIO

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A new species has recently invaded coastal dune ecosystems in North West Europe. The native and expansive inland grass, Deschampsia flexuosa, progressively dominating inland heaths, has recently invaded coastal dunes in Denmark, occasionally even as a dominant species. A total of 222 coastal locations with 5,000 random sample plots have been investigated. These findings are in contrast to historical records, and D. flexuosa has never been considered belonging to coastal dune ecosystems. The occurrence of the typical inland grass in the coastal dunes is a strong indication of increase in nutrient level and that human influences may cause a native species to be invasive in new ecosystems. This could be a radical example of change in species composition due to a long lasting exceedance of critical load of nitrogen. The investigation also showed a general increase in cover of the most dominant species.

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 79%

A Native Species with Invasive Behaviour in Coastal Dunes: Evidence for Progressing Decay and Homogenization of Habitat Types

Nielsen¹,

Degn

Damgaard³

et al. 2011

AMBIO

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“…These results agree with other recent studies that have found co-limitation to occur in temperate (Niinemets and Kalevi, 2005;Vadeboncoeur, 2010) and tropical (Wullaert et al, 2010) ecosystems. P-limitation or co-limitation in temperate systems might occur because: (1) until recently P limitations have not been investigated as rigorously as N limitations in the temperate systems (Vadeboncoeur, 2010), and (2) increased N deposition and its physiological consequences are shifting the nature and extent of nutrient limitations (Von Oheimb et al, 2010). Similarly, some tropical forests have been found to have N-limitation due to substrate age and type that does not fit the norm for tropical systems (Domingues et al, 2010).…”

Section: Trends In Rr N and Rr P Across Climatic Gradients And Ecosysmentioning

confidence: 99%

Detecting Terrestrial Nutrient Limitation: A Global Meta-Analysis of Foliar Nutrient Concentrations after Fertilization

Ostertag

DiManno

2016

Front. Earth Sci.

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Examining foliar nutrient concentrations after fertilization provides an alternative method for detecting nutrient limitation of ecosystems, which is logistically simpler to measure than biomass change. We present a meta-analysis of response ratios of foliar nitrogen and phosphorus (RR N , RR P ) after addition of fertilizer of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), or the two elements in combination, in relation to climate, ecosystem type, life form, family, and methodological factors. Results support other meta-analyses using biomass, and demonstrate there is strong evidence for nutrient limitation in natural communities. However, because N fertilization experiments greatly outnumber P fertilization trials, it is difficult to discern the absolute importance of N vs. P vs. co-limitation across ecosystems. Despite these caveats, it is striking that results did not follow "conventional wisdom" that temperate ecosystems are N-limited and tropical ones are P-limited. In addition, the use of ratios of N-to-P rather than response ratios also are a useful index of nutrient limitation, but due to large overlap in values, there are unlikely to be universal cutoff values for delimiting N vs. P limitation. Differences in RR N and RR P were most significant across ecosystem types, plant families, life forms, and between competitive environments, but not across climatic variables.

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“…Numerous studies have suggested that biomass N : P ratios of less than 14 (mass basis) indicate N limitation, and that ratios greater than 16 indicate P limitation in terrestrial plants (Koerselman and Meuleman, 1996;Aerts and Champin, 2000). On the basis of a meta-analysis, Güsewell (2004) suggested that the N : P ratio indicating N limitation was lowered to 10 and the limit for P limitation was raised to 20; for ratios between 10 and 20, plant growth may be co-limited by N and P. However, several studies have suggested that speciesspecific leaf N : P ratios do not reflect the type of nutrient limitation at the local scale (von Oheimb et al, 2010). 15 N fractionation due to discrimination against the isotopically heavier 15 N substrates can occur during N uptake and assimilation by plant tissues (e.g., enzymatic NH 4 or NO À 3 assimilation; Evans, 2001).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Nutrient limitation of alpine plants: Implications from leaf N : P stoichiometry and leaf δ¹⁵N

Wanek

Zhou

et al. 2014

J. Plant Nutr. Soil Sci.

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Nitrogen (N) deposition can affect grassland ecosystems by altering biomass production, plant species composition and abundance. Therefore, a better understanding of the response of dominant plant species to N input is a prerequisite for accurate prediction of future changes and interactions within plant communities. We evaluated the response of seven dominant plant species on the Tibetan Plateau to N input at two levels: individual species and plant functional group. This was achieved by assessing leaf N : P stoichiometry, leaf d 15 N and biomass production for the plant functional groups. Seven dominant plant species-three legumes, two forbs, one grass, one sedge-were analyzed for N, P, and d 15 N 2 years after fertilization with one of the three N forms: NO À 3 , NH 4 , or NH 4 NO 3 at four application rates (0, 7.5, 30, and 150 kg N ha -1 y -1 ). On the basis of biomass production and leaf N : P ratios, we concluded that grasses were limited by available N or co-limited by available P. Unlike for grasses, leaf N : P and biomass production were not suitable indicators of N limitation for legumes and forbs in alpine meadows. The poor performance of legumes under high N fertilization was mainly due to strong competition with grasses. The total above-ground biomass was not increased by N fertilization. However, species composition shifted to more productive grasses. A significant negative correlation between leaf N : P and leaf d 15 N indicated that the two forbs Gentiana straminea and Saussurea superba switched from N deficiency to P limitation (e.g., N excess) due to N fertilization. These findings imply that alpine meadows will be more dominated by grasses under increased atmospheric N deposition.

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N:P Ratio and the Nature of Nutrient Limitation in Calluna-Dominated Heathlands

Cited by 71 publications

References 44 publications

A Native Species with Invasive Behaviour in Coastal Dunes: Evidence for Progressing Decay and Homogenization of Habitat Types

A Native Species with Invasive Behaviour in Coastal Dunes: Evidence for Progressing Decay and Homogenization of Habitat Types

Detecting Terrestrial Nutrient Limitation: A Global Meta-Analysis of Foliar Nutrient Concentrations after Fertilization

Nutrient limitation of alpine plants: Implications from leaf N : P stoichiometry and leaf δ¹⁵N

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N:P Ratio and the Nature of Nutrient Limitation in Calluna-Dominated Heathlands

Cited by 71 publications

References 44 publications

A Native Species with Invasive Behaviour in Coastal Dunes: Evidence for Progressing Decay and Homogenization of Habitat Types

A Native Species with Invasive Behaviour in Coastal Dunes: Evidence for Progressing Decay and Homogenization of Habitat Types

Detecting Terrestrial Nutrient Limitation: A Global Meta-Analysis of Foliar Nutrient Concentrations after Fertilization

Nutrient limitation of alpine plants: Implications from leaf N : P stoichiometry and leaf δ15N

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Nutrient limitation of alpine plants: Implications from leaf N : P stoichiometry and leaf δ¹⁵N