The contribution of understorey vegetation to ecosystem evapotranspiration in boreal and temperate forests: a literature review and analysis

Balandier, Philippe; Gobin, Rémy; Prévosto, Bernard; Korboulewsky, Nathalie

doi:10.1007/s10342-022-01505-0

Cited by 12 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 117 publications

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“…However, we assume that the observed lower topsoil moistures in larch stands compared to beech are the results of two reasons. Firstly, the light-demanding larch stands provide a favourable environment for developing a dense understory vegetation, that can contribute up to the one third of the total stand evapotranspiration, as reported by Balandier et al (2022). Secondly, the beech, as the only native species, is adapted to lower altitudes with limited precipitation and therefore, developed a highly effective recharge ability.…”

Section: The Specie-speci C Soil Moisture Regimesmentioning

confidence: 95%

Tree trait-mediated differences in soil moisture regimes: a comparative study of beech, spruce, and larch in a drought-prone area of Central Europe

Kuželková,

Jačka,

Kovář

et al. 2023

Eur J Forest Res

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Species-speci c tree traits substantially impact precipitation partitioning, soil in ltration, retention, and overall water management. With the changing climate, the evidence of drought-induced tree mortality is increasing, indicating the need for a shift to more resilient species. Therefore, the knowledge of tree species' effect on soil-water management is needed. We used a total of 54 stations for monitoring the soil moisture regimes of silt loam soil in Central Bohemia under three common and different tree species (spruce, larch, and beech). For the dry and warm part of the year 2022, the soil moisture in winter and early spring was signi cantly lowered by high canopy interception and gradually depleted by early spring transpiration of evergreen spruce, where mean values were more than 15% lower than for beech. Since March, the soil moisture under spruce was already below the limit of easily available water. In contrast, the deciduous beech and larch did not show a signi cant decrease until the foliage emergence in early May. The beech stands showed the highest soil moisture levels, which we attributed to a more effective water recharge mechanism induced by its structural traits. This adaptive strategy is vital as soil-water storage is critical for coping with climate change. In general, the results show a distinct advantage in the water recharge ability of deciduous trees and that the selection of tree species can distinctly affect soil moisture conditions, especially during drought periods in areas characterized by tight hydrological balance.

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Section: The Specie-speci C Soil Moisture Regimesmentioning

confidence: 95%

Tree trait-mediated differences in soil moisture regimes: a comparative study of beech, spruce, and larch in a drought-prone area of Central Europe

Kuželková,

Jačka,

Kovář

et al. 2023

Eur J Forest Res

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“…Considering that understory vegetation is an important component of forest ecosystems, functional changes in understory vegetation can substantially affect forest structure and function, such as tree regeneration, carbonnutrient-water cycling, and stability (Gilliam, 2007;Gilliam et al, 2016;Giuggiola et al, 2018;Landuyt et al, 2019;Blondeel et al, 2020;Xing et al, 2022). For example, in a recent review, Balandier et al (2022) reported that understory vegetation contributed one-third of ecosystem evapotranspiration in boreal and temperate forests, and the removal of understory vegetation could reduce water competition, with subsequent consequence of increasing soil water content and stimulating sap flow and the growth of overstory tree species (e.g., mean annual radial growth increased by 4.6-fold, Giuggiola et al, 2018). Deng et al (2016) demonstrated that, when subjected to exogenous N inputs, understory vegetation have competitive advantages in terms of resource acquisition (e.g., P) compared with the corresponding young overstory trees.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stability in the leaf functional traits of understory herbaceous species after 12-yr of nitrogen addition in temperate larch plantations

Yan,

Wang,

Wang

et al. 2023

Front. Plant Sci.

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Leaf functional traits play critical roles in plant functioning. Although the functional traits of overstory trees have been extensively studied, minimal research has been conducted regarding understory species, despite the understory layer is an important component of temperate forests. Such insufficiency limit the broader understanding of processes and functions in forest ecosystems, particularly when under the increasing atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition. Here, we investigated the responses of 18 leaf functional traits in six understory herbaceous species within young and mature stands (three species per stand) in larch (Larix principis-rupprechtii) plantations that subjected to 12 years of anthropogenic N addition. We found that N addition did not significantly impact the photosynthetic traits of understory herbaceous species in either stand; it only led to increased chlorophyll content in Geum aleppicum Jacq. Similarly, with the exception of decreases in the predawn leaf water potential of Sanguisorba officinalis L., N addition did not significantly affect leaf hydraulic traits. With the exception of changes to adaxial epidermis thickness in Potentilla chinensis Ser. (decreased) and G. aleppicum (increased), N addition had negligible effects on leaf anatomical traits and specific leaf area, however, interspecific variations in the plasticity of leaf anatomical traits were observed. Stable responses to N addition were also observed for nonstructural carbohydrates (NSC) and their components (soluble sugars and starch), with the exception of Polygonum divaricatum L., which exhibited increases in NSC. Overall, our results suggest that the functional traits of understory herbaceous species exhibit stability under conditions of long-term N enrichment in temperate plantations.

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Assessing hydrological interactions, soil erosion intensities, and vegetation dynamics in Nyabarongo River tributaries: a SWAT and RUSLE modeling approach

Uwamahoro,

Liu,

Nzabarinda

et al. 2024

Model. Earth Syst. Environ.

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The contribution of understorey vegetation to ecosystem evapotranspiration in boreal and temperate forests: a literature review and analysis

Cited by 12 publications

References 117 publications

Tree trait-mediated differences in soil moisture regimes: a comparative study of beech, spruce, and larch in a drought-prone area of Central Europe

Tree trait-mediated differences in soil moisture regimes: a comparative study of beech, spruce, and larch in a drought-prone area of Central Europe

Stability in the leaf functional traits of understory herbaceous species after 12-yr of nitrogen addition in temperate larch plantations

Assessing hydrological interactions, soil erosion intensities, and vegetation dynamics in Nyabarongo River tributaries: a SWAT and RUSLE modeling approach

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