Effects of nitrogen addition on root dynamics in an alpine meadow,Northwestern Sichuan北大核心CSCD

Aims Our aim was to characterize the effects of nitrogen (N) addition on plant root standing crop, production, mortality and turnover in an alpine meadow on the Northwestern plateau of Sichuan Province, China. Methods A N addition experiment was conducted in an alpine meadow on the Northwestern plateau of Sichuan Province since 2012. Urea was applied at four levels: 0, 10, 20 and 30 g·m-2·a-1, referred to as CK, N10, N20 and N30. Root samples in surface (0-10 cm) and subsurface layers (10-20 cm) were observed using Minirhizotron from May 10th to Sept. 27th in 2015. The root standing crop, production, mortality and turnover rate were estimated using WinRHZIO Tron MF software. Repeated-measure ANOVA, one-way ANOVA and Pearson correlation were performed to analyze the effect of N addition on soil and root characteristics. Important findings N addition significantly increased soil available N content and decreased soil pH value, but did not alter soil total N and SOM contents under all treatments. N addition did not exhibit any significant effects on the mean root standing crop and cumulative root production in the 0-10 cm, but significantly reduced mean root standing crop and cumulative root production in 10-20 cm soil layer by 195.3 and 142.3 g·m-2 (N10), 235.8 and 212.1 g·m-2 (N20) and 198.0 and 204.4 g·m-2 (N30), respectively. The cumulative root mortality was significantly decreased by 206.1 g·m-2 in N10 treatment and root turnover rate was significantly increased with 17% for N30 treatment at the 0-10 cm soil depth, but the cumulative root mortality and root turnover rate was not significantly different at 10-20 cm soil depth. In addition, cumulative root production, mortality and turnover rate in 0-10 cm soil layer were significantly correlated with the soil available N content, whereas no significant associations were observed in 10-20 cm soil. Taken together, these results demonstrate that N addition alters the soil N availability and thus induces the root dynamics and changes in root distribution as well as C allocation in alpine meadow. © 2018 Editorial Office of Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology. All rights reserved.     

Hierarchical responses of plant stoichiometry to phosphorus addition in an alpine meadow Community北大核心CSCD

Aims Terrestrial carbon (C), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) stoichiometry will reflect the effects of adjustment to local growth conditions as well as species' replacements. However, it remains unclear about the hierarchical responses of plant C:N:P to P addition at levels of species and functional groups in the N-limited alpine meadow. Methods A field experiment of P enrichment was conducted in an alpine meadow on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau during 2009-2013. The stoichiometric patterns of four functional groups (grass, sedge, legume and forb) and five representative species, Elymus nutans (grass), Kobresia humilis (sedge), Oxytropis ochrocephala (legume), Taraxacum lugubre (rosette forb), Geranium pylzowianum (upright forb) were investigated in 2013, and the effects of P addition on species dominance and plant biomass were also analyzed. Important findings Both plant nutrition content and C:N:P varied significantly after five years' P addition, and the responses were consistent at species-And functional group (exemplar species excluded)-levels in the alpine meadow. P addition had neutral effect on C concentrations of grasses, sedges and forbs at both species-And functional group (exemplar species excluded)-levels. P fertilization increased plant P concentrations and thus decreased C:P and N:P of the four functional groups (exemplar species excluded) and the corresponding species. N concentrations significantly decreased and C:N increased in grasses and sedges after P addition, and the species-level responses were consistent with the functional group (exemplar species excluded) level. P addition significantly increased N contents and decreased C:N in Oxytropis ochrocephala, but had neutral effect on N contents and C:N at the functional group (exemplar species excluded) level of the legumes. While N contents and C:N in forbs responded to P addition differently at species and functional group (exemplar species excluded) levels. In the N-limited alpine meadow, species dominance of grasses increased gradually after P addition due to the increased N and P use efficiencies, while the biomass proportion of forbs decreased because of the lowered nutrition use efficiency. © 2018 Editorial Office of Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology. All rights reserved.     

Response of plant biomass to nitrogen addition and precipitation increasing under different climate conditions and time scales in grassland北大核心CSCD

Aims Plant biomass accounts for the main part of grassland productivity. The productivity of grassland regarded as one of important ecosystem function is always co-limited by nitrogen and water availability, therefore, how grasslands respond to atmosphic nitrogen (N) addition and precipitation increasing need to be systematically and quantitatively evaluated at different climate conditions and temporal scales. Methods To investigate the impact of nitrogen addition and precipitation increasing on grassland biomass over climate conditions and temproal scales, a meta-analysis was conducted based on 46 papers that were published during 1990-2017 involving 1 350 observations. Important findings Results showed that: (1) N addtion, precipitation increasing and the combinations of these two treatments significantly increased the aboveground biomass (37%, 41%, 104%), total biomass (32%, 23%, 60%) and the ratio of aboveground biomass to belowground biomass (29%, 25%, 46%) in grassland ecosystem. Belowground biomass showed no response to single N addtion, but could be significantly enhanced together with increaseing precipitation; (2) The response of grassland biomass under these N addtion and the increasing of precipitation showed obvious spatial pattern under different climate conditions. The N addition tended to increase more aboveground biomass, total biomass and the ratio of aboveground biomass to belowground biomass under high sites with high mean annual air temperature (MAT) and mean annual precipitation (MAP) while precipitation increasing tended to simulate more belowground biomass and total biomass under low MAT and MAP sites; (3) In addition, the response of grassland biomass under these two global change index showed obvious temporal pattern. With the increase of duration of N addition, the belowgound biomass tended to decrease, while the aboveground biomass, total biomass and the ratio of aboveground biomass to belowground biomass tended to increase under N addition. With the increase of duration of precipitation manipulation, the total biomass showed no response to precipitation increasing, while aboveground biomass, belowground biomass and the ratio of aboveground biomass to belowground biomass tended to be enhanced. The results indicated that aboveground biomass was more likely to be enhanced than belowground biomass under N addition or precipitation increasing in the long term. © 2018 Editorial Office of Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology. All rights reserved.     

Effects of short-Term experimental warming on soil microbes in a typical alpine steppe北大核心CSCD

Aims Soil microbe plays key role in mediating terrestrial carbon cycles. It has been suggested that climate warming may affect the microbial community, which may accelerate carbon release and induce a positive feedback to soil climate warming. However, there is still controversy on how microbial community responds to experimental warming, especially in cold and drought environment. Methods We conducted an open top chambers (OTCs) experiment to explore the effects of warming on soil microbial community in an alpine steppe on Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. During the maximum of the growing seasons (August) of 2015 and 2016, we monitored the biomass and structure of soil microbial community in warming and control plots using phospholipid fatty acids (PLFA) as biomarkers. Important findings Short-Term warming treatment significantly increased the soil temperature by 1.6 and 1.6 C and decreased soil moisture by 3.4% and 2.4% (volume fraction) respectively, but did not alter either soil properties or normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) during the growing season (from May to October) in 2015 and 2016. During the maximum of growing seasons (August) of 2015 and 2016, the magnitude of microbial biomass carbon (MBC) were 749.0 and 844.3 mg·kg-1, microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) were 43.1 and 102.1 mg·kg-1, and the microbial biomass C:N ranged between 17.9 and 8.4. Moreover, all three showed no significant differences between warming and control treatments. The abundance of bacteria was the most in microbial community, while arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi was the least, and warming treatment did not alter the abundance of different microbial group and the microbial community structure. Nonetheless, our result revealed that warming-induced changes in MBC had significant positive correlation with changes in soil temperature and soil moisture. These patterns indicate that, microbial community in this alpine steppe may not respond substantially to future climate warming due to the limitation of soil drought. Therefore, estimation of microbial community response to climate change calls for consideration on the combined effect of warming and drought. © 2018 Editorial Office of Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology. All rights reserved.     

Responses of nitrogen and phosphorus resorption from leaves and branches to long-term nitrogen deposition in a Chinese fir plantation北大核心CSCD

Aims Our objectives were to investigate differences in nutrient resorption between different plant organs (leaf and branch), among plants with different life spans (one-year old, two-year old and senesced), and under different duration of nitrogen (N) deposition treatments in a Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata) plantation. Methods The long-term N deposition experiment was conducted in a 12-year-old fir plantation of subtropical China. N deposition treatment was initiated in January 2004 until now, up-going 14 years. N deposition were designed at 4 levels of 0, 60, 120, and 240 kg·hm–2·a–1, indicated as N0, N1, N2, and N3, respectively, with 3 replicates for each treatment. The solution of CO(NH2)2 was sprayed on the forest floor each month. In the study, we measured N and phosphorus (P) concentrations and analyzed the pattern of nutrient resorption of mature and senescing leaves and branches. The different responses of needles N and P resorption after 7- and 14-year N deposition treatments were also compared. Important findings After 14 years of N deposition, (1) during the senescing process, leaf and branch C, N, and P content gradually decreased with increasing treatment duration, with higher content in leaf than in branch. N content decreased in the order of one-year old green leaf > two-year old green leaf > senescent leaf > one-year old living branch > two-year old living branch > senescent branch, and N3 > N2 > N1 > N0, with C:N showing the opposite trend. Senescent organs had higher C:N, N:P, and C:P than mature living organs. N deposition increased N, N:P, and C:P of mature living organs (except for the two-year old green leaf), while decreased P and C:N. (2) N resorption efficiency (REN) and P resorption efficiency (REP) of leaves and branches decreased gradually with increasing life span. REP was typically higher in leaf and branch than REN. Leaf had lower REN (28.12%) than branch (30.00%), but higher REP (45.82%) than branch (30.42%). A highly significant linear correlation existed between N:P and REN:REP in leaves and branches. (3) REN decreased but REP increased with the treatment duration of N deposition. The longer experimental duration (14 years) reduced REN by 9.85%, 3.17%, 11.71% under N1, N2, and N3 treatments, respectively, and increased REP by 71.98%, 42.25%, 9.60%, respectively, than the shorter treatment duration (7 years). In summary, the responses of essential nutrients resorption efficiency for different plant organs and life span varied with the levels and duration of N deposition treatment. REN:REP in leaf and branch were mostly driven by N:P of leaf and branch. The results highlight that nutrients resorption is significantly influenced by long-term N deposition. © Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology.     

Responses of soil N2O emissions to experimental warming regulated by soil moisture in an alpine Steppe北大核心CSCD

Aims Nitrous oxide (N2O) is one of the most important greenhouse gases, which contributes a lot to global warming. However, considerable variations are observed in the responses of soil N2O emissions to experimental warming, and the underlying microbial processes remain unknown. Methods A warming experiment based on open-Top chambers (OTCs) was set up in a typical alpine steppe on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. The static chamber combined gas chromatography method was applied to investigate soil N2O flux under control and warming treatments during the growing seasons in 2014 and 2015. Gene abundances of ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) and ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) were quantified using quantitative real-Time PCR. Important findings Our results showed that the warming treatments increased soil temperature by 1.7 and 1.6 °C and decreased volumetric water content by 2.5% and 3.3% respectively during the growing season (May to October) in 2014 and 2015. However, there were no significant differences in other soil properties. Our results also revealed that, the magnitude of soil N2O emissions exhibited substantial variations between the two experi mental years, which were 3.23 and 1.47 μg·m-2·h-1 in 2014 and 2015, respectively, but no significant difference in N2O fluxes was observed between control and warming treatments. AOA and AOB abundances are 15.2 × 107 and 10.0 × 105 copies·g-1 in 2014, and 5.0 × 107 and 4.7 × 105 copies·g-1 in 2015, with no significant differences between control and warming treatments during the experimental period. Furthermore, warming-induced changes in N2O emissions had no significant relationship with the changes in soil temperature, but showed a significant positive correlation with the changes in soil moisture at seasonal scale. Overall, these results demonstrate that soil moisture regulates the responses of N2O emissions to experimental warming, highlighting the necessity to consider the warming-induced drying effect when estimating the magnitude of N2O emissions under future climate warming. © 2018 Editorial Office of Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology. All rights reserved.     

Seasonal dynamic of plant phenophases in Beijing—A case study in Beijing Botanical Garden北大核心CSCD

Aims Seasonality is the typical characteristic of plant landscape in Beijing, including seasonal dynamics of plant phenology. We analyzed the seasonal changes in phenology of 120 deciduous trees in Beijing Botanical Garden, with additional efforts on an innovative methodology in studying plant phenology. Methods Based on the standards of the Chinese Phenological Observation Method, three-level Phenological Code (a, b, and c) was used to recode the phenology data. Our data analysis was performed with “pentad” (5-day period) in 24 Solar Terms. Analytical methods include a frequency distribution method to explore the division of phenophases and their dynamic constitution. The frequency distribution statistics in SPSS 20.0 were applied to explore the temporal dynamics in occurrence time and duration for different types of phenophases. Important findings We found that: The division of phenological seasons and their phenological constitution as: 6th–19th pentad for Spring, with 54.03% of the whole phenophases that are featured with sprouting, leaf spreading and flowering; 20th–45th pentad for Summer, with 12.95% of phenophases that include conclusions of leaf spreading for all trees, intensive fruiting, fewer flowering, and autumn-leaf scenery in late summer; 46th–59th pentad for Autumn, with 27.19% of the phenophases that are characterized with leaf discoloration and defoliation, some fruiting, and very few flowering; and 60th pentad for Winter, with 0.6% of phenophases that are all constituted with defoliation. The temporal distribution pattern of different kinds of phenophases is as follows. The leaf-unfolding phenophases span from 3rd to 23rd pentad and averagely last for 3.27 pentads, with Sorbaria kirilowii as one of the earliest leaf-unfolding species. The leaf coloration phenophases happen between 40th –63rd pentad, with Tilia mongolica and Armeniaca sibirica as the earliest species to show fall-color leaf. The autumn-leaf duration lasts for 8.2 pentads in average, with Euonymus alatus and Sambucus williamsii as the typical species that show longer leaf duration. The leaf period averagely lasts for 44.2 pentads, with Abelia chinensis, Salix matsudana and Kerria japonica holding the longest leaf time. The flowering-type phenophases happen during 1st–53rd pentad, with 8th–23rd pentad as the best ornamental period, and three species (Chimonanthus praecox, Jasminum nudiflorum and Ulmus pumila) as the earliest blooming species and Elsholtzia stauntoni as the last one to bloom. The flowering period lasts for 6.7 pentads in average, with Sorbaria kirilowii, Hibiscus syriacus and Lagerstroemia indica showing the longest flowering time. The fruiting-type phenophases happen between 8th–59th pentad, with Ulmus pumila and Lonicera fragrantissima as the earliest species for fruit maturation. The fruiting duration averagely lasts for 29.0 pentads, and those species that do not lose fruits during the winter and some other species with longer fruit holding period though falling fruits completely in winter such as Viburnum melanocarpum and Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Luteus’ have longer ornamental time of fruit scenery. Compared with a counterpart research in the 1980s, this study reveals that spring in 2017 came earlier by a pentad than that 30 years ago while autumn came later by 3 pentads; additionally, autumn duration shortened by 2 pentads while summer duration prolonged by 4 pentads, resulting in larger differences between the duration of the four seasons. © Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology.     

Nonlinear responses of productivity and diversity of alpine meadow communities to degradation北大核心CSCD

Aims The alpine meadow degradation could have profound effects on the grassland productivity. The aim of our study is to clarify the dynamic response of community productivity and species diversity in the process of alpine meadow degradation. Methods In the Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Northern Tibetan Grassland Ecosystem Research Station (Nagqu station), we conducted stages experiments with multiple degradation levels: control, mild degraded meadow, moderate degraded meadow, severe degraded meadow and serious sandy meadow. Important findings The response of aboveground biomass to alpine meadow degradation showed a linear or nonlinear increased response patterns, but the belowground biomass and total biomass decreased nonlinearly. As observed in measurement of aboveground biomass, Margalef index, Simpson index, Shannon-Wiener index and Pielou evenness index also exhibit a nonlinear increased response to degradation. The results of structural equation models showed that belowground biomass has a positive relationship with soil carbon content (p < 0.05) and volume water content (p < 0.1). However, soil nutrient and soil physical properties had no significant impact on aboveground biomass (p < 0.1). Compared with soil physical properties, soil nutrition is an important factor influencing the diversity index. In our study, the nonlinear responses of productivity and diversity of alpine meadow were described by using the multiple levels of degradation in space. The results suggested that aboveground productivity cannot interpret the degree of degradation of alpine meadow, and by contrast, alpine meadow degradation should be measured by the change of plant functional groups, such as edible grasses and poisonous forbs. © 2018 Editorial Office of Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology. All rights reserved.     

Effects of nitrogen addition on photosynthetic characteristics of Leymus chinensis in the temperate grassland of Nei Mongol,China北大核心CSCD

Aims The increased atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition due to human activity and climate change greatly causes grassland ecosystems shifting from being naturally N-limited to N-eutrophic or N-saturated, and further affecting the growth of grass species. The aims of this study are: 1) to evaluate the effects of different N addition levels on morphology and photosynthetic characteristics of Leymus chinensis; 2) to determine the critical N level to facilitate L. chinensis growth. Methods We conducted a different N addition levels experiment in dominant species in the temperate steppe of Nei Mongol. The aboveground biomass, morphological and leaf physiological traits, pigment contents, chlorophyll a fluorescence parameters and biochemical parameters of L. chinensis were investigated. Important findings Our results showed that aboveground biomass first increased and then decreased with the increased N, having the highest values at the 10 g N·m-2·a?1 treatment, but the 25 g N·m-2·a?1 still significantly increased the aboveground biomass relative to 0 g N·m-2·a?1. Leymus chinensis accommodate low N situation through allocating less N to carboxylation system and decreasing leaf mass per area (LMA) in order to get more light energy. Moderate N addition captured more light energy through increasing total chlorophyll (Chl) contents and decreasing the ratio of Chl a/b. Moderate N addition increased LMA, carboxylation efficiency, maximum car boxylation rate (Vcmax), maximum electron transport rate (Jmax) and decreased Jmax/Vcmax, thus allocating more N to carboxylation system to enhance carboxylation capability. Moreover, the photochemical activity of PSII was increased through higher effective quantum yield of PSII photochemistry, electron transport rate and photochemical quenching coefficient. Excessive N addition had negative effects on physiological variables of L. chinensis due to lower carboxylation capability and photochemical activity of PSII, further leading to decreased net photosynthetic rate, whereas increased non-photochemical quenching coefficient and carotenoids played the role in the dissipation of excess excitation energy. Overall, moderate N addition facilitated the photosynthetic characteristics of dominant species, but excessive N addition inhibited photosynthetic characteristics. The most appropriate N addition for the growth of L. chinensis was 5-10 g N·m-2·a?1 in the temperate steppe of Nei Mongol, China.     

Response of fine roots to precipitation change: A meta-analysis北大核心CSCD

Aims The response of fine roots to soil moisture is very sensitive. Climate change scenarios predict changes in precipitation which influence soil moisture directly. Plants optimize resource acquisition by fine root morphological plasticity and biomass redistribution when soil moisture changes. Therefore, it is important to study the effect of precipitation increase and decrease on fine roots and reveal the response of ecosystem carbon cycling to global climate change. Methods We collected 202 sets of data from 48 published domestic and foreign articles, and analized the responses of fine root biomass, production, turnover, root length density, specific root length and soil microbial biomass carbon which reflects fine root decomposition dynamic to precipitation change by the meta-analysis. RR++ (weighted response ratio) was used to quantify the effect size of the response of fine roots to precipitation change. Important findings (1) The significance and magnitude of the precipitation effects on fine roots varied among plant types. Shrub fine roots had stronger response than tree fine roots. (2) The response of fine roots differed across soil depth. Fine root had most significant responses when the precipitation increased or decreased 50%. A 50% increase in precipitation had a significant positive impact on both fine root biomass in 20–40 cm soil and specific root length in 0–10 cm soil depth. A 50% decreased in precipitation had a significant negative impact on fine root production in 20–40 cm soil but positive impact on root length density in 0–10 cm soil. (3) The duration of experiment affected the response of fine roots, fine roots responded to precipitation changes (increase and decrease) by morphological plasticity in short-term experiments, and by biomass redistribution in long-term experiments. (4) Increasing precipitation contributed to the nutrient release of fine roots, because soil microbes accelerated the decomposability of fine roots due to sufficient substrate resources stimulated their own activity. © 2018 Editorial Office of Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology. All rights reserved.     

Distribution,community characteristics and classification of Thymus mongolicus steppe in China北大核心CSCD

Thymus mongolicus steppe was a vegetation formation dominated by typical dwarf semi-shrub of Lamiaceae. Based on the previous literatures and primary plot data sampled during the growing seasons from 2015 to 2017, the distribution, ecological features, community characteristics and classification of Thymus mongolicus steppe were summarized. (1) Thymus mongolicus steppe is mainly distributed on the loess hills of Xar Moron River Watershed, Bashang region in the northwest of Hebei Province, the hills surrounding the Yinshan Mountains, the east part of Erdos Plateau and the northern Loess Plateau. This formation occurrs mainly on the stony slopes or loess hills with severe soil erosion. (2) In total, 167 seed plant species belonging to 101 genera of 34 families were recorded in the 91 sample sites, and families of Compositae, Leguminosae and Gramineae played crucial roles in the species composition. Eight of these families were semi-shrub and dwarf semi-shrub species, and 112 were perennial forb species. Typical xerophytes (58 species) and Meso-xerophytes (45 species) account for more than half part of all species. Eight geographic elements were involved. East Palaearctic (70 species) and East Asia (46 species) were the two major floristic elements. (3) Based on life form and dominance of species in the community, the formation was classified into 6 association groups (Thymus mongolicus, dwarf shrubs/dwarf semi-shurbs association group; Thymus mongolicus association group; Thymus mongolicus, bunchgrasses association group; Thymus mongolicus, rhizomatous grasses association group; Thymus mongolicus, Carex association group; Thymus mongolicus, forbs association group), consisting of 28 associations. © Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology.     

Interactive effects of soil warming and nitrogen addition on fine root production of Chinese fir seedlings北大核心CSCD

Aims There have been a large number of studies on the independent separate responses of fine roots to warming and nitrogen deposition, but with contradictory reporting. Fine root production plays a critical role in ecosystem carbon, nutrient and water cycling, yet how it responds to the interactive warming and nitrogen addition is not well understood. In the present study, we aimed to examine the interactive effects of soil warming and nitrogen addition on fine root growth of 1-year-old Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata) seedlings in subtropical China. Methods A mesocosm experiment, with a factorial design of soil warming (ambient, +5 °C) and nitrogen addition (ambient, ambient + 40 kg·hm-2·a-1, ambient + 80 kg·hm-2·a-1), was carried out in the Chenda State-owned Forest Farm in Sanming City, Fujian Province, China. Fine root production (indexed by the number of fine roots emerged per tube of one year) was measured biweekly using minirhizotrons from March of 2014 to February of 2015. Important findings (1) The two-way ANOVA showed that soil warming had a significant effect on fine root production, while nitrogen addition and soil warming × nitrogen addition had no effect. (2) The three-way ANOVA (soil warming, nitrogen addition and diameter class) showed that soil warming, diameter class and soil warming × diameter class had significant effects on fine root production, especially for the number of fine roots in 0-1 mm diameter class that had been significantly increased by soil warming. Compared with the 1-2 mm roots, the 0-1 mm roots seemed more flexible. (3) Repeated measures of ANOVA (soil warming, nitrogen addition and season) showed that soil warming, season, soil warming × season, and soil warming × nitrogen addition × season had significant effects on fine root production. In spring, the number of fine roots was significantly increased both by soil warming and soil warming × season, while soil warming, nitrogen addition, soil warming × nitrogen addition significantly decreased fine root production in the summer. (4) Soil warming, soil layer, soil warming × soil layer had significant effects on fine root production. The number of in-growth fine roots was significantly increased by soil warming at the 20-30 cm depth only. It seemed that warming forced fine roots to grow deeper in the soil. In conclusion, soil warming significantly increased fine root production, but they had different responses and were dependent of different diameter classes, seasons and soil layers. Nitrogen addition had no effect on fine root production. Only in spring and summer, soil warming and nitrogen addition had significant interactive effects.     

Effects of experimental warming on plant reproductive phenology in Xizang alpine meadow北大核心CSCD

Aims: Climate warming strongly influences reproductive phenology of plants in alpine and arctic ecosystems. Here we focus on phenological shifts caused by warming in a typical alpine meadow on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. Our objective was to explore phenological responses of alpine plant species to experimental warming. Methods: Passive warming was achieved using open-top chambers (OTCs). The treatments included control (C), and four levels of warming (T1, T2, T3, T4). We selected Kobresia pygmaea, Potentilla saundersiana, Potentilla cuneata, Stipa purpurea, Festuca coelestis and Youngia simulatrix as the focal species. Plant phenology was scored every 3-5 days in the growing season. The reproductive phenology phases of each species were estimated through fitting the phenological scores to the Richards function. Important findings: Under soil water stress caused by warming, most plants in the alpine meadow advanced or delayed their reproductive events. As a result, warming significantly delayed phenological development of K. pygmaea. Warming significantly advanced reproductive phenology of P. saundersiana, S. purpurea and F. coelestis, but not of P. cuneata and Y. simulatrix. In addition, warming significantly shortened the average flowering duration of alpine plant species. The potentially warmer and drier growing seasons under climate change may shift the reproductive phenology of the alpine systems in similar pattern.     

Responses of radial growth to temperature in Larix gmelinii of the da Hinggan Ling under climate warming北大核心CSCD

Aims The Da Hinggan Ling is amongst the areas in China susceptible to climate warming. The objective of this study is to determine the responses of radial growth to temperature variations in Larix gmelinii growing in different parts of the Da Hinggan Ling in the process of climate warming, by using dendrochronological techniques. Methods We collected tree-ring samples from the southern, the middle and the northern parts of the main Da Hinggan Ling, developed site-specific ring-width chronologies, and synthesized tree-ring indices of the southern, the middle and the northern parts of the study area according to the first principal component loading factors for each chronology. The relationships between radial growth in L. gmelinii and temperature variations were determined with correlation analysis, and the differences in the responses of radial growth to temperature variations among various parts were analyzed and compared with principle component analysis. Important findings There were notable discrepancies in the effects of temperature variations on radial growth in L. gmelinii between the southern and the northern parts of the study area (the middle part > the northern part > the southern part). In the southern part, the mean monthly temperature between the previous November and April of the current year had a significant relationship with tree-ring indices (p < 0.05). In the middle part, the mean monthly temperature during March and October of the current year had a significant relationship with tree-ring indices (p < 0.05), and so did the mean monthly temperature during June and August of the previous year (p < 0.05). The mean monthly temperature during April and May of the current year had a highly significant relationship with tree-ring indices in the northern part (p < 0.01). This study suggests that the warmer and drier regional climate condition caused by elevated temperature has resulted in that soil moisture becomes the main factor limiting the radial growth, and the relationship between tree growth and temperature variations signified with aggravated soil drought under climate warming. The productivity in L. gmelinii as reflected by basal area increment experienced a shift response from cold stress to water stress. In addition, the radial growth in L. gmelinii in the Da Hinggan Ling will likely to show a declining trend in the southern and the middle parts, and an increasing trend in the northern part, in response to rapid warming in the coming decades.     

Responses of soil inorganic nitrogen to increased temperature and plant removal during the growing season in a Sibiraea angustata scrub ecosystem of eastern Qinghai-Xizang Plateau北大核心CSCD

Aims Little information has been available on the soil nitrogen transformation process of alpine scrubland under global warming and changing climate. This study aimed at clarifying seasonal dynamics of the soil nitrate and ammonium contents and their responses to increased temperature under different plant treatments. Methods We conducted a field experiment including two plant treatments (removal- or unremoval-plant) subjected to two temperature conditions (increased temperature or control) in Sibiraea angustata scrub ecosystem on the eastern Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. The contents of soil nitrate and ammonium were measured at the early, middle and late growing seasons. Important findings The results showed that soil nitrate and ammonium contents exhibited obvious seasonal dynamics. Throughout the entire growing season, the soil nitrate contents increased firstly and then decreased, while the soil ammonium contents increased continually. Particularly, in the early and middle growing season, the soil nitrate contents were significantly higher than those of ammonium, regardless of increased temperature and plant treatments; however, in the late growing season, the soil nitrate contents were significantly lower than those of ammonium. These results implied that soil nitrification was the major process of soil nitrogen transformation in the early and middle growing season; soil ammonification contributed mostly to soil nitrogen transformation in the late growing season. Furthermore, different responses of soil nitrate and ammonium contents to increased temperature and plant removal treatments were observed at the different stages in the growing season. The effects of increased temperature on soil nitrate contents mainly occurred in the middle and late growing season, but the effects varied with plant treatments. Increased temperature only significantly increased soil ammonium contents in the unremoval-plant plots during the middle growing season. The effects of plant treatments on soil nitrate contents only occurred in the control plots (controlled temperature). Plant removal only increased soil nitrate contents in the early and middle growing season, but significantly decreased soil nitrate contents in the late growing season. Plant removal significantly decreased soil ammonium contents in the increased temperature plots during the middle growing season. Probably, in the early and middle growing season, scrub vegetation mainly absorbed soil nitrate and the absorption process was not affected by increased temperature. These results would increase our understanding of the soil nitrogen cycling process in these alpine scrub ecosystems under global warming and changing climate. © 2018 Editorial Office of Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology. All rights reserved.     

Effluxes of nitrous oxide,methane and carbon dioxide and their responses to increasing nitrogen deposition in the Gurbantünggüt Desert of Xinjiang,China北大核心CSCD

Aims Desert soils play an important role in the exchange of major greenhouse gas (GHG) between atmosphere and soil. However, many uncertainties existed in understanding of desert soil role, especially in efflux evaluation under a changing environment. Methods We conducted plot-based field study in center of the Gurbantünggüt Desert, Xinjiang, and applied six rates of simulated nitrogen (N) deposition on the plots, i.e. 0 (N0), 0.5 (N0.5), 1.0 (N1), 3.0 (N3), 6.0 (N6) and 24.0 (N24) g·m-2·a-1. The exchange rates of N2O, CH4 and CO2 during two growing seasons were measured for two years after N applications. Important findings The average efflux of two growing seasons from control plots (N0) were 4.8 μg·m-2·h-1, -30.5 μg·m-2·h-1 and 46.7 mg·m-2·h-1 for N2O, CH4 and CO2, respectively. The effluxes varied significantly among seasons. N0, N0.5 and N1 showed similar exchange of N2O in spring and summer, which was relatively higher than in autumn, while the rates of N2O in N6 and N24 were controled by time points of N applications. The uptake of CH4 was relatively higher in both spring and summer, and lower in autumn. Emission of CO2 changed minor from spring to summer, and greatly decreased in autumn in the first measured year. In the second year, the emission patterns were changed by rates of N added. N additions generally stimulated the emission of N2O, while the effects varied in different seasons and years. In addition, no obvious trends were found in the emission factor of N2O. The uptake of CH4 was not significantly affected by N additions. N additions did not change CO2 emissions in the first year, while high N significantly reduced the CO2 emissions in spring and summer of the second year, without affected in autumn. Structure equation model analysis on the factors suggested that N2O, CH4 and CO2 were dominantly affected by the N application rates, soil temperature or moisture and plant density, respectively. Over the growing seasons, both the net efflux and the global warming potential caused by N additions were small.     

Carbon storage and potentials of the broad-leaved forest in alpine region of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau,China北大核心CSCD

Aims Our objective was to explore the vegetation carbon storages and their variations in the broad-leaved forests in the alpine region of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau that includes Qinghai Province and Xizang Autonomous Region. Methods Based on forest resource inventory data and field sampling, this paper studied the carbon storage, its sequestration rate, and the potentials in the broad-leaved forests in the alpine region of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. Important findings The vegetation carbon storage in the broad-leaved forest accounted for 310.70 Tg in 2011, with the highest value in the broad-leaved mixed forest and the lowest in Populus forest among the six broad-leaved forests that include Quercus, Betula, Populus, other hard broad-leaved species, other soft broad-leaved species, and the broadleaved mixed forest. The carbon density of the broad-leaved forest was 89.04 Mg•hm2, with the highest value in other hard broad-leaved species forest and the lowest in other soft broad-leaved species forest. The carbon storage and carbon density in different layers of the forests followed a sequence of overstory layer > understory layer > litter layer > grass layer > dead wood layer, which all increased with forest age. In addition, the carbon storage of broad-leaved forest increased from 304.26 Tg in 2001 to 310.70 Tg in 2011. The mean annual carbon sequestration and its rate were 0.64 Tg•a1 and 0.19 Mg•hm2•a1, respectively. The maximum and minimum of the carbon sequestration rate were respectively found in other soft broad-leaved species forest and other hard broad-leaved species forest, with the highest value in the mature forest and the lowest in the young forest. Moreover, the carbon sequestration potential in the tree layer of broad-leaved forest reached 19.09 Mg•hm2 in 2011, with the highest value found in Quercus forest and the lowest in Betula forest. The carbon storage increased gradually during three inventory periods, indicating that the broad-leaved forest was well protected to maintain a healthy growth by the forest protection project of Qinghai Province and Xizang Autonomous Region.     

Experimental warming changed plants' phenological sequences of two dominant species in an alpine meadow,western of Sichuan北大核心CSCD

Aims We studied phenological sequences of two dominant plants (Polygonum viviparum and Potentilla leuconota) in an alpine meadow of the Hengduan Mt., western of Sichuan to explore the alpine plants responses on climate change. Methods Open-Top chambers (OTCs) chosen by ITEX were used to monitor the warming in the field. After a four-year experimental warming, in the 5th growing season we recorded the phenological sequences of two dominant species, focusing on plant responses on warming. The sequence was divided into four stages: budding, flowering, withering and ripe seeds. Each stage had three events: first, peak, and last. Important findings Our results showed that: 1) For P. viviparum, experimental warming elicited a shortening of the duration of each stage, advanced all of the phenological events but the first of withering and ripe seeds, shortened the period of each stage and reduced the duration of entire reproduction. 2) For P. leuconota, experimental warming extended the duration of every stage. All phenological events before the end of withering occurred earlier on experimental warming but the peak of flowering. The period of each stage had inconsistent responses on warming and warming prolonged the duration of entire reproduction. The present results indicated that not all phenological events were equally responsive to experimental warming and an entire sequence could be a more accurate way to evaluate the responses on environmental variation. Therefore, the plastic responses to warming of different species would have effects on community composition and structure. © 2018 Editorial Office of Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology. All rights reserved.     

Effects of different nitrogen:phosphorus levels on the growth and ecological stoichiometry of Glycyrrhiza uralensis北大核心CSCD

Aims The increase in atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition has accelerated N cycling of ecosystems, probably resulting in increases in phosphorus (P) demand of ecosystems. Studies on the effects of artificial N:P treatment on the growth and carbon (C), N, P ecological stoichiometry of desert steppe species could provide not only a new insight into the forecasting of how the interaction between soils and plants responses to long-term atmospheric N deposition increase, but also a scientific guidance for sustainable management of grassland in northern China under global climate change. Methods Based on a pot-cultured experiment conducted for Glycyrrhiza uralensis (an N-fixing species) during 2013 to 2014, we studied the effects of different N:P supply ratios (all pots were treated with the same amount of N but with different amounts of P) on aboveground biomass, root biomass, root/shoot ratio, and C:N:P ecological stoichiometry both in G. uralensis (leaves and roots) and in soils. Additionally, through the correlation analyses between biomass and C:N:P ecological stoichiometry in leaves, roots, and soils, we compared the differences among the C:N:P ecological stoichiometry of the three pools, and discussed the indication of C:N:P ecological stoichiometry in soils for the growth and nutrient uptake of G. uralensis. Important findings The results showed that, reducing N:P decreased C:P and N:P ratios both in G. uralensis (leaves and roots) and in soils but increased aboveground biomass and root biomass of G. uralensis, indicating that low to moderate P addition increased P availability of soils and P uptake of G. uralensis. However, excessive low N:P (high P addition) led to great decreases in soil C:P and N:P ratios, thus hindering N uptake and the growth of G. uralensis. C:N:P ratios in the two pools of G. uralensis (especially in leaves) had close correlations with soil C:N:P ratio, indicating that the change in soil C:N:P ratio would have a direct influence on plants. Our results suggest that, through regulating C:N:P ratio in leaves and soils, appropriate amounts of P addition could balance soil P supply and plant P demand and compensate the opposite influences of long-term atmospheric N deposition increase on the structure of desert steppe.