Urban Dominant Trees Followed the Optimal Partitioning Theory and Increased Root Biomass Allocation and Nutrient Uptake under Elevated Nitrogen Deposition
Nitrogen (N) is one of the limiting nutrients for plant growth and metabolism in terrestrial ecosystems. Numerous studies have explored the effects of N addition on the eco-physiological traits and biomass production of plants, but the underlying mechanism of how N deposition influences biomass allo...
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MDPI AG
2024-01-01
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| author | Qinze Zhang Jiyou Zhu Jiaan Liang Meiyang Li Shuo Huang Hongyuan Li |
| author_facet | Qinze Zhang Jiyou Zhu Jiaan Liang Meiyang Li Shuo Huang Hongyuan Li |
| author_sort | Qinze Zhang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Nitrogen (N) is one of the limiting nutrients for plant growth and metabolism in terrestrial ecosystems. Numerous studies have explored the effects of N addition on the eco-physiological traits and biomass production of plants, but the underlying mechanism of how N deposition influences biomass allocation patterns remains controversial, especially for urban greening trees. A greenhouse experiment was conducted for 7 months, using two dominant tree species of urban streets in North China, including the coniferous tree species <i>Pinus tabuliformis</i> and the broadleaved tree <i>Fraxinus chinensis</i>, under three levels of N addition: ambient, low N addition, and high N addition (0, 3.5, and 10.5 gN m<sup>−2</sup> year<sup>−1</sup>). The plant growth, biomass distribution, functional traits, and soil nutrient properties of the two trees were determined. Overall, N addition had positive effects on the aboveground and belowground biomass of <i>P. tabuliformis</i>, which also shifted its functional traits to an acquisitive strategy, while <i>F. chinensis</i> only increased root biomass distribution and fast traits as N increased. Furthermore, N supply increased the soil N and phosphorus availability of both trees and improved their root nutrient uptake capacity, resulting in an increase in their root–shoot ratio. Optimal partitioning theory could better explain why trees would invest more resources in roots, changing root structure and nutrient uptake, thus increasing root biomass allocation to adapt to a resource-poor environment. These findings highlight the importance of plant functional traits in driving the responses of biomass allocation to environmental changes for urban greening dominant tree species and could help to come up with new tree growth strategies in silvicultural practice for urban green space. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T10:55:31Z |
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| issn | 1999-4907 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T10:55:31Z |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
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| series | Forests |
| spelling | doaj.art-a790b23595884fdda46cc508522c4a342024-01-26T16:34:52ZengMDPI AGForests1999-49072024-01-0115119910.3390/f15010199Urban Dominant Trees Followed the Optimal Partitioning Theory and Increased Root Biomass Allocation and Nutrient Uptake under Elevated Nitrogen DepositionQinze Zhang0Jiyou Zhu1Jiaan Liang2Meiyang Li3Shuo Huang4Hongyuan Li5College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaCollege of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaCollege of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaCollege of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaCollege of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaCollege of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaNitrogen (N) is one of the limiting nutrients for plant growth and metabolism in terrestrial ecosystems. Numerous studies have explored the effects of N addition on the eco-physiological traits and biomass production of plants, but the underlying mechanism of how N deposition influences biomass allocation patterns remains controversial, especially for urban greening trees. A greenhouse experiment was conducted for 7 months, using two dominant tree species of urban streets in North China, including the coniferous tree species <i>Pinus tabuliformis</i> and the broadleaved tree <i>Fraxinus chinensis</i>, under three levels of N addition: ambient, low N addition, and high N addition (0, 3.5, and 10.5 gN m<sup>−2</sup> year<sup>−1</sup>). The plant growth, biomass distribution, functional traits, and soil nutrient properties of the two trees were determined. Overall, N addition had positive effects on the aboveground and belowground biomass of <i>P. tabuliformis</i>, which also shifted its functional traits to an acquisitive strategy, while <i>F. chinensis</i> only increased root biomass distribution and fast traits as N increased. Furthermore, N supply increased the soil N and phosphorus availability of both trees and improved their root nutrient uptake capacity, resulting in an increase in their root–shoot ratio. Optimal partitioning theory could better explain why trees would invest more resources in roots, changing root structure and nutrient uptake, thus increasing root biomass allocation to adapt to a resource-poor environment. These findings highlight the importance of plant functional traits in driving the responses of biomass allocation to environmental changes for urban greening dominant tree species and could help to come up with new tree growth strategies in silvicultural practice for urban green space.https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/15/1/199nitrogen depositionurban greening treesoptimal partitioning theorybiomass allocationfunctional traits |
| spellingShingle | Qinze Zhang Jiyou Zhu Jiaan Liang Meiyang Li Shuo Huang Hongyuan Li Urban Dominant Trees Followed the Optimal Partitioning Theory and Increased Root Biomass Allocation and Nutrient Uptake under Elevated Nitrogen Deposition Forests nitrogen deposition urban greening trees optimal partitioning theory biomass allocation functional traits |
| title | Urban Dominant Trees Followed the Optimal Partitioning Theory and Increased Root Biomass Allocation and Nutrient Uptake under Elevated Nitrogen Deposition |
| title_full | Urban Dominant Trees Followed the Optimal Partitioning Theory and Increased Root Biomass Allocation and Nutrient Uptake under Elevated Nitrogen Deposition |
| title_fullStr | Urban Dominant Trees Followed the Optimal Partitioning Theory and Increased Root Biomass Allocation and Nutrient Uptake under Elevated Nitrogen Deposition |
| title_full_unstemmed | Urban Dominant Trees Followed the Optimal Partitioning Theory and Increased Root Biomass Allocation and Nutrient Uptake under Elevated Nitrogen Deposition |
| title_short | Urban Dominant Trees Followed the Optimal Partitioning Theory and Increased Root Biomass Allocation and Nutrient Uptake under Elevated Nitrogen Deposition |
| title_sort | urban dominant trees followed the optimal partitioning theory and increased root biomass allocation and nutrient uptake under elevated nitrogen deposition |
| topic | nitrogen deposition urban greening trees optimal partitioning theory biomass allocation functional traits |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/15/1/199 |
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