Tree mycorrhizal associations mediate soil fertility effects on forest community structure in a temperate forest
Soil fertility influences plant community structure, yet few studies have focused on how this influence is affected by the type of mycorrhizal association formed by tree species within local communities. We examined the relationship of aboveground biomass (AGB) and diversity of adult trees with soil...
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| Format: | Article |
| Status: | Published version |
| Publication date: | 2019 |
| Country: | Colombia |
| Institution: | Universidad del Rosario |
| Repository: | Repositorio EdocUR - U. Rosario |
| Language: | English |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:repository.urosario.edu.co:10336/22661 |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.15742 https://repository.urosario.edu.co/handle/10336/22661 |
| Access Level: | Open access |
| Keyword: | Aboveground biomass Arbuscular mycorrhiza Community structure Competition (ecology) Ecosystem function Ectomycorrhiza Mycorrhiza Plant community Soil fertility Species diversity Temperate forest China Biomass Forest Microbiology Physiology Soil Tree Forests Mycorrhizae Trees Arbuscular mycorrhizal trees Competition Ectomycorrhizal trees |
| Summary: | Soil fertility influences plant community structure, yet few studies have focused on how this influence is affected by the type of mycorrhizal association formed by tree species within local communities. We examined the relationship of aboveground biomass (AGB) and diversity of adult trees with soil fertility (nitrogen, phosphorus, organic matter, etc.) in the context of different spatial distributions of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) and ectomycorrhizal (EM) trees in a temperate forest in Northeast China. Diversity showed a positive trend along the soil fertility gradient driven mostly by a positive relationship between AM tree abundance and soil fertility. By contrast, the AGB showed a negative trend along the soil fertility gradient driven mostly by a negative relationship between EM tree AGB and soil fertility. Furthermore, the opposite trend in the AGB and tree species diversity along the soil fertility gradient led to an overall negative diversity–biomass relationship at the 50-m scale but not the 20-m scale. These results suggest that tree mycorrhizal associations play a critical role in driving forest community structure along soil fertility gradients and highlight the importance of tree mycorrhizal associations in influencing how the diversity–ecosystem function (e.g. biomass) relationships change with soil fertility. © 2019 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2019 New Phytologist Trust |
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