Different responses in leaf-level physiology to competition and facilitation under different soil types and N fertilization

Abstract

Knowledge of how competition and facilitation affect photosynthetic traits and nitrogen metabolism contributes to understanding of plant-plant interaction mechanisms. We transplanted two larch species, Larix kaempferi and L. olgensis, to establish intra- and interspecific interaction experiments under different types of soil. Experiment 1: Two different soil types were selected, one from a c. twenty years old L. kaempferi plantation (named larch soil) and another from a secondary natural forest (named mixed forest soil). The experiment included three types of plant interactions (L kaempferi + L. kaempferi, L. olgensis + L. olgensis, and L. kaempferi + L. olgensis) and two soil types. Experiment 2: N fertilization was applied to larch soil. The experiment included the same three types of plant interactions as in Experiment 1 and two N treatments. The growth of L kaempferi was negatively affected by larch soil and accelerated by N fertilization, particularly under interspecific interaction. The effects of soil type combined with plant-plant interactions or N fertilization influenced the chlorophyll pigment content, net photosynthetic rate (Pn), photosynthetic N use efficiency (PNUE) and total non-structural carbohydrates of leaves (TNC). Chl a/Chl b (ratio of chlorophyll a to chlorophyll b) was higher when the growth of L. kaempferi was facilitated by the presence of L. olgensis in mixed forest soil. However, the ratio significantly declined when L. kaempferi confronted strong competition from L. olgensis in larch soil without N fertilization. Under N fertilization in larch soil, Chl a/Chl b of L. olgensis significantly increased by the presence of L. kaempferi. Plant-plant interactions and soil types affected the number of chloroplasts, especially in L. kaempferi, which had a greater number of chloroplasts under interspecific interactions than in monoculture when growing in mixed forest soil. L. olgensis enhanced its ability to absorb N-NO3− under interspecific interactions in larch N- soil, while L. kaempferi enhanced its ability to absorb N-NH4+ under interspecific competition in mixed forest soil. Competition or facilitation modified the photosynthetic traits and nitrogen metabolism depending on the type of soil. Differences in these physiological processes contribute to divergent performance among individuals growing under interspecific or intraspecific competition, or in isolation.