Global Root Traits Research during 2000–2021: A Bibliometric Analysis

Abstract

Root traits have an important impact on plant growth, which reflects the adaptation of plants to nutrients. This paper describes the focus and progress of root traits research and provides references for future research. Based on the Web of Science online database, articles related to root traits from 2000–2021 were evaluated using bibliometric methods. The results showed that the study of root traits has been growing steadily in the last two decades. Wang Yan is the author with the highest number of published papers, the most citations and the highest H-index. The top three published countries are the USA, China and India. The top three institutions are the University of Western Australia, China Agricultural University and Nanjing Agricultural University. Plant and Soil, Frontiers in Plant Science and PLoS One have the highest number of published articles. In terms of co-occurrence of keyword analysis, growth, soil and plant diversity are highly correlated with root traits. It was found that cooperation between authors, institutions and countries are not close enough and that z global network of cooperation has not yet been formed. Therefore, worldwide cooperation should be strengthened to promote resource sharing and the openness of relevant mechanisms.