Plantation understorey legume functional groups enhance soil organic carbon sequestration by promoting species richness

Abstract

AbstractDespite evidence showing that plant diversity or tree mixtures increase carbon storage in experimental grasslands or mixed forests, the effects of understorey plant communities on changes in soil organic carbon (SOC) storage in planted forests remain unclear, especially for monoculture plantations. Therefore, based on field observations in monoculture plantations on the Loess Plateau in China, we investigated the direct effects of understorey species richness (USR) and plantation age on SOC storage, and identified the indirect effects of understorey legume species richness (ULSR) and soil moisture (SM) mediated by USR. Results indicated that plantation age and USR significantly increased SOC sequestration with almost equal effects. The changes in the relationship between USR and SOC storage varied along the water availability gradient, from significantly positive (in plots with SM ≤11.14%) to insignificant (in plots with SM >11.14%). We observed that ULSR could increase SOC sequestration by promoting USR, while SM had negative and positive effects on ULSR and USR, respectively. Our findings can provide insights into plantation management in semiarid regions: Thinning mature plantations and introducing understorey legumes can increase SOC sequestration and maintain water resource sustainability.