Abstract
Understanding the effects of soil stoichiometry and nutrient resorption on soil CO2 emissions is critical for predicting forest ecosystem nutritional demands and limitations tooptimal forest growth. In this study, we examined the effects of above- and belowground stoichiometry on soil CO2 emissions and their mediating effect on soil respiration in subtropical moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis) plantations. Our results showed that the soil respiration rate did not differ significantly among four bamboo stands. Nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) concentrations were higher in bamboo leaves than litter, whereas the C:N and C:P ratios showed the opposite trend. Significant positive correlations of soil cumulative CO2 emission with litter C:P (p = 0.012) and N:P (p = 0.041) ratios indicated that litter stoichiometry was a better predictor of soil respiration than aboveground stoichiometry. Cumulative soil CO2 emissions were significantly negatively correlated with soil microbe C:N (p = 0.021) and C:N (p = 0.036) ratios, and with soil respiratory quotients (p < 0.001). These results suggest that litter and soil stoichiometry are reliable indicators of the soil respiration rate. This study provides important information about the effects of ecosystem stoichiometry and soil microbial biomass on soil CO2 emissions and highlights them editing role of soil nutritional demands and limitations in the association between soil respiration rates and aboveground plant tissues.
Highlights
Ecological stoichiometry has been used to investigate plant growth, nutrient conditions, and physiological characteristics [1]
Bell et al [8] showed that plant tissue stoichiometry was related to soil and microbial stoichiometry, and that the leaf C:N ratio was positively correlated with the soil
Plant and soil stoichiometry have interactive effects on nutrient cycling [24].Nutrient return from leaves plays a major role in decomposition by soil organisms and the processes return from leavesplays a major role in decomposition by soil organisms and the prodriving soil nutrient cycling [11]
Summary
Ecological stoichiometry has been used to investigate plant growth, nutrient conditions, and physiological characteristics [1]. Leaf nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations, as well as the N:P ratio, play important roles in controlling plant photosynthesis, metabolism, and growth [2]. The relationships between soil and foliar carbon (C):N:P stoichiometry in ecosystems can be used to investigate the roles of available nutrients in plant growth under soil nutrient limitations [7]. Plant tissue stoichiometry is constrained by belowground stoichiometry [8]. Fan et al [9] showed that plant N:P ratios were significantly related to soil N:P ratios in Eucalyptus urophylla × grandis, Pseudosasa amabilis, and Rubus swinhoei, indicating that soil nutrients are tightly coupled to plant nutrients. Bell et al [8] showed that plant tissue stoichiometry was related to soil and microbial stoichiometry, and that the leaf C:N ratio was positively correlated with the soil
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