Chin J Plant Ecol ›› 2009, Vol. 33 ›› Issue (3): 442-448.DOI: 10.3773/j.issn.1005-264x.2009.03.003

• Research Articles • Previous Articles     Next Articles

CHANGES IN [N], [P] AND SPECIFIC LEAF AREA OF GREEN LEAVES OF LEYMUS CHINENSIS ALONG NITROGEN, PHOSPHORUS AND WATER GRADIENTS

HUANG Ju-Ying1,2, YUAN Zhi-You2, LI Ling-Hao2,*()   

  1. 1Center of New Technology Application and Research, Ningxia University, Yinchuan 750021, China
    2State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
  • Received:2008-09-08 Accepted:2009-01-06 Online:2009-09-08 Published:2009-05-31
  • Contact: LI Ling-Hao

Abstract:

Aims Global climate changes, including changes in atmospheric nitrogen (N) and precipi-tation, have altered biogeochemical cycling in ecosystems and are expected to affect plant nutrient economy. Our objective was to investigate the potential effects of global climate changes on nutrient use strategy of species.

Methods We studied leaf-nutrient traits in green leaves of Leymus chinensis in relation to N, phos-phorus (P) and water changes using three pot experiments. The N experiment and the P experiment in-volved additions of 0, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64 and 128 g-m-2. The water supply experiment involved additions of 3 600, 4 000, 4 500, 5 143, 6 000, 7 200, 9 000, 12 000, 18 000 and 36 000 ml-pot-1, respectively.

Important findings N addition increased specific leaf area (SLA) and N concentration, but did not significantly affect P concentration. In contrast, P addition increased SLA, N concentration and P concentration. Water addition increased SLA, but decreased N concentration and did not affect P concentration. These results suggested that changes in N, P and water availabilities affect green-leaf nutrients, and thus plant nutrient economy and nutrient cycling in the plant-soil ecosystem.

Key words: leaf nutritional traits, Leymus chinensis, nitrogen gradient, phosphorus gradient, water gradient