The Relative Growth of Invasive <i>Solanum rostratum</i> Dunal Decreases with Increasing Competitive Species Richness Regardless of Resource Conditions.

ABSTRACT: The biotic resistance hypothesis proposes that species-rich communities are more resistant to biological invasions due to the less available resources for invaders. The variation in available soil resources may affect the invasion resistance of community, but there is little evidence. Using invasive Solanum rostratum Dunal, a noxious invader in infertile habitats, and six co-occurring non-invasive species, we conducted a field experiment by testing the relationship between relative growth performance of invasives and richness of resident non-invasives, and the effects of available soil water and nutrients on the relationship. We found that relative aboveground biomass (hereafter relative biomass), relative coverage, community-weighted means (CWM) of specific leaf area (SLA), and pho

SUBMITTER: Qi FZ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12693939 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature