Alien invasive Leucaena leucocephala successfully acquires nutrients by investing in below-ground biomass compared to native Vachellia nilotica in nutrient-amended soils in South Africa.

ABSTRACT: Soils in grasslands and savannas of southern Africa are acidic and nutrient-poor. Legume plants, such as Vachellia nilotica and alien invasive Leucaena leucocephala, are a major component of the vegetation there. Vachellia nilotica can establish in drought-prone environments, and is invasive in high rainfall areas. Leucaena leucocephala is an emerging invasive in South Africa and is ranked among the world's 100 most invasive alien species. Alien plants can invade native habitats through their adaptability to low-resource soils, and thus can out-compete and displace native vegetation. We investigated the effects of phosphorus (P) deficiency and soil acidity on legume-microbe symbiosis, nitrogen (N) nutrition and carbon (C) growth costs of these two legumes in gra

SUBMITTER: Ndabankulu K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9211186 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature