Interspecific interactions alter plant functional strategies in a revegetated shrub-dominated community in the Mu Us Desert, China.

ABSTRACT:

Background and aims

Previous studies investigating plant-plant interactions have focused on plant growth, context dependence and shifts in interactive outcomes. However, changes in functional traits in the context of interactions have been inadequately explored; few studies have focused on the effects of interactions on the plasticity of functional strategies.

Methods

We conducted a 4-year removal experiment for the xeric shrub Artemisia ordosica and perennial graminoids (PGs) in the Mu Us Desert, northern China. Soil nutrient content, biomass and 12 functional traits related to plant morphology and nutrient status were measured for the shrub species and a dominant PG species (i.e. Leymus secalinus) in the presence and absence of shrubs and PGs.

Key results

Shrubs aff

SUBMITTER: Miao C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9445594 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature