Host diversity positively affects the temporal stability of foliar fungal diseases in a Tibetan alpine meadow.

ABSTRACT:

Background and aims

Plant disease can dramatically affect population dynamics, community composition and ecosystem functions. However, most empirical studies focus on diseases at a certain time point and largely ignore their temporal stability, which directly affects our ability to predict when and where disease outbreaks will occur.

Methods

Using a removal experiment that manipulates plant diversity (i.e. a plant biodiversity and ecosystem function experiment) and a fertilization experiment in a Tibetan alpine meadow, we investigated how different plant biodiversity indices and nitrogen fertilization affect the temporal stability of foliar fungal diseases (measured as the mean value of community pathogen load divided by its standard deviation) over seven consecutive years.<

SUBMITTER: Liu X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9510944 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature