Abstract
Background and aims Leaf economic spectrum (LES) is better described by key leaf economic traits, such as leaf tissue density (LTD), specific leaf area (SLA) and leaf nitrogen concentration (LNC). These key economic traits have recommended to be associated with leaf anatomical structure. However, few studies focus on how leaf anatomical structure affects key leaf economic traits.
Methods Here, we examined three key leaf traits (LTD, SLA and LNC) and leaf anatomical traits of 102 species in the temperate forests.
Results We observed that species with high vein fraction per leaf volume/high vein length per leaf area had high LTD. In comparison with vein length per leaf area, vein fraction per leaf volume better explained the variations in LTD across co-existing species. Moreover, species with high fraction of palisade tissue across transverse section had high LNC. Additionally, a weak correlation between SLA and palisade tissue fraction across transverse section was detected, indicating that co-existing species can maximize light capture and C assimilation by both concurrently increasing SLA and remaining relatively stable fraction of palisade tissue.
Conclusion These results indicate that leaf anatomical structure may determine key leaf economic traits. The findings provide an important insight into the LES from the perspective of leaf anatomical structure.