Affiliation:
1. National Forestry and Grassland Administration
2. Beijing Forestry University
3. Qinghai University
Abstract
Abstract
As a consequence of the tight linkages between plants, soil, and microorganisms, we hypothesized the variations in plant species would change soil and microbial stoichiometry. Here, we examined the plant leaf C: N: P ratios of nine species coming from three plant functional groups (PFGs) in the riparian zones of Hulunbuir steppe during near-peak biomass. The soil C: N: P, MBC: MBN, and extracellular enzyme’s C: N: P were also assessed using the soils from each species. We found that plant tissue, soil nutrients, microbial, and enzyme activities stoichiometry significantly differed among different PFGs. Plant leaf and soil nutrient ratios tended to similar (p > 0.05) between different species within the same PFGs. The variations in leaf C: N: P significantly correlated with the changes in soil C: N: P and MBC: MBN ratios. The homeostatic coefficients (H) < 1 suggested the relationships between plants and their resources C: N: P ratios might be non-homeostatic in the examined riparian zone. By assessing plant tissue and its soils nutrient stoichiometry, this study provided a perspective to understand the linkages of plant communtity, soil nutrient and microbial characteristics.
Publisher
Research Square Platform LLC