Differences in leaf nitrogen reabsorption efficiency among plants with different life forms

doi:10.17521/cjpe.2024.0373

Abstract

Abstract:

Aims The reabsorption of nitrogen (N) by leaves can reduce the tropical and dependence of root systems on soil N after the decomposition of fallen leaves. However, whether N reabsorption efficiency is dependent on the N contents in fresh leaves and in soils remains poorly understood, and whether this coupling varies with life forms is also largely unknown.

Methods Here we collected fresh and senescent leaves of 92 woody plants in tropical and subtropical forests in southern China and complied a global dataset of N reabsorption efficiencies from 54 literatures to evaluate the coupling of N reabsorption efficiency with N contents in fresh leaves and in soils across various life forms.

Important findings We found that: 1) In tropical and subtropical forests and on the global scale, there was no significant difference in leaf N reabsorption efficiency between evergreen and deciduous and between angiosperms and gymnosperms species. On the global scale, the leaf N reabsorption efficiency of trees was significantly greater than that of shrubs, and the efficiency of ectomycorrhizal woody plants was significantly higher than that of arbuscular mycorrhizal woody plants. 2) The N reabsorption efficiency of evergreen woody plants, trees and shrubs was significantly correlated with the initial nitrogen content of leaves, while that of angiosperms and gymnosperms, as well as arbuscular mycorrhizal and ectomycorrhizal woody plants, was not significantly correlated with the initial nitrogen content of leaves. 3) The N reabsorption efficiencies of evergreen, angiosperms and ectomycorrhizal woody plants were significantly correlated with soil N content at the sampling sites, while those of deciduous, gymnosperms and arbuscular mycorrhizal woody plants were not significantly correlated with the soil N content. Our results suggest that there are differences in N reabsorption efficiency among woody plants with different life forms. These differences are primarily influenced by nutrient acquisition strategies, which is of great significance for revealing the differentiated nutrient utilization strategies among plants.

Key words: nutrient reabsorption, nitrogen, nutrient utilization strategy, life form, tropical and subtropical forest

WANG Rong-Jun, WU Fu-Zhong, WU Qiu-Xia, ZHU Jing-Jing, NI Xiang-Yin. Differences in leaf nitrogen reabsorption efficiency among plants with different life forms[J]. Chin J Plant Ecol, 2026, 50(2): 344-351.

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URL: https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/10.17521/cjpe.2024.0373

https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/Y2026/V50/I2/344

Figures/Tables 4

Fig. 1 Distribution of sampling plots of studied sites for nitrogen reabsorption efficiency in leaves of tropical and subtropical forest transect in southern China and global plant. A, Tropical and subtropical forest transect in southern China, with read areas representing Ferralsols. B, Global dataset of leaf nitrogen reabsorption.

Fig. 2 Nitrogen reabsorption efficiency in plants with different life forms. AM, arbuscular mycorrhizal tree species; AN, angiosperms; DE, deciduous tree species; EcM, ectomycorrhizal tree species; EV, evergreen tree species; GY, gymnosperms; SH, shrubs; TR, trees. The unshaded and shaded areas show data collected from tropical and subtropical forest transect and global dataset, respectively. The boxplots show the median (center line) and interquartile ranges (box). Asterisks denote significant differences between plants with different life forms based on the Wilcoxon rank-sum test (*, p < 0.05; **, p < 0.01). The number next to the asterisk indicates the Cohen’s D value. The numbers denote sample sizes.

Fig. 3 Correlations between nitrogen reabsorption efficiency and initial nitrogen content in fresh leaves. AM, arbuscular mycorrhizal tree species; AN, angiosperms; DE, deciduous tree species; EcM, ectomycorrhizal tree species; EV, evergreen tree species; GY, gymnosperms; SH, shrubs; TR, trees. The fitted lines represent slopes from linear mixed effect models with 95% confidence intervals (shaded). The numbers denote sample sizes. The data are derived from tropical and subtropical forest transects and a global dataset.

Fig. 4 Correlations between nitrogen reabsorption efficiency and soil nitrogen content. AM, arbuscular mycorrhizal tree species; AN, angiosperms; DE, deciduous tree species; EcM, ectomycorrhizal tree species; EV, evergreen tree species; GY, gymnosperms; SH, shrubs; TR, trees. The fitted lines represent slopes from linear mixed effect models with 95% confidence intervals (shaded). The numbers denote sample sizes. The data are derived from tropical and subtropical forest transects and a global dataset.

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