Chin J Plant Ecol ›› 2026, Vol. 50 ›› Issue (2): 318-333.DOI: 10.17521/cjpe.2025.0183  cstr: 32100.14.cjpe.2025.0183

• Research Articles • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Plant functional traits and carbon-nitrogen stoichiometry of plantations at different forest ages in North China

CHEN Ya-Xuan, HAN Yu-Yin, CHEN Yan-Mei, LIU Qian-Yuan*()   

  1. Hebei Key Laboratory of Environmental Change and Ecological Construction, School of Geographical Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang 050024, China
  • Received:2025-05-23 Accepted:2025-09-09 Online:2026-02-28 Published:2026-04-01
  • Contact: LIU Qian-Yuan
  • Supported by:
    National Natural Science Foundation of China(32301569)

Abstract:

Aims Clarify the variation patterns and corresponding response mechanisms of plant functional traits and carbon-nitrogen stoichiometry in artificial plantations of different tree species under the age gradient.

Methods In this study, Populus tomentosa, Platycladus orientalis and Styphnolobium japonicum at different ages were selected as the research objects to determine and explore the changes and relationships of different organ functional traits, carbon-nitrogen stoichiometry and soil physicochemical properties.

Important findings (1) With the increase of forest age, the content of soil nutrients, clay and silt of different tree plantations increased significantly. While soil total phosphorus content of Populus tomentosa plantations, and soil pH value of Platycladus orientalis plantations decreased. (2) The specific leaf area of different tree species increased significantly with the increase of forest age, while the specific leaf mass decreased significantly. The root carbon content (average 36.25%) was lower than that of branches (45.52%) and leaves (44.83%), and the leaf nitrogen content (1.98%) was higher than that of roots (1.30%) and branches (0.64%). With the increase of forest age, the nutrient content and carbon-nitrogen ratio of different organs varied with tree species. (3) The functional traits of Populus tomentosa plantations of different organs were coordinated, while the functional traits of leaves and roots of Platycladus orientalisplantations evolved independently, forming a decoupling strategy. (4) The increase of soil water content and the improvement of soil texture are important reasons for the changes in plant traits. (5) The soil total nitrogen content was significantly negatively correlated with the carbon content in leaves and roots. Redundancy analysis showed that soil electrical conductivity significantly affected plant functional traits. (6) Random forest analysis showed that the significant factors affecting the carbon-nitrogen ratio of leaves, branches and roots included soil total phosphorus and clay contents, specific leaf area, leaf dry matter mass and plant nutrient content. The research results reveal the differences in plant functional traits and organ carbon and nitrogen distribution among different tree species under the forest age gradient, enriching the theoretical framework of the plant economic spectrum.

Key words: forest age, functional trait, plant economic spectrum, carbon to nitrogen ratio