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Table of Content
    Volume 45 Issue 11
    20 November 2021

    Schematic diagram for ecological perspectives of carbon neutrality (Made by CHEN Bao-Dong). FANG Jing-Yun first introduces the concept of “Carbon Neutrality”, and then discuss the vital role of ecosystem carbon sinks in achieving the carbon neutrality target. He proposes the “three-optimization principles”, and states some viewpoints on potential problems and challenges in the “post-ca

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    Hou Xueyu Review
    Ecological perspectives of carbon neutrality
    FANG Jing-Yun
    Chin J Plant Ecol. 2021, 45 (11):  1173-1176.  doi:10.17521/cjpe.2021.0394
    Abstract ( 3145 )   Full Text ( 291 )   PDF (751KB) ( 2922 )   Save
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    In this article, I first briefly introduce the concept of “Carbon Neutrality”, and then discuss the vital role of ecosystem carbon sinks in achieving the carbon neutrality target. It is assertive that any efforts to achieve the carbon neutrality target depend unavoidably on both reducing carbon emissions and enhancing carbon sequestrations. There are four key factors in reducing carbon emissions, including lowering energy consumption in human activities, restructuring fossil energy consumptions especially decreasing coal consumption, promoting energy use efficiency, and developing clean and low-carbon energy. Enhancing carbon sequestration relies inclusively on restoration, construction, and better management of the ecosystems. Benefited from enhanced vegetation growth and ecological engineering practice, Chinese terrestrial ecosystem has acted and will continue to act the significant role in the carbon sequestration. To improve the ecosystem carbon sequestration, I propose the “three-optimization principles”, i.e., optimal ecosystem arrangement, optimal species setting, and optimal ecosystem management. In addition, I also state some viewpoints on potential problems and challenges in the “post-carbon neutrality” era. It may be crucial to proactively and rationally think about the possibilities of declining global vegetation productivity and relevant new environmental issues caused by a decrease in the CO2 concentration rising in the era.

    Review
    Research progress on the effects of fire-related cues on seed germination
    LI Shao-Yang, MA Hong-Yuan, ZHAO Dan-Dan, MA Meng-Yao, QI Wen-Wen
    Chin J Plant Ecol. 2021, 45 (11):  1177-1190.  doi:10.17521/cjpe.2021.0123
    Abstract ( 852 )   Full Text ( 31 )   PDF (1358KB) ( 454 )   Save
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    Fire is a fundamental ecological factor profoundly affecting many terrestrial ecosystems including forest and grassland ecosystems. Seed germination is an important life-history stage of plants, and it is also the main strategy for the regeneration and restoration of vegetation after fire events. Vegetation combustion produces smoke, heat and a series of fire cues associated with smoke, and plays critical roles in breaking seed dormancy and seedling establishment. In this study, we clustered the fire cues into two categories, i.e., physical cues (heat) and chemical cues (aerial smoke, karrikins, glyceronitrile) and focused on the basic information of fire, the effects of fire cues on seed germination, and the application of fire cues. In addition, we focused on the effects of different types of fire cues and their interactions on seed germination. Based on a systematic review of the research progress on the effects of fire cues on seed germination, this study also provided suggestions for the future research, such as mechanism of smoke cues on seed germination and seedling growth via molecular technologies, and interaction of smoke cues with climate changes. In summary, based on the review of the ecological functions of fire-related cues on seed germination, this study aims to provide theoretical support for the scientific management of grassland and forest ecosystems and also provide basis for the applications of fire and the restoration of degraded ecosystems.

    Research Articles
    Responses of water vapor and heat fluxes to environmental factors in a deciduous broad- leaved forest ecosystem in Beijing
    LI Xin-Hao, TIAN Wen-Dong, LI Run-Dong, JIN Chuan, JIANG Yan, HAO Shao-Rong, JIA Xin, TIAN Yun, ZHA Tian-Shan
    Chin J Plant Ecol. 2021, 45 (11):  1191-1202.  doi:10.17521/cjpe.2021.0106
    Abstract ( 877 )   Full Text ( 131 )   PDF (26854KB) ( 466 )   Save
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    Aims The responses of water and heat fluxes of temperate forest ecosystems to environmental factors are hypothesized to vary with time scales. This study aimed to examine the variations of water and heat fluxes in a typical natural deciduous broad-leaved forest ecosystem in Songshan and their response mechanisms to environmental factors at different time scales.
    Methods The eddy-covariance (EC) method was used to continuously monitor the evapotranspiration (ET), sensible heat (H), latent heat (LE), soil heat flux (G), vapor pressure deficit (VPD), air temperature (Ta), photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), and soil water content at a depth of 10 cm (VWC) in a typical deciduous broad-leaved forest ecosystem in Songshan, Beijing in 2019. The wavelet analysis was used to examine the regulation mechanism of biotic and abiotic factors on energy distribution and water vapor exchange at different time scales.
    Important findings The mean annual Bowen ratio (β) was 1.53 in 2019. ET had obvious seasonal dynamics, increasing gradually from day 100, peaking in July, and decreasing to the lowest level on day 300. The maximum daily evapotranspiration was 5.01 mm·d-1, the cumulative annual evapotranspiration was 476.2 mm, and the cumulative annual rainfall was 503.3 mm. The main influencing factors of the water and heat fluxes varied with time scales, being mostly controlled by VPD at the daily scale, and by PAR at the seasonal scale. At the diurnal scale, water and heat fluxes lagged 3.36 h behind VPD. At the seasonal scale, water and heat fluxes lagged 8 days behind PAR. At the seasonal scale, PAR had an indirect impact on ET through its effects on VPD and a direct impact on β. The results indicate the time-delay relationships between water and heat fluxes and environmental factors at different time scales, which provides support for selecting the optimal input parameters of the models for quantitatively forecasting ecosystem processes at different time scales in northern temperate deciduous broad-leaved forests.

    Effects of experimental warming on root biomass in terrestrial ecosystems
    WEI Chun-Xue, YANG Lu, WANG Jin-Song, YANG Jia-Ming, SHI Jia-Wei, TIAN Da-Shuan, ZHOU Qing-Ping, NIU Shu-Li
    Chin J Plant Ecol. 2021, 45 (11):  1203-1212.  doi:10.17521/cjpe.2021.0195
    Abstract ( 894 )   Full Text ( 227 )   PDF (2143KB) ( 495 )   Save
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    Aims Roots are an important organ for plants to absorb soil water and nutrients and can drive multiple ecosystem processes. This study disentangles the effects and underlying mechanisms of experimental warming on root biomass in terrestrial ecosystems, aiming to better understand soil carbon dynamics and inform the changes in ecosystem processes under climate warming.
    Methods In this study we compiled data on 611 paired observations from 151 published peer-reviewed articles, and analyzed the responses of several plant root biomass variables, including total root biomass, fine root biomass, coarse root biomass, and root:shoot ratio, to warming using meta-analysis. The responses of root biomass to the magnitude, duration and method of warming treatments, and the warming responses of root biomass in relation to background environmental conditions (i.e. ecosystem types, mean annual air temperature, mean annual precipitation, and aridity index) were examined.
    Important findings Simulated warming significantly increased fine root biomass by 8.87%, but had no significant effects on total root biomass, coarse root biomass, and root:shoot ratio. Moderate magnitude of warming (1-2 °C) significantly increased fine root biomass and root:shoot ratio by 14.57% and 23.63%, respectively. While the short- to medium-term (<5 years) warming enhanced fine root biomass, a long-term warming (≥5 years) had a tendency to decrease it. Both open-top chamber and infrared radiators significantly increased fine root biomass by 17.50% and 12.16%, respectively; whilst heating cables significantly decreased fine root biomass by 23.44% and coarse root biomass by 43.23%. The warming responses of root biomass were inconsistent across different ecosystem types. Notably, warming significantly increased fine root biomass by 21.03% in tundra ecosystems. The response of fine root biomass to simulated warming had significant and negative correlations with the background mean annual air temperature, mean annual precipitation, and aridity index.

    Testing multiple hypotheses for the richness pattern of macrophyte in the Qaidam Basin of Northwest China
    OU Wen-Hui, LIU Ya-Heng, LI Na, XU Zhi-Yan, PENG Qiu-Tong, YANG Yu-Jing, LI Zhong-Qiang
    Chin J Plant Ecol. 2021, 45 (11):  1213-1220.  doi:10.17521/cjpe.2020.0364
    Abstract ( 469 )   Full Text ( 127 )   PDF (1149KB) ( 469 )   Save
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    Aims Patterns of species richness are influenced by both ecological factors and processes. The formation mechanisms of macrophyte richness pattern have been mainly concentrated in a few aspects, such as geometric constraints, water-energy status, or random processes.
    Methods In this study, using collected macrophyte species-level data in the Qaidam Basin, we examined macrophyte richness patterns along latitudinal and longitudinal gradients, and tested the mid-domain effect (MDE), area effect (AE), water-energy hypothesis, spatial autocorrelation, and habitat heterogeneity hypothesis for the geographical patterns.
    Important findings Our study showed that the macrophyte richness in the Qaidam Basin showed a hump- shaped pattern along latitudinal and longitudinal gradients. Regression analyses indicated that MDE and AE, rather than water-energy hypothesis, spatial autocorrelation, or habitat heterogeneity hypothesis significantly influenced macrophyte richness in the Qaidam Basin. Variation partitioning showed that the explanatory power of MDE for longitudinal and latitudinal richness patterns of macrophyte was 68.41% and 66.91%, respectively. This result implies that macrophyte richness in the Qaidam Basin is mainly affected by geometric and dispersal restrictions. This study further confirms that geometric constraints and random processes may be important natural factors affecting the pattern of macrophyte richness in the arid area of Northwest China.

    Suitable distribution simulation and local environmental adaptability differentiation of Lycium ruthenicum in Xinjiang, China
    YAN Han, ZHANG Yun-Ling, MA Song-Mei, WANG Chun-Cheng, ZHANG Dan
    Chin J Plant Ecol. 2021, 45 (11):  1221-1230.  doi:10.17521/cjpe.2021.0179
    Abstract ( 703 )   Full Text ( 76 )   PDF (1693KB) ( 506 )   Save
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    Aims Lycium ruthenicum is a very important medicinal and edible species that plays an essential role in wind prevention and sand fixation in the arid desert areas. However, it is currently facing a serious situation of fragmented distribution.
    Methods In this study, 19 environmental variables of L. ruthenicum were collected from 87 natural distribution points distributed in Xinjiang under current climate (1971-2000). The GIS spatial analysis and R software Biomod2 modeling platform were employed to simulate and analyze the suitable distribution, spatial distribution characteristics, and key limiting factors of L. ruthenicum in Xinjiang, and evaluate the distribution potential by combining the current land use/land cover situation in the study area. The distribution of L. ruthenicum in southern and northern Xinjiang was modeled by subspecies grouping to analyze the niche differentiation of this species.
    Important findings The results showed that: (1) The true skill statistic (TSS) and area under the curve of receiver operator characteristic curves (AUC) of the ensemble model were obviously improved compared with those of individual models. The TSS and AUC of the ensemble models were uniformly greater than 0.75 and 0.85, respectively. The simulation accuracy of the subspecies grouping modeling was significantly improved compared with the species-level simulation, and the TSS and AUC were higher than 0.78 and 0.88. (2) According to the simulation results obtained by the ensemble model, the proportion of the suitable distribution area of L. ruthenicum in Xinjiang accounts for about 36.72% of the total area of the province, and it was mainly distributed in the Junggar Basin, the northern slope of the Tianshan Mountain and the northwest and southwest margins of the Tarim Basin. Among them, the area of highly suitable distribution accounted for 5.19%, which was concentrated in the Fuhai County, the eastern of the Tacheng Region, and the line from Bole to Fukang on the northern slope of the Tianshan Mountains, Korla, Keping County, and the southwest margin of the Tarim Basin. The overlap between highly and moderately suitable areas and the cultivated land in the study area amounted to 80.6% and 50.8%. (3) There was a significant niche differentiation of L. ruthenicum populations in northern and southern Xinjiang, and mean temperature of warmest quarter, isothermality, and precipitation seasonality were the main factors causing the local environmental adaptation differentiation of L. ruthenicum in Xinjiang.

    Responses of biomass allocation patterns to nitrogen addition of Cunninghamia lanceolata seedlings
    WANG Jiao, GUAN Xin, ZHANG Wei-Dong, HUANG Ke, ZHU Mu-Nan, YANG Qing-Peng
    Chin J Plant Ecol. 2021, 45 (11):  1231-1240.  doi:10.17521/cjpe.2021.0135
    Abstract ( 560 )   Full Text ( 88 )   PDF (1268KB) ( 385 )   Save
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    Aims Sharply increasing atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition may have profound effects on carbon (C) fixation and allocation of plants. However, a comprehensive understanding of how nitrogen addition influences allocation dynamics of carbohydrates among different organs in plants is still lacking.
    Methods In this study, a pot experiment of seedlings of Cunninghamia lanceolate was established to investigate the allocation pattern and regulation mechanism of non-structural carbohydrates (NSC) and structural carbohydrates (SC) in different organs of C. lanceolate seedlings after N addition. The concentrations and pool sizes of NSC and SC were measured.
    Important findings The results showed that: (1) N addition significantly increased the net photosynthetic rate by 143.96%, but decreased the concentration and pool size of NSC in needles. There was no significant change in the components of NSC concentration and pool in current-year stems. Furthermore, N addition resulted in a significant decrease in the starch concentration of one-year-old stems, but a non-significant change in soluble sugar concentration. In addition, the components of NSC concentration and pool in seedlings roots also tended to decrease. (2) After N addition, the ratio of below- to above-ground biomass decreased by 22.09%, and the ratio of below- to above-ground SC pool also decreased by 31.07%, and the ratio of below- to above-ground NSC pool showed no significant difference between control and N addition treatment. (3) N addition significantly increased the phosphorus (P) pool size in the above-ground part and decreased the ratio of below- to above-ground P pool, while the ratio of below- to above-ground N pool showed no obvious difference between control and N addition treatment. (4) Under N addition, soil pH decreased significantly from 4.94 to 4.02, ammonium and nitrate nitrogen concentration increased by 7.17 times and 11.55 times, respectively, and soil available P concentration increased by 42.86%, while the activities of urease (62.75%) and acid phosphatase (56.52%) in the soil decreased significantly compared to control. Our results indicates that C. lanceolate seedlings increased nutrient uptake amount mainly by the construction of root structure, but not by the allocation of more NSC to the root under low nutrient conditions, while nutrient alleviation driven by nitrogen addition resulted in more carbohydrates allocation to above-ground organs, resulting in the accumulation of SC in above-ground parts.

    Effects of provenance on leaf structure and function of two mangrove species: the genetic adaptation to temperature
    ZHANG Xiao-Yan, WEE Kim Shan Alison, KAJITA Tadashi, CAO Kun-Fang
    Chin J Plant Ecol. 2021, 45 (11):  1241-1250.  doi:10.17521/cjpe.2021.0221
    Abstract ( 742 )   Full Text ( 71 )   PDF (2049KB) ( 432 )   Save
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    Aims Plant leaves have the ability to adjust phenotypic characteristics according to different environmental conditions. The adaptability of leaf traits to the environment directly affects the survival, distribution and migration of plants under climate change. With global warming, mangrove forests have been expanding to higher latitudes. However, there is still a lack of understanding about the genetic adaptation of leaf traits of different mangrove species to temperature variation of native habitats.
    Methods The leaf anatomical structure and physiological function parameters of the seedlings from 6 provenances of Bruguiera gymnorhiza and 5 provenances of Kandelia obovata were measured, which were grown in a common garden. The relationships between the leaf anatomical traits and physiological function of mangrove seedlings were analyzed, and the genetic adaptation of two mangrove species to the temperature of provenance was analyzed.
    Important findings The leaf thickness, thickness of palisade tissue, cuticle and epidermis of B. gymnorhiza seedlings were significantly negatively correlated with the mean annual temperature of their native habitats. Compared with the seedlings of B. gymnorhiza, the K. obovata seedlings had thicker leaf epidermis and cuticle, and the anatomical traits of K. obovata were not correlated with the annual average temperature of the provenances. Pooling the data of the seedlings of different provenances of the two species together, the palisade tissue and to a lesser extend spongy tissue were positively correlated with photosynthetic rate, suggesting an important role of palisade tissue for photosynthesis in mangroves. There was also a significant positive correlation between vein density and stomatal density, maximum stomatal conductance, revealing genetic adaptation for the balance between leaf transpirational demand and water supply. In conclusion, B. gymnorhiza showed the significant genetic adaptation to the temperature of the provenance, while K. obovata did not. The leaf anatomical structure of K. obovata adapts to the temperature of provenance through the persistent inheritance of stress resistance of leaf structure. The differences of leaf structure lead to the corresponding changes of physiological functions such as photosynthesis and maximum stomatal conductance of mangroves, which is conducive to the survival and reproduction of mangroves under the climate change.

    Effect of current-year twig stem configuration on the leaf display efficiency of Populus euphratica
    LI Hao, MA Ru-Yu, QIANG Bo, HE Cong, HAN Lu, WANG Hai-Zhen
    Chin J Plant Ecol. 2021, 45 (11):  1251-1262.  doi:10.17521/cjpe.2020.0425
    Abstract ( 586 )   Full Text ( 44 )   PDF (1251KB) ( 379 )   Save
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    Aims Plant functional traits reflect the resource trade-offs and allocation strategy between different organs and functions in the process of plant adapting to environmental changes. Branches and leaves are the key components of tree canopy, and understanding the relationship of leaf-stem allometry is important for revealing adaptive strategies of desert plants with changing environmental constraints. In this study, our objective is to explore the scaling relationships between leaf display efficiency and current-year twig stem configuration, and trade-off strategy shift along groundwater gradients in extremely arid region.
    Methods Leaf number, area, mass and stem length, diameter, volume, mass of current-year twigs were measured for Populus euphratica with 30 trees within three different groundwater depths in Tarim basin, Xinjiang, China. The stem length, stem slender ratios and stem volume of current-year twigs were used as the proxy of stem configuration traits. Density of leaf number (leaf number per stem length), leaf area ratio (total leaf area per stem mass) and leaf/stem mass ratio (total leaf mass per stem mass) were used as the proxies of leaf display efficiency. The standardized major axis (SMA) regression was used to examine the scaling relationship between stem configuration traits and leaf display efficiency within current-year twigs across groundwater gradients.
    Important findings Stem diameter, leaf display efficiency, specific leaf area, individual leaf mass and area, all decreased with the increase of groundwater depths (GWD). In contrast, stem length, stem slender ratio and leaf number per twig increased with GWD. There was significant difference in stem and leaf functional traits across groundwater gradients. The density of leaf number, leaf area ratio and leaf/stem mass ratio as the proxies of leaf display efficiency were all significantly negatively correlated with stem length, stem slender ratio and stem volume of the current-year twigs. These results suggest that leaf display efficiency decreases with stem configuration variation of current-year twigs, which may reflect the trade-off of twig-leaf size, water conduction and mechanical support. The allometric exponents (slope) of stem configuration and leaf display efficiency decreased with the increase in GWD, likely because the leaf area or mass per unit stem investment decreased with GWD. It may reflect that the desert woody plants tend to adopt a conservative adaptive strategy of high consumption and low benefit with habitat deterioration. When Populus euphratica responds to environmental stress, it tends to have a large number of small leaves on long twigs, or tends to have relatively few large leaves on short twigs, which reflects the strategy of resource utilization and trade-off mechanism of twig-leaf size. Our results demonstrate that GWD is a key factor for regulating the leaf-stem allometric relationship, and low leaf display efficiency is an adaptive strategy for P. euphratica to cope with the worsening arid desert environment.

    Differences in soil nutrients and phenolic acid metabolites contents in American ginseng cultivated soils with different restoration years
    LI Chong-Wei, BAI Xin-Fu, CHEN Guo-Zhong, ZHU Ping, ZHANG Shu-Ting, HOU Yu-Ping, ZHANG Xing-Xiao
    Chin J Plant Ecol. 2021, 45 (11):  1263-1274.  doi:10.17521/cjpe.2020.0401
    Abstract ( 538 )   Full Text ( 77 )   PDF (1323KB) ( 352 )   Save
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    Aims The cultivation of American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) is of high economic benefits, but the continuous cropping has begun to limit the sustainable development of its industry. At present, the research on the problems of continuous cropping is limiting. In this study, the changes in soil nutrients and phenolic acid metabolites were measured and analyzed to investigate the key nutrient and allelopathic factors that may cause problems under continuous cropping of American ginseng, using the restoration plots for 1, 10, and 20 years after the long-term use of American ginseng cultivation (A1, A10, A20, respectively) and the control plot (CK) without cultivation of American ginseng.
    Methods Soil nutrients contents were determined by conventional chemical methods and the gas chromatography- mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Phenolic acid metabolites contents in soil were determined by the high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).
    Important findings The results showed that soil pH in the three groups of restoration plots was significantly lower than the CK plots. The contents of 25 organic nutrients (amino acids, sugars and alcohols) in A1 were significantly decreased, and the contents of N-acetylornithine, 5-aminovaleric acid, serine, leucine, glycerin and sophora in all restoration plots were significantly decreased compared to those in CK and had not returned to the control level even after 20 years of restoration. Simultaneously, contrary to expectations, the contents of coumaric acid, protocatechuic acid, ferulic acid and benzoic acid in A1 were significantly lower than those in CK, but could return to the control level after 10 years of restoration. In addition, the contents of p-coumaric acid and syringic acid in A1, A10 and A20 were significantly lower than those in CK, and even after 20 years of restoration, it had not returned to the control level. Attention should be paid to the positive effects of phenolic acid metabolites on the growth of American ginseng. The correlation analysis showed that most of the above organic nutrients contents, pH and phenolic acid metabolites contents showed significantly positive correlations among each other, indicating that there was a significant interaction between soil characteristics. In conclusion, soil acidification, decreases of organic nutrients contents and phenolic acids contents and synergistic effect of soil properties caused by cultivation of American ginseng may be the key factors leading to the problems of continuous cropping.

    Forum
    Current status of naturalized alien species in China and its relative problem
    LIN Qin-Wen, YU Sheng-Xiang, TANG Sai-Chun, CUI Xia, GAO Xin-Fen, WANG Huan-Chong, LIU Quan-Ru, MA Jin-Shuang
    Chin J Plant Ecol. 2021, 45 (11):  1275-1280.  doi:10.17521/cjpe.2021.0314
    Abstract ( 672 )   Full Text ( 142 )   PDF (928KB) ( 743 )   Save
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    On the basis of a brief discussion of the definitions of alien plants, we summarized the investigation and research status of China’s naturalized alien plants, and made corrections of the data regarding naturalized alien plants on two papers in 2019 and 2021.


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