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Root‐exudate flux variations among four co‐existing canopy species in a temperate forest, Japan
Author(s) -
Sun Lijuan,
Kominami Yuji,
Yoshimura Kenichi,
Kitayama Kanehiro
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
ecological research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.628
H-Index - 68
eISSN - 1440-1703
pISSN - 0912-3814
DOI - 10.1007/s11284-017-1440-9
Subject(s) - biology , exudate , rhizosphere , evergreen , botany , biomass (ecology) , tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests , agronomy , ecology , subtropics , genetics , bacteria
Plants allocate carbon to root exudates to mine nitrogen (N) from soil organic matter (SOM). Little is known about how the root‐exudation rate varies among co‐existing woody species. We conducted an in situ experiment in a warm temperate forest on two dominant species, Quercus serrata and Ilex pedunculosa , and two of their congeneric species, Quercus glauca and Ilex macropoda , respectively. We hypothesized that the root‐exudation rate varies among these species because of their distinct functional traits and N demands. Root‐exudation rates were measured using a non‐soil culture method during the growing season from June 2013 to May 2014. We also measured foliar N concentrations and the activities of N‐degrading enzymes in the rhizosphere soils. The annual demand for N was calculated from the growth rate and allometric equations for biomass. The root‐exudation rates of Q. serrata and I. macropoda were consistently greater than those of their congeneric evergreen species on root‐length, root‐weight, and individual‐tree bases. The variations of the annual N demand of these species mirrored this pattern. Within a species, root‐exudation rates correlated positively to leaf N contents, suggesting a physiological linkage between photosynthetic capacities and belowground carbon allocation. Root‐exudation rates also correlated positively to the activities of polyphenol oxidase, an enzyme that decomposes N from recalcitrant SOM. Our results suggest that the variations of the root‐exudation among co‐existing species relate to their functional traits and demand for N.