A comparative study of plant responsiveness to the duration of episodes of mineral nutrient enrichment

Abstract

SL'M M AR^•Growth, dry matter p;irtitit>ninK anci nitrogen capture were compared in two grasses of contrasted ecology, subjected to treatments in\olving pulses of nutrient enrichment of various durations supplied every 6 d o\ er a period of 6 weeks. The potentially fast-growing Arrhenatheriiin elatius ssp. bulhosuiii (Willd.) Sclnihler and Martens was superior in rates of nitrogen capture and dry matter production when exposed to long (> 10 h) nutrient pulses whereas the slow-growing species Festuca of ma L. enjoyed an advantage in treatments providing nutrient pulses of between 0-1 and 10 h duration. 'These results are consistent with differences in mechanisms of resource foraging predicted by the C-S-R model of plant strategies and related models. It is concluded that the lower rates of turnover of tissues and the capacity of roots to remain viable under chronic nutrient stress are important components of the ability of Festuca oriita to exploit brief pulses of mineral nutrient enrichment. The range in duration ofthe pulses advantageous to F. r«7«fl corresponds to that which might be expected to arise from the death and recovery of microbial populations in infertile soils.

Influence of mineral nutrient availability on growth of tree seedlings from the tropical deciduous forest

“…In this respect it has been proposed that plants with high relative growth rates tend not to predominate in infertile environments because they are more sensitive to insufficient or low nutrient supply. Studies analyzing resource capture and using micro-economic theory to describe the behavior of plants in fertile and infertile environments (Bloom et al 1985;Grime et al 1986;Crick and Grime 1987;Campbell and Grime 1989), have established that plants adapted to infertile environments have a high nutrient accumulation in plant tissue and low tissue turnover rates, coupled with a long-lived root system and low morphological plasticity (Grime et al 1986;Crick and Grime 1987). In addition, these studies predict that species adapted to nutrient rich soils are able to respond to nutrient enrichment by having a high rate of nutrient absorption and thus fast growth and a high yield.…”

Plant Community and Species Distribution In Both Slopes of the Mt. Neungdong

“…Numerous researches have proposed a positive correlation between environmental variability and species richness [4]. The distribution of plant communities in the Mt.…”

Caracterización de la cobertura arbórea en una pastura del trópico seco en Tolima, Colombia.

“…(6%) (Figura 7). La variabilidad en la transmisión de RAFA entre especies leñosas perennes se puede explicar por diferencias en el índice de área foliar, ángulo de inserción de las hojas, la disposición de las hojas en el tallo y el tamaño, producción y renovación de las hojas (Campbell y Grime, 1989;Kikuzawa, 1995;Berendse et al, 1999;Kikuzawa, 2003;Valladares y Brittes, 2004).…”