Importance of overstorey attributes for understorey litter production and nutrient cycling in European forests

Abstract

Background: In contrast with the negligible contribution of the forest understorey to the total aboveground phytobiomass of a forest, its share in annual litter production and nutrient cycling may be more important. Whether and how this functional role of the understorey differs across forest types and depends upon overstorey characteristics remains to be investigated. Methods: We sampled 209 plots of the FunDivEUROPE Exploratory Platform, a network of study plots covering local gradients of tree diversity spread over six contrasting forest types in Europe. To estimate the relative contribution of the understorey to carbon and nutrient cycling, we sampled non-lignified aboveground understorey biomass and overstorey leaf litterfall in all plots. Understorey samples were analysed for C, N and P concentrations, overstorey leaf litterfall for C and N concentrations. We additionally quantified a set of overstorey attributes, including species richness, proportion of evergreen species, light availability (representing crown density) and litter quality, and investigated whether they drive the understorey's contribution to carbon and nutrient cycling. Results and conclusions: Overstorey litter production and nutrient stocks in litterfall clearly exceeded the contribution of the understorey for all forest types, and the share of the understorey was higher in forests at the extremes of the climatic gradient. In most of the investigated forest types, it was mainly light availability that determined the contribution of the understorey to yearly carbon and nutrient cycling. Overstorey species richness did not affect the contribution of the understorey to carbon and nutrient cycling in any of the investigated forest types.

Interactive effects of changes in UV radiation and climate on terrestrial ecosystems, biogeochemical cycles, and feedbacks to the climate system

“…2.2 ). The loss of forests and other natural or semi-natural vegetation cover due to agricultural practices increases photodegradation of surface litter [ 19 , 397 ], such that deforestation and land clearing will accelerate release of carbon from the ecosystem and alter patterns of GHG emissions and nutrient cycling [ 395 , 402 , 415 , 416 ]. In dryland ecosystems, litter position (e.g.…”

Climatic conditions, not above- and belowground resource availability and uptake capacity, mediate tree diversity effects on productivity and stability

“…For each region (Table S4), the ecological indicator system was selected with the application region corresponding or closest by that study region (Bita-Nicolae and Sanda, 2011; Ellenberg et al, 1992;Mayor López, 1999;Pignatti, 2005;Zarzycki et al, 2002). Three subplots (5 m × 5 m) were established for the survey of understory communities in three of the nine quadrants (upper right, central and lower left) (Landuyt et al, 2020). Species cover of all vascular plant species was estimated in each subplot and used to calculate a stand-level weighted average of species indicator values (i.e.…”