1. Nitrogen effects on net ecosystem carbon exchange in a temperate steppe.
- Author
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SHULI NIU, MINGYU WU, YI HAN, JIANGYANG XIA, ZHE ZHANG, HAIJUN YANG, and SHIQIANG WAN
- Subjects
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EFFECT of nitrogen on plants , *CARBON sequestration , *ARTEMISIA frigida , *PLANT growth , *STEPPE ecology , *FEEDSTOCK , *ECOLOGY , *GRASSLANDS , *LAND use , *NITROGEN , *PHOSPHORUS , *PHOTOSYNTHESIS - Abstract
It has widely been documented that nitrogen (N) enrichment stimulates plant growth and net primary production. However, there is still dispute on how N addition affects net ecosystem CO2 exchange (NEE), which represents the balance between ecosystem carbon (C) uptake and release. We conducted an experimental study to examine effects of N addition on NEE in a temperate steppe in northern China from 2005 to 2008. N was added at a rate of 10 g N m−2 yr−1 with NH4NO3 alone or in combination with phosphorous (P, 5 g P2O5 m−2 yr−1) in both clipped and unclipped plots. Over the 4 years, N addition significantly stimulated growing-season NEE, on average, by 27%. Neither the main effects of P addition or clipping nor their interactions with N addition were statistically significant on NEE in any of the 4 years. However, the magnitude of N stimulation on NEE declined over time. N addition significantly increased NEE by 60% in 2005 and 21% in 2006, but its effect was not significant in 2007 and 2008. N-induced shift in species composition was primarily responsible for the declined N stimulation over time. The gradually increasing coverage of the upper canopy species ( Stipa krylovii) and standing litter accumulation induced light limitation on the lower canopy species ( Artemisia frigida). Thus, N-induced shifts in plant species composition strongly regulated the direct effects of N addition on C sequestration in the temperate steppe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2010
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