Search Results for: he z
Chemical and mechanical control of the invasive shrub Cytisus scoparius in forest clearings in western Washington, USA
We conducted a large-scale, multiple-year study in harvested areas of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii [Mirbel] Franco) forests in western Washington, examining the effectiveness of control methods on the widespread invasive shrub Scotch broom [Cytisus scoparius (L.) Link]. We tested both chemical and physical control methods, using three different approaches that are […]
Substrate stoichiometry determines nitrogen fixation throughout succession in southern Chinese forests
The traditional view holds that biological nitrogen (N) fixation often peaks in early- or mid-successional ecosystems and declines throughout succession based on the hypothesis that soil N richness and/or phosphorus (P) depletion become disadvantageous to N fixers. This view, however, fails to support the observation that N fixers can remain […]
Soil Water Availability Drives Changes in Community Traits Along a Hydrothermal Gradient in Loess Plateau Grasslands
Plant functional traits can be used to predict ecosystem responses to climate gradients, yet precipitation explains very little variation for most traits. Soil water availability directly influences plant water uptake and thus may assist with the improvement of plant trait–water relationships. However, this promise remains poorly realized due to rare […]
The fertilization effect of CO2 on a mature forest
Will mature forests absorb enough carbon from the atmosphere to mitigate climate change as levels of carbon dioxide increase? An experiment in a eucalyptus forest provides fresh evidence.
Plant traits in influencing soil moisture in semiarid grasslands of the Loess Plateau, China
Large-scale vegetation restoration projects pose threats to water resource security in water-limited regions. Thus, the quantification of how vegetation cover affects soil moisture is of key importance to support effective restoration schemes in drylands. However, the current understanding of such effects remains poor. For this study, an in-situ vegetation-removal experiment […]
Exotic Spartina alterniflora Loisel. Invasion significantly shifts soil bacterial communities with the successional gradient of saltmarsh in eastern China
The effects of invasive plants on soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycling are widely documented, while the mechanisms of their influences on the microbial ecology of soil remain unknown. Therefore, the objective of this study was to explore variations in soil bacterial communities following plant invasion, and the mechanisms […]
Climate and vegetation structure shape ant communities along elevational gradients on the Colorado Plateau
Terrestrial animal communities are largely shaped by vegetation and climate. With climate also shaping vegetation, can we attribute animal patterns solely to climate? Our study observes ant community changes along climatic gradients (i.e., elevational gradients) within different habitat types (i.e., open and forest) on the Colorado Plateau in the southwestern […]