Aboveground biomass allocation patterns within Mediterranean sub-shrubs: A quantitative analysis of seasonal dimorphism

Climate change is predicted to affect plant growth, but also the allocation of biomass to aboveground and belowground plant parts. To date, studies have mostly focused on aboveground biomass, while belowground biomass and allocation patterns have received less attention. We investigated changes in biomass allocation along a controlled gradient of precipitation in an experiment with four plant species (Leymus chinensis, Stipa grandis, Artemisia frigida, and Potentilla acaulis) dominant in Inner Mongolia steppe. Results showed that aboveground biomass, belowground biomass and total biomass all increased with increasing growing season precipitation, as expected in this water-limited ecosystem. Biomass allocation patterns also changed along the precipitation gradient, but significant variation between species was apparent. Specifically, the belowground biomass: aboveground biomass ratio (i.e., B:A ratio) of S. grandis was not impacted by precipitation amount, while B:A ratios of the other three species changed in different ways along the gradient. Some of these differences in allocation strategies may be related to morphological differences, specifically, the presence of rhizomes or stolons, though no consistent patterns emerged. Isometric partitioning, i.e., constant allocation of biomass aboveground and belowground, seemed to occur for one species (S. grandis), but not for the three rhizome or stolon-forming ones. Indeed, for these species, the slope of the allometric regression between log-transformed belowground biomass and log-transformed aboveground biomass significantly differed from 1.0 and B:A ratios changed along the precipitation gradient. As changes in biomass allocation can affect ecosystem functioning and services, our results can be used as a basis for further studies into allocation patterns, especially in a context of environmental change.

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Changes in light- and nitrogen-use and in aboveground biomass allocation patterns along productivity gradients in grasslands

Journal of Plant Research ◽

10.1007/s10265-014-0629-z ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 127 (3) ◽

pp. 441-453

Author(s):

Anne Aan ◽

Krista Lõhmus ◽

Arne Sellin ◽

Olevi Kull

Keyword(s):

Biomass Allocation ◽

Aboveground Biomass ◽

Nitrogen Use ◽

Allocation Patterns ◽

Productivity Gradients

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Adaptation of biomass allocation patterns of wild Fritillaria unibracteata to alpine environ-ment in the eastern Qinghai-Xizang Plateau

Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology ◽

10.3724/sp.j.1258.2013.00019 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 37 (3) ◽

pp. 187-196 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Bo XU ◽

Jin-Niu WANG ◽

Fu-Sun SHI ◽

Jing GAO ◽

Ning WU

Keyword(s):

Biomass Allocation ◽

Allocation Patterns ◽

Xizang Plateau

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Aboveground Biomass Allocation of Boreal Shrubs and Short-Stature Trees in Northwestern Canada

Forests ◽

10.3390/f12020234 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (2) ◽

pp. 234

Author(s):

Linda Flade ◽

Christopher Hopkinson ◽

Laura Chasmer

Keyword(s):

Short Stature ◽

Biomass Allocation ◽

Aboveground Biomass ◽

Leaf Biomass ◽

Sectional Area ◽

Plant Component ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Allometric Models ◽

Stem Biomass ◽

Model Fits

In this follow-on study on aboveground biomass of shrubs and short-stature trees, we provide plant component aboveground biomass (herein ‘AGB’) as well as plant component AGB allometric models for five common boreal shrub and four common boreal short-stature tree genera/species. The analyzed plant components consist of stem, branch, and leaf organs. We found similar ratios of component biomass to total AGB for stems, branches, and leaves amongst shrubs and deciduous tree genera/species across the southern Northwest Territories, while the evergreen Picea genus differed in the biomass allocation to aboveground plant organs compared to the deciduous genera/species. Shrub component AGB allometric models were derived using the three-dimensional variable volume as predictor, determined as the sum of line-intercept cover, upper foliage width, and maximum height above ground. Tree component AGB was modeled using the cross-sectional area of the stem diameter as predictor variable, measured at 0.30 m along the stem length. For shrub component AGB, we achieved better model fits for stem biomass (60.33 g ≤ RMSE ≤ 163.59 g; 0.651 ≤ R2 ≤ 0.885) compared to leaf biomass (12.62 g ≤ RMSE ≤ 35.04 g; 0.380 ≤ R2 ≤ 0.735), as has been reported by others. For short-stature trees, leaf biomass predictions resulted in similar model fits (18.21 g ≤ RMSE ≤ 70.0 g; 0.702 ≤ R2 ≤ 0.882) compared to branch biomass (6.88 g ≤ RMSE ≤ 45.08 g; 0.736 ≤ R2 ≤ 0.923) and only slightly better model fits for stem biomass (30.87 g ≤ RMSE ≤ 11.72 g; 0.887 ≤ R2 ≤ 0.960), which suggests that leaf AGB of short-stature trees (<4.5 m) can be more accurately predicted using cross-sectional area as opposed to diameter at breast height for tall-stature trees. Our multi-species shrub and short-stature tree allometric models showed promising results for predicting plant component AGB, which can be utilized for remote sensing applications where plant functional types cannot always be distinguished. This study provides critical information on plant AGB allocation as well as component AGB modeling, required for understanding boreal AGB and aboveground carbon pools within the dynamic and rapidly changing Taiga Plains and Taiga Shield ecozones. In addition, the structural information and component AGB equations are important for integrating shrubs and short-stature tree AGB into carbon accounting strategies in order to improve our understanding of the rapidly changing boreal ecosystem function.

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Fir (Abies spp.) stand biomass additive model for Eurasia sensitive to winter temperature and annual precipitation

Central European Forestry Journal ◽

10.2478/forj-2019-0017 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 65 (3-4) ◽

pp. 166-179 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Vladimir A. Usoltsev ◽

Katarína Merganičová ◽

Bohdan Konôpka ◽

Anna A. Osmirko ◽

Ivan S. Tsepordey ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Biomass Allocation ◽

Aboveground Biomass ◽

Additive Model ◽

Tree Biomass ◽

Common Pattern ◽

Temperature And Precipitation ◽

Shoot Ratio ◽

Biomass Components ◽

Increasing Temperature

Abstract Climate change, especially modified courses of temperature and precipitation, has a significant impact on forest functioning and productivity. Moreover, some alterations in tree biomass allocation (e.g. root to shoot ratio, foliage to wood parts) might be expected in these changing ecological conditions. Therefore, we attempted to model fir stand biomass (t ha−1) along the trans-Eurasian hydrothermal gradients using the data from 272 forest stands. The model outputs suggested that all biomass components, except for the crown mass, change in a common pattern, but in different ratios. Specifically, in the range of mean January temperature and precipitation of −30°C to +10°C and 300 to 900 mm, fir stand biomass increases with both increasing temperature and precipitation. Under an assumed increase of January temperature by 1°C, biomass of roots and of all components of the aboveground biomass of fir stands increased (under the assumption that the precipitation level did not change). Similarly, an assumed increase in precipitation by 100 mm resulted in the increased biomass of roots and of all aboveground components. We conclude that fir seems to be a perspective taxon from the point of its productive properties in the ongoing process of climate change.

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Effects of Stand Age on Biomass Allocation and Allometry of Quercus Acutissima in the Central Loess Plateau of China

Forests ◽

10.3390/f10010041 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

pp. 41 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Bin Yang ◽

Wenyan Xue ◽

Shichuan Yu ◽

Jianyun Zhou ◽

Wenhui Zhang

Keyword(s):

Biomass Allocation ◽

Aboveground Biomass ◽

Belowground Biomass ◽

Stem Bark ◽

Stand Age ◽

Tree Biomass ◽

Quercus Acutissima ◽

Stem Wood ◽

Biomass Equations ◽

Total Tree

We studied the effects of stand age on allocation and equation fitting of aboveground and below-ground biomass in four Quercus acutissima stands (14, 31, 46, and 63 years old) in the Central Loess Plateau of China. The stem wood, stem bark, branch, foliage, and belowground biomass of each of the 20 destructive harvesting trees were quantified. The mean total biomass of each tree was 28.8, 106.8, 380.6, and 603.4 kg/tree in the 14-, 31-, 46-, and 63-year-old stands, respectively. Aboveground biomass accounted for 72.25%, 73.05%, 76.14%, and 80.37% of the total tree biomass in the 14-, 31-, 46-, and 63-year-old stands, respectively, and stem wood was the major component of tree biomass. The proportion of stem (with bark) biomass to total tree biomass increased with stand age while the proportions of branch, foliage, and belowground biomass to total tree biomass decreased with stand age. The ratio of belowground biomass to aboveground biomass decreased from 0.39 in the 14-year-old stand to 0.37, 0.31, and 0.24 in the 31-, 46-, and 63-year-old stands, respectively. Age-specific biomass equations in each stand were developed for stem wood, stem bark, aboveground, and total tree. The inclusion of tree height as a second variable improved the total tree biomass equation fitting for middle-aged (31-year-old and 46-year-old) stands but not young (14 years old) and mature (63 years old) stands. Moreover, biomass conversion and expansion factors (BCEFs) varied with stand age, showing a decreasing trend with increasing stand age. These results indicate that stand age alters the biomass allocation of Q. acutissima and results in age-specific allometric biomass equations and BCEFs. Therefore, to obtain accurate estimates of Q. acutissima forest biomass and carbon stocks, age-specific changes need to be considered.

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