Abstract
The effect of N supply on shoot and leaf lifespan was investigated in established stands of four herbaceous Carex species which differed in maximum dry matter production. These species were, in rank order of increasing maximum dry matter production (per unit ground area): Carex diandra≤C. rostrata<C. lasiocarpa≤C. acutiformis. The observed patterns of shoot and leaf turnover were compared with data on leaf characteristics and nitrogen use efficiency indices of these species. There was no consistent difference in shoot production (number of shoots produced per unit ground area) between species with low production and those with high production: Carex diandra (low production) and C. lasiocarpa (high production) had high shoot production, while shoot production in c. rostrata (low production) and C. acutiformis (high production) was much lower. The rank order of the mean lifespan of shoots was: C. diandra<C. rostrata≤C. lasiocarpa<C. acutiformis. Thus, the lifespan of shoots increased with increasing maximum dry matter production of these Carex species. In all species, increased N supply led to a significant reduction in shoot lifespan. The reduction of shoot lifespans in response to enhanced N supply will result in increased nutrient turnover rates in these species. There was no consistent difference in the number of leaves produced per shoot between low-production and high-production species. C. diandra and C. lasiocarpa had relatively low leaf production, while C. rostrata and C. acutiformis had relatively high leaf production per shoot. Thus, this pattern is opposite to the pattern in shoot production. The rank order of the mean lifespan of leaves was: C. diandra<C. rostrata<C. acutiformis≤C. lasiocarpa. This implies that the high-production species had longer mean leaf lifespans than the low-production species. Mean leaf lifespan was not significantly affected by enhanced N supply, except in C. diandra, where leaf lifespan decreased in response to enhanced N supply. Shoot lifespans did not show any significant relation with the specific leaf area (SLA, leaf area per unit leaf mass) or the leaf area ratio (LAR, leaf area per unit plant mass) of the species under study. There was, however, a negative relation (r 2=0.71) with the nitrogen concentration in the leaves. Shoot lifespans were positively related (r 2=0.79) with whole-plant nitrogen use efficiency (NUE, dry matter production per unit N-loss) and with the mean residence time of nitrogen (MRT, the average time-span during which a unit of nitrogen is present in the plant) (r 2=0.78), but not with the nitrogen productivity (A, annual dry matter production per unit N in the plant). Leaf lifespan was positively related with the mean residence time of nitrogen in the plants (r 2−0.70). For all the other parameters, there were no significant relations with leaf lifespan. From these results we conclude that: (1) at the stand level, shoot and leaf lifespans are positively related with maximum dry matter production; and (2) shoot and leaf lifespan are important determinants of whole-plant nitrogen economy.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aerts R (1989) The effect of increased nutrient availability on leaf turnover and aboveground productivity of two evergreen ericaceous shrubs. Oecologia 78:115–120
Aerts R (1990) Nutrient use efficiency in evergreen and deciduous species from heathlands. Oecologia 84:391–397
Aerts R (1993) Biomass and nutrient dynamics of dominant plant species in heathlands. In: Aerts R, Heil GW (eds) Heathlands, patterns and processes in a changing environment. Kluwer, Dordrecht, pp 51–84
Aerts R, Caluwe H de (1994) Nitrogen use efficiency of Carex species in relation to nitrogen supply. Ecology 75:2362–2372
Aerts R, Peijl MJ van der (1993) A simple model to explain the dominance of low-productive perennials in nutrient-poor environments. Oikos 66:144–147
Aerts R, Caluwe H de, Konings H (1992) Seasonal allocation of biomass and nitrogen in four Carex species from mesotrophic and eutrophic fens as affected by nitrogen supply. J Ecol 80:653–664
Bazzaz FA, Harper JL (1977) Demographic analysis of the growth of Linum usitatissimum New Phytol 78:193–208
Berendse F, Aerts R (1987) Nitrogen use efficiency: a biologically meaningful definition? Funct Ecol 1:293–296
Chabot BF, Hicks DJ (1982) The ecology of leaf life spans. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 13:229–259
Chapin FS (1980) The mineral nutrition of wild plants. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 11:233–260
Diemer M, Körner C, Prock S (1992) Leaf life spans in wild perennial herbaceous plants: a survey and attempts at a functional interpretation. Oecologia 89:10–16
Garnier E (1992) Growth analysis of congeneric annual and perennial grass species. J Ecol 665–675
Grime JP (1979) Plant strategies and vegetation processes. Wiley, Chichester
Grime JP, Hunt R (1975) Relative growth-rate: its range and adaptive significance in a local flora. J Ecol 63:393–422
Karlsson S (1992) Leaf longevity in evergreen shrubs: variation within and among European species. Oecologia 91:346–349
Konings H, Koot E, Tijman-de Wolf A (1989) Growth characteristics, nutrient allocation and photosynthesis of Carex species from floating fens. Oecologia 80:111–121
Lambers H, Poorter H (1992) Inherent variation in growth rate between higher plants: a search for physiological causes and ecological consequences. Adv Ecol Res 22:187–261
Pielou EC (1977) Mathematical ecology. Wiley, New York
Poorter H, Remkes C (1990) Leaf area ratio and net assimilation rate of 24 wild species differing in relative growth rate. Oecologia 83:553–559
Poorter H, Remkes C, Lambers H (1990) Carbon and nitrogen economy of 24 wild species differing in relative growth rate. Plant Physiol 94:621–627
Reader RJ (1980) Effects of nitrogen fertilizer, shade and removal of new growth on longevity of overwintering bog ericad leaves. Can J Bot 58:1737–1743
Reich PB (1993) Reconciling apparent discrepancies among studies relating life span, structure and function of leaves in contrasting plant life forms and climates: “the blind men and the elephant retold”. Funct Ecol 7:721–725
Reich PB, Uhl C, Walters MB, Ellsworth DS (1991) Leaf lifespan as a determinant of leaf structure and function among 23 tree species in Amazonian forest communities. Oecologia 86:16–24
Reich PB, Walters MB, Ellsworth DS (1992) Leaf life-span in relation to leaf, plant, and stand characteristics among diverse ecosystems. Ecol Monogr 62:365–392
SAS Institute (1985) SAS/STAT guide for personal computers, version 6 edn. SAS Institute, Cary
Shaver GR (1981) Mineral nutrition and leaf longevity in an evergreen shrub, Ledum palustre ssp. decumbens. Oecologia 49:362–365
Shaver GR (1983) Mineral nutrition and leaf longevity in Ledum palustre: the role of individual nutrients and the timing of leaf mortality. Oecologia 56:160–165
Small E (1972) Photosynthetic rates in relation to nitrogen recycling as an adaptation to nutrient deficiency in peat bog plants. Can J Bot 65:1491–1510
Tilman D (1988) Plant strategies and the dynamics and structure of plant communities. Princeton University Press, Princeton
Verhoeven JTA, Arts HHM (1987) Nutrient dynamics in small mesotrophic fens surrounded by cultivated land. II. N and P accumulation in plant biomass in relation to the release of inorganic N and P in the peat soil. Oecologia 72:557–561
Verhoeven JTA, Beek S van, Dekker M, Storn W (1983) Nutrient dynamics in small mesotrophic fens surrounded by cultivated land. I. Productivity and nutrient uptake by the vegetation in relation to the flow of eutrophicated ground water. Oecologia 60:25–33
Verhoeven JTA, Schmitz MB, Pons TL (1988) Comparative demographic study of Carex rostrata Stokes, C. diandra Schrank and C. acutiformis Ehrh. in fens of different nutrient status. Aquat Bot 30:95–108
Vitousek PM (1982) Nutrient cycling and nutrient use efficiency. Am Nat 119:553–572
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Aerts, R., de Caluwe, H. Interspecific and intraspecific differences in shoot and leaf lifespan of four Carex species which differ in maximum dry matter production. Oecologia 102, 467–477 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00341359
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00341359