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Nitrogen uptake and preference in a forest understory following invasion by an exotic grass

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Abstract

Plant–soil interactions have been proposed as a causative mechanism explaining how invasive plant species impact ecosystem processes. We evaluate whether an invasive plant influences plant and soil-microbe acquisition of nitrogen to elucidate the mechanistic pathways by which invaders might alter N availability. Using a 15N tracer, we quantify differences in nitrogen uptake and allocation in communities with and without Microstegium vimineum, a shade-tolerant, C4 grass that is rapidly invading the understories of eastern US deciduous forests. We further investigate if plants or the microbial biomass exhibit preferences for certain nitrogen forms (glycine, nitrate, and ammonium) to gain insight into nitrogen partitioning in invaded communities. Understory native plants and M. vimineum took up similar amounts of added nitrogen but allocated it differently, with native plants allocating primarily to roots and M. vimineum allocating most nitrogen to shoots. Plant nitrogen uptake was higher in invaded communities due primarily to the increase in understory biomass when M. vimineum was present, but for the microbial biomass, nitrogen uptake did not vary with invasion status. This translated to a significant reduction (P < 0.001) in the ratio of microbial biomass to plant biomass nitrogen uptake, which suggests that, although the demand for nitrogen has intensified, microbes continue to be effective nitrogen competitors. The microbial biomass exhibited a strong preference for ammonium over glycine and nitrate, regardless of invasion status. By comparison, native plants showed no nitrogen preferences and M. vimineum preferred inorganic nitrogen species. We interpret our findings as evidence that invasion by M. vimineum leads to changes in the partitioning of nitrogen above and belowground in forest understories, and to decreases in the microbial biomass, but it does not affect the outcome of plant–microbe–nitrogen interactions, possibly due to functional shifts in the microbial community as a result of invasion.

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Acknowledgments

This study benefitted from discussions with Robert Warren, Tony Yannarell and Monica Turner. We also thank K. Gross and three anonymous reviewers for their comments. Funding was through the Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) Program of the National Science Foundation (Grants DEB-0823293 and DEB-9632854) and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The work conducted complied with all current laws and regulations of the US, where the study was conducted.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA

    Jennifer M. Fraterrigo

  2. School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA

    Michael S. Strickland, Ashley D. Keiser & Mark A. Bradford

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  1. Jennifer M. Fraterrigo
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  2. Michael S. Strickland
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  3. Ashley D. Keiser
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  4. Mark A. Bradford
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Correspondence to Jennifer M. Fraterrigo.

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Communicated by Tim Seastedt.

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Fraterrigo, J.M., Strickland, M.S., Keiser, A.D. et al. Nitrogen uptake and preference in a forest understory following invasion by an exotic grass. Oecologia 167, 781–791 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-011-2030-0

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