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Dynamics of foliar nitrogen of evergreen and deciduous plant species in a wet tropical forest, South Assam, India

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Abstract

Nitrogen is one of the important elements that may limit plant growth. The present study describes the variations in foliar N during a leaf’s life span as well as the degree of N resorption for 22 plant species (15 evergreen and 7 deciduous, including 9 canopy, 10 sub-canopy and 3 shrub species) in a wet tropical forest of southern Assam, India. Generally, N concentrations and mass decreased after an initial peak, then stabilized or fluctuated as leaves matured, and declined during senescence. N concentrations were significantly (P < 0.05) higher in deciduous species than in evergreens. There was considerable inter-specific variation in the magnitude of N resorption, but N resorption efficiency (NReff) was not found to differ amongst growth or leaf persistence forms. On average, 52.6 % of foliar N was resorbed during senescence. NReff showed a strong positive correlation with leaf dry mass loss. No significant relationship was found between NReff and leaf life span. However, leaf life span showed a negative correlation with N resorption proficiency (NRpro) and N concentration of mature leaves, and also exhibited a positive correlation with peak nitrogen mass. Therefore, leaf life span is important for N conservation. Evergreen and deciduous species showed different phenological adaptations in terms of dry mass loss, foliar N concentration and N resorption from senescing leaves which probably enable them to share available resources and coexist in these multi-species forests.

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Acknowledgments

Laboratory analysis was supported by PURSE Grant, Department of Science and Technology, Government of India. Authors are grateful to Prof. LA (Sampurno) Bruijnzeel, King’s College London, UK for reviewing the Manuscript which improved the earlier version of the text to a great extent.

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  1. School of Environmental Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, 110067, India

    Florida Devi Athokpam & Satish Chandra Garkoti

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  1. Florida Devi Athokpam
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  2. Satish Chandra Garkoti
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Correspondence to Satish Chandra Garkoti.

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Communicated by Kun-Fang Cao.

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Athokpam, F.D., Garkoti, S.C. Dynamics of foliar nitrogen of evergreen and deciduous plant species in a wet tropical forest, South Assam, India. Plant Ecol 216, 1117–1135 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-015-0496-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-015-0496-2

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