Abstract
Background and aims
Fine roots (diameter < 2 mm) are the component of belowground biomass, which are help to maintain sediment volume and resist soil compaction in mangroves. In addition, fine root turnover contributes to belowground carbon stocks. This study focused on root zone dynamics and aimed to quantify the composition of live and dead fine roots and analyze their functions during root zone expansion and belowground carbon accumulation.
Methods
Shallow surface elevation tables for measuring root zone expansion were set up in Dongzhaigang Bay of Hainan Province, China; root cores and in-growth bags for measuring fine root biomass and turnover rates were used in four typical mangrove forests.
Results
Fine root biomass contributed over 60% to belowground roots, and was mainly composed of up to 69.25% dead fine roots. Fine root turnover rates ranged from 0.10 to 0.22 per year within the four forests, showing the fastest in Bruguiera forest, followed by Kandelia forest, Sonneratia plantation, and Rhizophora forest. Root zone expansion rates ranged from 0.55 to 1.28 mm yr −1, and were positively related to live fine root biomass within the upper 50 cm layer of sediment in the four forest types (R2 = 0.625, P = 0.0022).
Conclusions
Live fine root biomass took up less than 30.75% of belowground biomass, but remarkably supported 62.50% of root zone expansion in mangroves. Turnover rates of fine roots significantly contributed to the highly dynamic changes in the carbon processes of sub-surface sediment.
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Data availability
The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
The authors thank Ken W. Krauss, Nicole Cormier for their guidance in surface elevation measurements. The authors thank Xiaoxuan Gu, Hongyu Feng, Ying Dong, Peiyang Qiao, and Biaojin Zhong for their assistants in the field survey, and thank Junjie Yin for the assistants in data analysis.
Funding
This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (U22A20584, 42076176), Fujian Natural Science Foundation (2020J01048), the Scientific and Technology Research Project of Xiamen (3502Z20226020).
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Luzhen Chen and Qiulian Lin designed the experiment; Luzhen Chen, Qiulian Lin, and Jialin Zhang conducted the fieldwork; Qiang Guo, Liangchen Wang, and Xinyue Yu conducted the lab work; Luzhen Chen and Qiulian Lin analysed the data and wrote the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Appendix
Appendix
Shallow SET installed in permanent plot
Table 3
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Lin, Q., Chen, L., Zhang, J. et al. How fine root turnover functions during mangrove root zone expansion and affects belowground carbon processes. Plant Soil 488, 451–463 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-023-05985-w
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-023-05985-w