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Low temperature-mediated changes in soil free-living nitrogen fixation functional groups in tree species at different successional stages in subtropical forests

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Abstract

Aims

Late-successional trees have a relatively high growth rate at low temperature, which is important for their competitive advantage over mid-successional trees. However, we have a limited understanding of the underlying mechanism for such an advantage.

Methods

We transplanted two mid-successional tree seedlings (Castanopsis chinensis and Schima superba) and two late-successional species (Machilus chinensis and Cryptocarya chinensis) from Dinghushan (subtropical forest) to South China Normal University. The seedlings were incubated in pots with the same soil and routinely managed with regular watering and weeding. After 7 years of seedling culture, five pots of each tree species were selected for greenhouse cultivation to simulate the effect of low temperature (16 °C) on the studied tree species. A control treatment (ambient temperature) was also established.

Results

After 3 years, low temperatures changed the bacterial and diazotrophic communities, decreased the relative abundance of Actinobacteria in the mid-successional species Schima superba and Castanopsis chinensis, and increased the relative abundance of Rubrivivax in the late-successional species Machilus chinensis and Cryptocarya chinensis. In the low-temperature treatment, late-successional M. chinensis and Cryptocarya chinensis increased N fixation and net N mineralization rates compared with those in mid-successional S. superba and Castanopsis chinensis. Meanwhile, the relative abundance of the fungal community changed insignificantly, indicating that bacteria play a major regulatory role in nutrient cycling at low temperatures.

Conclusions

Our results suggest that shifts in the bacterial community and changes in functional group structures may play a key role in soil nitrogen cycling during the succession of evergreen broadleaf forest ecosystems at low temperatures during the dry season.

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Data availability

The data will be made available on request.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (32171493).

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Author notes

  1. Feng Sun and Wei Lin contribute equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, College of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People’s Republic of China

    Feng Sun, Wei Lin, Guangyan Deng, Linan Fan & Changlian Peng

  2. School of Geographical Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, 350007, China

    Hanxia Yu

  3. School of Life Science and Food Engineering, Hanshan Normal University, Chaozhou, 521041, China

    Zhengchao Yu

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  1. Feng Sun
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Contributions

CL Peng conceived the ideas and designed methodology; F Sun collected the data, analyzed the data and led the writing of the manuscript; W Lin collected the data, review & editing. All authors contributed critically to the drafts and gave final approval for publication.

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Correspondence to Changlian Peng.

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Sun, F., Lin, W., Deng, G. et al. Low temperature-mediated changes in soil free-living nitrogen fixation functional groups in tree species at different successional stages in subtropical forests. Plant Soil (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-024-06724-5

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