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The effects of nitrogen addition on the growth of two exotic and two native forest understory plants

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Abstract

Many studies have linked the spread of exotic, invasive species to high nitrogen supply, but most of this work does not distinguish between various inorganic forms and different concentrations of available nitrogen. Previous research has suggested that exotic, invasive species common in eastern deciduous forests may preferentially utilize nitrate in contrast to native species that preferentially make use of ammonium. We tested this hypothesis by comparing the growth response of two common forest invaders, Berberis thunbergii and Microstegium vimineum, and two co-occurring native species (Vaccinium pallidum and Hamamelis virginiana) to different forms of nitrogen under varying concentrations in a greenhouse experiment. Two forms of nitrogen (nitrate or ammonium) were added at different concentrations (22, 106, and 212 mg N l−1) to all species. Growth response variables included survival, stem length, stem diameter, above and belowground biomass, and estimated seed production (Microstegium only). Unexpectedly the exotic species did not respond preferentially to nitrate addition. Microstegium responded most strongly to both nitrogen forms depending on the response variable. Berberis and Hamamelis surprisingly reacted similarly to nitrogen additions. As expected, Vaccinium fared poorly under most treatment conditions, but did show some growth in NH4 + treatments. Our findings suggest species response to nitrogen addition is complex, and that exotic species do not all respond similarly to nitrogen inputs. In this study, the response of exotic and native species to available nutrients does not provide a general mechanism of invasion success.

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Acknowledgments

We thank past and present members of the J. Ehrenfeld lab at Rutgers including K. Elgersma, M. Palta, A. Wen, and L. Shapelle for valuable comments/suggestions on early drafts. We especially thank W. Landesman who provided extremely helpful comments on later drafts. In addition, we appreciate comments from several anonymous reviewers that greatly improved the manuscript. For help with data collection we thank M. Bartels, A. Wen, and L. Rohleder. We thank Joe Florentine for support in the greenhouse. Thanks also to Dow AgroSciences for donation of N-Serve 24E™. Funding was provided by US Department of Agriculture National Research Initiative grant # 2002-35320-12416.

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  1. Kristen A. Ross

    Present address: Department Biological Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, 845 W. Taylor Street, Chicago, IL, 60607-7060, USA

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  1. Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources, Rutgers University, 14 College Farm Road, New Brunswick, NJ, 08901, USA

    Kristen A. Ross, Joan G. Ehrenfeld & Manisha V. Patel

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  1. Kristen A. Ross
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Ross, K.A., Ehrenfeld, J.G. & Patel, M.V. The effects of nitrogen addition on the growth of two exotic and two native forest understory plants. Biol Invasions 13, 2203–2216 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-011-0034-7

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