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Spatial patterns of photosynthetic characteristics and leaf physical traits of plants in the Loess Plateau of China

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Abstract

The spatial patterns of photosynthetic characteristics and leaf physical traits of 171 plants belonging to nine life-forms or functional groups (trees, shrubs, herbs, evergreen trees, deciduous trees, C3 and C4 herbaceous plants, leguminous and non-leguminous species) and their relationships with environmental factors in seven sites, Yangling, Yongshou, Tongchuan, Fuxian, Ansai, Mizhi and Shenmu, ranging from south to north in the Loess Plateau of China were studied. The results showed that the leaf light-saturated photosynthetic rate (Pmax), photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE), chlorophyll content (Chl), and leaf mass per area (LMA) of all the plants in the Loess Plateau varied significantly among three life-form groups, i.e., trees, shrubs and herbs, and two groups, i.e., evergreen trees and deciduous trees, but leaf nitrogen content differed little among different life-form groups. For the 171 plants in the Loess Plateau, leaf Pmax was positively correlated with PNUE. The leaf nitrogen content per unit area (Narea) was positively correlated but Chl was negatively correlated with the LMA. When controlling the LMA, the Narea was positively correlated with the Chl (partial r = 0.20, P < 0.05). With regard to relationships between photosynthetic characteristics and leaf physical traits, the Pmax was positively correlated with N area, while the PNUE was positively correlated with the Chl and negatively correlated with the Narea and LMA. For all the species in the Loess Plateau, the PNUE was negatively correlated with the latitude and annual solar radiation (ASR), but positively correlated with the mean annual rainfall (MAR) and mean annual temperature (MAT). With regard to the leaf physical traits, the leaf Chl was negatively correlated with the latitude and ASR, but positively correlated with the MAR and MAT. However, the Narea and LMA were positively correlated with the latitude and ASR, but negatively correlated with the MAR and MAT. In general, leaf Narea and LMA increased, while PNUE and Chl decreased with increases in the latitude and ASR and decreases in MAR and MAT.

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Acknowledgments

The West-action Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Important Direction Project of Innovation of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. KSCX2-YW-N-003), and the United Scholar’s Item of Talent Training Program in West China of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. 2005LH01) supported this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Dryland Farming on the Loess Plateau, Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, P.R. China

    Shuxia Zheng & Zhouping Shangguan

  2. Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, P.R. China

    Zhouping Shangguan

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  1. Shuxia Zheng
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  2. Zhouping Shangguan
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Correspondence to Zhouping Shangguan.

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Zheng, S., Shangguan, Z. Spatial patterns of photosynthetic characteristics and leaf physical traits of plants in the Loess Plateau of China. Plant Ecol 191, 279–293 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-006-9242-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-006-9242-0

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