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Forests
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Plant Functional Traits in Forests: Variation and Linkages with Function
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Plant Functional Traits in Forests: Variation and Linkages with Function

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Ecophysiology and Biology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 June 2023) | Viewed by 9638

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Ruili Wang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Forestry, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China
Interests: leaf traits; absorptive root traits; trait covariation; functional diversity; ecosystem productivity
Dr. Congcong Liu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
Interests: stomatal morphology; plant functional traits; functional diversity; community assembly
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Ying Li

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Key Laboratory of Ecosystem Network Observation and Modeling, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
Interests: plant functional traits; plant trait networks; ecosystems ecology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Plant functional traits refer to the measurable properties of plants after long-term adaptation to the external environment and evolution. As the bridge connecting plant external morphology, internal physiology, and ecosystem function, plant functional traits are closely related to plant growth, reproduction, and survival functions. Currently, the research on plant functional traits has become one of the hot topics of ecology. Scientists have carried out extensive research on plant functional traits at different scales (organ, individual, species, population, community, ecosystem) to explore the mechanism of synergistic variation in plant functional traits and the response and adaptation of plant communities or ecosystems to global change. However, our understanding of how plant traits and functions respond to environmental changes on spatial, temporal, and succession scales is still limited. To advance the study of plant ecology, more studies are needed to reveal the relationships between plants and their environment as well as plant, community, and ecosystem functions. We hope our Special Issue can provide some insights into how plant functional traits respond to global climate change and exert influences on plant and ecosystem functions.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

1) Linkages between plant traits and functioning, whole plant performance, and/or community or ecosystem processes.

2) Relationships between plant traits and community assembly.

3) Plasticity of plants along environmental gradients. Examples include variations in plant traits along spatial (e.g., elevation or latitude) and temporal scales (e.g., plant succession).

4) Variation in plant traits and their adaptation mechanism under global climate change.

Dr. Ruili Wang
Dr. Congcong Liu
Dr. Ying Li
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • intra- and inter-species variation
  • different plant organs
  • environmental gradient
  • response to global changes
  • plant phylogenetic effects
  • whole-plant performance
  • community assembly
  • ecosystem function

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

11 pages, 1341 KiB  
Article
Identifying Plant Physiological and Climatic Drivers in the Woody Shrub Prosopis strombulifera: Effects of Spring Traits on Flower Sprouting and Fruit Production
by Felipe S. Carevic, Roberto Contreras, Erico Carmona and Ermindo Barrientos
Forests 2023, 14(6), 1167; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14061167 - 06 Jun 2023
Viewed by 918
Abstract
Prosopis strombulifera is a widely distributed woody species distributed along arid ecosystems in America. The interannual evolution of ecophysiological parameters and their effects on fruit production and flower sprouting in Prosopis strombulifera were studied for three years in a natural population distributed in [...] Read more.
Prosopis strombulifera is a widely distributed woody species distributed along arid ecosystems in America. The interannual evolution of ecophysiological parameters and their effects on fruit production and flower sprouting in Prosopis strombulifera were studied for three years in a natural population distributed in the Atacama Desert. Xylem water column tension, pressure–volume curves, specific leaf area (SLA), and chlorophyll fluorescence parameters were assessed. Flower sprouting was assessed in different weeks using tagged flowers. To assess fruit production, four small containers were placed under twenty-five individuals, allowing the estimation of total annual production and individual production. We found considerable variability between years and between individuals. Positive relationships were found between plant water parameters, SLA, and chlorophyll variables measured in spring at flower sprouting and during fruit production. A negative correlation was found between the mean of the minimum temperatures in spring and flower sprouting. These results suggest that spring ecophysiological parameters strongly affect the reproductive status of P. strombulifera. The results also reflect the potential of this species to adapt to a hyperarid climate by preserving a high relative water content before flower sprouting. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Functional Traits in Forests: Variation and Linkages with Function)
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17 pages, 3288 KiB  
Article
Fine-Root Soil Stoichiometry of Picea schrenkiana Fisch. et Mey. and Its Correlation with Soil Environmental Factors under Different Nitrogen Input Levels in the Tianshan Mountains, Xinjiang
by Han Zhang, Lu Gong, Zhaolong Ding and Xue Wu
Forests 2023, 14(2), 426; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14020426 - 19 Feb 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1218
Abstract
Nitrogen enters the soil surface along with the deposition and destroys the element balance of an ecosystem, which has an important impact on underground ecological processes. As active interfaces with the environment, fine roots play a key role in the processes of underground [...] Read more.
Nitrogen enters the soil surface along with the deposition and destroys the element balance of an ecosystem, which has an important impact on underground ecological processes. As active interfaces with the environment, fine roots play a key role in the processes of underground ecosystems and nutrient cycles. Nitrogen in deposition is mainly in two forms, namely organic nitrogen and inorganic nitrogen, which may have different responses to the ecological balance of fine roots and the soil environment; however, in Picea schrenkiana Fisch. et Mey., as a dominant species in the Tianshan Mountains of Xinjiang, it is not clear how different proportions of nitrogen deposition affect the element balance and interactions between fine roots and soil. In this study, from May 2018 to October 2020, five groups of in situ control experiments with different proportions of exogenous nitrogen addition (different ratios of ON–IN, CK = 0:0, N1 = 10:0, N2 = 7:3, N3 = 5:5, N4 = 3:7, and N5 = 0:10, were mixed and then used with equal total amounts of 10 kg·N·ha−1·a−1) were conducted on Picea schrenkiana. The results showed that inorganic nitrogen had a stronger effect on the carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus contents of fine roots under different proportions of exogenous nitrogen addition, indicating that the fine roots of Picea schrenkiana had a greater response to inorganic nitrogen sources. In a mixed organic–inorganic nitrogen source with the same proportion of organic and inorganic nitrogen, the reaction between fine-root nitrogen (TN = 7.6 g·kg−1−10.8 g·kg −1) and soil phosphorus (TP = 0.99 g·kg−1−1.93 g·kg−1) was stronger, indicating that the Picea schrenkiana ecosystem may be a nitrogen-limited forest ecosystem. In addition, different proportions of nitrogen source inputs have an indirect impact on the fine-root stoichiometry and biomass of different root sequences through the impact on soil environmental factors and stoichiometry. Therefore, our research provides insights into the impact of increases in nitrogen on the nutrient cycling of mountain forests in arid areas and provides small-scale support for a research database of forest ecosystem responses to nitrogen deposition. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Functional Traits in Forests: Variation and Linkages with Function)
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14 pages, 2454 KiB  
Article
Anthropogenic Dusts Influence Leaf Anatomical and Eco-Physiological Traits of Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) Growing on Vesuvius Volcano
by Veronica De Micco, Chiara Amitrano, Angela Balzano, Chiara Cirillo, Luigi Gennaro Izzo, Ermenegilda Vitale and Carmen Arena
Forests 2023, 14(2), 212; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14020212 - 21 Jan 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1502
Abstract
In the Mediterranean region, some areas of the Vesuvius National Park (southern Italy) are subjected to a severe anthropogenic impact, especially during spring and summer seasons. The continuous trampling of tourists and buses leads to the formation of “dust-clouds”, exposing plants, especially along [...] Read more.
In the Mediterranean region, some areas of the Vesuvius National Park (southern Italy) are subjected to a severe anthropogenic impact, especially during spring and summer seasons. The continuous trampling of tourists and buses leads to the formation of “dust-clouds”, exposing plants, especially along the paths, to a great deposition of powder particles on leaves. The aim of this study was to analyze if the dust deposition induces changes in leaf morpho-anatomical and eco-physiological traits of the alien, invasive, species Robinia pseudoacacia L., with particular attention to the photosystem II (PSII) efficiency. We selected plants located near the paths with a high deposition of dust (HD) and plants far away from the paths (low deposition, LD), and tested them over three dates along summer. We analyzed PSII photochemistry, photosynthetic pigments content, and leaf functional (e.g., relative water content and leaf dry matter content) and morpho-anatomical traits (e.g., parenchyma thickness, mesophyll density). HD plants presented a more efficient PSII activity, indicated by the higher quantum yield of PSII electron transport (FPSII) (9%) and electron transport rate (ETR) (38%) in the end of July. Dust deposition also reversibly altered photosynthetic pigments concentration and some lamina traits, adjustable in the short-term (e.g., intercellular spaces and phenolics distribution). We hypothesize that HD leaves were shielded by dusts which would protect their photosynthetic apparatus from the excess of light. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Functional Traits in Forests: Variation and Linkages with Function)
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17 pages, 3004 KiB  
Article
Multiscale Regulation of Leaf Traits in Woody Plants as an Adaptation to a Post-Earthquake Environment in Broadleaved Forests of Southwestern China
by Di Kang, Caijia Yin, Shiqi Liu, Li Chen, Shuzhen Zou and Dahai Zhu
Forests 2022, 13(8), 1323; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13081323 - 18 Aug 2022
Viewed by 1335
Abstract
Functional traits are important indicators for examining ecological processes and after-effects of plant community restoration after large-scale geological disturbance. Sample sites with and without landslides in typical forest ecosystems within the region that experienced the highest intensity of the Wenchuan 8.0 earthquake in [...] Read more.
Functional traits are important indicators for examining ecological processes and after-effects of plant community restoration after large-scale geological disturbance. Sample sites with and without landslides in typical forest ecosystems within the region that experienced the highest intensity of the Wenchuan 8.0 earthquake in China were selected in this study, and the characteristics, variations, relationships and influencing factors of woody plant traits at the species, individual and functional type scales were studied. The total interspecific and intraspecific variation of woody plant functional traits was 62.02% and 14.86%, respectively. Differences in woody plant traits were observed at multiple ecological scales on landslides compared with those on nonlandslides. The differentiation of functional traits of recovering communities significantly decreased among woody plant functional types (WFTs) on landslides after the earthquake, indicating disruption and reorganization of the original functional structure. Woody plants on landslides adapted to the new environment by adjusting their leaf traits to improve light use efficiency and adopting rapid ecological strategies. In contrast, woody plants on nonlandslides were more inclined to accumulate material and support structures. Leaf thickness was sensitive to earthquakes. Leaf traits showed a high degree of synergy in their environmental response. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Functional Traits in Forests: Variation and Linkages with Function)
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12 pages, 1547 KiB  
Article
Responses of Nutrient Resorption to Human Disturbances in Phoebe bournei Forests
by Dehuang Zhu, Suhong Peng, Jinyan Wang and Dafeng Hui
Forests 2022, 13(6), 905; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13060905 - 10 Jun 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1481
Abstract
Nutrient resorption plays an important role in the nutrient conservation of plants and ecosystem nutrient cycling. Although community succession and nutrient addition could regulate plant nutrient resorption, how resorptions of foliar nutrients vary with human disturbances remains unclear. With the economic development, Phoebe [...] Read more.
Nutrient resorption plays an important role in the nutrient conservation of plants and ecosystem nutrient cycling. Although community succession and nutrient addition could regulate plant nutrient resorption, how resorptions of foliar nutrients vary with human disturbances remains unclear. With the economic development, Phoebe bournei forests (PF) have suffered varying degrees of human disturbances in China. In this study, the leaf nutrient resorption efficiency (RE) of the PF under two disturbances (i.e., severe and mild disturbances) were investigated. Results showed that the phosphorus (P) contents of green leaf, senesced leaf, and soil were low under both disturbances, reflecting that the PF had a potential P limitation. Phosphorus and potassium (K) REs were higher under the severe disturbance than those under the mild disturbance. The potassium resorption efficiency was the highest among the three REs under both disturbances. In addition, nutrient resorption efficiencies increased with green leaf nutrient contents under both disturbances. However, there were negative significant relationships of specific leaf area and leaf dry matter content with nutrient resorption under both disturbances. These findings provide a new perspective of nutrient resorption and revealed the potential impact of human disturbances on the nutrient cycle in forest ecosystems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Functional Traits in Forests: Variation and Linkages with Function)
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17 pages, 2932 KiB  
Article
Functional Diversity of Plant Communities in Relationship to Leaf and Soil Stoichiometry in Karst Areas of Southwest China
by Yang Wang, Limin Zhang, Jin Chen, Ling Feng, Fangbing Li and Lifei Yu
Forests 2022, 13(6), 864; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13060864 - 31 May 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1876
Abstract
Assessment of relationships between functional diversity and ecological stoichiometry in plant communities can aid in determining the relative variability and ecological complementarity of functional attributes among species, which is a better approach to understanding ecosystem processes and functions than studying species taxonomic diversity. [...] Read more.
Assessment of relationships between functional diversity and ecological stoichiometry in plant communities can aid in determining the relative variability and ecological complementarity of functional attributes among species, which is a better approach to understanding ecosystem processes and functions than studying species taxonomic diversity. Here, we analyzed the relationships among community weighted means of functional traits, functional diversity, and leaf and soil chemical properties of plant communities during various stages of vegetation restoration in Mao Lan National Karst Forest Nature Reserve, located in humid subtropical Guizhou of China. Our results showed significant changes in four weighted functional traits of plant communities at different restoration stages, namely, plant height, leaf width to leaf length ratio, and leaf area. Additionally, with the progression of the recovery of plant communities, functional richness, functional separation, and quadratic entropy, the coefficient tended to increase. Functional divergence tended to gradually decrease. The association of functional diversity with soil chemical properties was stronger than that with leaf ecological stoichiometry. Regarding leaf and soil chemical properties, soil phosphorus content and leaf C:P were particularly important in influencing functional diversity. Our overall findings indicate that functional traits shift from “acquisitive” to “conservative” as the community is restored. Karst plant communities reduce interspecific resource competition as restoration proceeds, thereby increasing functional overlap effects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plant Functional Traits in Forests: Variation and Linkages with Function)
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