10.5061/DRYAD.70RXWDBTX
Tsujii, Yuki
0000-0003-3646-8142
Macquarie University
Aiba, Shin-ichiro
Hokkaido University
Kitayama, Kanehiro
Kyoto University
Phosphorus allocation to and resorption from leaves regulate the residence
time of phosphorus in aboveground forest biomass on Mount Kinabalu, Borneo
Dryad
dataset
2020
adaptation to P deficiency
leaf biomass
P cycle
P-resorption efficiency
P-use efficiency
wood biomass
2020-04-16T00:00:00Z
2020-04-16T00:00:00Z
en
24499 bytes
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CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
1. The residence time of phosphorus (P) in trees is a consequence of plant
adaptation to P deficiency, with longer P residence time on soils with low
P availability. P residence time has been studied at the leaf or canopy
level but seldom at the whole-tree level. Whereas P residence time at the
leaf or canopy level is largely determined by leaf longevity and the
resorption of P before leaf abscission, P residence time at the whole-tree
level will also be influenced by differences in P allocation to different
plant parts because leaves and woody organs have distinct longevities. 2.
We estimated the residence time of P in aboveground tree biomass (AGB) as
the ratio of P mass (i.e. leaves plus wood) to the annual flux of P via
litterfall (i.e. fine litter plus coarse woody debris) for seven tropical
rain forests with different soil P availabilities on Mount Kinabalu,
Borneo. We analysed the effects of P allocation to and resorption from
leaves on P residence time along a soil P gradient. 3. P residence time
(2.7–9.8 years) was approximately one fifth of biomass residence time
(AGB/annual litterfall mass; 19.8–48.8 years). This was due to a
disproportionately greater relative allocation of P to leaves (P mass in
leaves/P mass in AGB; 0.11–0.46), which had a smaller fraction of biomass
(leaf biomass/AGB; 0.02–0.05) but a shorter longevity (1.0–1.8 years). 4.
The relative allocation of P to leaves was often high on low-P soils, and
P residence time was expected to be short. By contrast, the resorption
rate of P from leaves was also high on low-P soils, which extended P
residence time with P deficiency. Consequently, P residence time was
nearly constant across the forests. 5. The short residence time of P
relative to biomass indicates that P residence time depends largely on
relative P allocation among plant organs. Similar P residence times among
sites were maintained because greater P allocation to leaves on low-P
soils was effectively offset by higher P-resorption efficiency.