Long-term high nitrogen deposition accelerates the disappearance of the phosphorus-acquiring advantage of leguminous species in a subtropical forest

doi:10.1093/jpe/rtaf163

J Plant Ecol ›› 2026, Vol. 19 ›› Issue (2): rtaf163.DOI: 10.1093/jpe/rtaf163

• Short Communication •

Long-term high nitrogen deposition accelerates the disappearance of the phosphorus-acquiring advantage of leguminous species in a subtropical forest

Senhao Wang^1,2,3,4,†, Kaijun Zhou^5,†, Taiki Mori^1,2,3,6, Andi Li^1,2,3, Cheng Peng^1,2,3,7, Guangcan Yu^1,2,3, Enqing Hou^1,2,3, Sihan Yao⁸, Linjie Fan^1,2,3,9, Baixin Zhang^1,2,3,9, Yufang Wang^1,2,3,10, Qing Ye^1,2,3, Weiren Wang^1,2,3,9, Shun Zou¹¹, Xiangping Tan^1,2,3, Qinggong Mao^1,2,3, Mianhai Zheng^1,2,3, Juan Huang^1,2,3, Zhanfeng Liu^1,2,3, Jiangming Mo^1,2,3 and Wei Zhang^1,2,3,*

¹Key Laboratory of Vegetation Restoration and Management of Degraded Ecosystems, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Applied Botany, South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, China, ²South China National Garden, Guangzhou 510650, China, ³Key Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration on Plant Conservation and Utilization in Southern China, Guangzhou 510650, China, ⁴Guangzhou Academy of Agricultural and Rural Sciences, Guangzhou 510300, China, ⁵The Protection Center of Agricultural Environment and Cultivated Land Quality of Guangdong Province, Guangzhou 510000, China, ⁶Kyushu Research Center, Forestry and Forest Products Research, Kumamoto 860-0862, Japan, ⁷Department of Soil Ecology, UFZ-Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Halle (Saale) 06120, Germany, ⁸The Affiliated High School of South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510630, China, ⁹College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China, ¹⁰Shiyan Forestry Science Research Institute, Shiyan 442700, China, ¹¹Guizhou University of Engineering Science, Bijie 551700, China

^*Corresponding author. E-mail: zhangwei@scbg.ac.cn

^†These authors contributed equally to this work.

Received:2025-04-27 Accepted:2025-09-18 Online:2025-09-30 Published:2026-04-01
Supported by:
The research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant nos. 32401387, 42077311, 32271725, 42173077), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2024M763314, 2023M743548), and the Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (2023A1515110826).

长期高氮沉降加速亚热带森林豆科树种“磷获取优势”的消失

Abstract

Abstract: Leguminous species have an advantage in acquiring phosphorus (P) compared with non-leguminous species. Nonetheless, it remains unclear whether this advantage would diminish under long-term nitrogen (N) deposition. In the seventh year of a simulated long-term N deposition experiment, we sampled surface soil to measure acid phosphatase activity (ACP) in stands dominated by leguminous and non-leguminous species, respectively. To assess the response of ACP to prolonged N addition, we also collected data on ACP in the second, eighth, twelfth, and thirteenth years of the experiment. We found that the difference in soil ACP between the two plantation types disappeared after long-term N input, and this process was accelerated under high N addition. This occurred due to an exacerbated P-limitation, which primarily prompts ACP production only in non-leguminous species. Additionally, there was a relatively decreased N contribution efficiency to ACP in the stand with leguminous species, indicating that soil N content no longer primarily governs ACP. This study demonstrates that prolonged high N deposition accelerates the loss of the “P-acquiring advantage” in leguminous plantations. To elucidate the differences in P usage strategies between leguminous and non-leguminous species under global change, more systematic research is warranted in the future.

Whether the “phosphorus-acquiring advantage” of legumes in subtropical regions can persist under long-term nitrogen deposition remains unclear. Here, we demonstrate that prolonged high-nitrogen inputs accelerate the loss of this advantage in legume plantations.

Key words: P-acquiring advantage, N deposition, leguminous species, subtropical forest, P limitation

摘要：
豆科树种比非豆科树种具备更强的固氮能力，这一特性使其能为磷酸酶合成提供更多氮源，从而具有“磷获取优势”。然而，目前尚不清楚长期氮沉降情景下这一优势能否能够持续。本研究在一项亚热带森林模拟氮沉降实验的第7年，分别采集了豆科与非豆科树种主导的人工林表层土壤，测定其酸性磷酸酶活性。此外，本研究还整合了实验第 2、8、12、13 年的磷酸酶活性数据，进而评估氮添加效应的时间动态。结果发现、长期氮输入后两种人工林土壤酸性磷酸酶活性的差异逐渐消失，且高氮添加会加速这一过程。究其原因，长期施氮条件下非豆科树种的磷限制加剧促使其合成更多磷酸酶，而豆科树种土壤氮含量对磷酸酶活性的贡献效率与非豆科相比持续降低，表明土壤氮含量不再主导酸性磷酸酶的活性变化。上述结果表明，长期高氮沉降会加速豆科人工林 “磷获取优势” 的消失，将来研究需进一步阐明全球变化背景下豆科与非豆科树种在磷利用策略方面的差异。

关键词: 磷获取优势, 氮沉降, 豆科树种, 亚热带森林, 磷限制

Senhao Wang, Kaijun Zhou, Taiki Mori, Andi Li, Cheng Peng, Guangcan Yu, Enqing Hou, Sihan Yao, Linjie Fan, Baixin Zhang, Yufang Wang, Qing Ye, Weiren Wang, Shun Zou, Xiangping Tan, Qinggong Mao, Mianhai Zheng, Juan Huang, Zhanfeng Liu, Jiangming Mo, Wei Zhang. Long-term high nitrogen deposition accelerates the disappearance of the phosphorus-acquiring advantage of leguminous species in a subtropical forest[J]. J Plant Ecol, 2026, 19(2): 1-.

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Long-term high nitrogen deposition accelerates the disappearance of the phosphorus-acquiring advantage of leguminous species in a subtropical forest

长期高氮沉降加速亚热带森林豆科树种“磷获取优势”的消失

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