Description
The growth rate hypothesis (GRH) proposes that higher growth rate (the rate of change in biomass per unit biomass, μ) is associated with higher P concentration and lower C∶P and N∶P ratios. However, the applicability of the GRH to vascular plants is not well-studied and few studies have been done on belowground biomass. Here we showed that, for aboveground, belowground and total biomass of three study species, μ was positively correlated with N∶C under N limitation and positively correlated with P∶C under P limitation. However, the N∶P ratio was a unimodal function of μ, increasing for small values of μ, reaching a maximum, and then decreasing. The range of variations in μ was positively correlated with variation in C∶N∶P stoichiometry. Furthermore, μ and C∶N∶P ranges for aboveground biomass were negatively correlated with those for belowground. Our results confirm the well-known association of growth rate with tissue concentration of the limiting nutrient and provide empirical support for recent theoretical formulations.
Details
Title
- Testing the Growth Rate Hypothesis in Vascular Plants with Above- and Below-Ground Biomass
Contributors
- Yu, Qiang (Author)
- Wu, Honghui (Author)
- He, Nianpeng (Author)
- Lu, Xiaotao (Author)
- Wang, Zhiping (Author)
- Elser, James (Author)
- Wu, Jianguo (Author)
- Han, Xingguo (Author)
- College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (Contributor)
- School of Life Sciences (Contributor)
- Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability (Contributor)
- School of Sustainability (Contributor)
Date Created
The date the item was original created (prior to any relationship with the ASU Digital Repositories.)
2012-03-13
Resource Type
Collections this item is in
Identifier
- Digital object identifier: 10.1371/journal.pone.0032162
- Identifier TypeInternational standard serial numberIdentifier Value1045-3830
- Identifier TypeInternational standard serial numberIdentifier Value1939-1560
Note
- The article is published at http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0032162
Citation and reuse
Cite this item
This is a suggested citation. Consult the appropriate style guide for specific citation guidelines.
Yu, Q., Wu, H., He, N., Lü, X., Wang, Z., Elser, J. J., . . . Han, X. (2012). Testing the Growth Rate Hypothesis in Vascular Plants with Above- and Below-Ground Biomass. PLoS ONE, 7(3). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0032162