Abstract
Aims
Soil legacies mediate interactions between native and introduced plants, contributing to both invasion and biotic resistance to invasion. Given that nitrogen deposition can promote allelochemical release, reduce the benefits of soil microbes, and affect trait plasticity, nitrogen deposition likely alters soil legacies as well. However, it is not clear how mechanisms that facilitate adaptation to soil legacies are altered by nitrogen deposition.
Methods
In a greenhouse setting, we investigated how an invasive and a native plant in northern China (Rhus typhina and Ailanthus altissima, respectively) acclimate to soil legacies and how these dynamics change with nitrogen availability. We measured plant functional traits, soil microbial abundance, microbial enzyme activities, and soil allelopathic effects to characterize plant responses to soil legacies from plants of the same and of the other species.
Results
Rhus typhina had a stronger growth response to soil legacies than did A. altissima. Rhus typhina established a novel plant-soil feedback by increasing fungi and bacteria, changing the composition of the microbial community, and effectively transforming negative effects of soil allelopathy to positive effects. Nitrogen deposition promoted the growth of R. typhina and alleviated the negative effects of heterospecific soil legacies on the performance of R. typhina.
Conclusions
Invasive plants can acclimate to the soil legacies of native species through a combination of high trait plasticity, manipulating soil microbes, and establishing novel plant-soil feedbacks. Nitrogen deposition can facilitate invasive species acclimating to soil legacies by monopolizing nitrogen absorption, though this may diminish the benefit of soil microbes.
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Data availability
Data are stored in FigShare: http://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.13078976.
Code availability
Not applicable.
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Acknowledgements
We thank Yufei Gao, Yi Hu, and Wenhao Cui from Shandong University for assistance with greenhouse experiments.
Funding
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31970347; 31770361; 31500264), the Forestry Science and Technology Innovation Program of Shandong Province (2019LY010), and the Key Research and Development Program of Shandong Province (2019GSF109070).
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Z.W. Xu, X. Guo, and W. H. Guo conceived the study; Z.W. Xu performed greenhouse experiments and data analysis. Z.W. Xu, M.Y. Li, and X. Guo wrote the initial manuscript, which was edited by J.S. Caplan. All authors commented on drafts of the manuscript and approved the final version.
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Xu, Z., Guo, X., S. Caplan, J. et al. Novel plant-soil feedbacks drive adaption of invasive plants to soil legacies of native plants under nitrogen deposition. Plant Soil 467, 47–65 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-021-05057-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-021-05057-x