Nutrient Cycling and Nutrient Use Efficiency

TLDR

Forest ecosystems produce more litterfall dry mass per unit nitrogen in sites with lower aboveground nitrogen circulation, a pattern consistent across biomes and linked to soil nitrogen availability, while phosphorus and calcium use efficiencies are less clear. These results show that nitrogen circulation and use efficiency influence ecosystem properties by contributing to the development of low soil nitrogen availability.

Abstract

Forest ecosystems systematically produce more litterfall dry mass per unit of nitrogen in sites with less aboveground nitrogen circulation. This pattern is observed both within and among tropical, temperate deciduous, coniferous, Mediterranean, and fertilized ecosystems. The differences among sites are probably related to differences in soil nitrogen availability. Patterns of nitrogen use for root and wood production probably reinforce the litterfall results. An examination of phosphorus and calcium use efficiency for litterfall production yields more ambiguous results. The pattern for nitrogen circulation and nitrogen use efficiency in forests has important implications for ecosystem-level properties, including the development of low nitrogen availability in soil.