Tree root nutrient uptake kinetics vary with nutrient availability, environmental conditions, and root traits: a global analysis

Matthew E. Craig; Anthony P. Walker; Colleen M. Iversen; Ryan G. Knox; Daniela Yaffar; Larry M. York

doi:10.1111/nph.70140

Tree root nutrient uptake kinetics vary with nutrient availability, environmental conditions, and root traits: a global analysis

Matthew E. Craig, Anthony P. Walker, Colleen M. Iversen, Ryan G. Knox, Daniela Yaffar, Larry M. York

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Root nutrient uptake by trees is a critical process that couples carbon and nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems. Yet, root nutrient uptake traits are poorly constrained, and the dynamics of this process are often not represented in models reflecting sparse measurements and understanding of root nutrient uptake physiology that lags those of aboveground physiology in forest ecosystems. Here, we present a global dataset of published nutrient uptake capacity and affinity values for tree species, with the goal of describing global patterns and evaluating responses to environmental drivers and associations with root traits. The dataset contains observations for ammonium, nitrate, and phosphate uptake spanning 77 tree species. Nutrient uptake capacity and affinity varied by more than an order of magnitude for each nutrient. Notably, tropical forests are underrepresented in these observations. Nutrient uptake capacity was generally diminished under nutrient enrichment but enhanced with soil warming and root–mycorrhizal colonization. The magnitude and direction of these effects can depend on the duration of exposure to a given treatment. Species with thinner roots had a tendency toward greater uptake capacity and affinity. Overall, root nutrient uptake traits are highly variable across tree species, yet they depend on environmental drivers and life-history strategies.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	2495-2505
Number of pages	11
Journal	New Phytologist
Volume	246
Issue number	6
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.70140
State	Published - Jun 2025

Funding

This research was supported as part of the Next Generation Ecosystem Experiments\u2010Tropics (NGEE\u2010Tropics), funded by the US Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Biological and Environmental Research under contract DE\u2010AC05\u201000OR22725. We gratefully acknowledge the project leadership of Jeff Chambers and Lara Kueppers. CMI and FRED were supported by the Terrestrial Ecosystem Science Focus Area, also funded by the Biological and Environmental Research program in the Department of Energy's Office of Science. Finally, we thank the editor and two anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments. ORNL is managed by UT\u2010Battelle, LLC, for the DOE under contract DE\u2010AC05\u201000OR22725. This research was supported as part of the Next Generation Ecosystem Experiments-Tropics (NGEE-Tropics), funded by the US Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Biological and Environmental Research under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725. We gratefully acknowledge the project leadership of Jeff Chambers and Lara Kueppers. CMI and FRED were supported by the Terrestrial Ecosystem Science Focus Area, also funded by the Biological and Environmental Research program in the Department of Energy's Office of Science. Finally, we thank the editor and two anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments. ORNL is managed by UT-Battelle, LLC, for the DOE under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725.

Keywords

K
V
forests
meta-analysis
root nutrient uptake kinetics
root traits

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title = "Tree root nutrient uptake kinetics vary with nutrient availability, environmental conditions, and root traits: a global analysis",

abstract = "Root nutrient uptake by trees is a critical process that couples carbon and nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems. Yet, root nutrient uptake traits are poorly constrained, and the dynamics of this process are often not represented in models reflecting sparse measurements and understanding of root nutrient uptake physiology that lags those of aboveground physiology in forest ecosystems. Here, we present a global dataset of published nutrient uptake capacity and affinity values for tree species, with the goal of describing global patterns and evaluating responses to environmental drivers and associations with root traits. The dataset contains observations for ammonium, nitrate, and phosphate uptake spanning 77 tree species. Nutrient uptake capacity and affinity varied by more than an order of magnitude for each nutrient. Notably, tropical forests are underrepresented in these observations. Nutrient uptake capacity was generally diminished under nutrient enrichment but enhanced with soil warming and root–mycorrhizal colonization. The magnitude and direction of these effects can depend on the duration of exposure to a given treatment. Species with thinner roots had a tendency toward greater uptake capacity and affinity. Overall, root nutrient uptake traits are highly variable across tree species, yet they depend on environmental drivers and life-history strategies.",

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year = "2025",

month = jun,

doi = "10.1111/nph.70140",

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AU - York, Larry M.

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Tree root nutrient uptake kinetics vary with nutrient availability, environmental conditions, and root traits: a global analysis

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