Tree mineral nutrition is deteriorating in Europe
(2015) Global Change Biology — Vol. 21, n° 1, p. 418-430 (2015)
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- <jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p> The response of forest ecosystems to increased atmospheric <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">CO</jats:styled-content> <jats:sub>2</jats:sub> is constrained by nutrient availability. It is thus crucial to account for nutrient limitation when studying the forest response to climate change. The objectives of this study were to describe the nutritional status of the main European tree species, to identify growth‐limiting nutrients and to assess changes in tree nutrition during the past two decades. We analysed the foliar nutrition data collected during 1992–2009 on the intensive forest monitoring plots of the <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">ICP</jats:styled-content> Forests programme. Of the 22 significant temporal trends that were observed in foliar nutrient concentrations, 20 were decreasing and two were increasing. Some of these trends were alarming, among which the foliar P concentration in <jats:italic>F. sylvatica</jats:italic> , <jats:italic>Q. Petraea</jats:italic> and <jats:italic>P. sylvestris</jats:italic> that significantly deteriorated during 1992–2009. In <jats:italic>Q. Petraea</jats:italic> and <jats:italic>P. sylvestris</jats:italic> , the decrease in foliar P concentration was more pronounced on plots with low foliar P status, meaning that trees with latent P deficiency could become deficient in the near future. Increased tree productivity, possibly resulting from high N deposition and from the global increase in atmospheric <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">CO</jats:styled-content> <jats:sub>2</jats:sub> , has led to higher nutrient demand by trees. As the soil nutrient supply was not always sufficient to meet the demands of faster growing trees, this could partly explain the deterioration of tree mineral nutrition. The results suggest that when evaluating forest carbon storage capacity and when planning to reduce <jats:styled-content style="fixed-case">CO</jats:styled-content> <jats:sub>2</jats:sub> emissions by increasing use of wood biomass for bioenergy, it is crucial that nutrient limitations for forest growth are considered. </jats:p>
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Jonard, M., Fürst, A., Verstraeten, A., Thimonier, A., Timmermann, V., Potocic, N., Waldner, P., Benham, S., Hansen, K., Merila, P., Ponette, Q., de la Cruz, A. C., Roskams, P., Nicolas, M., Croisé, L., Ingerslev, M., Matteuci, G., Decinti, B., Bascietto, m., & Rautio, P. (2015). Tree mineral nutrition is deteriorating in Europe. Global Change Biology, 21(1), 418-430. https://doi.org/10.1111/GCB.12657 (Original work published 2015)