A test of a potential short cut in the nitrogen cycle: The role of exudation of symbiotically fixed nitrogen from the roots of a N-fixing tree and the effects of increased atmospheric CO2 and temperature
Sm. Uselman et al., A test of a potential short cut in the nitrogen cycle: The role of exudation of symbiotically fixed nitrogen from the roots of a N-fixing tree and the effects of increased atmospheric CO2 and temperature, PLANT SOIL, 210(1), 1999, pp. 21-32
N-fixing trees facilitate the growth of neighboring trees of other species.
These neighboring species benefit from the simple presence of the N fixati
on symbiosis in their surroundings. Because of this phenomenon, it has been
hypothesized that a change in atmospheric CO2 concentration may alter the
role of N-fixing trees in their environment. It is thought that the role of
N-fixing trees in ecosystems of the future may be more important since the
y may help sustain growth increases due to increased CO2 concentration in n
itrogen limited forests. We examined: (1) whether symbiotically fixed N was
exuded from roots, (2) whether a doubled atmospheric CO2 concentration wou
ld result in increased organic N exudation from roots, and (3) whether incr
eased temperature or N availability affected N exudation from roots. This s
tudy analyzed exudation of dissolved organic N from the roots of seedlings
of the N-fixing tree Robinia pseudoacacia L. in a full factorial design wit
h 2 CO2 (35.0 and 70.0 Pa) x 2 temperature (26 or 30 degrees C during the d
ay) x 2 N fertilizer (0 and 10.0 mM N concentration) levels. Trees with no
other source of N except N fixation exuded about 1% to 2% of the fixed N th
rough their roots as dissolved organic N. Increased atmospheric CO2 concent
rations did not, however, increase N exudation rates on a per gram belowgro
und biomass basis. A 4 degrees C increase in temperature and N fertilizatio
n did, however, significantly increase N exudation rates. These results sug
gest that exudation of dissolved organic N from roots or nodules of N-fixin
g trees could be a significant, but minor, pathway of transferring N to nei
ghboring plants in a much more rapid and direct way than cycling through de
ath, decomposition and mineralization of plant residues. And, while exudati
on rates of dissolved organic N from roots were not significantly affected
by atmospheric CO2 concentration, the previously observed 'CO2 fertilizatio
n effect' on N-fixing trees suggests that N exudation from roots could play
a significant but minor role in sustaining increases in forest growth, and
thus C storage, in a CO2 enriched atmosphere.