Shifts in plant nutrient acquisition strategies under nitrogen addition: a global meta-analysis

Shifts in plant nutrient acquisition strategies under nitrogen addition: a global meta-analysis | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Shifts in plant nutrient acquisition strategies under nitrogen addition: a global meta-analysis Hui Guo, Yun Zhao, Bangxiao Zheng, Yin Huang, Xiaoqing Chen, Lei Wang This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7626492/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Background and aims Plants acquire nutrients by extending root length to explore soil resources and by metabolically exploiting the nutrients encountered. While global nitrogen (N) deposition has substantially enhanced aboveground productivity, it remains unclear how plants sustain this increase by coordinating changes in fine-root biomass and traits to restructure exploration–exploitation strategies. Methods We compiled fine-root trait data from 138 field experiments across 156 global sites and employed meta-analysis to quantify responses of fine-root biomass, morphological fine-root traits, nutrient uptake rate proxies, and mycorrhizal traits under N-only and N+P additions. Results N-only addition enhanced both exploration and exploitation capacities globally but reduced plant dependence on mycorrhizal fungi. In woody plants, fine-root biomass remained unchanged, but increased root tissue density (RTD, +11.9%) reduced root length density (RLD, –7.9%), while root nitrogen concentration (RN, +13.2%) and respiration rate (Rs, +21.5%) boosted exploitation capacity. Herbaceous plants adopted an acquisitive strategy, increasing fine-root biomass (+71.3%), specific root length (SRL, +67.8%), RN (+9.8%), and Rs (+24.6%), driving substantial RLD gains (+88.0%) and nutrient exploitation. N+P addition sustained mycorrhizal reliance and enhanced woody exploration (RLD +25.5%). Low baseline SRL predicted stronger biomass and RLD responses, identifying SRL as a key driver of belowground investment under N-only addition. Conclusions Our results reveal contrasting strategies between woody and herbaceous plants and highlight SRL as a critical predictor of root biomass responses. These findings provide new insights into how plants adjust nutrient acquisition strategies under N addition and inform predictions of ecosystem carbon–nutrient dynamics under global change. nitrogen addition fine roots nutrient acquisition strategies root traits phosphorus addition Full Text Supplementary Files data.xlsx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7626492","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":516574561,"identity":"03fc9516-39fc-4788-99d6-ae7b04559cc5","order_by":0,"name":"Hui 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addition","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7626492/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7626492/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBackground and aims\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePlants acquire nutrients by extending root length to explore soil resources and by metabolically exploiting the nutrients encountered. While global nitrogen (N) deposition has substantially enhanced aboveground productivity, it remains unclear how plants sustain this increase by coordinating changes in fine-root biomass and traits to restructure exploration–exploitation strategies.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMethods\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe compiled fine-root trait data from 138 field experiments across 156 global sites and employed meta-analysis to quantify responses of fine-root biomass, morphological fine-root traits, nutrient uptake rate proxies, and mycorrhizal traits under N-only and N+P additions.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eResults\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eN-only addition enhanced both exploration and exploitation capacities globally but reduced plant dependence on mycorrhizal fungi. In woody plants, fine-root biomass remained unchanged, but increased root tissue density (RTD, +11.9%) reduced root length density (RLD, –7.9%), while root nitrogen concentration (RN, +13.2%) and respiration rate (Rs, +21.5%) boosted exploitation capacity. Herbaceous plants adopted an acquisitive strategy, increasing fine-root biomass (+71.3%), specific root length (SRL, +67.8%), RN (+9.8%), and Rs (+24.6%), driving substantial RLD gains (+88.0%) and nutrient exploitation. N+P addition sustained mycorrhizal reliance and enhanced woody exploration (RLD +25.5%). Low baseline SRL predicted stronger biomass and RLD responses, identifying SRL as a key driver of belowground investment under N-only addition.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eConclusions\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOur results reveal contrasting strategies between woody and herbaceous plants and highlight SRL as a critical predictor of root biomass responses. These findings provide new insights into how plants adjust nutrient acquisition strategies under N addition and inform predictions of ecosystem carbon–nutrient dynamics under global change.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Shifts in plant nutrient acquisition strategies under nitrogen addition: a global meta-analysis","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-09-26 12:18:54","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7626492/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"0d20bcf9-3b55-412d-8b89-7a9432223a74","owner":[],"postedDate":"September 26th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2025-11-21T08:01:46+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-09-26 12:18:54","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-7626492","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-7626492","identity":"rs-7626492","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}