Plant richness and composition in hardwood forest understories vary along an acidic deposition and soil-chemical gradient in the northeastern United States

Plant and Soil
By: , and 

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Abstract

Aims

A century of atmospheric deposition of sulfur and nitrogen has acidified soils and undermined the health and recruitment of foundational tree species in the northeastern US. However, effects of acidic deposition on the forest understory plant communities of this region are poorly documented. We investigated how forest understory plant species composition and richness varied across gradients of acidic deposition and soil acidity in the Adirondack Mountains of New York State.

Methods

We surveyed understory vegetation and soils in hardwood forests on 20 small watersheds and built models of community composition and richness as functions of soil chemistry, nitrogen and sulfur deposition, and other environmental variables.

Results

Community composition varied significantly with gradients of acidic deposition, soil acidity, and base cation availability (63% variance explained). Several species increased with soil acidity while others decreased. Understory plant richness decreased significantly with increasing soil acidity (r = 0.60). The best multivariate regression model to predict richness (p < 0.001, adjusted-R2 = 0.60) reflected positive effects of pH and carbon-to-nitrogen ratio (C:N).

Conclusions

The relationship we found between understory plant communities and a soil-chemical gradient, suggests that soil acidification can reduce diversity and alter the composition of these communities in northern hardwood forests exposed to acidic deposition.

Study Area

Publication type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Title Plant richness and composition in hardwood forest understories vary along an acidic deposition and soil-chemical gradient in the northeastern United States
Series title Plant and Soil
DOI 10.1007/s11104-019-04031-y
Volume 438
Year Published 2019
Language English
Publisher Springer
Contributing office(s) New York Water Science Center
Description 17 p.
First page 461
Last page 477
Country United States
State New York
Other Geospatial northeast New York
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