Consequence of over-fertilization – Diversity of nitrogen-fixing plants is reduced

Biological nitrogen fixation is a fundamental ecosystem service, especially in nutrient-poor soils. As humans introduce additional nitrogen to agricultural land through fertilization, and industry as well as transport contribute to nationwide nitrogen deposition, nitrogen-fixing plants may lose their competitive advantage in the future. These plants include clover, lupins, peas and vetches, as well as alder trees. “In our study, we investigated temporal trends in the diversity of these plants and their relationship to anthropogenic nitrogen deposition, taking into account changes in temperature and aridity,” explains Dr. Thilo Heinken, botanist at the Institute of Biochemistry and Biology.

The international team analyzed data sets from the forestREplot database on the species richness and phylogenetic diversity of forest-floor vegetation in temperate forests in Europe and the USA. Baseline surveys for the selected plots were conducted between 1940 and 1999; last resurveys were conducted between 1995 and 2019. They found that the abundance of nitrogen-fixing plants decreases with increasing nitrogen input, regardless of temperature changes and increasing aridity.

The forestREplot database is an archive of information from sample plots of the herb layer in forests distributed across the temperate zones of Europe and North America. Global trends can be derived from this. Data on Brandenburg’s forests is also fed to this database by Thilo Heinken. “If we understand past changes in the diversity of nitrogen-fixing plants, we can better predict future responses to human nitrogen deposition and climate change,” he summarizes.

Link to Publication: Pablo Moreno-García, Flavia Montaño-Centellas, Yu Liu, et al., 2024, Long-term nitrogen deposition reduces the diversity of nitrogen-fixing plants, Science Advances, https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adp7953

Link to database: https://forestreplot.ugent.be/

Image: The spring pea (Lathyrus vernus) is a nitrogen-fixing plant that occurs in the forest undergrowth. Image Credit: Marcus Schmidt.

Contact:
Dr. Thilo Heinken, Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, General Botany Group
Phone: +49 331 977-4854
E-Mail: thilo.heinken@uni-potsdam.de

Media Information 21-10-2024 / Nr. 099 Dr. Stefanie Mikulla
Universität Potsdam
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