Institute of Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences, v.v.i, Dukelská, Třeboň, Czech Republic.
Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Benátská, Praha, Czech Republic.
Ann Bot. 2021 May 7;127(6):813-825. doi: 10.1093/aob/mcab014.
Although the plant economic spectrum seeks to explain resource allocation strategies, carbohydrate storage is often omitted. Belowground storage organs are the centre of herb perennation, yet little is known about the role of their turnover, anatomy and carbohydrate storage in relation to the aboveground economic spectrum.
We collected aboveground traits associated with the economic spectrum, storage organ turnover traits, storage organ inner structure traits and storage carbohydrate concentrations for ~80 temperate meadow species.
The suites of belowground traits were largely independent of one another, but there was significant correlation of the aboveground traits with both inner structure and storage carbohydrates. Anatomical traits diverged according to leaf nitrogen concentration on the one hand and vessel area and dry matter content on the other; carbohydrates separated along gradients of leaf nitrogen concentration and plant height.
Contrary to our expectations, aboveground traits and not storage organ turnover were correlated with anatomy and storage carbohydrates. Belowground traits associated with the aboveground economic spectrum also did not fall clearly within the fast-slow economic continuum, thus indicating the presence of a more complicated economic space. Our study implies that the generally overlooked role of storage within the plant economic spectrum represents an important dimension of plant strategy.
尽管植物经济谱试图解释资源分配策略，但往往忽略了碳水化合物的储存。地下贮藏器官是草本植物持久存在的中心，但关于它们的周转率、解剖结构和碳水化合物储存与地上经济谱的关系，人们知之甚少。
我们收集了约 80 种温带草地物种的地上经济谱相关性状、贮藏器官周转率性状、贮藏器官内部结构性状和贮藏碳水化合物浓度。
地下性状之间的组合在很大程度上是相互独立的，但地上性状与内部结构和贮藏碳水化合物都有显著的相关性。解剖学性状一方面根据叶片氮浓度，另一方面根据导管面积和干物质含量而分化；碳水化合物沿着叶片氮浓度和植物高度的梯度分离。
与我们的预期相反，地上性状而不是贮藏器官的周转率与解剖结构和贮藏碳水化合物相关。与地上经济谱相关的地下性状也没有明显地落在快速-慢速经济连续体中，这表明存在一个更为复杂的经济空间。我们的研究表明，植物经济谱中普遍被忽视的储存作用代表了植物策略的一个重要维度。
