Rhododendron aureum Georgi formed a special soil microbial community and competed with above‐ground plants on the tundra of the Changbai Mountain, China

Abstract Rhododendron aureum Georgi is a perennial evergreen dwarf shrub that grows at all elevations within the alpine tundra of northern China. Previous research has investigated the plant communities of R. aureum; however, little information is available regarding interspecific competition and un...

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Main Authors: Xiaolong Wang, Lin Li, Wei Zhao, Jiaxin Zhao, Xia Chen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2017-09-01
Series:Ecology and Evolution
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.3307
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spelling doaj-81b027dd1c8b4ccda128000dcf2385ab2021-03-02T07:45:48ZengWileyEcology and Evolution2045-77582017-09-017187503751410.1002/ece3.3307Rhododendron aureum Georgi formed a special soil microbial community and competed with above‐ground plants on the tundra of the Changbai Mountain, ChinaXiaolong Wang0Lin Li1Wei Zhao2Jiaxin Zhao3Xia Chen4National and Local United Engineering Laboratory for Chinese Herbal Medicine Breeding and Cultivation School of Life Sciences Jilin University Changchun ChinaNational and Local United Engineering Laboratory for Chinese Herbal Medicine Breeding and Cultivation School of Life Sciences Jilin University Changchun ChinaNational and Local United Engineering Laboratory for Chinese Herbal Medicine Breeding and Cultivation School of Life Sciences Jilin University Changchun ChinaNational and Local United Engineering Laboratory for Chinese Herbal Medicine Breeding and Cultivation School of Life Sciences Jilin University Changchun ChinaNational and Local United Engineering Laboratory for Chinese Herbal Medicine Breeding and Cultivation School of Life Sciences Jilin University Changchun ChinaAbstract Rhododendron aureum Georgi is a perennial evergreen dwarf shrub that grows at all elevations within the alpine tundra of northern China. Previous research has investigated the plant communities of R. aureum; however, little information is available regarding interspecific competition and underground soil microbial community composition. The objective of our study was to determine whether the presence of R. aureum creates a unique soil microbiome and to investigate the relationship between R. aureum and other plant species. Our study site ranged from 1,800 to 2,600 m above sea level on the northern slope of the Changbai Mountain. The results show that the soil from sites with an R. aureum community had a higher abundance of nitrogen‐fixing bacteria and a higher resistance to pathogens than soils from sites without R. aureum. We emphasize that R. aureum promotes a unique soil microbial community structure that is distinct from those associated with other plants. Elevation and microbial biomass were the main influencing factors for plant community structure. Analysis of interspecific relationships reveals that R. aureum is negatively associated with most other dominant shrubs and herbs, suggesting interspecific competition. It is necessary to focus on other dominant species if protection and restoration of the R. aureum competition is to occur. In the future, more is needed to prove whether R. aureum decreases species diversity in the tundra ecosystems of Changbai Mountain.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.3307function microbialinterspecific competitionmicrobial biomassmicrobial communityRhododendron aureumsoil microbial
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Xiaolong Wang
Lin Li
Wei Zhao
Jiaxin Zhao
Xia Chen
spellingShingle Xiaolong Wang
Lin Li
Wei Zhao
Jiaxin Zhao
Xia Chen
Rhododendron aureum Georgi formed a special soil microbial community and competed with above‐ground plants on the tundra of the Changbai Mountain, China
Ecology and Evolution
function microbial
interspecific competition
microbial biomass
microbial community
Rhododendron aureum
soil microbial
author_facet Xiaolong Wang
Lin Li
Wei Zhao
Jiaxin Zhao
Xia Chen
author_sort Xiaolong Wang
title Rhododendron aureum Georgi formed a special soil microbial community and competed with above‐ground plants on the tundra of the Changbai Mountain, China
title_short Rhododendron aureum Georgi formed a special soil microbial community and competed with above‐ground plants on the tundra of the Changbai Mountain, China
title_full Rhododendron aureum Georgi formed a special soil microbial community and competed with above‐ground plants on the tundra of the Changbai Mountain, China
title_fullStr Rhododendron aureum Georgi formed a special soil microbial community and competed with above‐ground plants on the tundra of the Changbai Mountain, China
title_full_unstemmed Rhododendron aureum Georgi formed a special soil microbial community and competed with above‐ground plants on the tundra of the Changbai Mountain, China
title_sort rhododendron aureum georgi formed a special soil microbial community and competed with above‐ground plants on the tundra of the changbai mountain, china
publisher Wiley
series Ecology and Evolution
issn 2045-7758
publishDate 2017-09-01
description Abstract Rhododendron aureum Georgi is a perennial evergreen dwarf shrub that grows at all elevations within the alpine tundra of northern China. Previous research has investigated the plant communities of R. aureum; however, little information is available regarding interspecific competition and underground soil microbial community composition. The objective of our study was to determine whether the presence of R. aureum creates a unique soil microbiome and to investigate the relationship between R. aureum and other plant species. Our study site ranged from 1,800 to 2,600 m above sea level on the northern slope of the Changbai Mountain. The results show that the soil from sites with an R. aureum community had a higher abundance of nitrogen‐fixing bacteria and a higher resistance to pathogens than soils from sites without R. aureum. We emphasize that R. aureum promotes a unique soil microbial community structure that is distinct from those associated with other plants. Elevation and microbial biomass were the main influencing factors for plant community structure. Analysis of interspecific relationships reveals that R. aureum is negatively associated with most other dominant shrubs and herbs, suggesting interspecific competition. It is necessary to focus on other dominant species if protection and restoration of the R. aureum competition is to occur. In the future, more is needed to prove whether R. aureum decreases species diversity in the tundra ecosystems of Changbai Mountain.
topic function microbial
interspecific competition
microbial biomass
microbial community
Rhododendron aureum
soil microbial
url https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.3307
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