Changes of plant N:P stoichiometry across a 3000-km aridity transect in grasslands of northern China

Background and aims Variations in plant nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations and ratios have great implications for primary productivity and nutrient cycling. Here, we reported their changes at functional group and community levels along an aridity gradient. Methods We carried out a field investigation and set up 26 sampling sites along a transect in the drylands of northern China to examine the responses of plant nutrient status to increasing aridity and the relationships between plant and soil nutrients. Results The responses of N and P concentrations to increasing aridity differed between woody (sub-) shrubs and herbaceous species (including annual/biennial forbs and grasses, perennial forbs and perennial grasses). Nitrogen and P concentrations of shrubs decreased while those of herbs generally increased with increasing aridity. Plant N:P ratios increased significantly with increasing aridity for the plant functional groups and at the community level. At both organizational levels, nutrient concentrations in plants were negatively related to those in soils. Conclusion Our results indicated that the responses of plant nutrition to aridity were dependent on plant functional group. Plant growth appeared increasingly limited by P, and plant and soil nutrients become increasingly decoupled at large spatial scale with increasing aridity.