Correlative studies have shown a \uffe2\uff80\uff98hump\uffe2\uff80\uff90backed\uffe2\uff80\uff99 relation between the vegetation N:P ratio and plant species diversity with the highest diversity at balanced N:P ratios (between 10 and 14). We tested the hypothesis that adding growth\uffe2\uff80\uff90limiting nutrients to mesotrophic grasslands that were in shortage of either N (N:P ratio<10) or P (N:P ratio>14) would lead to an increase of plant diversity. Thereto, we studied the effects of long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term (11 yr) experimentally increased N and/or P supply on soil nutrient pools, vegetation nutrient dynamics and biodiversity in a riverine grassland in the Netherlands with a low soil N:P ratio (N shortage) and a peat grassland with a high soil N:P ratio (P shortage), respectively. Eleven years of nutrient addition hardly had any effects on the total stocks of C, N and P in the soils of both sites, due to the large size of the soil nutrient pools already present and to the management at both sites (annual hay\uffe2\uff80\uff90making and \uffe2\uff80\uff90removal). However, in the riverine grassland the treatments increased the cycling of the small pool of labile N and P compounds resulting in large increases in annual fluxes of especially N. In the unfertilised controls, species establishments balanced more or less species losses during an 11 year period, thus leading to a dynamic equilibrium of the species pool. However, contrary to our hypothesis, addition of the growth\uffe2\uff80\uff90limiting nutrient led at both sites to a reduction of species diversity even when total biomass remained below critical levels. Species diversity and species evenness were strongly determined by N mineralisation and to a lesser extent by total soil N and extractable P, respectively. Total aboveground biomass of the vegetation was determined by total soil N.
Our study shows that patterns found in correlative studies of the relation between plant diversity and soil and vegetation N:P ratio can not be translated into successful experimental manipulations to enhance biodiversity. The most likely explanation is that colonization limitation occurred in the fertilized plots and that not sufficient diaspores of potentially new species could reach and/or colonize the plots to compensate for the species extinctions as a result of increased nutrient supply.
", "keywords": ["0106 biological sciences", "2. Zero hunger", "Biologie/Milieukunde (BIOL)", "Plant Ecology", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "15. Life on land", "Plant biology (Botany)", "Life sciences", "01 natural sciences", "SDG 15 - Life on Land"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.1034/j.1600-0706.2003.12223.x"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Oikos", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.1034/j.1600-0706.2003.12223.x", "name": "item", "description": "10.1034/j.1600-0706.2003.12223.x", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.1034/j.1600-0706.2003.12223.x"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2003-05-06T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.1023/a:1006044630728", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"license": "Open Access", "updated": "2026-06-26T16:19:03Z", "type": "Journal Article", "title": "Cutting And Resprouting Of Detarium Microcarpum And Herbaceous Forage Availability In A Semiarid Environment In Burkina Faso", "description": "The tree-shrub savanna \u2018Foret Classee de Nazinon\u2019 (Burkina Faso) is submitted to a management of grazing and rotational cutting of Detarium microcarpum. This species resprouts after cutting. In order to investigate whether this silvopastoral land use system is sustainable, aboveground herbaceous biomass was measured on subplots under uncut trees (\u2018uncut\u2019), next to the stubs of cut trees (\u2018cut\u2019) and on subplots not influenced by the (former) crowns of trees (\u2018open grassland\u2019) in four lots. These lots were cut one, three, six and seven years before the study. Vegetation composition of the lots and the composition of the diet of cattle were also determined. Comparisons were made between treatments and lots. Herbaceous biomass was lower in the open grassland subplots than in uncut or cut subplots. We speculate that soil enrichment and more efficient precipitation input in (former) tree crown zones could have resulted in this pattern. Cutting and subsequent resprouting of trees did not lead to significant differences in herbaceous biomass between cut and uncut subplots. The most simple explanation for this is that the trees could extend their roots beyond the location of their neighbouring trees. Biomass and coverage of perennial grasses, mainly Andropogon ascinodis and Andropogon gayanus, did not change in lots cut one, three or six years before the study, but decreased dramatically in lots that were cut seven years before the study. When foraging, cattle spent more than 90% of their time feeding on these species. This indicates that, as a consequence of tree cutting, forage availability may be reduced to the point where local herdsmen are forced to take their cattle to another region.", "keywords": ["Vegetation dynamics", "Grazing", "Milieukunde", "tropical savanna", "vegetation dynamics", "Silvopastoralism", "grazing", "Bush encroachment", "silvopastoralism", "bush encroachment", "Tropical savanna"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.1023/a:1006044630728"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Agroforestry%20Systems", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.1023/a:1006044630728", "name": "item", "description": "10.1023/a:1006044630728", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.1023/a:1006044630728"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "1998-01-01T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.1038/nature02403", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"license": "Open Access", "updated": "2026-06-26T16:19:18Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2004-04-21", "title": "The Worldwide Leaf Economics Spectrum", "description": "Bringing together leaf trait data spanning 2,548 species and 175 sites we describe, for the first time at global scale, a universal spectrum of leaf economics consisting of key chemical, structural and physiological properties. The spectrum runs from quick to slow return on investments of nutrients and dry mass in leaves, and operates largely independently of growth form, plant functional type or biome. Categories along the spectrum would, in general, describe leaf economic variation at the global scale better than plant functional types, because functional types overlap substantially in their leaf traits. Overall, modulation of leaf traits and trait relationships by climate is surprisingly modest, although some striking and significant patterns can be seen. Reliable quantification of the leaf economics spectrum and its interaction with climate will prove valuable for modelling nutrient fluxes and vegetation boundaries under changing land-use and climate.", "keywords": ["leaf traits", "0106 biological sciences", "INVESTMENT", "Climate", "Rain", "CLIMATE CHANGE", "SEED PRODUCTION", "01 natural sciences", "spectrum", "BIOMASS", "dry mass", "Biologie/Milieukunde (BIOL)", "MODELS", " BIOLOGICAL", "CLIMATE EFFECT", "Nutritional Physiological Phenomena", "Biomass", "Photosynthesis", "LAND USE", "PRIORITY JOURNAL", "functional-groups", "biodiversity", "ALLOMETRY", "2. 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