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Bassi, L.* ; Hennecke, J.* ; Albracht, C.* ; Solbach, M.D.* ; Rai, A.* ; Pinheiro Alves de Souza, Y. ; Fox, A.* ; Zeng, M.* ; Doll, S.* ; Doan, V.C.* ; Richter, R.* ; Kahl, A.* ; Von Sivers, L.* ; Winkler, L.* ; Eisenhauer, N.* ; Meyer, S.T.* ; van Dam, N.M.* ; Weigelt, A.*

Plant species richness promotes the decoupling of leaf and root defence traits while species-specific responses in physical and chemical defences are rare.

New Phytol. 246, 377-806 (2025)

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	Open Access Gold (Paid Option)

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The increased positive impact of plant diversity on ecosystem functioning is often attributed to the accumulation of mutualists and dilution of antagonists in diverse plant communities. While increased plant diversity alters traits related to resource acquisition, it remains unclear whether it reduces defence allocation, whether this reduction differs between roots and leaves, or varies among species. To answer these questions, we assessed the effect of plant species richness, plant species identity and their interaction on the expression of 23 physical and chemical leaf and fine root defence traits of 16 plant species in a 19-yr-old biodiversity experiment. Only leaf mass per area, leaf and root dry matter content and root nitrogen, traits associated with both, resource acquisition and defence, responded consistently to species richness. However, species richness promoted a decoupling of these defences in leaves and fine roots, possibly in response to resource limitations in diverse communities. Species-specific responses were rare and related to chemical defence and mutualist collaboration, likely responding to species-specific antagonists' dilution and mutualists' accumulation. Overall, our study suggests that resource limitation in diverse communities might mediate the relationship between plant defence traits and antagonist dilution.

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Publication type Article: Journal article

Document type Scientific Article

Corresponding Author

Keywords Biodiversity ; Chemical Defences ; Fine Root ; Functional Traits ; Leaf ; Physical Defences ; Untargeted Metabolome; Mycorrhiza-induced Resistance; Soil Feedbacks; Biodiversity Loss; Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids; Functional Traits; Fungal Pathogens; Diversity; Herbivory; Productivity; Impacts

ISSN (print) / ISBN 0028-646X

e-ISSN 1469-8137

Journal New Phytologist

Quellenangaben Volume: 246, Issue: 2, Pages: 377-806

Publisher Wiley

Publishing Place 111 River St, Hoboken 07030-5774, Nj Usa

Non-patent literature Publications

Reviewing status Peer reviewed

Institute(s) Research Unit Comparative Microbiome Analysis (COMI)

Grants Projekt DEAL
French government in the framework of the IdEX Bordeaux University "Investments for the Future" program/GPR Bordeaux Plant Sciences
IDiv (German Research Foundation (DFG)-
German Research Foundation (DFG)