What does this research mean for the field?

Mowing alters plant carbon allocation to arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, increasing carbon transfer under low nitrogen inputs but sharply reducing it under high nitrogen inputs due to soil acidification and intensified phosphorus limitation. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.INCREMENTAL. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

What question did this study set out to answer?

To investigate how nitrogen enrichment and mowing interact to alter plant-to-arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal carbon allocation strategies.

August 30, 2026Journal of EcologyOpen Access

Mowing enhances the sensitivity of arbuscular mycorrhizal mycelial carbon pools to nitrogen enrichment in grassland ecosystem

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Authors

XZXiaojing Zhang JYJingjing Yang KMKai Miao

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Overview

Field experiment demonstrates mowing alters plant carbon allocation to mycorrhizal fungi under nitrogen enrichment, indicating management practices regulate belowground carbon dynamics.

Key Points

To investigate how nitrogen enrichment and mowing interact to alter plant-to-arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal carbon allocation strategies.
Conducted an 8-year factorial field experiment (2015–2023) in a meadow steppe testing six nitrogen addition rates (0, 2, 5, 10, 20, and 50 g N m⁻² yr⁻¹) crossed with mowing treatments (mown vs. unmown).
Quantified plant and fungal biomass, carbon content, and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal community composition across treatment plots in 2023.
In unmown plots, plants prioritized carbon allocation to roots while mycelium biomass declined across nitrogen addition gradients.
Mowing heightened plant phosphorus limitation; low nitrogen addition increased carbon transfer to mycelium, but nitrogen inputs exceeding 10 g N m⁻² yr⁻¹ caused soil acidification that sharply reduced fungal carbon transfer.
Shifts in carbon allocation strategies under mowing and nitrogen enrichment were tightly coupled to changes in the abundance of the dominant taxon Glomus VT387.

Cite This Study

Zhang et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a93f08e6c1a8fb52e79cc2e https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.70429

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August 30, 2026Journal of EcologyOpen Access

Mowing enhances the sensitivity of arbuscular mycorrhizal mycelial carbon pools to nitrogen enrichment in grassland ecosystem

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark

Authors

XZXiaojing Zhang JYJingjing Yang KMKai Miao

Discussion

Member takes

Overview

Field experiment demonstrates mowing alters plant carbon allocation to mycorrhizal fungi under nitrogen enrichment, indicating management practices regulate belowground carbon dynamics.

Key Points

To investigate how nitrogen enrichment and mowing interact to alter plant-to-arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal carbon allocation strategies.
Conducted an 8-year factorial field experiment (2015–2023) in a meadow steppe testing six nitrogen addition rates (0, 2, 5, 10, 20, and 50 g N m⁻² yr⁻¹) crossed with mowing treatments (mown vs. unmown).
Quantified plant and fungal biomass, carbon content, and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal community composition across treatment plots in 2023.
In unmown plots, plants prioritized carbon allocation to roots while mycelium biomass declined across nitrogen addition gradients.
Mowing heightened plant phosphorus limitation; low nitrogen addition increased carbon transfer to mycelium, but nitrogen inputs exceeding 10 g N m⁻² yr⁻¹ caused soil acidification that sharply reduced fungal carbon transfer.
Shifts in carbon allocation strategies under mowing and nitrogen enrichment were tightly coupled to changes in the abundance of the dominant taxon Glomus VT387.

Cite This Study

Zhang et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a93f08e6c1a8fb52e79cc2e https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.70429

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