Experimental confirmation of ecosystem model predictions comparing transient and equilibrium plant responses to elevated atmospheric CO2

Ecosystem models predict that short‐term responses to elevated atmospheric CO2 may differ substantially from the “real” long‐term responses expected at equilibrium. Experimental validation of these model predictions is difficult as the data available are from short‐term studies that do not include biogeochemical feedbacks typical of long‐term exposure. Using a reciprocal transplant design at a natural CO2 spring, we generated combinations of atmospheric and soil conditions that represented both short‐ and long‐term elevated CO2 conditions. Plant responses were significantly different between these treatments, confirming model predictions that there is not a simple relationship between transient and equilibrium responses to elevated CO2.