Assessing the patterns and controls of fine root dynamics: an empirical test and methodological review

Abstract

Summary: Elucidation of the patterns and controls of forest net primary production at ecosystem scales has been hindered by a poor understanding of fine root production, due largely to technical limitations. Fine root (≤ 0.5 mm diameter) production was assessed using minirhizotron, soil core, ingrowth core, nitrogen budget and carbon budget techniques in three longleaf pine‐wiregrass forest ecosystem types (hydric, mesic and xeric) forming an edaphic resource availability and above‐ground productivity gradient. Fine root production estimates differed substantially in magnitude, e.g. values ranged from 0 to 4618 kg ha−1 year−1 for the soil core and minirhizotron techniques, respectively, in the hydric site. Minirhizotron production estimates in the hydric, mesic and xeric sites were 4618, 1905 and 2295 kg ha−1 year−1, respectively. Soil core and ingrowth core root production estimates were on average 81 and 54% lower, respectively, than corresponding minirhizotron production estimates, and minirhizotron estimates were negatively related to soil core and ingrowth core estimates across the resource gradient. The N budget method yielded unreliable root production estimates, presumably due to the underestimation of N availability for plant assimilation. C budget estimates of total below‐ground C allocation (6773, 5646 and 4647 kg C ha−1 year−1) were positively related to minirhizotron production estimates, but negatively related to soil core and ingrowth core production estimates. Critical evaluations of the assumptions, potential errors and results for each method suggest that the minirhizotron technique yielded the most reliable root production estimates, and that the negative relationship between minirhizotron and core‐based estimates may be attributed to the inherent deficiency of the core techniques in assessing root production when mortality and production occur simultaneously. Minirhizotron root production estimates were positively related to foliage production estimates, supporting the hypothesis of constant proportional allocation of production to foliage, wood and fine roots across resource availability gradients in temperate forests. These results suggest that fine root production is not negatively correlated with soil resource availability and foliage production as is commonly perceived in the ecological community and represented in ecosystem computer models.