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Background and Aims <p>Forest succession reshapes plant traits, soil resources, and rhizosphere microbial communities, yet whether dominant tree species exhibit distinct rhizosphere microbial community variation associated with species-specific fine-root strategies remains unclear. This study examined associations among fine-root functional traits and rhizosphere microbial communities along a successional gradient in northeastern China, comparing the broadleaved <i>Quercus mongolica</i> and the coniferous <i>Pinus koraiensis</i>.</p> Methods <p>Rhizosphere samples were collected from five forest types spanning a broadleaf-to-conifer successional gradient. Fine-root traits of absorptive and transport roots were quantified, and bacterial and fungal communities were profiled using 16S rRNA and ITS1 amplicon sequencing. Variance partitioning analysis and structural equation modeling were used to assess statistical associations among soil properties, root traits, and microbial community composition.</p> Results <p><i>Q. mongolica</i> fine-root traits shifted progressively from acquisitive to conservative configurations with succession, whereas trait variation in <i>P. koraiensis</i> was largely confined to absorptive roots. Soil properties, succession, and root traits jointly explained 50.1% of bacterial and 55.5% of fungal community variation in the <i>Q. mongolica</i> rhizosphere, but substantially lower proportions in <i>P. koraiensis</i>, suggesting stronger host-mediated filtering or partial decoupling of the rhizosphere microbiome from bulk soil properties in conifer-dominated stands. Structural equation modeling suggested that soil nutrient availability was indirectly associated with bacterial diversity through coordinated variation in fine-root traits.</p> Conclusion <p>Dominant tree species exhibit contrasting belowground trait-microbial associations during succession. Coordinated variation among fine-root traits, soil conditions, and microbiome composition suggests that plant-soil-microbe interactions may contribute to successional dynamics, although causal relationships require experimental validation.</p>

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Species-specific reconfiguration of the fine-root economic spectrum mediates soil-root-microbiome interactions during temperate forest succession

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年8月5日

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  • Xinbo Hou,
  • Xiuhai Zhao,
  • Huaijiang He,
  • Chunyu Zhang,
  • Juan Wang,
  • Huaiqin Hou,
  • Xinna Zhang

摘要

Background and Aims

Forest succession reshapes plant traits, soil resources, and rhizosphere microbial communities, yet whether dominant tree species exhibit distinct rhizosphere microbial community variation associated with species-specific fine-root strategies remains unclear. This study examined associations among fine-root functional traits and rhizosphere microbial communities along a successional gradient in northeastern China, comparing the broadleaved Quercus mongolica and the coniferous Pinus koraiensis.

Methods

Rhizosphere samples were collected from five forest types spanning a broadleaf-to-conifer successional gradient. Fine-root traits of absorptive and transport roots were quantified, and bacterial and fungal communities were profiled using 16S rRNA and ITS1 amplicon sequencing. Variance partitioning analysis and structural equation modeling were used to assess statistical associations among soil properties, root traits, and microbial community composition.

Results

Q. mongolica fine-root traits shifted progressively from acquisitive to conservative configurations with succession, whereas trait variation in P. koraiensis was largely confined to absorptive roots. Soil properties, succession, and root traits jointly explained 50.1% of bacterial and 55.5% of fungal community variation in the Q. mongolica rhizosphere, but substantially lower proportions in P. koraiensis, suggesting stronger host-mediated filtering or partial decoupling of the rhizosphere microbiome from bulk soil properties in conifer-dominated stands. Structural equation modeling suggested that soil nutrient availability was indirectly associated with bacterial diversity through coordinated variation in fine-root traits.

Conclusion

Dominant tree species exhibit contrasting belowground trait-microbial associations during succession. Coordinated variation among fine-root traits, soil conditions, and microbiome composition suggests that plant-soil-microbe interactions may contribute to successional dynamics, although causal relationships require experimental validation.