Competitive interactions between native Spartina alterniflora and non-native Phragmites australis depend on nutrient loading and temperature.

We explored the nature and impact of competitive interactions between the salt marsh foundational plant Spartina alterniflora and invasive Phragmites australis in New England under varying levels of anthropogenic influence from nutrient loading and temperature warming. Plants were grown with and without competition in mesocosms over a four-month growing season. Mesocosms were split evenly among three levels of nutrient additions and two temperatures varying by an average of ~3° C, manipulated using small greenhouses.