Asymmetric temperature effect on leaf senescence and its control on ecosystem productivity.

Widespread autumn cooling occurred in the northern hemisphere (NH) during the period 2004-2018, primarily due to the strengthening of the Pacific Decadal Oscillation and Siberian High. Yet, while there has been considerable focus on the warming impacts, the effects of natural cooling on autumn leaf senescence and plant productivity have been largely overlooked. This gap in knowledge hinders our understanding of how vegetation adapts and acclimates to complex climate change.

Non-symmetric responses of leaf onset date to natural warming and cooling in northern ecosystems.

The northern hemisphere has experienced regional cooling, especially during the global warming hiatus (1998-2012) due to ocean energy redistribution. However, the lack of studies about the natural cooling effects hampers our understanding of vegetation responses to climate change. Using 15,125 ground phenological time series at 3,620 sites since the 1950s and 31-year satellite greenness observations (1982-2012) covering the warming hiatus period, we show a stronger response of leaf onset date (LOD) to natural cooling than to warming, i.

Stomatal responses of terrestrial plants to global change.

Quantifying the stomatal responses of plants to global change factors is crucial for modeling terrestrial carbon and water cycles. Here we synthesize worldwide experimental data to show that stomatal conductance (g) decreases with elevated carbon dioxide (CO), warming, decreased precipitation, and tropospheric ozone pollution, but increases with increased precipitation and nitrogen (N) deposition. These responses vary with treatment magnitude, plant attributes (ambient g, vegetation biomes, and plant functional types), and climate.

Ecological function-oriented vegetation protection and restoration strategies in China's Loess Plateau.

Potential natural vegetation (PNV) can provide a reference for vegetation protection and restoration. Previous studies often used PNV patterns as a reference; however, they ignored PNV ecological functions, impeding the establishment of function-oriented vegetation protection and restoration plans. To address this issue, this study used Loess Plateau of China as a case study to propose an ecological function-oriented vegetation protection and restoration framework based on PNV patterns and ecological functions.

Drought-Induced Carbon and Water Use Efficiency Responses in Dryland Vegetation of Northern China.

Given the context of global warming and the increasing frequency of extreme climate events, concerns have been raised by scientists, government, and the public regarding drought occurrence and its impacts, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions. In this paper, the drought conditions for the forest and grassland areas in the northern region of China were identified based on 12 years of satellite-based Drought Severity Index (DSI) data. The impact of drought on dryland vegetation in terms of carbon use efficiency (CUE) and water use efficiency (WUE) were also investigated by exploring their correlations with DSI.

Potential land use adjustment for future climate change adaptation in revegetated regions.

To adapt to future climate change, appropriate land use patterns are desired. Potential natural vegetation (PNV) emphasizing the dominant role of climate can provide a useful baseline to guide the potential land use adjustment. This work is particularly important for the revegetated regions with intensive human perturbation.

The coupling of leaf, litter, and soil nutrients in warm temperate forests in northwestern China.

The nutrient ecological stoichiometry of plants and soil is important for the growth and dynamics of species, but the stoichiometric relationships among leaf, litter, and soil remain poorly understood. We analyzed the carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) stoichiometry of the leaves, litter, and soil for 31 species at 140 sites in warm temperate forests in northwestern China to document the patterns of nutrient traits and their relationships with climatic factors. The average concentrations of C, N, and P in the combined forests were 462.

[Spatial distribution of aboveground biomass of shrubs in Tianlaochi catchment of the Qilian Mountains].

This study estimated the spatial distribution of the aboveground biomass of shrubs in the Tianlaochi catchment of Qilian Mountains based on the field survey and remote sensing data. A relationship model of the aboveground biomass and its feasibly measured factors (i. e.

[Characteristics of rainfall interception by Caragana korshinskii and Hippophae rhamnoides in Loess Plateau of Northwest China].

From May to October 2011, an investigation was conducted on the effects of rainfall and its intensity on the canopy interception, throughfall, and stemflow of Caragana korshinskii and Hippophae rhamnoides, the main shrub species commonly planted to stabilize soil and water in the Anjiagou catchment of Loess Plateau. A total of 47 rainfall events were observed, most of which were featured with low intensity, and the total amount and average intensity of the rainfalls were 208.9 mm and 2.

[Water storage capacity of qinghai spruce (Picea crassifolia) forest canopy in Qilian Mountains].

By the methods of direct measurement and regression analysis, this paper estimated the water storage capacity of Picea crassifolia forest canopy in Guantan in Qilianshan Mountains, based on the observed throughfall and the laboratory experimental data about the water storage capacity of various canopy components in 2008. Due to the impacts of various factors, differences existed in the canopy water storage capacity estimated by the two methods. The regression analysis was mainly impacted by the measurement approaches of the throughfall, the maximum water storage capacity estimated being 0.

[Spatial distribution characteristics of the biomass and carbon storage of Qinghai spruce (Picea crassifolia) forests in Qilian Mountains].

This paper estimated the biomass and carbon storage and their spatial distributions of Qinghai spruce (Picea crassifolia) forests in Qilian Mountains, based on the field investigation, forest map, and meteorological data, and with the help of GIS technology. In 2008, the biomass of the forests was averagely 209.24 t x hm(-2), with a total biomass of 3.

[Spatial distribution of Tamarix ramosissima aboveground biomass and water consumption in the lower reaches of Heihe River, Northwest China].

Based on the field observation on the Tamarix ramosissima populations in the lower reaches of Heihe River, the relationship models between the aboveground biomass of T. ramosissima and its morphological features (basal diameter, height, and canopy perimeter) were built. In the mean time, the land use/cover of the study area was classified by the decision tree classification with high resolution image (QuickBird), the distribution of T.