Peatland vegetation composition and phenology drive the seasonal trajectory of maximum gross primary production.

Gross primary production (GPP) is a key driver of the peatland carbon cycle. Although many studies have explored the apparent GPP under natural light conditions, knowledge of the maximum GPP at light-saturation (GPP) and its spatio-temporal variation is limited. This information, however, is crucial since GPP essentially constrains the upper boundary for apparent GPP. Using chamber measurements combined with an external light source across experimental plots where vegetation composition was altered through long-term (20-year) nitrogen addition and artificial warming, we could quantify GPP in-situ and disentangle its biotic and abiotic controls in a boreal peatland. We found large spatial and temporal variations in the magnitudes of GPP which were related to vegetation species composition and phenology rather than abiotic factors. Specifically, we identified vegetation phenology as the main driver of the seasonal GPP trajectory. Abiotic anomalies (i.e. in air temperature and water table level), however, caused species-specific divergence between the trajectories of GPP and plant development. Our study demonstrates that photosynthetically active biomass constrains the potential peatland photosynthesis while abiotic factors act as secondary modifiers. This further calls for a better representation of species-specific vegetation phenology in process-based peatland models to improve predictions of global change impacts on the peatland carbon cycle.