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Chinese Journal of Applied Ecology ›› 2017, Vol. 28 ›› Issue (3): 772-778.doi: 10.13287/j.1001-9332.201703.032

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Latitude variation mechanism of leaf traits of Metasequoia glyptostroboides in eastern coastal China

GUO Wei-hong1,2, WANG Hua3, YU Mu-kui2, WU Tong-gui2, HAN You-zhi1*   

  1. 1College of Forestry, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu 030801, Shanxi, China
    2Research Institute of Subtropical Forestry, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Hangzhou 311400, China
    3Agricultural Committee of Dongtai, Dongtai 224200, Jiangsu, China
  • Received:2016-08-07 Published:2017-03-18
  • Contact: *E-mail: hanyouzhi@sxau.edu.cn
  • Supported by:
    This work was supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Non-profit Research Institution of Chinese Academy of Forestry (CAFYBB2014ZD002)

Abstract: We analyzed the rules of Metasequoia glyptostroboides along with latitude, including leaf length, leaf width, leaf perimeter, leaf area, ratio of leaf length to width, specific leaf area (SLA), and leaf dry mass based on eight stands growing at different latitudes in the coastal area of eastern China, as well as their relationships with climatic and soil factors. The results showed that the leaf length, leaf width and leaf perimeter increased with increasing latitude, while the leaf area and SLA firstly increased and then decreased. The mean annual temperature and annual precipitation were the major environmental factors affecting the leaf traits along latitude gradient. With the increase of soil N content, the SLA decreased firstly and then increased, while the leaf mass decreased significantly. With the increase of soil P content, the SLA increased, and the leaf mass decreased significantly.