The continuous incorporation of carbon into existing Sassafras albidum fine roots and its implications for estimating root turnover

Intraspecific variation in fine root morphology of European beech: a root order-based analysis of phenotypic root morphospace

Fine roots are multifunctional organs that may change function with ageing or root branching events from primarily absorptive to resource transport and storage functions. It is not well understood, how fine root branching patterns and related root functional differentiation along the longitudinal root axis change with soil chemical and physical conditions. We examined the variation in fine root branching patterns (the relative frequency of 1st to 4th root orders) and root morphological and chemical traits of European beech trees with soil depth (topsoil vs. subsoil) and soil chemistry (five sites with acid to neutral/alkaline bedrock). Bedrock type and related soil chemistry had an only minor influence on branching patterns: base-poor, infertile sites showed no higher fine root branching than base-rich sites. The contribution of 1st-order root segments to total fine root length decreased at all sites from about 60% in the topsoil (including organic layer) to 45% in the lower subsoil. This change was associated with a decrease in specific root area and root N content and an increase in mean root diameter with soil depth, while root tissue density did not change consistently. We conclude that soil depth (which acts through soil physical and chemical drivers) influences the fine root branching patterns of beech much more than soil chemical variation across soil types. To examine whether changes in root function are indeed triggered by branching events or result from root ageing and diameter growth, spatially explicit root physiological and anatomical studies across root orders are needed.

The hidden half comes into the spotlight: Peeking inside the black box of root developmental phases

Efficient use of natural resources (e.g., light, water, and nutrients) can be improved with a tailored developmental program that maximizes the lifetime and fitness of plants. In plant shoots, a developmental phase represents a time window in which the meristem triggers the development of unique morphological and physiological traits, leading to the emergence of leaves, flowers, and fruits. Whereas developmental phases in plant shoots have been shown to enhance food production in crops, this phenomenon has remained poorly investigated in roots. In light of recent advances, we suggest that root development occurs in three main phases: root apical meristem appearance, foraging, and senescence. We provide compelling evidence suggesting that these phases are regulated by at least four developmental pathways: autonomous, non-autonomous, hormonal, and periodic. Root developmental pathways differentially coordinate organ plasticity, promoting morphological alterations, tissue regeneration, and cell death regulation. Furthermore, we suggest how nutritional checkpoints may allow progression through the developmental phases, thus completing the root life cycle. These insights highlight novel and exciting advances in root biology that may help maximize the productivity of crops through more sustainable agriculture and the reduced use of chemical fertilizers.

A starting guide to root ecology: strengthening ecological concepts and standardising root classification, sampling, processing and trait measurements

In the context of a recent massive increase in research on plant root functions and their impact on the environment, root ecologists currently face many important challenges to keep on generating cutting-edge, meaningful and integrated knowledge. Consideration of the below-ground components in plant and ecosystem studies has been consistently called for in recent decades, but methodology is disparate and sometimes inappropriate. This handbook, based on the collective effort of a large team of experts, will improve trait comparisons across studies and integration of information across databases by providing standardised methods and controlled vocabularies. It is meant to be used not only as starting point by students and scientists who desire working on below-ground ecosystems, but also by experts for consolidating and broadening their views on multiple aspects of root ecology. Beyond the classical compilation of measurement protocols, we have synthesised recommendations from the literature to provide key background knowledge useful for: (1) defining below-ground plant entities and giving keys for their meaningful dissection, classification and naming beyond the classical fine-root vs coarse-root approach; (2) considering the specificity of root research to produce sound laboratory and field data; (3) describing typical, but overlooked steps for studying roots (e.g. root handling, cleaning and storage); and (4) gathering metadata necessary for the interpretation of results and their reuse. Most importantly, all root traits have been introduced with some degree of ecological context that will be a foundation for understanding their ecological meaning, their typical use and uncertainties, and some methodological and conceptual perspectives for future research. Considering all of this, we urge readers not to solely extract protocol recommendations for trait measurements from this work, but to take a moment to read and reflect on the extensive information contained in this broader guide to root ecology, including sections I-VII and the many introductions to each section and root trait description. Finally, it is critical to understand that a major aim of this guide is to help break down barriers between the many subdisciplines of root ecology and ecophysiology, broaden researchers' views on the multiple aspects of root study and create favourable conditions for the inception of comprehensive experiments on the role of roots in plant and ecosystem functioning.

A starting guide to root ecology: strengthening ecological concepts and standardising root classification, sampling, processing and trait measurements

In the context of a recent massive increase in research on plant root functions and their impact on the environment, root ecologists currently face many important challenges to keep on generating cutting-edge, meaningful and integrated knowledge. Consideration of the below-ground components in plant and ecosystem studies has been consistently called for in recent decades, but methodology is disparate and sometimes inappropriate. This handbook, based on the collective effort of a large team of experts, will improve trait comparisons across studies and integration of information across databases by providing standardised methods and controlled vocabularies. It is meant to be used not only as starting point by students and scientists who desire working on below-ground ecosystems, but also by experts for consolidating and broadening their views on multiple aspects of root ecology. Beyond the classical compilation of measurement protocols, we have synthesised recommendations from the literature to provide key background knowledge useful for: (1) defining below-ground plant entities and giving keys for their meaningful dissection, classification and naming beyond the classical fine-root vs coarse-root approach; (2) considering the specificity of root research to produce sound laboratory and field data; (3) describing typical, but overlooked steps for studying roots (e.g. root handling, cleaning and storage); and (4) gathering metadata necessary for the interpretation of results and their reuse. Most importantly, all root traits have been introduced with some degree of ecological context that will be a foundation for understanding their ecological meaning, their typical use and uncertainties, and some methodological and conceptual perspectives for future research. Considering all of this, we urge readers not to solely extract protocol recommendations for trait measurements from this work, but to take a moment to read and reflect on the extensive information contained in this broader guide to root ecology, including sections I-VII and the many introductions to each section and root trait description. Finally, it is critical to understand that a major aim of this guide is to help break down barriers between the many subdisciplines of root ecology and ecophysiology, broaden researchers' views on the multiple aspects of root study and create favourable conditions for the inception of comprehensive experiments on the role of roots in plant and ecosystem functioning.

Untangling the effects of root age and tissue nitrogen on root respiration in Populus tremuloides at different nitrogen supply

Root respiration is a major contributor to terrestrial carbon flux. Many studies have shown root respiration to increase with an increase in root tissue nitrogen (N) concentration across species and study sites. Studies have also shown that both root respiration and root N concentration typically decrease with root age. The effects of added N may directly increase respiration of existing roots or may affect respiration by shifting the age structure of a root population by stimulating growth. To the best of our knowledge, no study has ever examined the effect of added N as a function of root age on root respiration. In this study, root respiration of 13-year-old Populus tremuloides Michx. trees grown in the field and 1-year-old P. tremuloides seedlings grown in containers was analyzed for the relative influence of root age and root N concentration independent of root age on root respiration. Field roots were first tracked using root windows and then sampled at known age. Nitrogen was either applied or not to small patches beneath the windows. In a pot experiment, each plant was grown with its root system split between two separate pots and N was applied at three different levels, either at the same or at different rates between pots. Root N concentration ranged between 1.4 and 1.7% in the field experiment and 1.8 and 2.6% in the seedling experiment. We found that addition of N increased root N concentration of only older roots in the field but of roots of all ages in the potted seedlings. In both experiments, the age-dependent decline in root respiration was largely consistent, and could be explained by a negative power function. Respiration decreased ∼50% by 3 weeks of age. Although root age was the dominant factor affecting respiration in both experiments, in the field experiment, root N also contributed to root respiration independent of root age. These results add further insight into respiratory responses of roots to N addition and mechanisms underlying the tissue N-respiration relationship.

Acclimation of fine root respiration to soil warming involves starch deposition in very fine and fine roots: a case study in Fagus sylvatica saplings

Root activities in terms of respiration and non-structural carbohydrates (NSC) storage and mobilization have been suggested as major physiological roles in fine root lifespan. As more frequent heat waves and drought periods within the next decades are expected, to what extent does thermal acclimation in fine roots represent a mechanism to cope with such upcoming climatic conditions? In this study, the possible changes in very fine (diameter < 0.5 mm) and fine (0.5-1 mm) root morphology and physiology in terms of respiration rate and NSC [soluble sugars (SS) and starch] concentrations, were investigated on 2-year-old Fagus sylvatica saplings subjected to a simulated long-lasting heat wave event and to co-occurring soil drying. For both very fine and fine roots, soil temperature (ST) resulted inversely correlated with specific root length, respiration rates and SSs concentration, but directly correlated with root mass, root tissue density and starch concentration. In particular, starch concentration increased under 28 °C for successively decreasing under 21 °C ST. These findings showed that thermal acclimation in very fine and fine roots due to 24 days exposure to high ST (∼ 28 °C), induced starch accumulation. Such 'carbon-savings strategy' should bear the maintenance costs associated to the recovery process in case of restored favorable environmental conditions, such as those occurring at the end of a heat wave event. Drought condition seems to affect the fine root vitality much more under moderate than high temperature condition, making the temporary exposure to high ST less threatening to root vitality than expected.

Redefining fine roots improves understanding of below-ground contributions to terrestrial biosphere processes

Fine roots acquire essential soil resources and mediate biogeochemical cycling in terrestrial ecosystems. Estimates of carbon and nutrient allocation to build and maintain these structures remain uncertain because of the challenges of consistently measuring and interpreting fine-root systems. Traditionally, fine roots have been defined as all roots ≤ 2 mm in diameter, yet it is now recognized that this approach fails to capture the diversity of form and function observed among fine-root orders. Here, we demonstrate how order-based and functional classification frameworks improve our understanding of dynamic root processes in ecosystems dominated by perennial plants. In these frameworks, fine roots are either separated into individual root orders or functionally defined into a shorter-lived absorptive pool and a longer-lived transport fine-root pool. Using these frameworks, we estimate that fine-root production and turnover represent 22% of terrestrial net primary production globally - a c. 30% reduction from previous estimates assuming a single fine-root pool. Future work developing tools to rapidly differentiate functional fine-root classes, explicit incorporation of mycorrhizal fungi into fine-root studies, and wider adoption of a two-pool approach to model fine roots provide opportunities to better understand below-ground processes in the terrestrial biosphere.

Reconcilable differences: a joint calibration of fine-root turnover times with radiocarbon and minirhizotrons

We used bomb-radiocarbon and raw minirhizotron lifetimes of fine roots (< 0.5 mm in diameter) in the organic layer of Norway spruce (Picea abies) forests in southern Sweden to test if different models are able to reconcile the apparently contradicting turnover time estimates from both techniques. We present a framework based on survival functions that is able to jointly model bomb-radiocarbon and minirhizotron data. At the same time we integrate prior knowledge about biases of both techniques--the classification of dead roots in minirhizotrons and the use of carbon reserves to grow new roots. Two-pool models, either in parallel or in serial setting, were able to reconcile the bomb-radiocarbon and minirhizotron data. These models yielded a mean residence time of 3.80 ± 0.16 yr (mean ± SD). On average 60 ± 2% of fine roots turned over within 0.75 ± 0.10 yr, while the rest was turning over within 8.4 ± 0.2 yr. Bomb-radiocarbon and minirhizotron data alone give a biased estimate of fine-root turnover. The two-pool models allow a mechanistic interpretation for the coexistence of fast- and slow-cycling roots--suberization and branching for the serial-two-pool model and branching due to ectomycorrhizal fungi-root interactions for the parallel-two-pool model.