Abstract
A knowledge of the pattern of root distribution in soil is critical to a number of areas of ecology. For example, our ability to model the interactions between climate and vegetation depends in part on our knowledge of the global pattern of distribution of belowground biomass at various soil depths, and how it will change as one vegetation type replaces another (Jackson et al. 1996). Similarly, our understanding of ecosystem processes is currently limited by poor understanding of the distribution, quantity and productivity of fine roots within a variety of ecosystems, even though, for example, the annual production of fine roots may be twice that of leaves in Northern American hardwood forests (Fahey and Hughes 1994), and up to 80 % of the biomass of some ecosystems is underground (Jackson et al. 1996). At a more local scale, we are limited in our ability to accurately model the processes involved in plant competition by our inadequate knowledge of the fine-scale distributions of roots of individual plants and of the distribution of their associated symbionts (Mou et al. 1995; Casper and Jackson 1997; Casper et al. 2000).
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alpert P, Stuefer JF (1997) Division of labour in clonal plants. In: De Kroon H, Van Groenendael J (eds) The ecology and evolution of clonal plants. Backhuys, Leiden, pp 137–154
Berendse F (1981) Competition between plant populations with different rooting depths. Oecologia 48:334–341
Berendse F (1983) Interspecific competition and niche differentiation between Plantago lanceolata and Anthoxanthum odoratum in a natural hayfìeld. J Ecol 71:379–390
Birch CPD, Hutchings MJ (1994) Exploitation of patchily distributed soil resources by the clonal herb Glechoma hederacea. J Ecol 82:653–664
Boot RGA (1989) The significance of size and morphology of root systems for nutrient acquisition and competition. In: Lambers H, Cambridge ML, Konings H, Pons TL (eds) Causes and consequences of variation in growth rate and productivity of higher plants. SPB Academic Publishing, The Hague, pp 299–311
Brisson J, Reynolds JF (1994) The effect of neighbours on root distribution in a cre-osotebush (Larrea tridentata) population. Ecology 75:1693–1702
Caldwell MM, Manwaring JH, Durham SL (1996) Species interactions at the level of fine roots in the field: influence of soil nutrient heterogeneity and plant size. Oecologia 106:440–447
Campbell BD, Grime JP (1989) A comparative study of plant responsiveness to the duration of episodes of mineral nutrient enrichment. New Phytol 112:261–267
Campbell BD, Grime JP, Mackey JML, Jalili A (1991) The quest for a mechanistic understanding of resource competition in plant communities and the role of experiments. Funct Ecol 5:765–772
Casper BB, Jackson RB (1997) Plant competition underground. Ann Rev Ecol Syst 28:545–570
Casper BB, Cahill JF, Jackson RB (2000) Plant competition in spatially heterogeneous environments. In: Hutchings MJ, John EA, Stewart AJA (eds) The ecological consequences of environmental heterogeneity. Blackwell, Oxford, pp 111–130
Crick JC, Grime JP (1987) Morphological plasticity and mineral nutrient capture in two herbaceous species of contrasted ecology. New Phytol 122:618–625
Cui M, Caldwell MM (1996a) Facilitation of plant phosphate acquisition by arbuscular mycorrhizas from enriched soil patches. I. Roots and hyphae exploiting the same soil volume. New Phytol 133:453–460
Cui M, Caldwell MM (1996b) Facilitation of plant phosphate acquisition by arbuscular mycorrhizas from enriched soil patches. II. Hyphae exploiting root-free soil. New Phytol 133:461–467
D’Antonio CM, Mahall BE (1991) Root profiles and competition between the invasive, exotic perennial, Carpobrotus edulis, and two native shrub species in California coastal scrub. Am J Bot 78:885–894
De Kroon H, Hutchings MJ (1995) Morphological plasticity in clonal plants: the foraging concept reconsidered. J Ecol 83:143–152
Drew MC (1975) Comparison of the effects of a localised supply of phosphate, nitrate, ammonium and potassium on the growth of the seminal root system, and.the shoot, in barley. New Phytol 75:479–490
Drew MC, Saker LR (1975) Nutrient supply and the growth of the seminal root system in barley. II. Localized, compensatory increases in lateral root growth and rates of nitrate uptake when nitrate supply is restricted to only part of the root system. J Exp Bot 26:79–90
Drew MC, Saker LR (1978) Nutrient supply and the growth of the seminal root system in barley. III. Compensatory increases in growth of lateral roots, and in rates of phosphate uptake, in response to a localised supply of phosphate. J Exp Bot 29:435–451
Drew MC, Saker LR, Ashley TW (1973) Nutrient supply and the growth of the seminal root system in barley. I. The effect of nitrate concentration on the growth of axes and laterals. J Exp Bot 24:1189–1202
Dumortier, M. (1991). Below-ground dynamics in a wet grassland ecosystem. In: Atkinson D (ed) Plant root growth — an ecological perspective. British Ecological Society Special Symposium 10, Blackwell, Oxford, pp 301–309
Einsmann JC, Jones RH, Pu M, Mitchell RJ (1999) Nutrient foraging traits in 10 co-occurring plant species of contrasting life forms. J Ecol 87:609–619
Fahey TJ, Hughes JW (1994) Fine root dynamics in a northern hardwood forest ecosystem, Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, NH. J Ecol 82:533–548
Farley RA, Fitter AH (1999) Temporal and spatial variation in soil resources in a deciduous woodland. J Ecol 87:688–696
Fernandez OA, Caldwell MM (1975) Phenology and dynamics of root growth of three cool semi-desert shrubs under field conditions. J Ecol 63:703–714
Fitter AH (1986) Spatial and temporal patterns of root activity in a species-rich alluvial grassland. Oecologia 69:594–599
Fitter AH (1987) An architectural approach to the comparative ecology of plant root systems. New Phytol 106(Suppl):61–77
Fitter AH (1994) Architecture and biomass allocation as components of the plastic response of root systems to soil heterogeneity. In: Caldwell MM, Pearcy RW (eds) Exploitation of environmental heterogeneity by plants: ecophysiological processes above- and belowground. Academic Press, San Diego, pp 305–323
Fransen B, de Kroon H, Berendse F (1998) Root morphological plasticity and nutrient acquisition of perennial grass species from habitats of different nutrient availability. Oecologia 115:351–358
Fransen B, de Kroon H, de Kovel CGF, van den Bosch F (1999) Disentangling the effects of root foraging and inherent growth rate on plant biomass accumulation in heterogeneous environments: a modelling study. Ann Bot 84:305–311
Fransen B, de Kroon H, Berendse F (2001) Soil nutrient heterogeneity alters competition between two perennial grass species. Ecology 82:2534–2546
Fretwell SD (1972) Populations in a seasonal environment. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey
Gersani M, Sachs T (1992) Developmental correlations between roots in heterogeneous environments. Plant Cell Environ 15:463–469
Gersani M, Abramsky Z, Falik O (1998) Density-dependent habitat selection in plants. Evol Ecol 12:223–234
Grime JP, Crick JC, Rincon JE (1986) The ecological significance of plasticity. In: Jennings DH, Trewavas AJ (eds) Plasticity in plants. Biologists Limited, Cambridge, pp 5–29
Hendrick RL, Pregitzer KS (1993) Patterns of fine root mortality in two sugar maple forests. Nature 361:59–61
Hetrick BAD, Wilson GWT, Leslie JF (1991) Root architecture of warm- and cool-season grasses: relationship to mycorrhizal dependence. Can J Bot 69:112–118
Hook PB, Lauenroth WK, Burke IC (1994) Spatial patterns of roots in a semiarid grassland: abundance of canopy opening and regeneration gaps. J Ecol 82:485–494
Huber-Sannwald E, Pyke DA, Caldwell MM (1996) Morphological plasticity following species-specific recognition and competition in two perennial grasses. Am J Bot 83:919–931
Hutchings MJ, Barkham JP (1976) An investigation of shoot interactions in Mercurialis perennis L., a rhizomatous perennial herb. J Ecol 64:723–744
Hutchings MJ, de Kroon H (1994) Foraging in plants: the role of morphological plasticity in resource acquisition. Adv Ecol Res 25:159–238
Hutchings MJ, John EA, Wijesinghe DK (2003) Towards an understanding of the consequences of patchy distribution of soil-based resources for populations and communities of plants. Ecology (in press)
Jackson RB, Caldwell MM (1993) Geo statistical patterns of soil heterogeneity around individual perennial plants. J Ecol 81:683–692
Jackson RB, Manwaring JH, Caldwell MM (1990) Rapid physiological adjustment of roots to localised soil enrichment. Nature 344:58–60
Jackson RB, Canadell J, Ehleringer JR, Mooney HA, Sala OE, Schulze ED (1996) Global analysis of root distributions for terrestrial biomes. Oecologia 108:389–411
Kovar JL, Barber SA (1988) Phosphorus supply characteristics of 33 soils as influenced by seven rates of phosphorus addition. Soil Sci Soc. Am J 52:160–165
Kovar JL, Barber SA (1989) Reasons for differences among soils in placement of phosphorus for maximum predicted uptake. Soil Sci Soc Am J 53:1733–1736
Krannitz PG, Caldwell MM (1995) Root growth responses of three Great Basin perennials to intra- and interspecific contact with other roots. Flora 190:161–167
Lechowicz MJ, Bell G (1991) The ecology and genetics of fitness in forest plants. II. Microspatial heterogeneity of the edaphic environment. J Ecol 79:687–696
Mahall BE, Callaway RM (1992) Root communication mechanisms and intracommunity distributions of two Mojave Desert shrubs. Ecology 73:2145–2151
Milchunas DG, Lauenroth WK (1989) Three-dimensional distribution of plant biomass in relation to grazing and topography in the shortgrass steppe. Oikos 55:82–86
Mou P, Jones RH, Mitchell RJ, Zutter B (1995) Spatial distribution of roots in sweetgum and loblolly pine monocultures and relations with above-ground biomass and soil nutrients. Funct Ecol 9:689–699
Oborny B (1994) Growth rules in clonal plants and environmental predictability — a simulation study. J Ecol 82:341–351
Pecháèková S, During HJ, Rydlová V, Herben T (1999) Species-specific spatial pattern of below-ground plant parts in a montane grassland community. J Ecol 87:569–582
Pregitzer KS, Hendrick RL, Fogel R (1993) The demography of fine roots in response to patches of water and nitrogen. New Phytol 125:575–580
Pulliam HR, Caraco T (1984) Living in groups: is there an optimal group size? In: Krebs JR, Davies NB (eds) Behavioural ecology, 2nd edn. Blackwell, Oxford, pp 214–244
Reader RJ, Jalili A, Grime JP, Spencer RE, Matthews N (1993) A comparative study of plasticity in seedling rooting depth in drying soil. J Ecol 81:543–550
Reinartz JA, Popp JW (1987) Structure of clones of northern prickly ash (Xanthoxylum americanum). Am J Bot 74:415–428
Robinson D (1994) Tansley review No. 73. The responses of plants to non-uniform supplies of nutrients. New Phytol 127:635–674
Robinson D (1996) Resource capture by localised root proliferation: why do plants bother? Ann Bot 77:179–185
Robinson D, Hodge A, Griffiths BS, Fitter AH (1999) Plant root proliferation in nitrogen-rich patches confers competitive advantage. Proc R Soc Lond B 266:431–435
Schenk HJ, Callaway RM, Mahall BE (1999) Spatial root segregation: are plants territorial? Adv Ecol Res 28:145–180
Slade AJ, Hutchings MJ (1987) The effects of nutrient availability on foraging in the clonal herb Glechoma hederacea. J Ecol 75:95–112
St. John TV, Coleman DC, Reid CPP (1983a) Association of vesicular-arbuscular mycor-rhizal hyphae with soil organic particles. Ecology 64:957–959
St. John TV, Coleman DC, Reid CPP (1983b) Growth and spatial distribution of nutrient-absorbing organs: selective placement of soil heterogeneity. Plant Soil 71:487–493
Steeves TA, Sussex IM (1989) Patterns in plant development, 2nd edn. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
Sydes CL, Grime JP (1984) A comparative study of root development using a simulated rock crevice. J Ecol 72:937–946
Van Vuuren MMI, Robinson D, Griffiths BS (1996) Nutrient inflow and root proliferation during the exploitation of a temporally and spatially discrete source of nitrogen in soil. Plant Soil 178:185–192
Weaver JE (1919) The ecological relations of roots. Carnegie Institute, Washington
Wells CE, Eissenstat DM (2001) Marked differences in survivorship among apple roots of different diameters. Ecology 82:882–893
Wijesinghe DK, Hutchings MJ (1997) The effects of spatial scale of environmental heterogeneity on the growth of a clonal plant: an experimental study with Glechoma hederacea. Ecol 85:17–28
Wijesinghe DK, Hutchings MJ (1999) The effects of environmental heterogeneity on the performance of Glechoma hederacea: the interactions between patch contrast and patch scale. J Ecol 87:860–872
Wijesinghe DK, John E A, Beurskens S, Hutchings M J (2001) Root system size and precision in nutrient foraging: responses to spatial pattern of nutrient supply in six herbaceous species. J Ecol 89:972–983
Wilson SD (2000). Heterogeneity, diversity and scale in plant communities. In: Hutchings MJ, John EA, Stewart AJA (eds) The ecological consequences of environmental heterogeneity. Blackwell, Oxford, pp 53–69
Yeaton RI, Travis J, Gilinsky E (1977) Competition and spacing in plant communities: the Arizona upland association. J Ecol 65:587–595
Zhang H, Forde BG (1998) An Arabidopsis MADS box gene that controls nutrient-induced changes in root architecture. Science 279:407–409
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2003 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Hutchings, M.J., John, E.A. (2003). Distribution of Roots in Soil, and Root Foraging Activity. In: de Kroon, H., Visser, E.J.W. (eds) Root Ecology. Ecological Studies, vol 168. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-09784-7_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-09784-7_2
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-642-05520-1
Online ISBN: 978-3-662-09784-7
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive