Seeding pioneer trees to restore lands with varying degrees of degradation‌‌: biomass accumulation and carbon fixation

Restoring degraded ecosystems is a key strategy to mitigate global change and capture carbon (C). The restoration process of ecosystems with varying degrees of degradation and the C sequestration within the plant-soil-microbe systems remain poorly understood. We conducted a field experiment using the seeds of two pioneer trees (Albizia julibrissin and Platycladus orientalis) to restore lands where the degradation level was manipulated by removing soil layers. After two years of seeding, we measured the biomass accumulation and traced the C assimilation and distribution within the plant-soil-microbe systems using in situ 13CO2 pulse labeling.