Abiotic and biotic drivers of tree trait effects on soil microbial biomass and soil carbon concentration

Forests are critical ecosystems to understand the global carbon budget, due to their carbon sequestration potential in both above- and belowground compartments, especially in species-rich forests. Soil carbon sequestration is strongly linked to soil microbial communities, and this link is mediated by the tree community, likely due to modifications of micro-environmental conditions (i.e., biotic conditions, soil properties, and microclimate). We studied soil carbon concentration and the soil microbial biomass of 180 local neighborhoods along a gradient of tree species richness ranging from 1 to 16 tree species per plot in a Chinese subtropical forest experiment (BEF-China). Tree productivity and different tree functional traits were measured at the neighborhood level. We tested the effects of tree productivity, functional trait identity and dissimilarity on soil carbon concentrations, and their mediation by the soil microbial biomass and micro-environmental conditions. Our analyses showe..., Study site
The study site is located in south-east China near the town of Xingangshan (Jiangxi Province, 29.08–29.11° N, 117.90–117.93° E). Our experimental site is part of the BEF-China experiment (site A, Bruelheide et al. 2014), and it was planted in 2009 after a clear-cut of the previous commercial plantation. The region is characterized by a subtropical climate with warm, rainy summers and cool, dry winters with a mean temperature of 16.7°C and a mean annual rainfall of 1.821 mm (Yang et al. 2013). Soils in the region are Cambisols and Cambisol derivatives, with Regosol on ridges and crests (Geißler et al. 2012; Scholten et al. 2017). The natural vegetation consists of species-rich broad-leaved forests dominated by Cyclobalanopsis glauca, Castanopsis eyrei, Daphniphyllum oldhamii, and Lithocarpus glaber (Bruelheide et al. 2011; 2014).
Study design
We selected 180 small-scale sample locations across five species richness levels (1, 2, 4, 8, and 16 species) per plot, according to the..., , # Reference Information

## Provenance for this README

* File name: README.md
* Authors: Rémy Beugnon
* Other contributors: Wensheng Bu, Helge Bruelheide, Andra Davrinche, Jianqing Du, Sylvia Haider, Matthias Kunz, Goddert von Oheimb, Maria D. Perles-Garcia, Mariem Saadani, Thomas Scholten, Steffen Seitz, Bala Singavarapu, Stefan Trogisch, Yanfen Wang, Tesfaye Wubet, Kai Xue, Bo Yang, Simone Cesarz & Nico Eisenhauer.
* Date created: 2022-12-06
* Date modified: 2022-12-06

## Dataset Version and Release History

* Current Version:
* Number: 1.0.0
* Date: 2022-12-05
* Persistent identifier: DOI: 10.5061/dryad.pvmcvdnqc
* Summary of changes: n/a
* Embargo Provenance: n/a
* Scope of embargo: n/a
* Embargo period: n/a

## Dataset Attribution and Usage

* Dataset Title: Data for the article \"Abiotic and biotic drivers of tree trait effects on soil microbial biomass and soil carbon concentration\"

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* Dataset...