Nonlinear biogeographic responses and threshold patterns in vegetative versus reproductive traits across China’s ecosystems

We compiled a nationwide dataset of vascular-plant functional traits across China, covering 23,848 species and spanning major biomes and productivity gradients. Trait data include leaf area and maximum plant height as vegetative traits, and seed and fruit/cone size as reproductive traits, aggregated from multiple authoritative sources (TRY, PlantPlus, iPlant, BIEN, LEDA, GLOPNET, TOPIC). Species distributions were derived from literature records, herbarium specimens, and georeferenced trait databases, with quality control applied to coordinates and sampling bias. For each species, mean trait values were calculated from mature, healthy individuals at representative locations. This dataset enables large-scale analyses of plant functional variation in relation to environmental gradients across China.