Litter decomposition rates and leaf functional traits of 18 species in a subtropical forest

The data come from a in situ litterbag decomposition experiment of 18 tree species in subtropical Hunan, China, for 13 months. Litterbags with mesh sizes of 0.07, 2, and 5 mm were used to mimic the cases of (i) excluding meso- and macrofauna, (ii) excluding macrofauna, and (iii) including all fauna. For each species, 14 litter traits related to leaf growth and defense, and 8 traits related to leaf size and shape were measured: (i) Growth-related traits include total carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations, dry matter content and specific leaf area. (ii) Defense-related traits include physical isolation-related traits, i.e., epidermal wax concentration and cuticle thickness, chemical protection-related traits, i.e., total phenol and tannin concentrations, and mechanical robustness-related traits, i.e., cellulose and lignin concentrations, litter density, strength to tear and strength to punch. (iii) Size traits include leaf length, width, perimeter, area and thickness.