Plant functional diversity regulates the composition and diversity of soil microbial communities in temperate grasslands of northern China

Plant communities can influence the structure of soil microbial communities by affecting the quality and quantity of plant-derived resources available to soil microorganisms. However, the specific mechanisms underlying these effects remain unclear. We sampled soil bacterial and fungal communities, as well as plant biomass and functional traits, across nine temperate grassland sites in northern China. We explored how plant community characteristics, including biomass and functional diversity along conservation and collaboration gradients, shape the growth strategies, diversity, and composition of soil microbial communities. Our results revealed a coupling of strategies between plant and soil fungal communities, where plant communities dominated by ‘fast’ or ‘do-it-yourself’ strategy species were associated with soil fungal communities dominated by copiotrophic taxa following similar ‘fast’ strategies. Soil fungal richness was positively influenced by functional divergence along..., , , # Plant functional diversity regulates the composition and diversity of soil microbial communities in temperate grasslands of northern China

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.g79cnp616](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.g79cnp616)

## Description of the data and file structure

We sampled soil bacterial and fungal communities, as well as plant biomass and functional traits, across nine temperate grassland sites in northern China. For functional traits measurements, we sampled both leaves and roots from at least three individuals of each dominant species, representing more than 85% of the total cover in each subplot. Additionally, we collected three randomly distributed soil cores of 7 cm diameter from the 0-10 cm surface layer in each subplot. These soil samples were mixed for soil property analysis.

### Files and variables

#### File: DATA.xlsx

**Description:** 

##### Variables

* Site: 9 sampling sites
* Plot: six 20 m × 20 m plots in each sampling site
* Subplot: three 1 m × 1 m subplot...,