C, N, and P Concentrations and Their Stoichiometry of Leaves and Roots with Different Life Forms in Hainan Province

Abstract:

In order to understand the resource-use strategies of nutrient elements of plants in tropical region, the C, N, and P concentrations and their stoichiometry of 9 species with three life forms in Hainan were studied. The results showed that there were not significant differences in C, N, and P concentrations and stoichiometric ratios among different life forms. The C, N, and P concentrations of leaves were higher than those of roots. The C and N concentration of leaves was positively related with that of roots, but the P concentration of leaves was negatively related with that of roots. The ratios of C:P and N:P were relatively smaller than that at national and global scale, indicating that plants had high growth rate in this region. N:P ratio less than 14 showed that plant growth were limited by N in Hainan. Therefore, it was suggested that the plants with different life forms in Hainan showed similar resource-use strategies, although N limitation occurred, the plants had high growth rate and retaining ability of N and P.

Key words:Life form;Leaf;Root;Stoichiometry;Hainan;Tropical region