Marcos fernandez-martinez @en

Some plants do not reproduce every year because of nutrient scarcity

A study involving three CREAF researchers has found that plants with low nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations in their leaves do not reproduce every year to enable them to reproduce on a huge scale in years in which conditions are right. Oaks, holm oaks and beeches are examples of trees that behave in such a way.

Climate Edm@en Forests Fruit Geu @en Jordi sardans @en Josep peñuelas @en Marcos fernandez-martinez @en Mediterranean Nutrients @en Phenology Phosphorus Precipitations Reproduction Seed

The greening of the earth is reaching its limit

A new study led by Josep Peñuelas and published in Nature Ecology and Evolution reveals that CO2 abundance in the atmosphere no longer has a powerful fertilizing effect on vegetation. The greening that has been observed in recent years is slowing and this will cause CO2 levels in the atmosphere to rise, thus increasing temperatures and leading to increasingly severe changes in climate.

Carbon Carbon stocks Climate change Co2 @en Co2 uptake Cop21 @en Geu @en Greening @en Imbalance-p @en Jofre carnicer @en Jordi sardans @en Josep peñuelas @en Marcos fernandez-martinez @en Nature ecology & evolution @en Summer Temperatures @en

Nutrient-rich forests absorb more carbon

The study, published in the journal Nature Climate Change, showed that forests growing in fertile soils with ample nutrients are able to sequester about 30% of the carbon that they take up during photosynthesis. In contrast, forests growing in nutrient-poor soils may retain only 6% of that carbon. The rest is returned to the atmosphere as respiration.

Biogeochemical cycles Captació co2 Cicles biogeoquímics Co2 @en Co2 uptake Edm@en Embornal Forest Geu @en Imbalance-p @en Marcos fernandez-martinez Marcos fernandez-martinez @en Nutrient cycle Nutrients Peñuelas @en