Root stoichiometric dynamics and homeostasis of invasive species Phyllostachys edulis and native species Cunninghamia lanceolata in a subtropical forest in China

The community species abundance and diversity declined with bamboo invasion had been widely reported worldwide. However, the physiological strategies used during root competition between native species and invasive bamboo are poorly understood. To clarify the mechanisms underlying such strategies, the stoichiometric dynamics and homeostasis of nitrogen, phosphorus, organic carbon in root orders of Phyllostachys edulis (I du [=I-Pe, years 1 and 2]; II du [=II-Pe, years 3 and 4]), Cunninghamia lanceolata in transition and pure forests were analyzed. With increasing intensity of bamboo invasion, N, P, and C content of C. lanceolata root orders declined, N and P content in P. edulis rhizome orders declined, while C increased, the stoichiometric ratios in mixed forest interface mainly increased, and the stoichiometric differences within native and invasive species root orders narrowed. Meanwhile, the stoichiometric homeostasis index (H) of elements in the same root order and even the same elements in different root orders were not consistent. H of most root orders (except some HP) was greater than 4, the H ranked order was I-Pe > Cl > II-Pe in mixed interfaces, and the N:P ratio of most species root orders was greater than 16, despite being affected by invasion. Our research concluded that the bamboo invasion narrows stoichiometric differences within root orders, and the juvenile bamboo rhizome has a stronger capacity for homeostatic regulation than in adult bamboo and C. lanceolata, which is a key determinant of bamboo invasion success.