Decoupling of nutrient element cycles in soil and plants across an altitude gradient

Previous studies have examined the decoupling of C, N, and P under rapid changes in climate. While this may occur in different environment types, such climactic changes have been reported over short distances in mountainous terrain. We hypothesized that the decoupling of C, N, and P could also occur in response to increases in altitude. We sampled soil and plants from Mount Gongga, Sichuan Province, China. Soil C and N were not related to altitude, whereas soil P increased with altitude. Soil N did not change with mean annual temperature (MAT), mean annual precipitation (MAP), vegetation and soil types, whereas soil P varied with MAT and vegetation type. Plant C remained constant with increasing altitude; plant N exhibited a quadratic change trend along the altitude gradient, with a turning point at 2350 m above average sea level; and plant P decreased with altitude. MAP mostly accounted for the variation in plant P. MAT was responsible for the variation of plant N at elevations below 2350 m, whereas MAT and vegetation type were the dominant influential factors of plants growing above 2350 m. Thus, the decoupling of C, N, and P in both soil and plants was significantly affected by altitude.