DOI: 10.5061/dryad.h70rxwdtf
title: Linking fine-root diameter across root orders with climatic, biological and edaphic factors in the Northern Hemisphere

description: The importance of fine-root diameter for ecosystem functioning is
 increasingly recognized, yet much remains to be learned about the
 variation in fine-root diameter at large scales. We conducted an analysis
 of fine-root diameter for five root orders for 1,163 plant species to
 detect patterns in relation to resource availability (e.g. carbon,
 nitrogen, water and net primary production (NPP)), stress intensity (e.g.
 plant/soil biodiversity and soil bulk density) and temperature. First- to
 fourth-order root diameters showed non-linear relationships with mean
 annual temperature (except for first-order root diameter) and/or with
 latitude. The diameters of the five root orders decreased with increasing
 mean annual precipitation, but increased with greater NPP, which was the
 strongest determinant of fine-root diameter. Increasing soil biodiversity
 was associated with decreasing diameters of fourth- and fifth-order roots,
 while greater plant biodiversity was associated with decreasing diameters
 of first- to third-order roots. Soil total nitrogen concentration had a
 positive effect on first-order root diameter but a negative effect on
 fourth- and fifth-order root diameters. The patterns reversed for soil
 total phosphorus concentration. First- to third-order and fifth-order root
 diameters increased with greater soil bulk density. Second- to
 fourth-order root diameters increased with higher soil pH. Overall, the
 variables related to climatic, biological and edaphic factors explained
 44% to 63% of the total variance in the diameters of the different root
 orders. The unique patterns of plasticity observed in fine-root diameter
 across root orders in response to varying environmental conditions
 contributes to a diversification of plant strategies for nutrient/water
 acquisition and transport under climate change.
description: # Linking fine-root diameter across root orders with climatic, biological
 and edaphic factors in the Northern Hemisphere
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.h70rxwdtf](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.h70rxwdtf) ## Description of the data and file structure | Source | Database source | | :------------------------------------------------------------------ | :---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | References | References of data | | Order | Root order (unitless)  | | Lat | Latitude of site (decimal degree) | | Lon | Longitude of site  (decimal degree) | | SB | Soil Biodiversity (unitless, describing the level of diversity of organisms living in the soil) | | PB | Plant Biodiversity (unitless, describing the species richness of native plants) | | BIOME | Biome types (unitless) | | TN | soil total nitrogen concentration (%, scale factor 0.01) | | TP | Soil total phosphorus concentration (%, scale factor 0.0001) | | BD | Bulk density of soils at 0–30 cm soil depth (g cm-3, scale factor 0.01) | | pH | Soil pH (scale factor 0.1) | | RD | Root diameter (mm) | | MAT | Mean annual temperature (℃) | | MAP | Mean annual precipitation (mm) | | NPP | Net primary production  (g dry matter m-2 year-1) | | Notes：the other details of variables will be found in our article.  | |