DOI: 10.5061/dryad.djh9w0w6z
title: Data from: Plant traits regulated metal(loid)s in dominant herbs in an antimony mining area of the Karst Zone, China

description: Understanding how plant functional traits respond to mining activities and
 impact metal(loid) accumulation in dominant species is crucial for
 exploring the driving mechanisms behind plant community succession and
 predicting the ecological restoration potential of these plants. In this
 study, we investigated four dominant herbaceous species (Artemisia argyi,
 Miscanthus sinensis, Ficus tikoua, and Ageratina Adenophora) growing on
 antimony (Sb) mining sites (MS) with high Sb and arsenic (As) levels, as
 well as non-mining sites (NMS). The aim was to analyze the variations in
 functional traits and their contribution to Sb and As concentrations in
 plants. Our results indicate that mining activities enhanced soil nitrogen
 (N) limitation, phosphorus (P) enrichment, while significantly reducing
 the plant height of three species, except for F. tikoua. The four species
 absorbed more calcium (Ca) to ensure higher tolerance to Sb and As levels,
 which is related to the activation of Ca signaling pathways and defense
 mechanisms. Furthermore, plant Sb and As concentrations were dependent on
 soil metal(loid) levels and plant element stoichiometry. Overall, these
 findings highlight the regulatory role of plant element traits in
 metal(loid) concentrations, warranting widespread attention and further
 study in the future.
description: # Data from: Plant functional traits determine metals accumulation among
 dominant herbaceous species in an antimony mining of Karst Zone, China
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.djh9w0w6z](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.djh9w0w6z) This dataset is used to analyze the determinants of metals (Sb and As) accumulation in four dominant herbaceous species under mining activity. ## Description of the data and file structure 1. Soil-all: The soil dataset of this study. Site and black are the sampling sites (SK and SFK) and area (mining site and no-mining site). SWC, soil water content (%); pH, soil pH; TN, total nitrogen content (g kg-1); TP, total phosphorus content (g kg-1); TK, total potassium content (g kg-1); AN, available nitrogen content (mg kg-1); AP, available phosphorus content (mg kg-1); AK, available potassium content (mg kg-1); TCa, available potassium content (mg kg-1); TSb, total antimony content (mg kg-1); TAs, total arsenic content (mg kg-1); ASb, available antimony content (mg kg-1); AAs, available arsenic content (mg kg-1); ECa, exchangeable calcium content (mg kg-1). CN, C:N ratio; CP, C:P ratio; CCa, C:Ca ratio; NP, N:P ratio; NCa, N:Ca ratio; PCa, P:Ca ratio. 2. plant-trait: Site and black are the sampling sites (SK and SFK) and area (mining site and no-mining site). Species: AC is *Artemisia argyi*; M is *Miscanthus sinensis*; PHC is *Ageratina Adenophora;* DG is *Ficus tikoua*. Height is plant natural height (cm); SLA is plant leaf specific leaf area (mm2 mg-1); LT is plant leaf thickness (mm); LA is plant leaf area (cm2). 3. plant-1-3: The same as plant trait dataset. 4. LnRR-plant-ele-fig-lm: The plant organs (aboveground and underground parts) metals (Sb and As) content, nutrient elements and element ratios. 5. SEM-all-species-data: All data of the soil and species. 6. plant-all-ele: The same as LnRR-plant-ele-fig-lm dataset.