Print PageArtemisia ordosica and A. sphaerocephala are small semi-shrubs used for fixation in desert and semidesert areas in Northwestern China. They are well adapted to sandy arid habitats, through high morphological plasticity. In this study we examined growth responses of A. ordosica and A. sphaerocephala to different soil calcium carbonate (CaCO3) concentrations. Greenhouse-grown saplings subjected to 0, 10, 25, 50 g CaCO3 per kg soil showed dose-dependent changes in habit, biomass accumulation and allocation measured after a period of 5 weeks. CaCO3 concentrations affected root length and root weight by changing the structure and density of the soil matrix. Using a two factor randomized complete block design experiment we showed that average increase of seedling height, root length, and aboveground biomass differed significantly with increasing soil CaCO3 concentrations.
Results/Conclusions
For A. ordisica, the average increase of the seedlings' height, root biomass, and shoot biomass was significantly reduced with increased soil CaCO3 concentrations. For A. sphaerocephala, only the average root biomass increase exhibited significant negative correlation with the increased soil CaCO3 concentrations. Our results demonstrate the phenotypic plasticity of A. ordosica and A. sphaerocephala in response to different soil CaCO3 concentrations, and have important implications for the use of these species to combat soil erosion.
