Fine and coarse roots of Pinus ponderosa trees: contributions to belowground carbon and nitrogen pools
4 affiliations
- 1Department of Biotechnology and Life Science, University of Insubria
- 2Department of Biosciences, Biotechnology and Environment, University of Bari Aldo Moro
- 3Department of Biosciences and Territory, University of Molise
- 4United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station
Abstract
The fine, coarse, and tap roots of 32-year-old Pinus ponderosa growing at 1075 trees ha ⁻¹ in the Rocky Mountains of Idaho, USA, had biomass of 4.6, 42.2, and 27.8 Mg ha ⁻¹ , respectively, containing 34 Mg carbon ha ⁻¹ and 125 kg nitrogen ha ⁻¹ . Compared with these direct measurements, the base equations used in the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Vegetation Simulator use a higher carbon concentration (50%) but generate a lower total biomass (52.4 vs 74.7 Mg ha ⁻¹ ). Measuring root systems is complex and challenging, so this result is unsurprising given the few studies available for models that sampled belowground tree biomass compared to those for aboveground traits. Moreover, belowground root traits, including those of fine roots observed in this study, vary across a range of genetic, edaphic, and/or silvicultural factors. Thus, recent calls to improve forest carbon modeling requests that researchers prioritize increasing the sampling and reporting of belowground biomass. These data contribute to that effort.
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BibTeX
@article{montagnoli2026fine,
title = {{Fine and coarse roots of Pinus ponderosa trees: contributions to belowground carbon and nitrogen pools}},
author = {Antonio Montagnoli and Mattia Terzaghi and Bruno Lasserre and Donato Chiatante and R. Kasten Dumroese},
journal = {Frontiers in Plant Science},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fpls.2026.1969066},
url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2026.1969066/full},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Fine and coarse roots of Pinus ponderosa trees: contributions to belowground carbon and nitrogen pools
AU - Antonio Montagnoli
AU - Mattia Terzaghi
AU - Bruno Lasserre
AU - Donato Chiatante
AU - R. Kasten Dumroese
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/21
JO - Frontiers in Plant Science
DO - 10.3389/fpls.2026.1969066
UR - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2026.1969066/full
AB - The fine, coarse, and tap roots of 32-year-old Pinus ponderosa growing at 1075 trees ha ⁻¹ in the Rocky Mountains of Idaho, USA, had biomass of 4.6, 42.2, and 27.8 Mg ha ⁻¹ , respectively, containing 34 Mg carbon ha ⁻¹ and 125 kg nitrogen ha ⁻¹ . Compared with these direct measurements, the base equations used in the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Vegetation Simulator use a higher carbon concentration (50%) but generate a lower total biomass (52.4 vs 74.7 Mg ha ⁻¹ ). Measuring root systems is complex and challenging, so this result is unsurprising given the few studies available for models that sampled belowground tree biomass compared to those for aboveground traits. Moreover, belowground root traits, including those of fine roots observed in this study, vary across a range of genetic, edaphic, and/or silvicultural factors. Thus, recent calls to improve forest carbon modeling requests that researchers prioritize increasing the sampling and reporting of belowground biomass. These data contribute to that effort.
SN - 1664-462X
ER -