Climate change has a significant impact on the growth and distribution of vegetation worldwide. Hydrangea macrophylla is widely distributed and considered a model species for studying the distribution and responses of shrub plants under climate change. These results can inform decision‐making regarding shrub plant protection, management, and introduction of germplasm resources, and are of great importance for formulating ecological countermeasures to climate change in the future. We used the maximum entropy model to predict the change, scope expansion/reduction, centroid movement, and dominant climate factors that restrict the growth and distribution of H. macrophylla in China under current and future climate change scenarios. It was found that both precipitation and temperature affect the distribution of suitable habitat for H. macrophylla. Akaike information criterion (AICc) was used to select the feature combination (FC) and the regularization multiplier (RM). After the establishment of the optimal model (FC = QP, RM = 0.5), the complexity and over‐fitting degree of the model were low (delta AICc = 0, omission rate = 0.026, difference between training and testing area under the curve values = 0.0009), indicating that it had high accuracy in predicting the potential geographical distribution of H. macrophylla (area under the curve = 0.979). Overall, from the current period to future, the potential suitable habitat of this species in China expanded to the north. The greenhouse effect caused by an increase in CO₂ emissions would not only increase the area of high‐suitability habitat in Central China, but also expand the area of total suitable habitat in the north. Under the maximum greenhouse gas emission scenario (RCP8.5), the migration distance of the centroid was the longest (e.g., By 2070s, the centroids of total and highly suitable areas have shifted 186.15 km and 89.84 km, respectively).

Background: Liriope muscari (Decne.) L.H. Bailey is a valuable horticultural and medicinal plant that grows under a range of light intensities, from high to low, in the understories of shrubs. To understand how this species adapts to these various environments, we selected two groups of lilyturf growing under poplar trees at two different spacings. Each group was divided into three types, open field, forest edge and shaded forest with high, medium and low irradiance levels, respectively, and then we examined their photosynthetic characteristics, physiology and biomasses. Results: Light saturation point, light compensation point and in situ net photosynthetic rate (P_N) were highest in lilyturf growing under high light. In contrast, lilyturf growing under low light had a higher apparent quantum yield and Chl a and b contents, indicating that they adapted to low light. Although the leaves of lilyturf growing under low light were small, their root tubers were heavier. Conclusions: The research demonstrates the eco-physiological basis of lilyturf’s shade adaptation mechanism as indicated by photosynthetic activity, chlorophyll fluorescence, Chl a, Chl b and Car contents when grown under different irradiances. We believe that lilyturf is a shade-tolerant plant suitable for planting in undergrowth, but attention should be paid to the canopy density of the forest when interplanting. The findings presented here advance our understanding of the photosynthetic characteristics of understory plants and may assist in the optimization of irradiances in the future.

To investigate the impacts of various foliar fertilization levels on the carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium content in Chinese fir cuttings, along with their ecological stoichiometry ratios, we selected pruned dwarf Chinese fir clones exhibiting different seed-setting abilities as our subjects. These clones were categorized into high-yield (group A), middle-yield (group B), and low-yield (group C) categories for nutrient assessment. Employing nine treatments of diverse fertilizers and hormones, in addition to a water control (CK), we analyzed and compared the changes in the carbon (C), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) contents in the needles of Chinese fir clones from groups A, B, and C between 2021 and 2022. The results indicated no significant variations in the N content and C:N ratios in July among the three seed-setting characteristic Chinese fir types. However, the P content in the high-yield clones was notably higher than that in the other two types, whereas the K content was significantly lower. Following two years of continuous foliar spraying, treatments T5, T6, T8, and T9 demonstrated efficacy in enhancing the nutrient levels of branches in high-yield clones (with N content increasing by 25.07%, P content by 79.06%, and K content by 12.71%), consequently improving cone quality (as the number of cones increased by up to 256). For middle-yield clones, treatments T3, T6, and T9 exhibited promising outcomes, with respective increases in the N content, P content, and K content by 13.15%, 56.61%, and 41.31%, alongside a rise in cone number by 212. In the case of low-yield clones, the treatments T3, T4, and T5 proved effective, with increases in the N, P, and K contents by 18.54%, 36.57%, and 26.56%, respectively, as well as an increase in cone number by 82. Most treatments exhibited higher C:N ratios than the control in Chinese fir needles, whereas the N:P ratios remained below 14, indicating N limitations in the growth of Chinese fir clones. The application of N fertilizer enhanced the C:N ratios in Chinese fir needles, thereby improving nutrient absorption and utilization efficiency. Therefore, in the fertilization process of Chinese fir, tailored formulas should be employed based on the seed-setting characteristics and management objectives to achieve optimal yield enhancement.

The phenotypic characteristics of forest seeds are the basis of germplasm innovation, genetic improvement, and biological research, and they also are the reference for the development of seed orchards. In this study, we analyzed seed quantity characteristics, phenotypic differentiation, and variation patterns in three seed-bearing clones from different crown layers of the Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata (Lamb.) Hook) orchard located in Fujian Province, China. We divided the clones into six layers according to crown height and the sunny and shady sides, 14 phenotypic characteristics, and five quality indexes, and we measured the germination rate of seeds. The rate of seeds filled with tannin-like substance in the upper sunny layer was low, but it was high in the lower shady layer. The germination rate was highest in the upper sunny layer and lower in the middle and lower shady sides. Values of most of the 14 phenotypic traits tested differed significantly among clones and layers. The average value of the phenotypic differentiation coefficient was 81.16%, indicating that variation among clones explained most of the total phenotypic variation. The repeatability of the 14 phenotypic traits was high (R > 0.80), indicating that these traits are highly heritable. The phenotypic characteristics of cones and seeds varied from 6.86% to 129.51%. The 14 phenotypic traits exhibited different degrees of correlation, and seed weight, seed circumference, seed width, and seed area can be used to predict other seed traits. However, the correlations between cone traits were not strong. Our results show that when establishing a dwarfing Chinese fir seed orchard, the distribution and variation of seeds in different crown layers of clones should be considered, and clones with more cones in the lower crown layer should be selected as parents.

The mechanisms through which forest thinning influences the fine root foraging strategies of coexisting tree species in mixed forests remain unclear, limiting our ability to manage mixed forests for long-term productivity. We employed a space-for-time substitution approach in a Qinling pine-oak forest, in which fine roots of Pinus tabuliformis (Pt) and Quercus aliena var. acuteserrata (Qa) were sampled from unthinned plots and plots thinned 6 years (transient phase) and 14 years (persistent phase) prior, respectively. We analyzed the morphological and chemical traits of both absorptive and transport fine roots (0–20 cm depth) to decipher their distinct adaptation strategies. The results showed that Pt enhanced morphological plasticity in both absorptive and transport roots at T₂₀₁₀ (e.g., specific root length: +44% and 37%, p < 0.05). In contrast, Qa showed minimal changes in absorptive root morphology and chemistry (p > 0.05). Redundancy analysis indicated that thinning intensified functional divergence in root strategies between the two tree species and between the two root functional types (i.e., absorptive vs. transport fine roots). Hierarchical variance partitioning analysis indicated that root functional type was the primary driver (51.9%), with tree species identity (Pt vs. Qa) and thinning practices being secondary. Critically, soil properties significantly shaped absorptive root traits (explaining 10.4% of the variance) but did not affect transport root traits, whereas thinning was a dominant factor for transport roots (21.6%). This insight enables the tailoring of silvicultural interventions to tree species-specific foraging strategies, optimizing belowground resource acquisition in mixed forests.

Background: Liriope muscari (Decne.) L.H. Bailey is a valuable horticultural and medicinal plant that grows under a range of light intensities, from high to low, in the understories of shrubs. To understand how this species adapts to these various environments, we selected two groups of lilyturf growing under poplar trees at two different spacings. Each group was divided into three types, open field, forest edge and shaded forest with high, medium and low irradiance levels, respectively, and then we examined their photosynthetic characteristics, physiology and biomasses. Results: Light saturation point, light compensation point and in situ net photosynthetic rate ( P N ) were highest in lilyturf growing under high light. In contrast, lilyturf growing under low light had a higher apparent quantum yield and Chl a and b contents, indicating that they adapted to low light. Although the leaves of lilyturf growing under low light were small, their root tubers were heavier. Conclusions: The research demonstrates the eco-physiological basis of lilyturf’s shade adaptation mechanism as indicated by photosynthetic activity, chlorophyll fluorescence, Chl a, Chl b and Car contents when grown under different irradiances. We believe that lilyturf is a shade-tolerant plant suitable for planting in undergrowth, but attention should be paid to the canopy density of the forest when interplanting. The findings presented here advance our understanding of the photosynthetic characteristics of understory plants and may assist in the optimization of irradiances in the future.