2026-10-13T03:02:35Z https://api.figshare.com/v2/oai

oai:figshare.com:article/32353257 2026-10-02T01:34:00Z category_25942 item_type_3 month_year_10_2026

A High-Resolution Gridded Dataset of Vertically Resolved Fine Root Biomass From 2005 to 2025 Across China Wenlu Zheng (23949933) Min Zhao (23950215) Woheng Li (23950217) Deshuai Zhang (21705728) Weihua Tang (21701627) Junshen Luo (23950224) Shuning Jiao (23950228) Fengtai Li (23950260) Haicheng Zhang (21660679) Other earth sciences not elsewhere classified fine root biomass FRB China fine root vertical distribution <p dir="ltr">Fine root plays a critical role in ecosystem biogeochemical cycles, serving as the primary organs for water and nutrient uptake and exhibiting rapid turnover. However, a reliable, spatially explicit dataset of fine root biomass (FRB) across soil profiles and vegetation types remains lacking. To address this knowledge gap, we compiled 2,311 in-situ measurements of woody FRB density and 3,580 measurements of herbaceous FRB from peer-reviewed studies across China. Using these observations, we developed random forest models to predict surface-layer (0–20 cm) FRB density and the vertical attenuation coefficient (k) of FRB for woody and herbaceous ecosystems, respectively. By integrating these models, we finally generated a gridded dataset of FRB density across 0–2 m soil depth (at 20 cm intervals) at 1 km spatial resolution for all woody and herbaceous ecosystems in China over the period 2005–2025. Model evaluation demonstrates the developed models explains approximately 86% and 81% variations in surface FRB densities across woody and herbaceous ecosystems, respectively. Woody plants exhibit deeper root distributions in arid regions, whereas herbaceous species show consistently surface-concentrated rooting patterns across climate zones. The controlling factors of surface FRB density also differ between vegetation types: woody FRB density is primarily influenced by root traits and nutrient availability, while herbaceous FRB is more strongly regulated by climatic conditions. In contrast, the vertical distribution of woody FRB is mainly governed by species richness and aridity, whereas that of herbaceous FRB is controlled by soil texture, elevation, and temperature. In addition, environmental change over the past two decades has notably altered both the total amount and the vertical distribution patterns of FRB across China. The dataset developed in this study provides a new observationally constrained benchmark for understanding belowground carbon dynamics.</p> 2026-10-02T01:34:00Z Dataset Dataset 10.6084/m9.figshare.32353257.v1 https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/A_High-Resolution_Gridded_Dataset_of_Vertically_Resolved_Fine_Root_Biomass_From_2005_to_2025_Across_China/32353257 CC BY 4.0