Ecosystem restoration and belowground multifunctionality: A network view

Ecological restoration is essential to reverse land degradation worldwide. Most studies have assessed the restoration of ecosystem functions individually, as opposed to a holistic view. Here we developed a network-based ecosystem multifunctionality (EMF) framework to identify key functions in evaluating EMF restoration. Through synthesizing 293 restoration studies (2900 observations) following cropland abandonment, we found that individual soil functions played different roles in determining the restoration of belowground EMF. Soil carbon, total nitrogen, and phosphatase were key functions to predict the recovery of belowground EMF. On average, abandoned cropland recovered similar to 19% of EMF during 18 years. The restoration of EMF became larger with longer recovery time and higher humidity index, but lower with increasing soil depth and initial soil carbon. Overall, this study presents a network-based EMF framework, effectively helping to evaluate the success of ecosystem restoration and identify the key functions.

Automated summary

This study developed a network-based framework to evaluate ecosystem multifunctionality (EMF) restoration. Through synthesizing 293 restoration studies, it was found that soil carbon, total nitrogen, and phosphatase were key functions in predicting the recovery of belowground EMF. The study also revealed that abandoned cropland recovered an average of 19% of EMF during 18 years, with restoration becoming larger with longer recovery time and higher humidity index, but lower with increasing soil depth and initial soil carbon.