Data from: Do soil biota influence the outcome of novel interactions between plant competitors? ...

• Main Authors: Cardinaux, Aline, Hart, Simon, Alexander, Jake, Alexander, Jake M., Hart, Simon P.
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: Dryad 2019
• Subjects: Poa alpina; novel interactions; Plantago lanceolata; Poa trivialis; coexistence; Plantago alpina; range shift
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.63888v0; https://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.63888v0

1. Species are shifting their ranges, for example to higher elevations, in response to climate change. Different plant species and soil microbiota will likely shift their ranges at different rates, giving rise to novel communities of plants and soil organisms. However, the ecological consequences of such novel plant-soil interactions are poorly understood. We experimentally simulated scenarios for novel interactions arising between high- and low elevation plants and soil biota following asynchronous climate change range shifts, asking to what extent the ability of plants to coexist depends on the origin of the soil biota. 2. In a greenhouse experiment, we grew pairs of low- (Poa trivialis and Plantago lanceolata) and high- (Poa alpina and Plantago alpina) elevation plant species alone and against a density gradient of con- or heterospecific neighbours. Plants grew on sterilized field soil that was inoculated with a soil community sampled from either low- or high elevation in the western Swiss Alps. We used ... : Cardinaux_etal_DATAData on the growth and competitive neighbourhoods of four plant species growing in pots in a greenhouse in Lausanne, Switzerland. Full details of experimental design, analysis and results are in the manuscript of Cardinaux et al. 2018. ...