Editorial: Root functional traits: From fine root to community-level variation

Abstract

[ES] Plant roots perform multiple essential functions defining plant ecological success and ecosystem functioning. For instance, roots are vital for plant nutrient and water uptake, thus regulating net primary production and nutrient cycling (Freschet et al., 2021). In the last decade, the adoption and advancement of a functional trait approach has greatly improved our understanding of root ecology, evidenced by the recent increase of global syntheses on root trait research (e.g., Freschet et al., 2018; Bergmann et al., 2020; Carmona et al., 2021; Freschet et al., 2021). However, there are still gaps and controversy in our understanding of root trait–functioning relationships (Freschet et al., 2021). Roots display a wide diversity of morphologies and symbiotic associations (i.e., with mycorrhizal fungi and rhizobium), which has made it challenging to seek general patterns across the diverse taxa that inhabit different ecological conditions worldwide (Ma et al., 2018). In this special issue, we bring together studies on root ecology that tackle important unresolved questions and emerging topics, which collectively highlight new knowledge and critical knowledge gaps in belowground ecology