Table 1. Leaf litter C chemical compositions of the four tree species in subtropical China (means with SE in brackets).
| Leaf litter C chemical composition | P. massoniana | C. lanceolata | C.hystrix | E. fordii |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proportion of alkyl C (%) | 15.2 (0.5) a | 15.4 (0.4) a | 16.7 (0.2) b | 19.3 (0.1) c |
| Proportion of O-alkyl C (%) | 60.1 (0.6) c | 58.9 (0.7) c | 56.2 (0.1) b | 53.0 (0.1) a |
| Proportion of aromatic C (%) | 18.2 (0.5) a | 18.9 (0.1) a | 19.8 (0.2) b | 18.3 (0.1) a |
| Proportion of carbonyl C (%) | 6.5 (0.5) a | 6.8 (0.2) a | 7.4 (0.1) a | 9.5 (0.1) b |
| Alkyl/O-alkyl C | 0.25 (0.01) a | 0.26 (0.01) a | 0.30 (0.01) b | 0.36 (0.01) c |
Different lowercase letters indicate significant differences among different tree species at p < 0.05 (n = 3).