Table 2.
Plant and soil characteristics in the control period and different periods of extreme drought in 2019.
| Variables | Early drought | Midterm drought | Late drought | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CK | ED | CK | MD | CK | LD | |
| SBM (g m−2) | 351.77 ± 16.00a | 349.4 ± 9.99a | 351.44 ± 15.68a | 287.04 ± 9.26b | 350.77 ± 16.73a | 342.41 ± 24.58a |
| Coverage (%) | 48.33 ± 8.33a | 86.67 ± 3.33b | 48.33 ± 8.33a | 56.67 ± 8.33a | 48.33 ± 8.33a | 65 ± 8.66a |
| Species no. | 6 ± 0a | 5.67 ± 0.67a | 6 ± 0a | 6.33 ± 0.88a | 6 ± 0a | 6.33 ± 0.58a |
| SWC (%) | 60.13 ± 0.33a | 54.47 ± 1.88b | 61.7 ± 0.8a | 59.37 ± 1.55a | 69.63 ± 0.5a | 66.7 ± 1.45a |
| pH | 7.73 ± 0.07a | 7.83 ± 0.03a | 7.73 ± 0.03a | 7.87 ± 0.09a | 7.8 ± 0.06a | 7.9 ± 0.06a |
| SOC (g kg−1) | 215.42 ± 19.75a | 203.59 ± 28.56a | 241.2 ± 6.59a | 218.48 ± 21.01a | 257 ± 13.18a | 248.16 ± 13.14a |
| DOC (mg kg−1) | 293.93 ± 14.86a | 300.55 ± 12.98a | 305.49 ± 78.29a | 359.57 ± 72.99a | 374.89 ± 14.72a | 379 ± 22.8a |
| MBC (mg kg−1) | 394.69 ± 59.35a | 385.56 ± 53.63a | 441.9 ± 4.54a | 383.66 ± 55.62a | 444.78 ± 11.14a | 446.11 ± 7.09a |
| TN (g kg−1) | 15.51 ± 0.48a | 16.33 ± 0.15a | 17.43 ± 6.37a | 22.63 ± 3.45a | 25.7 ± 1.85a | 26.87 ± 2.87a |
| NH (mg kg−1) | 11.69 ± 0.17a | 11.05 ± 0.79a | 11.91 ± 0.11a | 11.95 ± 0.36a | 12.4 ± 0.33a | 12.45 ± 0.22a |
| NO (mg kg−1) | 6.36 ± 0.77a | 4.75 ± 1.38a | 6.55 ± 0.31a | 6.17 ± 0.15a | 6.55 ± 0.35a | 6.88 ± 1.22a |
| MBN (mg kg−1) | 73.41 ± 1.49a | 71.54 ± 1.36a | 70.39 ± 1.94a | 74.03 ± 1.7a | 73.4 ± 1.77a | 75.08 ± 0.22a |
| TP (g kg−1) | 1.3 ± 0.06a | 1.49 ± 0.11a | 1.43 ± 0.03a | 1.5 ± 0.05a | 1.46 ± 0.08a | 1.19 ± 0.29a |
| AP (mg kg−1) | 40.5 ± 2.32a | 33.46 ± 9.64a | 23.9 ± 5.1a | 29 ± 5.67a | 43.03 ± 4.6a | 57.06 ± 3.98a |
| MBP (mg kg−1) | 34.15 ± 6.97a | 31.9 ± 6.65a | 39 ± 0.79a | 35.57 ± 3.05a | 39.5 ± 1.93a | 39.73 ± 1.23a |
SBM, standing biomass; Species No., number of species; SWC, average soil water content during each extreme-drought period; SOC, soil organic carbon; DOC, dissolved organic carbon; MBC, microbial biomass carbon; TN, soil total nitrogen; MBN, microbial biomass nitrogen; TP, soil total phosphorus; AP, available phosphorus; MBP, microbial biomass phosphorus; ED, early drought; MD, midterm drought; LD, late drought; CK, the ambient control treatment corresponding to each stage of extreme-drought treatment. Different letters indicate a remarkable difference between the control and extreme drought treatments (p <0.05). Relevant data are indicated by the mean ± standard error (n = 3).