2025-03-01 JOURNAL OF INTEGRATIVE AGRICULTURE 2025 24(卷), 3(期), (845-858页)
Tibetan alpine steppes are large and sensitive terrestrial carbon (C) reservoirs that are experiencing desertification due to global change and overgrazing, which can lead to stronger resource limitations for both above- and belowground communities. Soil nutrients, especially nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), are the crucial resources for plant growth and microbial metabolism. However, whether both plant and soil microbial communities in the degraded alpine steppes are limited by these soil nutrients remains unclear, which limits our understanding of the mechanisms of desertification and subsequent ecosystem restoration. Here, we evaluated potential nutrient limitations of the plant and soil microbial communities in the alpine steppe across five stages of desertification using stoichiometry-based approaches. Our results showed that soil microbial metabolism was mainly limited by C and P, and the plant N limitation and microbial C limitation were intensified while the microbial P limitation was relieved during desertification. Plant-soil-microbe interactions had significant impacts on the microbial C and P limitations, explaining 72 and