Data from: Zinc addition and mowing alter the timing and duration of reproductive phenology in dominant plants of a meadow steppe
Data files
Jul 16, 2026 version files 31.60 KB
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Phenology-FE-ForDryad_revised.xlsx
26.41 KB
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README.md
5.18 KB
Abstract
Plant phenology, while genetically determined, is highly responsive to environmental drivers such as soil nutrient availability and disturbance. As an essential micronutrient, zinc (Zn) plays a critical role in plant development by regulating key processes including RNA polymerase function, auxin synthesis, and antioxidant defense. We investigated how Zn addition and mowing disturbance influence the reproductive phenology of six dominant plants in an Inner Mongolian meadow steppe. Over three years, we applied Zn (0.5 g m-2 yr-1) and simulated foraging via mowing in a factorial experiment. Our results revealed strong, yet species-specific, responses. Zn addition advanced reproductive timing in grasses (e.g., Leymus chinensis shortened its flowering by 6 days and prolonged fruiting by 8 days) but delayed all reproductive phases in forbs (e.g., by 4-10 days in Thalictrum petaloideum and 16-25 days in Potentilla bifurca). The phenology of the late-flowering forb Serratula centauroides and the early-flowering sedge Carex duriuscula was largely unaffected by Zn addition. Mowing generally delayed or shortened reproductive phases in grasses and forbs but advanced them in S. centauroides and C. duriuscula. Causal analyses indicated that Zn effects were mediated through changes in superoxide dismutase activity, soluble sugar concentration, and chlorophyll content, whereas mowing effects were primarily driven by alterations in soil water content and light conditions. Thus, the interactive effects of Zn and mowing arise from a complex interplay between carbon metabolism, antioxidant defense, photosynthesis, and water use. Synthesis. These species-specific phenological shifts to soil Zn availability and disturbance suggest that changes in these drivers could potentially alter plant community structure by differentially affecting the reproductive success of functional groups.
Dataset DOI: 10.5061/dryad.0p2ngf2hb
Description of the data and file structure
This dataset contains plot-level reproductive phenology data used to evaluate how zinc addition, mowing, and their combination affected the timing and duration of reproductive phenology in six dominant plant species in a meadow steppe. Observations were made during the growing seasons of 2022–2024.
Experimental context
The data were collected from a long-term field experiment in a meadow steppe in northeastern Inner Mongolia, China. Four treatments from a factorial zinc-addition × mowing design are represented, with six independent replicate plots per treatment:
CK: control; no zinc addition and no mowing.Zn: zinc addition only (0.5 g Zn m-2 yr-1, applied as ZnSO4·7H2O); no mowing.M: mowing only (annual mowing with a 10 cm stubble height); no zinc addition.MZn: combined zinc addition and mowing at the rates described above.
Reproductive phenology was observed approximately every 5 days from May to September in 2022, 2023, and 2024.
Description of the data and file structure
File: Phenology-FE-ForDryad_revised.xlsx
The workbook contains two worksheets:
Data: phenological observations. It contains 288 data rows plus one header row: 3 years × 4 treatments × 6 replicate plots × 4 phenological-event categories.README: a detailed data dictionary and experimental description.
Each row of the Data worksheet represents one Year × Treat × replicate plot × Timing combination. Within each Year × Treat × Timing group, the six consecutive rows represent Blocks 1–6 in that order.
The numerical values in the six plant-species columns (Ley, Sti, Tha, Ser, Pot, and Car) are plot-level phenological dates expressed as day of year (DOY), where DOY 1 is 1 January of the corresponding Year. Decimal DOY values are plot-level means obtained when event dates from multiple observed individuals or ramets within a plot were averaged; they do not indicate sub-daily observation resolution.
The Timing value determines the event represented by every species value in the same row. For example, if Timing = FlOn, all six species values in that row are flowering-onset dates in DOY.
Flowering duration can be calculated for the same year, treatment, block, and species as FlEnd − FlOn (days). Fruiting duration can be calculated as FrEnd − FrOn (days).
Variable descriptions
| Variable | Type | Unit or categories | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Year |
Integer | 2022, 2023, 2024 | Calendar year of observation. |
Treat |
Categorical | CK, Zn, M, MZn | Experimental treatment; definitions are given above. |
Ley |
Numeric | DOY | Phenological date for Leymus chinensis; event is specified by Timing. |
Sti |
Numeric | DOY | Phenological date for Stipa krylovii; event is specified by Timing. |
Tha |
Numeric | DOY | Phenological date for Thalictrum petaloideum; event is specified by Timing. |
Ser |
Numeric | DOY | Phenological date for Serratula centauroides; event is specified by Timing. |
Pot |
Numeric | DOY | Phenological date for Potentilla bifurca; event is specified by Timing. |
Car |
Numeric | DOY | Phenological date for Carex duriuscula; event is specified by Timing. |
Timing |
Categorical | FlOn, FlEnd, FrOn, FrEnd | Reproductive phenological-event category. |
Timing key
FlOn: onset of flowering, expressed as DOY.FlEnd: end of flowering, expressed as DOY.FrOn: onset of fruiting, expressed as DOY.FrEnd: end of fruiting, expressed as DOY.
Missing data
The Data worksheet contains no blank measurement cells and uses no special missing-value codes such as NA, -999, or 0.
Reuse notes
Do not interpret row number as a measurement date. Use Year, Treat, replicate/block order, and Timing together to identify observations. All six species columns use the same unit, DOY; Treat and Timing are categorical and have no physical unit.
Code/software
The data files are provided in Microsoft Excel (.xlsx) format and can be viewed using free or open-source software such as LibreOffice Calc. Statistical analyses were conducted in R version 4.4.2 using RStudio. The main R packages used included lme4, lmerTest, emmeans, ggplot2, dplyr, tidyr, readxl, lavaan, and vegan. No code or scripts are included in this data submission.
Access information
Other publicly accessible locations of the data:
- Not applicable.
Data was derived from the following sources:
- Not applicable.