[Ecological and physiological mechanisms of growth decline of Robinia pseudoacacia plantations in the Loess Plateau of China: A review.]

Robinia pseudoacacia has been widely planted in the Loess Plateau of China for soil and water conservation. The growth decline of R. pseudoacacia plantations has become a recently emerging challenge for the revegetation program and sustainable forest management in this region. As to the scientific definition, identified criteria and quantitative indices have not yet been comprehensively quantified, our current understanding of the ecological and physiological mechanisms for growth decline of R. pseudoacacia plantations is limited. The knowledge could enrich the basic theories of vegetation restoration and benefit the sustainable development of the afforestation project in the Loess Plateau. Through the comprehensive compilation of literatures on forest decline and tree mortality in the Loess Plateau and other regions across the world, this review summarized the mechanisms and recent research progress on growth decline for R. pseudoacacia plantations in the Loess Plateau, primarily demonstrated from ecological (e.g., climatic change, soil desiccation, the imbalance of community structure and the misconduct of forest management) and physiological (e.g., hydraulic failure, carbon starvation, genetic and molecular regulation) perspectives. Finally, we highlighted the research gap with regard to growth decline of R. pseudoacacia plantations in the Loess Plateau.刺槐是黄土高原广泛栽植的水土保持树种,然而人工刺槐林的树木个体生长衰退已经成为该区域开展植被恢复建设、实现森林可持续经营所面临的重大生态环境问题之一.目前人工刺槐林生长衰退的定义、界定标准、量化指标尚未形成统一标准.探讨刺槐生长衰退的机理不仅是植被恢复的理论基础,也是退耕还林还草工程持续开展的直接需求,具有实际价值和研究意义.通过汇集相关研究文献,综合国际和黄土高原关于森林生长衰退、死亡率增加的研究,从生态学(气候变化、土壤干化、群落结构失调、森林经营管理不当)和树木生理学(水力学故障、碳饥饿、遗传及分子调节)两个角度概述了黄土高原人工刺槐林生长衰退的机制以及取得的研究进展.最后提出黄土高原人工刺槐林生长衰退研究的不足,并对未来研究进行展望.