Ecological Archives E089-150-A1

Aidan M. Keith, René van der Wal, Rob W. Brooker, Graham H. R. Osler, Stephen J. Chapman, David F. R. P. Burslem, and David A. Elston. 2008. Increasing litter species richness reduces variability in a terrestrial decomposer system. Ecology 89:2657–2664.

Appendix A. Initial litter properties and litter decomposition for monocultures after 196 and 564 days.

TABLE A1. Initial litter properties (% nitrogen, C:N ratio), and litter decomposition (% mass loss) for monocultures after 196 and 564 days. Different letters within the same column indicate significantly different means (Tukey-contrast, P < 0.05).


Litter species	Initial N (%)	Initial C:N	Mass loss (%) after:

			196 days	564 days

Betula pendula	0.83^b	58.5^b	34.7^c	48.1^b
Pinus sylvestris	0.54^c	92.5^c	27.0^b	54.1^b
Calluna vulgaris	1.16^a	44.6^a	21.9^a	37.4^a
Vaccinium myrtilus	1.27^a	37.9^a	22.4^ab	37.0^a
Deschampsia flexuosa	0.77^b	59.1^b	47.3^d	70.6^c

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