Mycorrhizal fungi play a critical role in nutrient cycling and ecosystem function. They improve plant growth and survival through a mutualistic relationship in which photosynthates are exchanged for increased access to water and nutrients. Because the benefits realized are not equal among different plant–fungal species combinations, mycorrhizal fungi may help govern plant community structure an...

QUESTIONS Molecular phylogenies are being increasingly used to better understand the mechanisms structuring natural communities. The prevalent theory is that environmental factors and biotic interactions promote the phylogenetic clustering and overdispersion of plant communities, respectively. However, both environmental filtering and biotic interactions are very likely to interact in most natu...

Janzen-Connell effects are negative effects on the survival of a plant's progeny at high conspecific densities or close to its conspecifics. Although the role of Janzen-Connell effects on the maintenance of plant diversity was frequently studied, only few studies targeted Janzen-Connell effects via postdispersal seed predation in temperate grassland systems. We examined effects of conspecific d...