Implementing belowground controls on nutrient  uptake in ELMv2-SPRUCE improves representation of   a boreal peatland ecosystem

Wang, Yaoping; Ricciuto, Daniel M.; Mao, Jiafu; Weber, Sören E.; Salmon, Verity G.; Shi, Xiaoying; Yang, Xiaojuan; Griffiths, Natalie A.; Hanson, Paul J.; Walker, Anthony P.; Stelling, Jonathan; Duchesneau, Katherine; Defrenne, Camille E.; Warren, Jeffrey M.; Sebestyen, Stephen D.; Pearson, Kyle J.; Oleheiser, Keith; Birkebak, Joshua M.; Guilliams, Mark; Krassovski, Misha B.; Mayes, Melanie A.; Thornton, Peter E.

doi:10.5194/gmd-19-5827-2026

Articles | Volume 19, issue 13

https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-19-5827-2026

© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-19-5827-2026

© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 19, issue 13

Model description paper

|

02 Jul 2026

Model description paper |

| 02 Jul 2026

Implementing belowground controls on nutrient uptake in ELMv2-SPRUCE improves representation of a boreal peatland ecosystem

Yaoping Wang, Daniel M. Ricciuto, Jiafu Mao, Sören E. Weber, Verity G. Salmon, Xiaoying Shi, Xiaojuan Yang, Natalie A. Griffiths, Paul J. Hanson, Anthony P. Walker, Jonathan Stelling, Katherine Duchesneau, Camille E. Defrenne, Jeffrey M. Warren, Stephen D. Sebestyen, Kyle J. Pearson, Keith Oleheiser, Joshua M. Birkebak, Mark Guilliams, Misha B. Krassovski, Melanie A. Mayes, and Peter E. Thornton

Supplement

https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-19-5827-2026-supplement

Data sets

SPRUCE whole ecosystems warming (WEW) environmental data beginning August 2015 P. J. Hanson et al. https://doi.org/10.3334/CDIAC/spruce.032

SPRUCE plot-level water table data assessments for absolute elevations and height with respect to mean hollows beginning in 2015 P. J. Hanson et al. https://doi.org/10.25581/spruce.079/1608615

SPRUCE shrub-layer growth assessments in S1-bog plots and SPRUCE experimental plots beginning in 2010 P. J. Hanson et al. https://doi.org/10.25581/spruce.052/1433837

SPRUCE tree growth assessments of Picea and Larix in S1-bog plots and SPRUCE experimental plots beginning in 2011 P. J. Hanson et al. https://doi.org/10.25581/spruce.051/1433836

SPRUCE production and chemistry of newly-grown fine roots assessed using root ingrowth cores in SPRUCE experimental plots beginning in 2014 A. Malhotra et al. https://doi.org/10.25581/spruce.077/1607860

SPRUCE: Sphagnum productivity and community composition in the SPRUCE experimental plots R. J. Norby and J. Childs https://doi.org/10.25581/spruce.049/1426474

SPRUCE: Carbon dioxide and methane soil flux measurements at high temporal resolution, beginning in 2022 J. M. Stelling et al. https://doi.org/10.25581/spruce.104/1922635

SPRUCE porewater chemistry data for experimental plots, beginning in 2013 N. A. Griffiths et al. https://doi.org/10.3334/CDIAC/spruce.028

SPRUCE plant-available nutrients assessed with ion-exchange resins in experimental plots, beginning in 2013 C. M. Iversen et al. https://doi.org/10.3334/CDIAC/spruce.036

SPRUCE root tip and ectomycorrhizal fungi colonization measurements from ingrowth cores, 2017 K. Duchesneau et al. https://doi.org/10.25581/spruce.119/2476173

Model code and software

Analysis code accompanying ELM-MYCI development and SPRUCE site simulations Y. Wang https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17584835

ELM source code for SPRUCE site simulations using the default model structure and mycorrhizal-implicit model structure Y. Wang and D. M. Ricciuto https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17582789

Energy Exascale Earth System Model (Version 3.0.1) E3SM Project https://doi.org/10.11578/E3SM/dc.20240930.1

Short summary

Boreal peatlands store much of the global soil carbon and the service is closely related to nutrient cycling. This study improved a major land surface model to better represent how plants gain nitrogen and phosphorus through fine roots and mycorrhizal association. The new model more accurately captured observed carbon fluxes than the default model at an experimental site in Minnesota, and suggests shifts in nutrient uptake strategy mitigates transition from carbon sink to source under warming.