CoupModel (v6.0): An ecosystem model for coupled phosphorus, nitrogen, and carbon dynamics - Evaluated against empirical data from a climatic and fertility gradient in Sweden

Abstract

This study presents the integration of the phosphorus (P) cycle into CoupModel (v6.0, referred to as Coup-CNP). The extended Coup-CNP, which explicitly considers the symbiosis between soil microbes and plant roots, enables simulations of coupled carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and P dynamics for terrestrial ecosystems. The model was evaluated against observed forest growth and measured leaf C/P, C/N, and N/P ratios in four managed forest regions in Sweden. The four regions form a climatic and fertility gradient from 64°N (northern Sweden) to 56°N (southern Sweden), with mean annual temperature varying from 0.7-7.1 °C and soil C/N and C/P ratios varying between 19.8-31.5 and 425-633, respectively. The growth of the southern forests was found to be P-limited, with harvested biomass representing the largest P losses over the studied rotation period. The simulated P budgets revealed that southern forests are losing P, while northern forests have balanced P budgets. Symbiotic fungi accounted for half of total plant P uptake across all four regions, which highlights the importance of fungal-tree interactions in Swedish forests. The results of a sensitivity analysis demonstrated that optimal forest growth occurs at a soil N/P ratio between 15-20. A soil N/P ratio above 15-20 will result in decreased soil C sequestration and P leaching, along with a significant increase in N leaching. The simulations showed that Coup-CNP could describe shifting from being mostly N-limited to mostly P-limited and vice versa. The potential P-limitation of terrestrial ecosystems highlights the need for biogeochemical ecosystem models to consider the P cycle. We conclude that the inclusion of the P cycle enabled the Coup-CNP to account for various feedback mechanisms that have a significant impact on ecosystem C sequestration and N leaching under climate change and/or elevated N deposition.