Taking off the training wheels: The properties of a dynamic vegetation model without climate envelopes, CLM4.5(ED)

The default assumption is that the costs and benefits of deciduous vs. evergreen leaf strategies, in terms of carbon assimilation and expenditure, can reproduce the geographical structure of biome boundaries and ecosystem functioning. We find some support for this assumption, but only under particular combinations of model traits and structural assumptions. Many questions remain regarding the preferred methods for deployment of plant trait information in land surface models.

In some cases, plant traits might best be closely linked to each other, but we also find support for direct linkages to environmental conditions. We advocate intensified study of the costs and benefits of plant life history strategies in different environments and the increased use of parametric and structural ensembles in the development and analysis of complex vegetation models.