Soil microbes become a major pool of biological phosphorus during the early stage of soil development with little evidence of competition for phosphorus with plants

Aims We aimed to quantify the pool size of soil microbial biomass P (Pmic) during the early stage of soil development up to 125 years after glacial retreat in the Gongga Mountains, China and relate the pool size of Pmic to the plant P (Pplant) pools in the ecosystem.