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Despite extensive studies documenting that changes in plant community structure in response to enhanced atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition were driven by positive effects of N enrichment on rhizome clonal plants in grassland communities, few studies have specifically investigated the responses of rhizome clonal plants to N enrichment in terms of above-and below-ground plant traits.<br>By monitoring above-ground and below-ground plant traits, we investigated long-term (13-year) effects of N addition (64 g m<sup>−2</sup> yr.<sup>−1</sup>) on <i>Leymus chinensis</i>, a rhizome clonal plant, in temperate steppes of northern China.<br>Nitrogen addition enhanced the relative above-ground biomass of <i>L. chinensis</i> from 0.6% (2004) to 75% (2016) in steppe communities. Nitrogen addition enhanced leaf N and chlorophyll concentrations, and specific leaf area, thus leading to a marked increase in photosynthetic rates. Nitrogen addition altered the patterns of carbon allocation, by enhancing the ratios of below-ground to above-ground biomass, while N addition reduced the ratios of rhizome to root biomass. Nitrogen addition modified morphological traits of absorptive fine roots (first two-order roots) by enhancing specific root length and reducing root tissue density and average root diameter. Nitrogen addition significantly shortened rhizome internodes and increased bud density of <i>L. chinensis</i>.<br>Nitrogen addition enhanced <i>L. chinensis</i> resource-acquiring and vegetative reproduction capability, thereby leading to its predominance in the steppe communities.