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The scarcity of research on the interactive effects of multi-limiting resources has hampered the success in ecological restoration. The effects of water (W), nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) on the performance of a perennial shrub, Bauhinia faberi seedlings were studied through a full factorial experimental design. Eighteen treatments was involved including three water (W1:10, W2: 20 and W3: 40% field capacity), two N (N1: 100 and N2: 280 mg N kg(-1) soil) and three P (P1:12, P2: 24 and P3: 48 mg P kg(-1) soil) for 19 weeks in a greenhouse experiment. P strongly regulated the biomass allocation under severe drought stress. Elevated W and P with N1 or N2 level increased root surface area and length, root and shoot mass, water-use efficiency and tissue P concentration, but did not significantly decrease tissue N concentration. The interaction of N and P was significant. Compared to N1, N2 significantly decreased growth parameters at P1 and P2, slightly reduced them at P3, suggesting that P3 alleviated the negative effects of N2. Therefore, the interactive effects of soil N and P should be examined thoroughly in seedlings plantation sites in arid regions to avoid excess level of nitrogen. Crown Copyright (C) 2010 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.