How precipitation legacies affect broad-scale patterns of primary productivity: Evidence from the Inner Mongolia grassland

•NPP of grassland ecosystems exhibits a memory of past precipitation events.•Wet and dry legacies exhibit asymmetric responses to precipitation transitions.•Mesic steppe shows higher response to annual precipitation change than xeric steppe.•Consecutive wetness or drought impacts the magnitude and direction of legacy effect.•Legacy effect lasts for only one year with year by year transmitting.