We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
Modeling qualitative and quantitative elements of branch growth in saplings of four evergreen broad-leaved tree species growing in a temperate Japanese forest.
- Authors
Rahman, Lutfar; Umeki, Kiyoshi; Honjo, Tsuyoshi
- Abstract
Key message: Factors influencing branch growth differed between a qualitative element (whether a branch grows) and a quantitative element (the amount of biomass accretion). Abstract: We measured branch growth in saplings of four evergreen broad-leaved tree species growing in a temperate Japanese forest. A hierarchical Bayesian approach was used to model two elements of branch growth: a qualitative component [whether branches produce new annual shoots (AS)] and a quantitative component (total AS mass). The two components were influenced by somewhat different factors. The probability that a branch would produce AS was affected by the total mass of previous-year annual shoots (total AS mass), branch age, relative branch height, canopy openness measured at the branch tip, maximum canopy openness within a single sapling, and the interaction between canopy openness and maximum canopy openness. The total AS mass was influenced by the total AS mass, relative branch height, branch inclination, and maximum canopy openness. These two components of branch growth should be considered separately when tree architecture is modeled. In addition, we detected interactive responses among branches within individual saplings. The relative importance of interactive modular response and branch autonomy may differ depending on the status of plants, such as individual age, environmental conditions, and the timing of the measurements. We found considerable similarities in the responses of branch growth to the internal and environmental factors among the species studied. We also found some among-species differences in branch growth responses to the explanatory variables measured.
- Subjects
TREE branches; PLANT anatomy; APICAL dominance (Plant physiology); SHOOT apexes; TREE growth; PLANT growth; LEAVES
- Publication
Trees: Structure & Function, 2014, Vol 28, Issue 5, p1539
- ISSN
0931-1890
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1007/s00468-014-1064-4