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- Title
Eastern US deciduous tree species respond dissimilarly to declining soil moisture but similarly to rising evaporative demand.
- Authors
Denham, Sander O; Oishi, A Christopher; Miniat, Chelcy F; Wood, Jeffrey D; Yi, Koong; Benson, Michael C; Novick, Kimberly A
- Abstract
Hydraulic stress in plants occurs under conditions of low water availability (soil moisture; θ) and/or high atmospheric demand for water (vapor pressure deficit; D). Different species are adapted to respond to hydraulic stress by functioning along a continuum where, on one hand, they close stomata to maintain a constant leaf water potential (ΨL) (isohydric species), and on the other hand, they allow ΨL to decline (anisohydric species). Differences in water-use along this continuum are most notable during hydrologic stress, often characterized by low θ and high D ; however, θ and D are often, but not necessarily, coupled at time scales of weeks or longer, and uncertainty remains about the sensitivity of different water-use strategies to these variables. We quantified the effects of both θ and D on canopy conductance (G c) among widely distributed canopy-dominant species along the isohydric–anisohydric spectrum growing along a hydroclimatological gradient. Tree-level G c was estimated using hourly sap flow observations from three sites in the eastern United States: a mesic forest in western North Carolina and two xeric forests in southern Indiana and Missouri. Each site experienced at least 1 year of substantial drought conditions. Our results suggest that sensitivity of G c to θ varies across sites and species, with G c sensitivity being greater in dry than in wet sites, and greater for isohydric compared with anisohydric species. However, once θ limitations are accounted for, sensitivity of G c to D remains relatively constant across sites and species. While D limitations to G c were similar across sites and species, ranging from 16 to 34% reductions, θ limitations to G c ranged from 0 to 40%. The similarity in species sensitivity to D is encouraging from a modeling perspective, though it implies that substantial reduction to G c will be experienced by all species in a future characterized by higher D.
- Subjects
MISSOURI; INDIANA; NORTH Carolina; SOIL moisture; PLANT-water relationships; DECIDUOUS plants; SUPPLY &; demand; VAPOR pressure; FOREST reserves
- Publication
Tree Physiology, 2021, Vol 41, Issue 6, p944
- ISSN
0829-318X
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1093/treephys/tpaa153