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- Title
Resiliency of Nuttall oak but not Shumard oak to winter and spring flood: dormancy alone does not confer flood tolerance.
- Authors
Sample, Richard D.; Cook, James; Babst, Benjamin A.
- Abstract
Key message: Whereas Shumard oak seedlings are intolerant of dormant season flood, Nuttall oak seedlings are tolerant. Flooding more than 1–2 months beyond budbreak may have persistent negative impacts on Nuttall oaks. Since flooding in winter and spring is an integral part of bottomland hardwood ecosystems in the southeastern United States, moderately flood-tolerant oaks, like Nuttall oak (Quercus texana), should be well adapted to flooding during these seasons. To quantify the potential for injury from different lengths of winter flooding, we flooded seedlings of Nuttall oak and moderately flood intolerant Shumard oak (Q. shumardii) for 0, 1, 2, and 3 months, with the first month of flooding occurring during the dormant season. Flooding during dormancy had no effect on Nuttall oak, but Shumard oak seedlings had reduced growth in the spring. Flooding that extended beyond budbreak resulted in reduced leaf area and root biomass accumulation in spring for both species, while Shumard oaks also experienced high mortality. At the end of the growing season, Nuttall oaks that had been flooded accumulated tissue biomasses similar to non-flooded seedlings, except taproot biomass, which was reduced 40% by 3 months of flooding. It appears that Nuttall oak delayed fully investing in spring growth until after flooding subsided, and then was largely able to compensate following flooding that extended one month beyond budbreak. However, flooded Shumard oaks did not show similar signs of recovery. Thus, sites that flood at any time of year would not be suitable for Shumard oak. Our results suggest that natural or human-imposed flooding can extend several weeks beyond budbreak without harming Nuttall oaks, but inundation prolonged several months beyond budbreak could weaken the ability to respond to subsequent stresses.
- Subjects
UNITED States; SPRING; OAK; FLOODS; GROWING season; WINTER; LEAF area
- Publication
Trees: Structure & Function, 2023, Vol 37, Issue 4, p1121
- ISSN
0931-1890
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1007/s00468-023-02411-7