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Xylem Traits (xylem + trait)
Selected AbstractsInterspecific relationships among growth, mortality and xylem traits of woody species from New ZealandFUNCTIONAL ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2010Sabrina E. Russo Summary 1.,Wood density is considered a key functional trait influencing the growth and survival of woody plants and has been shown to be related to a slow,fast rate-of-living continuum. Wood density is, however, an emergent trait arising from several vascular properties of wood, including the diameter and frequency of xylem conduits. 2.,We aimed to test the hypotheses that there is a set of inter-related trade-offs linked to the different functions of wood, that these trade-offs have direct consequences for tree growth and survival and that these trade-offs underlie the observed correlations between wood density and demographic rates. We evaluated the covariation between xylem anatomical traits among woody species of New Zealand and whether that covariation had the potential to constrain variation in wood density and demographic rates. 3.,Several xylem traits were strongly correlated with each other, but wood density was not correlated with any of them. We also found no significant relationships between wood density and growth or mortality rate. Instead, growth was strongly related to xylem traits associated with hydraulic capacity (conduit diameter and a conductivity index) and to maximum height, whereas mortality rate was strongly correlated only with maximum height. The diameter and frequency of conduits exhibited a significant negative relationship, suggesting a trade-off, which restricted variation in wood density and growth rate, but not mortality rate. 4.,Our results suggest, for woody species in New Zealand, that growth rate is more closely linked to xylem traits determining hydraulic conductance, rather than wood density. We also found no evidence that denser woods conferred higher survival, or that risk of cavitation caused by wide conduits increased mortality. 5.,In summary, we found little support for the idea that wood density is a good proxy for position along a fast,slow rate-of-living continuum. Instead, the strong, negative relationship between vessel diameter and frequency may constrain the realized diversity of demographic niches of tree species in New Zealand. Trade-offs in function therefore have the potential to shape functional diversity and ecology of forest communities by linking selection on structure and function to population-level dynamics. [source] Xylem density, biomechanics and anatomical traits correlate with water stress in 17 evergreen shrub species of the Mediterranean-type climate region of South AfricaJOURNAL OF ECOLOGY, Issue 1 2007ANNA L. JACOBSEN Summary 1Climate change in South Africa may threaten the sclerophyllous evergreen shrubs of this region. Available data suggest that they are not as tolerant of water stress as chaparral shrubs occurring in climatically similar California, USA. 2Seventeen species from nine angiosperm families, including both fynbos and succulent karoo species, were studied at a field site in Western Cape Province, South Africa. Minimum seasonal pressure potential (Pmin), xylem specific conductivity (Ks), stem strength against breakage (modulus of rupture, MOR), xylem density, theoretical vessel implosion resistance () and several fibre and vessel anatomical traits were measured. 3Species displayed great variability in Pmin, similar to the range reported for chaparral and karoo shrub species, but in contrast to previous reports for fynbos shrubs. 4More negative Pmin was associated with having greater xylem density, MOR and . There was no relationship between Pmin and traits associated with increased water transport efficiency. 5Xylem density integrates many xylem traits related to water stress tolerance, including Pmin, MOR and , as well as percentage fibre wall, parenchyma, vessel area and fibre lumen diameter. 6Xylem density may be an integral trait for predicting the impact of climate change on evergreen shrubs. [source] Water deficits and hydraulic limits to leaf water supplyPLANT CELL & ENVIRONMENT, Issue 2 2002J. S. Sperry Abstract Many aspects of plant water use , particularly in response to soil drought , may have as their basis the alteration of hydraulic conductance from soil to canopy. The regulation of plant water potential (,) by stomatal control and leaf area adjustment may be necessary to maximize water uptake on the one hand, while avoiding loss of hydraulic contact with the soil water on the other. Modelling the changes in hydraulic conductance with pressure gradients in the continuum allows the prediction of water use as a function of soil environment and plant architectural and xylem traits. Large differences in water use between species can be attributed in part to differences in their ,hydraulic equipment' that is presumably optimized for drawing water from a particular temporal and spatial niche in the soil environment. A number of studies have identified hydraulic limits as the cause of partial or complete foliar dieback in response to drought. The interactions between root:shoot ratio, rooting depth, xylem properties, and soil properties in influencing the limits to canopy water supply can be used to predict which combinations should optimize water use in a given circumstance. The hydraulic approach can improve our understanding of the coupling of canopy processes to soil environment, and the adaptive significance of stomatal behaviour. [source] | ||||||||||