Evidence from Amazonian forests is consistent with isohydric control of leaf water potential

Climate modelling studies predict that the rain forests of the Eastern Amazon basin are likely to experience reductions in rainfall of up to 50% over the next 50-100 years. Efforts to predict the effects of changing climate, especially drought stress, on forest gas exchange are currently limited by uncertainty about the mechanism that controls stomatal closure in response to low soil moisture. At a through-fall exclusion experiment in Eastern Amazonia where water was experimentally excluded from the soil, we tested the hypothesis that plants are isohydric, that is, when water is scarce, the stomata act to prevent leaf water potential from dropping below a critical threshold level. We made diurnal measurements of leaf water potential (psi 1), stomatal conductance (g(s)), sap flow and stem water potential (psi stem) in the wet and dry seasons. We compared the data with the predictions of the soil-plant-atmosphere (SPA) model, which embeds the isohydric hypothesis within its stomatal conductance algorithm. The model inputs for meteorology, leaf area index (LAI), soil water potential and soil-to-leaf hydraulic resistance (R) were altered between seasons in accordance with measured values. No optimization parameters were used to adjust the model. This 'mechanistic' model of stomatal function was able to explain the individual tree-level seasonal changes in water relations (r2 = 0.85, 0.90 and 0.58 for psi 1, sap flow and g(s), respectively). The model indicated that the measured increase in R was the dominant cause of restricted water use during the dry season, resulting in a modelled restriction of sap flow four times greater than that caused by reduced soil water potential. Higher resistance during the dry season resulted from an increase in below-ground resistance (including root and soil-to-root resistance) to water flow.     

北京山区元宝枫夜间液流活动特征及影响因素

树木夜间会维持部分气孔开放,从而能够在一定环境驱动因子的情况下进行夜间蒸腾。夜间液流作为储存水的重要来源,能够补充植物白天的水分亏缺,使其恢复水分储备,对植物生长发育有重要意义。采用TDP热探针法测定了位于八达岭林场的元宝枫树干液流密度,同步监测了主要环境因子,以深入揭示树木夜间蒸腾耗水规律和植被应对环境胁迫的调控机制,为山区植被建设、森林健康经营和挑选节水树种提供理论依据。结果表明:以0:00为界区分前半夜和后半夜,元宝枫夜间液流速率前半夜较后半夜活跃,且前半夜夜间累积液流量占夜间累积液流量的53.85%—64.10%,而后半夜夜间累积液流量占夜间累积液流量的35.9%—46.15%。5月的夜间累积液流量最大,平均夜间液流通量为5月6月8月9月7月。存在水分胁迫的条件下降雨之后夜间液流会增大,而当土壤水分条件较好,土壤水分不再是夜间液流的限制因子时,夜间液流通量并不高。不同树木形态的夜间液流通量有显著差异,在一定范围内,胸径树高冠幅越大的样木,夜间液流通量越大。用于夜间蒸腾的夜间液流通量与饱和水汽压差、温度、空气相对湿度、风速相关,其中夜间蒸腾存在于前半夜,表现为前半夜夜间液流通量与环境因子的相关性相较后半夜相关性较为显著,后半夜则以补水为主,补水量取决于土壤含水量和日蒸腾强度。存在干旱胁迫的条件下,夜间液流既用于夜间蒸腾,又有一部分用来补水;而土壤水分条件好时夜间液流则主要用于补水,此时夜间树干液流与环境因子相关性不高。元宝枫夜间液流通量的日蒸腾贡献率5、6月份大于7、8月份,即干季比湿季贡献率更高。夜间液流通量的日蒸腾贡献率与白天总蒸腾量相关性较高,并与累积太阳辐射成负相关。     

Wet- vs. Dry-Season Transpiration in an Amazonian Rain Forest Palm Iriartea deltoidea

The wet and dry seasons in tropical rain forests can differ in precipitation, soil moisture and irradiance more significantly than often assumed. This could potentially affect the water relations of many tree species that may exhibit either increased transpiration in the dry season as a response to the increased irradiance or decreased transpiration as a result of decreases in soil moisture and increases in atmospheric vapor pressure deficit (VPD). Atmospheric data, soil moisture data and sap fluxes in Iriartea deltoidea palms were measured in eastern Ecuador during the wet and dry seasons. There were no differences between total daily sap fluxes in I. deltoidea palms during the wet and dry seasons; however, evaporative demand was significantly higher in the dry season and therefore, transpiration was more restricted by stomatal closure during the dry season than the wet season. This is likely the result of larger atmospheric VPD during the dry season compared with the wet season and possibly the result of reduced soil moisture availability. Additionally, based on published tree abundances in this area, measured sap fluxes in I. deltoidea were scaled up to the hectare level. Transpiration from I. deltoidea palms was estimated to be around 0.03 mm/d, which could represent about 1 percent of total transpiration in this area of the Amazon rain forest. If climate change predictions for more lengthy tropical dry periods are realized, greater stomatal control of dry-season sap flux has the potential to become even more prevalent in tropical species.     

广州地区荷木夜间树干液流补水的影响因子及其对蒸腾的贡献

明确树木夜间水分补充现象有助于提高总蒸腾量和冠层气孔导度估算的精确度,进一步认识冠层蒸腾与树干液流之间存在的时滞关系.本研究采用热消散探针法测定了广州地区的荷木树干液流密度,同步监测了主要的环境因子,从不同时间尺度分析了树干夜间液流的水分补充现象.结果表明:与白天相比,荷木夜间液流密度较小,旱季变化幅度比湿季大;夜间水分补充的时间段主要在前半夜(18:00-22:00);年内各季节夜间水分补充量之间没有显著差异,与环境因子之间的偏相关关系不显著,但与胸径、树高、冠幅、树干生物量、冠层生物量的回归曲线拟合很好,表明树形特征和生物量能更好地解释夜间补水的变化;各季节夜间水分补充量对总蒸腾量的贡献有显著差异,旱季明显高于湿季.     

Stand dynamics modulate water cycling and mortality risk in droughted tropical forest

Transpiration from the Amazon rainforest generates an essential water source at a global and local scale. However, changes in rainforest function with climate change can disrupt this process, causing significant reductions in precipitation across Amazonia, and potentially at a global scale. We report the only study of forest transpiration following a long‐term (>10 year) experimental drought treatment in Amazonian forest. After 15 years of receiving half the normal rainfall, drought‐related tree mortality caused total forest transpiration to decrease by 30%. However, the surviving droughted trees maintained or increased transpiration because of reduced competition for water and increased light availability, which is consistent with increased growth rates. Consequently, the amount of water supplied as rainfall reaching the soil and directly recycled as transpiration increased to 100%. This value was 25% greater than for adjacent nondroughted forest. If these drought conditions were accompanied by a modest increase in temperature (e.g., 1.5°C), water demand would exceed supply, making the forest more prone to increased tree mortality.     

Long-term transpiration change with rainfall decline in a Mediterranean Quercus ilex forest

In the Mediterranean basin, precipitation is expected to decline as a consequence of climate change. The response of a Quercus ilex forest in southern France to such a decline in water availability was studied using a 4-year throughfall exclusion experiment. Seasonal courses of sap flow and leaf water potential were obtained from 2004 to 2007 and used to characterize tree water relations in a control and a dry treatment. The experiment reduced the average precipitation input to the soil by 29%, and resulted in a 23% reduction in annual transpiration. Soil water potential was significantly lower in the dry treatment only during summer drought, but transpiration was reduced all year round even during well-watered periods. Despite a tight stomatal control over transpiration, whole-tree hydraulic conductance was found to be lower in the trees growing in the driest conditions. This reduction in water transport capacity was observed jointly with a reduction in leaf transpiring area. Canopy leaf area decreased by 18% in the dry treatment as a consequence of the throughfall exclusion, which was found to validate the ecohydrological equilibrium theory.     

基于液流格型特征值和标准化方法分析胸径和土壤水分对荷木液流的影响

基于液流格型特征值-偏度和峰度分析了不同胸径荷木在水分利用方面的差异,并利用标准化的方法消除强影响因子(光合有效辐射,PAR)对液流的影响,研究了弱影响因子(土壤湿度)与液流的关系.结果表明：荷木胸径越大,偏度越小,液流密度峰值越靠后,相应的液流峰值越大,蒸腾量也越大.与旱季相比,荷木大树在湿季偏度较小,液流密度到达峰值时间靠后,峰值大,蒸腾量也大;而小树偏度在旱、湿季的差异不明显,蒸腾量差异也不大.用PAR峰值对荷木个体蒸腾和土壤湿度进行标准化后,荷木个体蒸腾与土壤湿度呈更明显的正相关关系.在土壤湿度较大的季节,荷木大树的蒸腾量随土壤湿度增加而上升的速率基本稳定;而中等木和小树的某些个体则明显下降,说明这些树木的蒸腾和吸收土壤水分的能力可能接近极限.     

Transport constraints on water use by the Great Basin shrub, Artemisia tridentata

As soil and plant water status decline, decreases in hydraulic conductance can limit a plant's ability to maintain gas exchange. We investigated hydraulic limitations for Artemisia tridentata during summer drought. Water use was quantified by measurements of soil and plant water potential ( Ψ ), transpiration and leaf area. Hydraulic transport capacity was quantified by vulnerability to water stress-induced cavitation for root and stem xylem, and moisture release characteristics for soil. These data were used to predict the maximum possible steady-state transpiration rate ( E _crit) and minimum leaf xylem pressure ( Ψ _crit). Transpiration and leaf area declined by ~ 80 and 50%, respectively, as soil Ψ decreased to –2·6 MPa during drought. Leaf-specific hydraulic conductance also decreased by 70%, with most of the decline predicted in the rhizosphere and root system. Root conductance was projected to be the most limiting, decreasing to zero to cause hydraulic failure if E _crit was exceeded. The basis for this prediction was that roots were more vulnerable to xylem cavitation than stems (99% cavitation at –4·0 versus –7·8 MPa, respectively). The decline in water use during drought was necessary to maintain E and Ψ within the limits defined by E _crit and Ψ _crit.     

Sap flow as an indicator of transpiration and the water status of young apricot trees

The relationship between water loss via transpiration and stem sap flow in young apricot trees was studied under different environmental conditions and different levels of soil water status. The experiment was carried out in a greenhouse over a 2-week period (November 2–14, 1997) using three-year-old apricot trees (Prunus armeniaca cv. Búlida) growing in pots. Diurnal courses of leaf water potential, leaf conductance and leaf turgor potential also were recorded throughout the experiment. Data from four days of different enviromental conditions and soil water availability have been selected for analysis. On each of the selected days the leaf water potential and the mean transpiration rates were well correlated. The slope of the linear regression of this correlation, taken to indicate the total hydraulic resistance of the tree, confirmed an increasing hydraulic resistance under drought conditions. When the trees were not drought stressed the diurnal courses of sap flow and transpiration were very similar. However, when the trees were droughted, measured of sap flow slightly underestimated actual transpiration. Our heat-pulse measurements suggest the amount of readily available water stored in the stem and leaf tissues of young apricot trees is sufficient to sustain the peak transpiration rates for about 1 hour. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Habitat moisture is an important driver of patterns of sap flow and water balance in tropical montane cloud forest epiphytes

Microclimate in the tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF) is variable on both spatial and temporal scales and can lead to large fluctuations in both leaf-level transpiration and whole plant water use. While variation in transpiration has been found in TMCFs, the influence of different microclimatic drivers on plant water relations in this ecosystem has been relatively understudied. Within the TMCF, epiphytes may be particularly affected by natural variation in microclimate due to their partial or complete disassociation from soil resources. In this study, we examined the effects of seasonal microclimate on whole plant water balance in epiphytes in both an observational and a manipulative experiment. We also evaluated the effects of different microclimatic drivers using three hierarchical linear (mixed) models. On average, 31 % of total positive sap flow was recovered via foliar water uptake (FWU) over the course of the study. We found that precipitation was the greatest driver of foliar water uptake and nighttime sap flow in our study species and that both VPD and precipitation were important drivers to daytime sap flow. We also found that despite adaptations to withstand seasonal drought, an extended dry period caused severe desiccation in most plants despite a large reduction in leaf-level and whole plant transpiration. Our results indicate that the epiphytes studied rely on FWU to maintain positive water balance in the dry season and that increases in dry periods in the TMCF may be detrimental to these common members of the epiphyte community.     

Seasonal variation of water uptake of a Quercus suber tree in Central Portugal

Hydraulic redistribution (HR) is the phenomenon where plant roots transfer water between soil horizons of different water potential. When dry soil is a stronger sink for water loss from the plant than transpiration, water absorbed by roots in wetter soil horizons is transferred toward, and exuded into dry soil via flow reversals through the roots. Reverse flow is a good marker of HR and can serve as a useful tool to study it over the long-term. Seasonal variation of water uptake of a Quercus suber tree was studied from late winter through autumn 2003 at Rio Frio near Lisbon, Portugal. Sap flow was measured in five small shallow roots (diameter of 3–4 cm), 1 to 2 m from the tree trunk and in four azimuths and at different xylem depths at the trunk base, using the heat field deformation method (HFD). The pattern of sap flow differed among lateral roots as soil dried with constant positive flow in three roots and reverse flow in two other roots during the night when transpiration ceased. Rain modified the pattern of flow in these two roots by eliminating reverse flow and substantially increasing water uptake for transpiration during the day. The increase in water uptake in three other roots following rain was not so substantial. In addition, the flux in individual roots was correlated to different degrees with the flux at different radial depths and azimuthal directions in trunk xylem. The flow in outer trunk xylem seemed to be mostly consistent with water movement from surface soil horizons, whereas deep roots seemed to supply water to the whole cross-section of sapwood. When water flow substantially decreased in shallow lateral roots and the outer stem xylem during drought, water flow in the inner sapwood was maintained, presumably due to its direct connection to deep roots. Results also suggest the importance of the sap flow sensor placement, in relation to sinker roots, as to whether lateral roots might be found to exhibit reverse flow during drought. This study is consistent with the dimorphic rooting habit of Quercus suber trees in which deep roots access groundwater to supply superficial roots and the whole tree, when shallow soil layers were dry.     

Hydraulic redistribution in three Amazonian trees

About half of the Amazon rainforest is subject to seasonal droughts of 3 months or more. Despite this drought, several studies have shown that these forests, under a strongly seasonal climate, do not exhibit significant water stress during the dry season. In addition to deep soil water uptake, another contributing explanation for the absence of plant water stress during drought is the process of hydraulic redistribution; the nocturnal transfer of water by roots from moist to dry regions of the soil profile. Here, we present data on patterns of soil moisture and sap flow in roots of three dimorphic-rooted species in the Tapajós Forest, Amazônia, which demonstrate both upward (hydraulic lift) and downward hydraulic redistribution. We measured sap flow in lateral and tap roots of our three study species over a 2-year period using the heat ratio method, a sap-flow technique that allows bi-directional measurement of water flow. On certain nights during the dry season, reverse or acropetal flow (i.e.,in the direction of the soil) in the lateral roots and positive or basipetal sap flow (toward the plant) in the tap roots of Coussarea racemosa (caferana), Manilkara huberi (maçaranduba) and Protium robustum (breu) were observed, a pattern consistent with upward hydraulic redistribution (hydraulic lift). With the onset of heavy rains, this pattern reversed, with continuous night-time acropetal sap flow in the tap root and basipetal sap flow in lateral roots, indicating water movement from wet top soil to dry deeper soils (downward hydraulic redistribution). Both patterns were present in trees within a rainfall exclusion plot (Seca Floresta) and to a more limited extent in the control plot. Although hydraulic redistribution has traditionally been associated with arid or strongly seasonal environments, our findings now suggest that it is important in ameliorating water stress and improving rain infiltration in Amazonian rainforests. This has broad implications for understanding and modeling ecosystem process and forest function in this important biome.     

Irrigation effects on daily and seasonal variations of trunk sap flow and leaf water relations in olive trees

Irrigation effects on whole-plant sap flow and leaf-level water relations were characterised throughout a growing season in an experimental olive (Olea europaea L.) orchard. Atmospheric evaporative demand and soil moisture conditions for irrigated and non-irrigated olive trees were also monitored. Whole-plant water use in field-grown irrigated and rain fed olive trees was determined using a xylem sap flow method (compensation heat-pulse velocity). Foliage gas exchange and water potentials were determined throughout the experimental period. Physiological parameters responded diurnally and seasonally to variations in tree water status, soil moisture conditions and atmospheric evaporative demand. There was a considerable degree of agreement between daily transpiration deduced from heat-pulse velocity and that determined by calibration using the Penman–Monteith equation in the field. Summer drought caused decreasing leaf gas exchange and water potentials, and a progressive increase in hydraulic conductance (stronger in non-irrigated than irrigated trees), probably attributable to modifications in hydraulic properties at the soil-root interface. Negligible hysteresis, attributable to low plant capacitance, was observed in the relationship between leaf water potential and sap flow. A proportional decrease in maximum daily leaf conductance with increasing vapour pressure deficit was observed, while mean daytime canopy stomatal conductance decreased with the season. As a result, plant water use was limited and excessive drought stress prevented. Non-irrigated olive trees recovered after the summer drought, showing a physiological behaviour similar to that of irrigated trees. In addition to physiological and environmental factors, there are endogenous keys (chemical signals) influencing leaf level parameters. Olive trees are confirmed to be economical and sparing users of soil water, with an efficient xylem sap transport, maintenance of significant gas exchange and transpiration, even during drought stress.     

马占相思树干液流与光合有效辐射和水汽压亏缺间的时滞效应

应用Granier热消散探针测定华南丘陵马占相思的树干液流,将液流与对应的光合有效辐射和水汽压亏缺数据列分别进行逐行错位分析和时间序列分析,探讨树干液流与蒸腾驱动因子之间的时滞效应,并对结果进行互相验证.结果表明:马占相思树木蒸腾主要驱动因子是光合有效辐射和水汽压亏缺,树干液流的变化更多地依赖光合有效辐射的变化,而且干季的依赖性比湿季更强;无论是干季还是湿季,树干液流都滞后于光合有效辐射,提前于水汽压亏缺;时滞效应季节差异显著;不同径级马占相思的时滞效应差异不显著;树高、胸径、冠幅并不能解释树干液流与光合有效辐射、水汽压亏缺之间的时滞效应;干季树干液流与水汽压亏缺之间的时滞效应与夜间水分补充量显著相关,湿季则相反.     

Sensitivity of canopy transpiration to altered precipitation in an upland oak forest: evidence from a long-term field manipulation study

Climate‐induced changes in regional precipitation could have important implications for the carbon, water, and nutrient cycles of forest ecosystems. However, few studies have examined the response of deciduous forests to increases or decreases in precipitation. Therefore, the throughfall displacement experiment (TDE) was established in 1993 near Oak Ridge, Tennessee to examine the sensitivity of an upland oak (Quercus spp.) forest to ambient, wet (+33%), and dry (?33%) precipitation regimes. Sap flux measurements on co‐occurring tree species were scaled using species‐specific estimates of stand sapwood area to derive daily and seasonal rates of canopy transpiration (E_C) from 2000 to 2003. With the exception of 2003, which was an extremely wet year, daily E_C in the dry plot, and occasionally during extended droughts in the ambient and wet plots, declined as water potential in the upper 0.35 m soil profile approached ‐3.0 MPa. Seasonal patterns of soil water potential and treatment‐specific differences in E_C were dependent on precipitation frequency and intensity. Supplemental precipitation added to the wet plot increased seasonal E_C on average by 9% (range ?1% to 19%), whereas extended periods of drought on the dry plot in 2000, 2001, and 2002 were sufficient to reduce seasonal E_C by 26–30% compared with the ambient plot. There was a strong correlation between seasonal E_C and the water stress integral, a cumulative index of drought severity and duration. A polynomial fitted to these data indicated that reductions in seasonal E_C on the order of 40% were possible given TDE‐imposed reductions in soil water potential. Application of this equation to all years of the TDE (1994–2003) revealed considerable interannual and treatment‐specific variation in canopy transpiration. In general, a 33% removal of throughfall on the dry plot during 1995, 1998, and 2002 resulted in a 23–32% reduction in seasonal E_C compared with the ambient plot. While droughts in deciduous forests are often limited in duration and tend to occur late in the growing season, soil water deficits of the magnitude observed in this study have the potential to impact local and regional forest water budgets.     

基于稳定同位素和热比率技术的侧柏水分逆向运移特征与过程

植物在一定环境条件下可通过叶片吸水发生水分逆向运移来维持自身生长,尤其是在季节性干旱地区。但这一过程通常被忽视,使得在量化理解干旱胁迫下的森林植被水分利用过程与机制方面仍存在一定的空白。本研究以北京山区为研究区,以其典型造林树种侧柏为研究对象,利用稳定同位素和热比率技术,通过野外布设对比试验和室内控制盆栽试验,分析树木体内水分逆向运移的发生条件和规律,量化逆向运移量及补给率,研究不同部位水分逆向运移变化特征及过程。结果表明: 在野外对比试验中,控制样方在雨后的树木胸径和根系处监测到逆向液流,且根系逆向液流的发生比胸径处会有所延迟,而对比样方则无逆向液流;在室内控制试验中,不同处理组在雨后2 h树木各部位逆向运移补给率达到最高值,除重度和中度干旱处理外,雨后8 h基本恢复初始状态,水分逆向运移对植物的影响一般不超过24 h;叶片吸水量与其产生的对枝条和根际土壤的逆向补给率和土壤前期含水量呈负相关关系,对叶片、枝条和根际土壤的最大补给率分别为(9.5±0.1)%、(5.9±0.3)%和(5.7%±0.6)%;在水分逆向运移过程中,侧柏不同部位水分运移对时间的响应不同。在复杂多变的水分供给条件下,研究植物水分逆向运移的过程与机制,对准确理解其生存和竞争力具有重要意义。     

Effects of an induced drought on soil carbon dioxide (CO2) efflux and soil CO2 production in an Eastern Amazonian rainforest, Brazil

In the next few decades, climate of the Amazon basin is expected to change, as a result of deforestation and rising temperatures, which may lead to feedback mechanisms in carbon (C) cycling that are presently unknown. Here, we report how a throughfall exclusion (TFE) experiment affected soil carbon dioxide (CO₂) production in a deeply weathered sandy Oxisol of Caxiuanã (Eastern Amazon). Over the course of 2 years, we measured soil CO₂ efflux and soil CO₂ concentrations, soil temperature and moisture in pits down to 3 m depth. Over a period of 2 years, TFE reduced on average soil CO₂ efflux from 4.3±0.1 μmol CO₂ m⁻² s⁻¹ (control) to 3.2±0.1 μmol CO₂ m⁻² s⁻¹ (TFE). The contribution of the subsoil (below 0.5 m depth) to the total soil CO₂ production was higher in the TFE plot (28%) compared with the control plot (17%), and it did not differ between years. We distinguished three phases of drying after the TFE was started. The first phase was characterized by a translocation of water uptake (and accompanying root activity) to deeper layers and not enough water stress to affect microbial activity and/or total root respiration. During the second phase a reduction in total soil CO₂ efflux in the TFE plot was related to a reduction of soil and litter decomposers activity. The third phase of drying, characterized by a continuing decrease in soil CO₂ production was dominated by a water stress‐induced decrease in total root respiration. Our results contrast to results of a drought experiment on clay Oxisols, which may be related to differences in soil water retention characteristics and depth of rooting zone. These results show that large differences exist in drought sensitivity among Amazonian forest ecosystems, which primarily seem to be affected by the combined effects of texture (affecting water holding capacity) and depth of rooting zone.     

Droughts,hydraulic redistribution,and their impact on vegetation composition in the Amazon forest

Hydraulic redistribution (HR), the nocturnal transport of moisture by plant roots from wetter to drier portions of the root zone, in general can buffer plants against seasonal water deficits. However, its role in longer droughts and its long-term ecological impact are not well understood. Based on numerical model experiments for the Amazon forest, this modeling study indicates that the impact of HR on plant growth differs between droughts of different time scales. While HR increases transpiration and plant growth during regular dry seasons, it reduces dry season transpiration and net primary productivity (NPP) under extreme droughts such as those during El Niño years in the Amazon forest. This occurs because, in places where soil water storage is not able to sustain the ecosystem through the dry season, the HR-induced acceleration of moisture depletion in the early stage of the dry season reduces water availability for the rest of the dry season and causes soil moisture to reach the wilting point earlier. This gets exacerbated during extreme droughts, which jeopardizes the growth of trees that are not in dry season dormancy, i.e., evergreen trees. As a result, the combination of drought and HR increases the percentage of drought deciduous trees at the expense of evergreen trees, and the fractional coverage of forest canopy is characterized by sudden drops following extreme droughts and slow recovery afterwards. The shift of the tropical forest towards more drought deciduous trees as a result of the combined effects of extreme drought and HR has important implications for how vegetation will respond to future climate changes.     

Nighttime sap flow of Acacia mangium and its implications for nighttime transpiration and stem water storage

Aims Nighttime sap flow of trees may indicate transpiration and/or recharge of stem water storage at night. This paper deals with the water use of Acacia mangium at night in the hilly lands of subtropical South China. Our primary goal was to reveal and understand the nature of nighttime sap flow and its functional significance.Methods Granier's thermal dissipation method was used to determine the nighttime sap flux of A. mangium. Gas exchange system was used to estimate nighttime leaf transpiration and stomatal conductance of studied trees.Important findings Nighttime sap flow was substantial and showed seasonal variation similar to the patterns of daytime sap flow in A. mangium. Mean nighttime sap flow was higher in the less precipitation year of 2004 (1122.4 mm) than in the more precipitation year of 2005 (1342.5 mm) since more daytime transpiration and low soil water availability in the relatively dry 2004 can be the cause of more nighttime sap flow. Although vapor pressure deficit and air temperature were significantly correlated with nighttime sap flow, they could only explain a small fraction of the variance in nighttime sap flow. The total accumulated water loss (E L) by transpiration of canopy leaves was only ~2.6–8.5% of the total nighttime sap flow (E t) during the nights of July 17–18 and 18–19, 2006. Therefore, it is likely that the nighttime sap flow was mainly used for refilling water in the trunk. The stem diameter at breast height, basal area and sapwood area explained much more variance of nighttime water recharge than environmental factors and other tree form features, such as tree height, stem length below the branch, and canopy size. The contribution of nighttime water recharge to the total transpiration ranged from 14.7 to 30.3% depending on different DBH class and was considerably higher in the dry season compared to the wet season.     

Interactive effects of ozone and climate on water use, soil moisture content and streamflow in a southern Appalachian forest in the USA

* Documentation of the degree and direction of effects of ozone on transpiration of canopies of mature forest trees is critically needed to model ozone effects on forest water use and growth in a warmer future climate. * Patterns of sap flow in stems and soil moisture in the rooting zones of mature trees, coupled with late-season streamflow in three forested watersheds in east Tennessee, USA, were analyzed to determine relative influences of ozone and other climatic variables on canopy physiology and streamflow patterns. * Statistically significant increases in whole-tree canopy conductance, depletion of soil moisture in the rooting zone, and reduced late-season streamflow in forested watersheds were detected in response to increasing ambient ozone levels. * Short-term changes in canopy water use and empirically modeled streamflow patterns over a 23-yr observation period suggest that current ambient ozone exposures may exacerbate the frequency and level of negative effects of drought on forest growth and stream health.