Responses of three bottomland species with different flood tolerance capabilities to various flooding regimes

Seedlings of baldcypress (Taxodium distichum), nuttall oak (Quercus nuttalli), and cherrybark oak (Quercus falcata var.pagodaefolia) were subjected to four flooding treatments: control, continuously flooded, intermittently flooded, and partially flooded for 70 days in a greenhouse. The treatments imposed various durations and intensities of soil redox potential (Eh) conditions representing a range encountered by plants in their habitats. Morphological changes and gas exchange responses to the treatments differed among the study species. Rapid development of adventitious root and hypertrophied lenticels were observed in baldcypress and nuttall oak under all flooded treatments. Cherrybark oak had the highest percentage reduction in net photosynthesis ranging from 65–87%, whereas reductions in nuttall oak ranged between 35–68% and in baldcypress between 6–21% in response to various treatments. Recovery of gas exchange was noted in baldcypress but no significant recovery was found in oaks. The recovery in baldcypress contributed to the continued growth and biomass accumulation under various treatments. Little evidence of consistent changes in biomass allocation patterns in response to the treatments was found in baldcypress but total biomass decreased significantly under the continuously flooded treatment. In oaks, total biomass decreased significantly in all flooded treatments. The present findings demonstrated that physiological functions are adversely affected by low soil Eh conditions and the extent of such effects are dependent on the intensity and duration of soil reduction as well as the species' capability to respond to such conditions rapidly. Management plans concerned with regeneration of bottomland forested ecosystems should consider the species flood response capabilities at seedling stages as well as the timing, durations, and intensities of soil reduction at the specific site.     

Interactions between a salt marsh native perennial (Salicornia virginica) and an exotic annual (Polypogon monspeliensis) under varied salinity and hydroperiod

An exotic grass invades salt marshes of southern California in very wet years and where there are sewage spills or urban runoff. A series of growth-chamber, mesocosm, and greenhouse experiments explored whether soil salinity and/or waterlogging could explain invasion patterns. In all experiments, salinity significantly affected the growth and distribution of Polypogon monspeliensis (rabbit-foot grass, an exotic annual grass) and Salicornia virginica (pickleweed, a native perennial succulent). High salinities caused a greater reduction in seed germination rates for P. monspeliensis than for S. virginica, indicating that high salinity limits establishment and the spread of this exotic grass. At Tijuana Estuary, fresh water inputs to tidal mesocosms lowered soil salinities, increased cover of P. monspeliensis, and decreased cover of S. virginica. Polypogon monspeliensis outcompeted S. virginica under all salinity and hydrology treatments in the greenhouse experiment. Seasonally-low soil salinities caused by winter runoff and anthropogenic fresh water inputs are the likely factors controlling annual variations in the distribution of P. monspeliensis in southern California salt marshes. Our understanding of the causes of invasion is readily applicable to management: local invasions may be reversed by adding salt, and larger scale problems could be avoided by reinstating more natural hydrologic regimes.     

Continuous measurement of oxygen concentration in citrus soil by means of a waterproof zirconia oxygen sensor

A limiting-current type of zirconia oxygen sensor has been developed and its efficiency was tested for the determination of oxygen in soil air. This oxygen sensor is waterproof and has a very short response time. By the use of the sensor, changes in soil oxygen concentration, due to undecomposed organic material and waterlogging, were observed. The sensor was found to be highly stable in the soil and suitable for continuous oxygen monitoring in the field.     

The role of ethylene during flooding of Phaseolus vulgaris

Wilting symptoms in Phaseolus vulgaris L. cv. bruine Noord-Hollandse were observed after a few hours of flooding. They were well correlated with an accumulation of ethylene. The ethylene level in the leaves started to increase after 2 h of flooding and reached a 3–4 fold rise after 4–6 h. From then on throughout the next two days it gradually returned to control values. On the day when plants were flooded, a positive correlation was found between the ethylene concentration and the degree of wilting. During this day the time course of abscisic acid (ABA) level, diffusion resistance and water potential was measured. The effect of ethylene on stomatal aperture was investigated by spraying Ethrel on the leaves. In control plants, Ethrel treatment had no influence on the diffusion resistance. Spraying plants with ABA resulted in a significant, dose-dependent increase in diffusion resistance. When Ethrel was added to the ABA-containing solutions only 62% of this increase was observed. Ethrel (pre-) treatment of plants that were to be flooded had a similar effect; the increase in diffusion resistance was only 70% of what was observed in untreated flooded plants. It is concluded that ethylene may interfere with the regulation of stomatal aperture by abscisic acid.     

Dryland Salinity and Ecosystem Distress Syndrome: Human Health Implications

Clearing of native vegetation for agriculture has left 1.047 million hectares of southwest Western Australia affected by dryland salinity, and this area may expand up to a further 1.7–3.4 million hectares if trends continue. Ecosystems in saline-affected regions display many of the classic characteristics of Ecosystem Distress Syndrome, one outcome of which has not yet been investigated in relation to dryland salinity: adverse human health implications. This article seeks to review existing information and identify potential adverse human health effects. Three key potential impacts on human health resulting from dryland salinity are identified: wind-borne dust and respiratory health; altered ecology of the mosquito-borne disease Ross River virus; and mental health consequences of salinity-induced environmental degradation. Given the predicted increase in extent and severity of dryland salinity over coming decades, adverse outcomes of salinity are likely to be further exacerbated, including those related to human health. There is a clear need to investigate the issues discussed in this review and also to identify other potential adverse health effects of dryland salinity. Investigations must be multidisciplinary to sufficiently examine the broad scope of these issues. The relationship between human health and salinity may also be relevant beyond Australia in other countries where secondary soil salinization is occurring.     

Conditions leading to high CO2 (>5 kPa) in waterlogged-flooded soils and possible effects on root growth and metabolism

AIMS: Soil waterlogging impedes gas exchange with the atmosphere, resulting in low P(O2) and often high P(CO2). Conditions conducive to development of high P(CO2) (5-70 kPa) during soil waterlogging and flooding are discussed. The scant information on responses of roots to high P(CO2) in terms of growth and metabolism is reviewed. SCOPE: P(CO2) at 15-70 kPa has been reported for flooded paddy-field soils; however, even 15 kPa P(CO2) may not always be reached, e.g. when soil pH is above 7. Increases of P(CO2) in soils following waterlogging will develop much more slowly than decreases in P(O2); in soil from rice paddies in pots without plants, maxima in P(CO2) were reached after 2-3 weeks. There are no reliable data on P(CO2) in roots when in waterlogged or flooded soils. In rhizomes and internodes, P(CO2) sometimes reached 10 kPa, inferring even higher partial pressures in the roots, as a CO2 diffusion gradient will exist from the roots to the rhizomes and shoots. Preliminary modelling predicts that when P(CO2) is higher in a soil than in roots, P(CO2) in the roots would remain well below the P(CO2) in the soil, particularly when there is ventilation via a well-developed gas-space continuum from the roots to the atmosphere. The few available results on the effects of P(CO2) at > 5 kPa on growth have nearly all involved sudden increases to 10-100 kPa P(CO2); consequently, the results cannot be extrapolated with certainty to the much more gradual increases of P(CO2) in waterlogged soils. Nevertheless, rice in an anaerobic nutrient solution was tolerant to 50 kPa CO2 being suddenly imposed. By contrast, P(CO2) at 25 kPa retarded germination of some maize genotypes by 50%. With regard to metabolism, assuming that the usual pH of the cytoplasm of 7.5 was maintained, every increase of 10 kPa CO2 would result in an increase of 75-90 mM HCO3(-) in the cytoplasm. pH maintenance would depend on the biochemical and biophysical pH stats (i.e. regulatory systems). Furthermore, there are indications that metabolism is adversely affected when HCO3(-) in the cytoplasm rises above 50 mM, or even lower; succinic dehydrogenase and cytochrome oxidase are inhibited by HCO3(-) as low as 10 mM. Such effects could be mitigated by a decrease in the set point for the pH of the cytoplasm, thus lowering levels of HCO3(-) at the prevailing P(CO2) in the roots. CONCLUSIONS: Measurements are needed on P(CO2) in a range of soil types and in roots of diverse species, during waterlogging and flooding. Species well adapted to high P(CO2) in the root zone, such as rice and other wetland plants, thrive even when P(CO2) is well over 10 kPa; mechanisms of adaptation, or acclimatization, by these species need exploration.     

淹涝胁迫对鹅掌楸属植物叶片部分生理指标的影响

研究了淹涝胁迫对不同种源鹅掌楸[Liriodendron chinense（Hemsl．）Sarg．]和杂种鹅掌楸（L．chinense xL．tulipifera）幼苗部分生理指标的影响。结果表明：在淹水处理24h后,杂种鹅掌楸幼苗叶片的净光合速率变化不明显,鹅掌楸幼苗叶片的净光合速率则有一定程度的下降;在淹水处理48h后,净光合速率均大幅度下降。在淹涝胁迫下及胁迫解除后,幼苗叶片叶绿素含量持续缓慢下降;而脯氨酸含量总体上呈现上升的趋势;与鹅掌楸相比,杂种鹅掌楸幼苗的超氧化物歧化酶（SOD）和过氧化物酶（POD）活性变化不明显,但SOD活性最高,POD活性最低。结果表明,杂种鹅掌楸具有较强的耐淹涝胁迫的能力。