Adaptations of the Photosynthetic Mechanism of Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum) Seedlings Grown in Various Light Intensities

Sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) seedlings were grown in a nursery for three years in 13, 25, 45 and 100 per cent of full daylight. During the third year of growth, the rates of their apparent photosynthesis and respiration were measured periodically with an infra-red gas analyzer at various light intensities and normal CO₂ concentration. In addition, the rates of apparent photosynthesis of a single attached leaf of the same seedlings were measured at saturating light intensity, hut varying CO₂ concentrations. An increase in the light intensity in which seedlings were grown had no effect on their height or mean leaf area, hut resulted in thicker leaves, an increase in the total leaf area per seedling due to an increase in the number of leaves, an increase in the dry weight especially of roots and a decrease in the chlorophyll content of leaves. Throughout the growing season seedlings grown in full daylight, as compared with those grown in lower light intensities, had the lowest rates of apparent photosynthesis measured at standard conditions (21,600 lux light intensity and 300 ul/l of CO₂), when this was expressed per unit leaf area, hut the highest rates on a per seedling basis. Thus dry matter production attained at the end of the growing season correlated positively with the photosynthetic rate per seedling, but not per unit leaf area. The rates of apparent photosynthesis of seedlings grown at lower light intensities were more responsive to changes in light intensity or CO₂ concentration than those of seedlings grown in full daylight intensity.