Embolism resistance as a key mechanism to understand adaptive plant strategies
Affiliation:
1. Graduate Program in Agronomy, Federal University of Goiás, Goiânia, Goiás, Brazil;2. Botany Department of the Institute of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Goiás, Goiânia, Goiás, Brazil;3. School of Agronomy, Federal University of Goiás, Goiânia, Goiás, Brazil
Highlights► The hydraulic pathway of plants is vulnerable to develop air bubbles. ► Air bubble formation in plants is caused by drought or freeze–thaw events. ► Various mechanical xylem properties are correlated with drought-induced embolisms. ► Angiosperms have a greater ability to repair stem embolisms than gymnosperms. ► Secondarily woody shrubs are more embolism resistant than herbaceous relatives.
