Converging patterns of vertical variability in leaf morphology and nitrogen across seven Eucalyptus plantations in Brazil and Hawaii, USA

Treesearch

Adam P. Coble; Alisha Autio; Molly A. Cavaleri; Dan Binkley; Michael G. Ryan

2014-01-01

Across sites in Brazil and Hawaii, LMA and Nmass were strongly correlated with height and shade index, respectively, which may help simplify canopy function modeling of Eucalyptus plantations. Abstract Within tree canopies, leaf mass per area (LMA) and leaf nitrogen per unit area (Narea) commonly increase with height. Previous research has suggested that these patterns...

Predicting vegetation type through physiological and environmental interactions with leaf traits: evergreen and deciduous forests in an earth system modeling framework.

PubMed

Weng, Ensheng; Farrior, Caroline E; Dybzinski, Ray; Pacala, Stephen W

2017-06-01

Earth system models are incorporating plant trait diversity into their land components to better predict vegetation dynamics in a changing climate. However, extant plant trait distributions will not allow extrapolations to novel community assemblages in future climates, which will require a mechanistic understanding of the trade-offs that determine trait diversity. In this study, we show how physiological trade-offs involving leaf mass per unit area (LMA), leaf lifespan, leaf nitrogen, and leaf respiration may explain the distribution patterns of evergreen and deciduous trees in the temperate and boreal zones based on (1) an evolutionary analysis of a simple mathematical model and (2) simulation experiments of an individual-based dynamic vegetation model (i.e., LM3-PPA). The evolutionary analysis shows that these leaf traits set up a trade-off between carbon- and nitrogen-use efficiency at the scale of individual trees and therefore determine competitively dominant leaf strategies. As soil nitrogen availability increases, the dominant leaf strategy switches from one that is high in nitrogen-use efficiency to one that is high in carbon-use efficiency or, equivalently, from high-LMA/long-lived leaves (i.e., evergreen) to low-LMA/short-lived leaves (i.e., deciduous). In a region of intermediate soil nitrogen availability, the dominant leaf strategy may be either deciduous or evergreen depending on the initial conditions of plant trait abundance (i.e., founder controlled) due to feedbacks of leaf traits on soil nitrogen mineralization through litter quality. Simulated successional patterns by LM3-PPA from the leaf physiological trade-offs are consistent with observed successional dynamics of evergreen and deciduous forests at three sites spanning the temperate to boreal zones. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Effects of different nitrogen levels on the leaf chlorophyll content nutrient concentration and nutrient uptake pattern of blackgram.

PubMed

Kulsum, M U; Baque, M A; Karim, M A

2007-01-15

This study was conducted to evaluate the performance of blackgram (Vigna mungo L) under various levels of nitrogen at the Agronomy Research Site of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University during March to June 2002. Two varieties of blackgram--BARI mash 3 and BINA mash 1 and six levels of nitrogen viz. 0, 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100 kg N ha(-1) were the treatment variables. The experiment was laid out in a RCB Design with three replications. A best-fit positive linear relationship existed between leaf chlorophyll and leaf nitrogen content with different nitrogen levels. Unexpectedly the N, P and K accumulation in the two varieties was not affected significantly. However, there was an increasing tendency of total uptake of these elements in both the varieties. N, P and K uptake increased up to 60 kg N ha(-1) then decreased with the increasing nitrogen levels. Among the varieties BARI mash 3 showed better performance than BINA mash 1 for most of the parameters.

Identification and characterization of genomic regions on chromosomes 4 and 8 that control the rate of photosynthesis in rice leaves

PubMed Central

Adachi, Shunsuke; Tsuru, Yukiko; Nito, Naoko; Murata, Kazumasa; Yamamoto, Toshio; Ebitani, Takeshi; Ookawa, Taiichiro; Hirasawa, Tadashi

2011-01-01

DNA marker-assisted selection appears to be a promising strategy for improving rates of leaf photosynthesis in rice. The rate of leaf photosynthesis was significantly higher in a high-yielding indica variety, Habataki, than in the most popular Japanese variety, Koshihikari, at the full heading stage as a result of the higher level of leaf nitrogen at the same rate of application of nitrogen and the higher stomatal conductance even when the respective levels of leaf nitrogen were the same. The higher leaf nitrogen content of Habataki was caused by the greater accumulation of nitrogen by plants. The higher stomatal conductance of Habataki was caused by the higher hydraulic conductance. Using progeny populations and selected lines derived from a cross between Koshihikari and Habataki, it was possible to identify the genomic regions responsible for the rate of photosynthesis within a 2.1 Mb region between RM17459 and RM17552 and within a 1.2 Mb region between RM6999 and RM22529 on the long arm of chromosome 4 and on the short arm of chromosome 8, respectively. The designated region on chromosome 4 of Habataki was responsible for both the increase in the nitrogen content of leaves and hydraulic conductance in the plant by increasing the root surface area. The designated region on chromosome 8 of Habataki was responsible for the increase in hydraulic conductance by increasing the root hydraulic conductivity. The results suggest that it may be possible to improve photosynthesis in rice leaves by marker-assisted selection that focuses on these regions of chromosomes 4 and 8. PMID:21296764

The relationship of leaf photosynthetic traits V cmax and Jmax - to leaf nitrogen, leaf phosphorus, and specific leaf area: A meta-analysis and modeling study

DOE PAGES

Walker, Anthony P.; Beckerman, Andrew P.; Gu, Lianhong; ...

2014-07-25

Great uncertainty exists in the global exchange of carbon between the atmosphere and the terrestrial biosphere. An important source of this uncertainty lies in the dependency of photosynthesis on the maximum rate of carboxylation (Vcmax) and the maximum rate of electron transport (Jmax). Understanding and making accurate prediction of C fluxes thus requires accurate characterization of these rates and their relationship with plant nutrient status over large geographic scales. Plant nutrient status is indicated by the traits: leaf nitrogen (N), leaf phosphorus (P), and specific leaf area (SLA). Correlations between Vcmax and Jmax and leaf nitrogen (N) are typically derivedmore » from local to global scales, while correlations with leaf phosphorus (P) and specific leaf area (SLA) have typically been derived at a local scale. Thus, there is no global-scale relationship between Vcmax and Jmax and P or SLA limiting the ability of global-scale carbon flux models do not account for P or SLA. We gathered published data from 24 studies to reveal global relationships of Vcmax and Jmax with leaf N, P, and SLA. Vcmax was strongly related to leaf N, and increasing leaf P substantially increased the sensitivity of Vcmax to leaf N. Jmax was strongly related to Vcmax, and neither leaf N, P, or SLA had a substantial impact on the relationship. Although more data are needed to expand the applicability of the relationship, we show leaf P is a globally important determinant of photosynthetic rates. In a model of photosynthesis, we showed that at high leaf N (3 gm 2), increasing leaf P from 0.05 to 0.22 gm 2 nearly doubled assimilation rates. Lastly, we show that plants may employ a conservative strategy of Jmax to Vcmax coordination that restricts photoinhibition when carboxylation is limiting at the expense of maximizing photosynthetic rates when light is limiting.« less

The relationship of leaf photosynthetic traits V cmax and Jmax - to leaf nitrogen, leaf phosphorus, and specific leaf area: A meta-analysis and modeling study

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Walker, Anthony P.; Beckerman, Andrew P.; Gu, Lianhong

Great uncertainty exists in the global exchange of carbon between the atmosphere and the terrestrial biosphere. An important source of this uncertainty lies in the dependency of photosynthesis on the maximum rate of carboxylation (Vcmax) and the maximum rate of electron transport (Jmax). Understanding and making accurate prediction of C fluxes thus requires accurate characterization of these rates and their relationship with plant nutrient status over large geographic scales. Plant nutrient status is indicated by the traits: leaf nitrogen (N), leaf phosphorus (P), and specific leaf area (SLA). Correlations between Vcmax and Jmax and leaf nitrogen (N) are typically derivedmore » from local to global scales, while correlations with leaf phosphorus (P) and specific leaf area (SLA) have typically been derived at a local scale. Thus, there is no global-scale relationship between Vcmax and Jmax and P or SLA limiting the ability of global-scale carbon flux models do not account for P or SLA. We gathered published data from 24 studies to reveal global relationships of Vcmax and Jmax with leaf N, P, and SLA. Vcmax was strongly related to leaf N, and increasing leaf P substantially increased the sensitivity of Vcmax to leaf N. Jmax was strongly related to Vcmax, and neither leaf N, P, or SLA had a substantial impact on the relationship. Although more data are needed to expand the applicability of the relationship, we show leaf P is a globally important determinant of photosynthetic rates. In a model of photosynthesis, we showed that at high leaf N (3 gm 2), increasing leaf P from 0.05 to 0.22 gm 2 nearly doubled assimilation rates. Lastly, we show that plants may employ a conservative strategy of Jmax to Vcmax coordination that restricts photoinhibition when carboxylation is limiting at the expense of maximizing photosynthetic rates when light is limiting.« less

Effects of starter nitrogen fertilizer on soybean root activity, leaf photosynthesis and grain yield

PubMed Central

Gai, Zhijia; Zhang, Jingtao; Li, Caifeng

2017-01-01

The objective of this study was to examine the impact of starter nitrogen fertilizer on soybean root activity, leaf photosynthesis, grain yield and their relationship. To achieve this objective, field experiments were conducted in 2013 and 2014, using a randomized complete block design, with three replications. Nitrogen was applied at planting at rates of 0, 25, 50, and 75 kg N ha-1. In both years, starter nitrogen fertilizer benefited root activity, leaf photosynthesis, and consequently its yield. Statistically significant correlation was found among root activity, leaf photosynthetic rate, and grain yield at the developmental stage. The application of N25, N50, and N75 increased grain yield by 1.28%, 2.47%, and 1.58% in 2013 and by 0.62%, 2.77%, and 2.06% in 2014 compared to the N0 treatment. Maximum grain yield of 3238.91 kg ha-1 in 2013 and 3086.87 kg ha-1 in 2014 were recorded for N50 treatment. Grain yield was greater for 2013 than 2014, possibly due to more favorable environmental conditions. This research indicated that applying nitrogen as starter is necessary to increase soybean yield in Sangjiang River Plain in China. PMID:28388620

The effects of cleared larch canopy and nitrogen supply on gas exchange and leaf traits in deciduous broad-leaved tree seedlings.

PubMed

Kitaoka, Satoshi; Watanabe, Yoko; Koike, Takayoshi

2009-12-01

To understand the leaf-level responses of successional tree species to forest gap formation and nitrogen deposition, we performed canopy clearing and nitrogen-amendment treatments in larch plantations and investigated the changes in the light-use characteristics and the leaf structure of the invading deciduous broad-leaved tree seedlings. We hypothesized that the responses of the tree seedlings to clearing and nitrogen input would reflect specific traits in the shoot development that would be related to the species-specific successional characteristics. The gap phase species Magnolia hyporeuca Siebold et Zucc. and the mid-late successional tree species Quercus mongolica Fischer ex Ledeb. var. crispula (Blume) Ohashi., which grow in or near the forest gaps, had higher light-saturated photosynthetic rates (Psat), enhanced mesophyll surface area (Smes) and increased leaf mass per area (LMA) under both the clearing treatment and the clearing with nitrogen-amendment treatment. These two species therefore increased their Psat via an increase in Smes and LMA. The LMA values of the late successional tree species Prunus ssiori F. Schmidt and Carpinus cordata Blume, which grow in the forest understory, were enhanced by the clearing treatment. However, they displayed lesser responses to the clearing treatment under which there were no marked increases in Psat or Smes values in the second year. These results indicate distinct and varied responses to disturbance regimes among the four seral tree seedlings. The Psat value largely increased in line with the increase in Smes value during the second year in M. hyporeuca and Q. mongolica. The nitrogen supply accelerated the change in LMA and increased the Smes value in the leaves of Q. mongolica.

Nutritional benefit from leaf litter utilization in the pitcher plant Nepenthes ampullaria.

PubMed

Pavlovič, Andrej; Slováková, Ludmila; Šantrůček, Jiří

2011-11-01

The pitcher plant Nepenthes ampullaria has an unusual growth pattern, which differs markedly from other species in the carnivorous genus Nepenthes. Its pitchers have a reflexed lid and sit above the soil surface in a tighly packed 'carpet'. They contain a significant amount of plant-derived materials, suggesting that this species is partially herbivorous. We tested the hypothesis that the plant benefits from leaf litter utilization by increased photosynthetic efficiency sensu stricto cost/benefit model. Stable nitrogen isotope abundance indicated that N. ampullaria derived around 41.7 ± 5.5% of lamina and 54.8 ± 7.0% of pitcher nitrogen from leaf litter. The concentrations of nitrogen and assimilation pigments, and the rate of net photosynthesis (A(N)), increased in the lamina as a result of feeding, but did not increase in the trap. However, maximal (F(v) /F(m)) and effective photochemical quantum yield of photosystem II (Φ(PSII)) were unaffected. Our data indicate that N. ampullaria benefits from leaf litter utilization and our study provides the first experimental evidence that the unique nitrogen sequestration strategy of N. ampullaria provides benefits in term of photosynthesis and growth. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Impact of anatomical traits of maize (Zea mays L.) leaf as affected by nitrogen supply and leaf age on bundle sheath conductance.

PubMed

Retta, Moges; Yin, Xinyou; van der Putten, Peter E L; Cantre, Denis; Berghuijs, Herman N C; Ho, Quang Tri; Verboven, Pieter; Struik, Paul C; Nicolaï, Bart M

2016-11-01

The mechanism of photosynthesis in C 4 crops depends on the archetypal Kranz-anatomy. To examine how the leaf anatomy, as altered by nitrogen supply and leaf age, affects the bundle sheath conductance (g bs ), maize (Zea mays L.) plants were grown under three contrasting nitrogen levels. Combined gas exchange and chlorophyll fluorescence measurements were done on fully grown leaves at two leaf ages. The measured data were analysed using a biochemical model of C 4 photosynthesis to estimate g bs . The leaf microstructure and ultrastructure were quantified using images obtained from micro-computed tomography and microscopy. There was a strong positive correlation between g bs and leaf nitrogen content (LNC) while old leaves had lower g bs than young leaves. Leaf thickness, bundle sheath cell wall thickness and surface area of bundle sheath cells per unit leaf area (S b ) correlated well with g bs although they were not significantly affected by LNC. As a result, the increase of g bs with LNC was little explained by the alteration of leaf anatomy. In contrast, the combined effect of LNC and leaf age on S b was responsible for differences in g bs between young leaves and old leaves. Future investigations should consider changes at the level of plasmodesmata and membranes along the CO 2 leakage pathway to unravel LNC and age effects further. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lincoln, D.E.

Assay procedures for analysis of four groups of allelochemicals in Artemisia tridentata, big sagebrush, were established. Growth of Artemisia under high and low light at three CO/sub 2/ levels demonstrated that this species also undegoes a ''dilution'' of the leaf nitrogen content and is useful as test species for herbivory response to CO/sub 2/ induced effects. The initiial experiment also showed that high irradiance is a necessary growth condition. Plants from a single population of A. Tridentata were grown at the Duke Phytotron in three CO/sub 2/ regimed and fed to two species of grasshoppers. Sagabrush plants grew more andmore » had lower leaf nitrogen contents as CO/sub 2/ concentration increased. However, the plants had on average lowere leaf carbon as well as lower leaf niitrogen contents with elevated CO/sub 2/. The source of the lower leaf nutritional value does not appear to be solely an increase in carbon content. Grasshopper consumption was greater on leaves from elevated future and from reduced historical CO/sub 2/ regimes, compared to the current concentration. The increased consumption of leaves from elevated CO/sub 2/ is in agreement with previous results. Grasshopper consumption was significantly related to leaf allelochemical content, but not to leaf nitrogen content. The consumption difference among CO/sub 2/ regimes appeared to result from allelochemical differences, which in turn may result from genetic variation or from CO/sub 2/ treatments. 17 refs., 2 figs., 4 tabs.« less

Light acclimation optimizes leaf functional traits despite height-related constraints in a canopy shading experiment.

PubMed

Coble, Adam P; Cavaleri, Molly A

2015-04-01

Within-canopy gradients of leaf functional traits have been linked to both light availability and vertical gradients in leaf water potential. While observational studies can reveal patterns in leaf traits, within-canopy experimental manipulations can provide mechanistic insight to tease apart multiple interacting drivers. Our objectives were to disentangle effects of height and light environment on leaf functional traits by experimentally shading branches along vertical gradients within a sugar maple (Acer saccharum) forest. Shading reduced leaf mass per area (LMA), leaf density, area-based leaf nitrogen (N(area)), and carbon:nitrogen (C:N) ratio, and increased mass-based leaf nitrogen (N(mass)), highlighting the importance of light availability on leaf morphology and chemistry. Early in the growing season, midday leaf water potential (Ψ(mid)), LMA, and N(area) were driven primarily by height; later in the growing season, light became the most important driver for LMA and Narea. Carbon isotope composition (δ(13)C) displayed strong, linear correlations with height throughout the growing season, but did not change with shading, implying that height is more influential than light on water use efficiency and stomatal behavior. LMA, leaf density, N(mass), C:N ratio, and δ(13)C all changed seasonally, suggesting that leaf ageing effects on leaf functional traits are equally as important as microclimatic conditions. Overall, our results indicate that: (1) stomatal sensitivity to vapor pressure deficit or Ψ(mid) constrains the supply of CO2 to leaves at higher heights, independent of light environment, and (2) LMA and N(area) distributions become functionally optimized through morphological acclimation to light with increasing leaf age despite height-related constraints.

Seasonal root biomass and nitrogen dynamics of big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii vitman) under wet and dry conditions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hayes, D.C.

1986-01-01

The relative influences of nitrogen and water deficits on plant responses to drought stress of reduced biomass and leaf nitrogen were assessed. Big blustem rhizomes were transplanted into clear polyvinyl tubes with a capillary breaker placed in the middle of the tube to allow separate watering of the upper and lower soil section. One month later, factorial treatments of nitrogen fertilizer and water deficit by soil section were initiated. Two soil types were used, coarse river sand and a very fine sandy loam. Plants were harvested and biomass and total nitrogen was determined by tissue type. Nitrogen deficit was shownmore » to have more influence on plant responses to drought stress than water deficit. The treatments with no nitrogen added averaged 70% of the leaf biomass and 43% of the total leaf nitrogen of plants with nitrogen fertilizer. The plants with a water deficit averaged 87% of the leaf biomass and 105% of the total leaf nitrogen of plants watered in both soil sections. Root dynamics were studied using root windows at Konza Prairie, a tallgrass prairie site, during a dry year (1984) and a wet year (1985). Amounts, production and disappearance of root length decreased rapidly with the onset of a drought period. Yearly summaries show that amounts, productivity and decomposition were less affected by drought with increasing soil depth. Quantitative biomass data obtained from soil cores were used to provide perspective to the root window study. Results were comparable to previous studies, with an average total root turnover rate of 31%.« less

Elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations amplify Alternaria alternata sporulation and total antigen production.

PubMed

Wolf, Julie; O'Neill, Nichole R; Rogers, Christine A; Muilenberg, Michael L; Ziska, Lewis H

2010-09-01

Although the effect of elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration on pollen production has been established in some plant species, impacts on fungal sporulation and antigen production have not been elucidated. Our purpose was to examine the effects of rising atmospheric CO2 concentrations on the quantity and quality of fungal spores produced on timothy (Phleum pratense) leaves. Timothy plants were grown at four CO2 concentrations (300, 400, 500, and 600 micromol/mol). Leaves were used as growth substrate for Alternaria alternata and Cladosporium phlei. The spore abundance produced by both fungi, as well as the size (microscopy) and antigenic protein content (ELISA) of A. alternata, were quantified. Leaf carbon-to-nitrogen ratio was greater at 500 and 600 micromol/mol, and leaf biomass was greater at 600 micromol/mol than at the lower CO2 concentrations. Leaf carbon-to-nitrogen ratio was positively correlated with A. alternata spore production per gram of leaf but negatively correlated with antigenic protein content per spore. At 500 and 600 micromol/mol CO2 concentrations, A. alternata produced nearly three times the number of spores and more than twice the total antigenic protein per plant than at lower concentrations. C. phlei spore production was positively correlated with leaf carbon-to-nitrogen ratio, but overall spore production was much lower than in A. alternata, and total per-plant production did not vary among CO2 concentrations. Elevated CO2 concentrations often increase plant leaf biomass and carbon-to-nitrogen ratio. Here we demonstrate for the first time that these leaf changes are associated with increased spore production by A. alternata, a ubiquitous allergenic fungus. This response may contribute to the increasing prevalence of allergies and asthma.

Modeling the leaf angle dynamics in rice plant.

PubMed

Zhang, Yonghui; Tang, Liang; Liu, Xiaojun; Liu, Leilei; Cao, Weixing; Zhu, Yan

2017-01-01

The leaf angle between stem and sheath (SSA) is an important rice morphological trait. The objective of this study was to develop and validate a dynamic SSA model under different nitrogen (N) rates for selected rice cultivars. The time-course data of SSA were collected in three years, and a dynamic SSA model was developed for different main stem leaf ranks under different N rates for two selected rice cultivars. SSA increased with tiller age. The SSA of the same leaf rank increased with increase in N rate. The maximum SSA increased with leaf rank from the first to the third leaf, then decreased from the third to the final leaf. The relationship between the maximum SSA and leaf rank on main stem could be described with a linear piecewise function. The change of SSA with thermal time (TT) was described by a logistic equation. A variety parameter (the maximum SSA of the 3rd leaf on main stem) and a nitrogen factor were introduced to quantify the effect of cultivar and N rate on SSA. The model was validated against data collected from both pot and field experiments. The relative root mean square error (RRMSE) was 11.56% and 14.05%, respectively. The resulting models could be used for virtual rice plant modeling and plant-type design.

Abiotic and biotic determinants of leaf carbon exchange capacity from tropical to high boreal biomes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, N. G.; Dukes, J. S.

2016-12-01

Photosynthesis and respiration on land represent the two largest fluxes of carbon dioxide between the atmosphere and the Earth's surface. As such, the Earth System Models that are used to project climate change are high sensitive to these processes. Studies have found that much of this uncertainty is due to the formulation and parameterization of plant photosynthetic and respiratory capacity. Here, we quantified the abiotic and biotic factors that determine photosynthetic and respiratory capacity at large spatial scales. Specifically, we measured the maximum rate of Rubisco carboxylation (Vcmax), the maximum rate of Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate regeneration (Jmax), and leaf dark respiration (Rd) in >600 individuals of 98 plant species from the tropical to high boreal biomes of Northern and Central America. We also measured a bevy of covariates including plant functional type, leaf nitrogen content, short- and long-term climate, leaf water potential, plant size, and leaf mass per area. We found that plant functional type and leaf nitrogen content were the primary determinants of Vcmax, Jmax, and Rd. Mean annual temperature and mean annual precipitation were not significant predictors of these rates. However, short-term climatic variables, specifically soil moisture and air temperature over the previous 25 days, were significant predictors and indicated that heat and soil moisture deficits combine to reduce photosynthetic capacity and increase respiratory capacity. Finally, these data were used as a model benchmarking tool for the Community Land Model version 4.5 (CLM 4.5). The benchmarking analyses determined errors in the leaf nitrogen allocation scheme of CLM 4.5. Under high leaf nitrogen levels within a plant type the model overestimated Vcmax and Jmax. This result suggested that plants were altering their nitrogen allocation patterns when leaf nitrogen levels were high, an effect that was not being captured by the model. These data, taken with models in mind, provide paths forward for improving model structure and parameterization of leaf carbon exchange at large spatial scales.

The sensitivity of stand-scale photosynthesis and transpiration to changes in atmospheric CO2 concentration and climate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kruijt, B.; Barton, C.; Rey, A.; Jarvis, P. G.

The 3-dimensional forest model MAESTRO was used to simulate daily and annual photosynthesis and transpiration fluxes of forest stands and the sensitivity of these fluxes to potential changes in atmospheric CO2 concentration ([CO2]), temperature, water stress and phenology. The effects of possible feed-backs from increased leaf area and limitations to leaf nutrition were simulated by imposing changes in leaf area and nitrogen content. Two different tree species were considered: Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr., a conifer with long needle longevity and large leaf area, and Betula pendula Roth., a broad-leaved deciduous species with an open canopy and small leaf area. Canopy photosynthetic production in trees was predicted to increase with atmospheric [CO2] and length of the growing season and to decrease with increased water stress. Associated increases in leaf area increased production further only in the B. pendula canopy, where the original leaf area was relatively small. Assumed limitations in N uptake affected B. pendula more than P. sitchensis. The effect of increased temperature was shown to depend on leaf area and nitrogen content. The different sensitivities of the two species were related to their very different canopy structure. Increased [CO2] reduced transpiration, but larger leaf area, early leaf growth, and higher temperature all led to increased water use. These effects were limited by feedbacks from soil water stress. The simulations suggest that, with the projected climate change, there is some increase in stand annual `water use efficiency', but the actual water losses to the atmosphere may not always decrease.

[Effects of elevated atmospheric CO2 and nitrogen application on cotton biomass, nitrogen utilization and soil urease activity].

PubMed

Lyu, Ning; Yin, Fei-hu; Chen, Yun; Gao, Zhi-jian; Liu, Yu; Shi, Lei

2015-11-01

In this study, a semi-open-top artificial climate chamber was used to study the effect of CO2 enrichment (360 and 540 µmol · mol(-1)) and nitrogen addition (0, 150, 300 and 450 kg · hm(-2)) on cotton dry matter accumulation and distribution, nitrogen absorption and soil urease activity. The results showed that the dry matter accumulation of bud, stem, leaf and the whole plant increased significantly in the higher CO2 concentration treatment irrespective of nitrogen level. The dry matter of all the detected parts of plant with 300 kg · hm(-2) nitrogen addition was significantly higher than those with the other nitrogen levels irrespective of CO2 concentration, indicating reasonable nitrogen fertilization could significantly improve cotton dry matter accumulation. Elevated CO2 concentration had significant impact on the nitrogen absorption contents of cotton bud and stem. Compared to those under CO2 concentration of 360 µmol · mol(-1), the nitrogen contents of bud and stem both increased significantly under CO2 concentration of 540 µmol · mol(-1). The nitrogen content of cotton bud in the treatment of 300 kg · hm(-2) nitrogen was the highest among the four nitrogen fertilizer treatments. While the nitrogen contents of cotton stem in the treatments of 150 kg · hm(-2) and 300 kg · hm(-2) nitrogen levels were higher than those in the treatment of 0 kg · hm(-2) and 450 kg · hm(-2) nitrogen levels. The nitrogen content of cotton leaf was significantly influenced by the in- teraction of CO2 elevation and N addition as the nitrogen content of leaf increased in the treatments of 0, 150 and 300 kg · hm(-2) nitrogen levels under the CO2 concentration of 540 µmol · mol(-1). The nitrogen content in cotton root was significantly increased with the increase of nitrogen fertilizer level under elevated CO2 (540 µmol · mol(-1)) treatment. Overall, the cotton nitrogen absorption content under the elevated CO2 (540 µmol · mol(-1)) treatment was higher than that under the ambient CO2- (360 µmol · mol(-1)) treatment. The order of nitrogen accumulation content in organs was bud > leaf > stem > root. Soil urease activity of both layers increased significantly with the elevation of CO2 concentration in all the nitrogen treatments. Under each CO2 concentration treatment, the soil urease activity in the upper layer (0-20 cm) increased significantly with nitrogen application, while the urease activity under the application of 300 kg · hm(-2) nitrogen was highest in the lower layer (20- 40 cm). The average soil urease activity in the upper layer (0-20 cm) was significantly higher than that in the lower layer (20-40 cm). This study suggested that the cotton dry matter accumulation and nitrogen absorption content were significantly increased in response to the elevated CO2 concentration (540 µmol · mol(-1)) and higher nitrogen addition (300 kg · hm(-2)).

Foliage nitrogen turnover: differences among nitrogen absorbed at different times by Quercus serrata saplings

PubMed Central

Ueda, Miki U.; Mizumachi, Eri; Tokuchi, Naoko

2011-01-01

Background and Aims Nitrogen turnover within plants has been intensively studied to better understand nitrogen use strategies. However, differences among the nitrogen absorbed at different times are not completely understood and the fate of nitrogen absorbed during winter is largely uncharacterized. In the present study, nitrogen absorbed at different times of the year (growing season, winter and previous growing season) was traced, and the within-leaf nitrogen turnover of a temperate deciduous oak Quercus serrata was investigated. Methods The contributions of nitrogen absorbed at the three different times to leaf construction, translocation during the growing season, and the leaf-level resorption efficiency during leaf senescence were compared using 15N. Key Results Winter- and previous growing season-absorbed nitrogen significantly contributed to leaf construction, although the contribution was smaller than that of growing season-absorbed nitrogen. On the other hand, the leaf-level resorption efficiency of winter- and previous growing season-absorbed nitrogen was higher than that of growing season-absorbed nitrogen, suggesting that older nitrogen is better retained in leaves than recently absorbed nitrogen. Conclusions The results demonstrate that nitrogen turnover in leaves varies with nitrogen absorption times. These findings are important for understanding plant nitrogen use strategies and nitrogen cycles in forest ecosystems. PMID:21515608

Spatial distribution of SPAD value and determination of the suitable leaf for N diagnosis in cucumber

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Jing; Li, Chenxiao; Wen, Yifang; Gao, Xinhao; Shi, Feifei; Han, Luhua

2018-01-01

To determine the best leaf position for nitrogen diagnosis in cucumber with SPAD meter, greenhouse experiments were carried out to study spatial distribution of SPAD value of different position of the 3rd fully expanded cucumber leaf in the effect of different nitrogen levels, and the correlations between SPAD values and nitrogen concentration of chlorophyll. The results show that there is remarkable different SPAD value in different positions of the 3rd fully expanded leaf in the flowering and fruiting stage. Comparing the coefficients of SPAD value variation, we find that the coefficient of variation of leaf edge was significantly higher than the edge of the main vein, and the coefficient of variation of triangular area of leaf tip is significantly higher than any other leaf area. There is a significant correlation between SPAD values and leaf nitrogen content. Preliminary study shows that triangular area of leaf tip from the 20% leaf tip to leaf edge is the best position for nitrogen diagnosis.

Effects of pyrolysis temperature, time and leaf litter and powder coal ash addition on sludge-derived adsorbents for nitrogen oxide.

PubMed

Ren, Xiaoli; Liang, Baohong; Liu, Min; Xu, Xiaoyuan; Cui, Meihua

2012-12-01

The objective of this research was to seek a cost effective solution to prepare adsorbents for nitrogen oxide from surplus sludge. Leaf litter and powder coal ash were used as cheap and easily available additives. An adsorbent for nitrogen oxide was prepared by pyrolysis of dried sludge mixed with zinc chloride. Under optimum pyrolysis conditions of 375°C for 90 min and a zinc chloride content of 30%, the surface area of the adsorbent with leaf litter was 514.41 m(2)/g, the surface area of the adsorbent with powder coal ash was 432.34 m(2)/g, respectively, corresponding to an increase of 90.70% and 60.27% when compared to the adsorbent without the additives. The saturated adsorption quantity of the adsorbent with leaf litter reached 271 mg/g at 20°C. The results indicated that the sludge-derived adsorbent was quite promising for nitrogen oxide removal. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Inoculation of hybrid poplar with the endophytic bacterium Enterobacter sp. 638 increases biomass but does not impact leaf level physiology

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rogers, A.; McDonald, K.; Muehlbauer, M. F.

Endophytic bacteria have been shown to provide several advantages to their host, including enhanced growth. Inoculating biofuel species with endophytic bacteria is therefore an attractive option to increase the productivity of biofuel feedstocks. Here, we investigated the effect of inoculating hard wood cuttings of Populus deltoides Bartr. x Populus. nigra L. clone OP367 with Enterobacter sp. 638. After 17 weeks, plants inoculated with Enterobacter sp. 638 had 55% greater total biomass than un-inoculated control plants. Study of gas exchange and fluorescence in developing and mature leaves over a diurnal cycle and over a 5 week measurement campaign revealed no effectsmore » of inoculation on photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, photosynthetic water use efficiency or the maximum and operating efficiency of photosystem II. However, plants inoculated with Enterobacter sp. 638 had a canopy that was 39% larger than control plants indicating that the enhanced growth was fueled by increased leaf area, not by improved physiology. Leaf nitrogen content was determined at two stages over the 5 week measurement period. No effect of Enterobacter sp. 638 on leaf nitrogen content was found indicating that the larger plants were acquiring sufficient nitrogen. Enterobacter sp. 638 lacks the genes for N{sub 2} fixation, therefore the increased availability of nitrogen likely resulted from enhanced nitrogen acquisition by the 84% larger root system. These data show that Enterobacter sp. 638 has the potential to dramatically increase productivity in poplar. If fully realized in the production environment, these results indicate that an increase in the environmental and economic viability of poplar as a biofuel feedstock is possible when inoculated with endophytic bacteria like Enterobacter sp. 638.« less

Changes in photosynthesis and leaf characteristics with tree height in five dipterocarp species in a tropical rain forest.

PubMed

Kenzo, Tanaka; Ichie, Tomoaki; Watanabe, Yoko; Yoneda, Reiji; Ninomiya, Ikuo; Koike, Takayoshi

2006-07-01

Variations in leaf photosynthetic, morphological and biochemical properties with increasing plant height from seedlings to emergent trees were investigated in five dipterocarp species in a Malaysian tropical rain forest. Canopy openness increased significantly with tree height. Photosynthetic properties, such as photosynthetic capacity at light saturation, light compensation point, maximum rate of carboxylation and maximum rate of photosynthetic electron transport, all increased significantly with tree height. Leaf morphological and biochemical traits, such as leaf mass per area, palisade layer thickness, nitrogen concentration per unit area, chlorophyll concentration per unit dry mass and chlorophyll to nitrogen ratio, also changed significantly with tree height. Leaf properties had simple and significant relationships with tree height, with few intra- and interspecies differences. Our results therefore suggest that the photosynthetic capacity of dipterocarp trees depends on tree height, and that the trees adapt to the light environment by adjusting their leaf morphological and biochemical properties. These results should aid in developing models that can accurately estimate carbon dioxide flux and biomass production in tropical rain forests.

Interspecific variations in mangrove leaf litter decomposition are related to labile nitrogenous compounds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nordhaus, Inga; Salewski, Tabea; Jennerjahn, Tim C.

2017-06-01

Mangrove leaves form a large pool of carbon, nitrogen and energy that is a major driver of element cycles and detrital food webs inside mangrove forests as well as in adjacent coastal waters. However, there are large gaps in knowledge on the transformation pathways and ultimate fate of leaf nitrogen. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to determine the amount and composition of nitrogenous organic matter and possible species-specific differences during the decomposition of mangrove leaf litter. For that purpose a three month decomposition experiment with litterbags was conducted using leaves of Aegiceras corniculatum, Avicennia alba, Ceriops decandra, Rhizophora apiculata, and Sonneratia caseolaris in the mangrove forest of the Segara Anakan Lagoon, Java, Indonesia. Detrital leaves were analyzed for bulk carbon and total nitrogen (N), stable carbon and nitrogen isotope composition (δ13C, δ15N), total hydrolyzable amino acids (THAA) and total hydrolyzable hexosamines (THHA). Decomposition rates (k d-1) were highest and tM50 values (when 50% of the original mass had been degraded) lowest in S. caseolaris (k = 0.0382 d-1; tM50 = 18 days), followed by A. alba, C. decandra, A. corniculatum, and R. apiculata (k = 0.0098 d-1; tM50 = 71 days). The biochemical composition of detrital leaves differed significantly among species and over time. S. caseolaris and A. alba had higher concentrations of N, THAA and THHA and a lower C/N ratio than the other three species. For most of the species concentrations of N, THAA and THHA increased during decomposition. The hexosamine galactosamine, indicative of bacterial cell walls, was first found in leaves after 5-7 days of decomposition and increased afterwards. Our findings suggest an increasing, but species-specific varying, portion of labile nitrogenous OM and total N in decomposing leaves over time that is partly related to the activity of leaf-colonizing bacteria. Despite a higher relative nitrogen content in the remaining litter of the fast decomposing S. caseolaris and A. alba as compared to the other three species, the total loss of nitrogen was even higher because of the much higher mass loss after three months of decomposition. It is inferred that the amount of labile nitrogenous organic matter plays a major role in determining the rate of decomposition of leaf litter in mangroves.

Remote Sensing of Vegetation Nitrogen Content for Spatially Explicit Carbon and Water Cycle Estimation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Y. L.; Miller, J. R.; Chen, J. M.

2009-05-01

Foliage nitrogen concentration is a determinant of photosynthetic capacity of leaves, thereby an important input to ecological models for estimating terrestrial carbon and water budgets. Recently, spectrally continuous airborne hyperspectral remote sensing imagery has proven to be useful for retrieving an important related parameter, total chlorophyll content at both leaf and canopy scales. Thus remote sensing of vegetation biochemical parameters has promising potential for improving the prediction of global carbon and water balance patterns. In this research, we explored the feasibility of estimating leaf nitrogen content using hyperspectral remote sensing data for spatially explicit estimation of carbon and water budgets. Multi-year measurements of leaf biochemical contents of seven major boreal forest species were carried out in northeastern Ontario, Canada. The variation of leaf chlorophyll and nitrogen content in response to various growth conditions, and the relationship between them,were investigated. Despite differences in plant type (deciduous and evergreen), leaf age, stand growth conditions and developmental stages, leaf nitrogen content was strongly correlated with leaf chlorophyll content on a mass basis during the active growing season (r2=0.78). With this general correlation, leaf nitrogen content was estimated from leaf chlorophyll content at an accuracy of RMSE=2.2 mg/g, equivalent to 20.5% of the average measured leaf nitrogen content. Based on this correlation and a hyperspectral remote sensing algorithm for leaf chlorophyll content retrieval, the spatial variation of leaf nitrogen content was inferred from the airborne hyperspectral remote sensing imagery acquired by Compact Airborne Spectrographic Imager (CASI). A process-based ecological model Boreal Ecosystem Productivity Simulator (BEPS) was used for estimating terrestrial carbon and water budgets. In contrast to the scenario with leaf nitrogen content assigned as a constant value without differentiation between and within vegetation types for calculating the photosynthesis rate, we incorporated the spatial distribution of leaf nitrogen content in the model to estimate net primary productivity and evaportranspiration of boreal ecosystem. These regional estimates of carbon and water budgets with and without N mapping are compared, and the importance of this leaf biochemistry information derived from hyperspectral remote sensing in regional mapping of carbon and water fluxes is quantitatively assessed. Keywords: Remote Sensing, Leaf Nitrogen Content, Spatial Distribution, Carbon and Water Budgets, Estimation

Mesophyll conductance and leaf carbon isotope composition of two high elevation conifers along an altitudinal gradient

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, J.; Beverly, D.; Cook, C.; Ewers, B.; Williams, D. G.

2016-12-01

Carbon isotope ratio values (δ13C) of conifer leaf material generally increases with elevation, potentially reflecting decreases in the leaf internal to ambient CO2 concentration ratio (Ci/Ca) during photosynthesis. Reduced stomatal conductance or increased carboxylation capacity with increasing elevation could account for these patterns. But some studies reported conifers δ13C increased with altitude consistently, but Ci/Ca did not significantly decrease and leaf nitrogen content remained constant with increasing of altitude in Central Rockies. Variation in leaf mesophyll conductance to CO2 diffusion, which influences leaf δ13C independently of effects related to stomatal conductance and carboxylation demand, might reconcile these conflicting observations. Leaf mass per unit area (LMA) increases with altitude and often correlates with δ13C and mesophyll conductance. Therefore, we hypothesized that increases in δ13C of conifers with altitude are controlled mainly by changes in mesophyll conductance. To test this hypothesis, leaf δ13C, photosynthetic capacity, leaf nitrogen content, LMA, and mesophyll conductance were determined on leaves of two dominant conifers (Pinus contorta and Picea engelmannii) along a 90-km transect in SE Wyoming at altitudes ranging from 2400 to 3200 m above sea level. Mesophyll conductance was determined by on-line 13C discrimination using isotope laser spectroscopy. We expected to observe relatively small differences in stomatal conductance and decreases in mesophyll conductance from lower and higher altitude sites. Such a pattern would have important implications for how differences in leaf δ13C values across altitude are interpreted in relation to forest water use and productivity from scaling of leaf-level water-use efficiency.

Effects of nutrient addition on leaf chemistry, morphology, and photosynthetic capacity of three bog shrubs

Treesearch

Jill L. Bubier; Rose Smith; Sari Juutinen; Tim R. Moore; Rakesh Minocha; Stephanie Long; Subash Minocha

2011-01-01

Plants in nutrient-poor environments typically have low foliar nitrogen (N) concentrations, long-lived tissues with leaf traits designed to use nutrients efficiently, and low rates of photosynthesis. We postulated that increasing N availability due to atmospheric deposition would increase photosynthetic capacity, foliar N, and specific leaf area (SLA) of bog shrubs. We...

Relationship between potassium fertilization and nitrogen metabolism in the leaf subtending the cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) boll during the boll development stage.

PubMed

Hu, Wei; Zhao, Wenqing; Yang, Jiashuo; Oosterhuis, Derrick M; Loka, Dimitra A; Zhou, Zhiguo

2016-04-01

The nitrogen (N) metabolism of the leaf subtending the cotton boll (LSCB) was studied with two cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) cultivars (Simian 3, low-K tolerant; Siza 3, low-K sensitive) under three levels of potassium (K) fertilization (K0: 0 g K2O plant(-1), K1: 4.5 K2O plant(-1) and K2: 9.0 g K2O plant(-1)). The results showed that total dry matter increased by 13.1-27.4% and 11.2-18.5% under K supply for Simian 3 and Siza 3. Boll biomass and boll weight also increased significantly in K1 and K2 treatments. Leaf K content, leaf N content and nitrate (NO3(-)) content increased with increasing K rates, and leaf N content or NO3(-) content had a significant positive correlation with leaf K content. Free amino acid content increased in the K0 treatment for both cultivars, due to increased protein degradation caused by higher protease and peptidase activities, resulting in lower protein content in the K0 treatment. The critical leaf K content for free amino acid and soluble protein content were 14 mg g(-1) and 15 mg g(-1) in Simian 3, and 17 mg g(-1) and 18 mg g(-1) in Siza 3, respectively. Nitrate reductase (NR), glutamic-oxaloace transaminase (GOT) and glutamic-pyruvic transaminase (GPT) activities increased in the K1 and K2 treatments for both cultivars, while glutamine synthetase (GS) and glutamate synthase (GOGAT) activities increased under K supply treatments only for Siza 3, and were not affected in Simian 3, indicating that this was the primary difference in nitrogen-metabolizing enzymes activities for the two cultivars with different sensitivity to low-K. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.

Autoregulation of Nodulation Interferes with Impacts of Nitrogen Fertilization Levels on the Leaf-Associated Bacterial Community in Soybeans ▿ †

PubMed Central

Ikeda, Seishi; Anda, Mizue; Inaba, Shoko; Eda, Shima; Sato, Shusei; Sasaki, Kazuhiro; Tabata, Satoshi; Mitsui, Hisayuki; Sato, Tadashi; Shinano, Takuro; Minamisawa, Kiwamu

2011-01-01

The diversities leaf-associated bacteria on nonnodulated (Nod−), wild-type nodulated (Nod+), and hypernodulated (Nod++) soybeans were evaluated by clone library analyses of the 16S rRNA gene. To analyze the impact of nitrogen fertilization on the bacterial leaf community, soybeans were treated with standard nitrogen (SN) (15 kg N ha−1) or heavy nitrogen (HN) (615 kg N ha−1) fertilization. Under SN fertilization, the relative abundance of Alphaproteobacteria was significantly higher in Nod− and Nod++ soybeans (82% to 96%) than in Nod+ soybeans (54%). The community structure of leaf-associated bacteria in Nod+ soybeans was almost unaffected by the levels of nitrogen fertilization. However, differences were visible in Nod− and Nod++ soybeans. HN fertilization drastically decreased the relative abundance of Alphaproteobacteria in Nod− and Nod++ soybeans (46% to 76%) and, conversely, increased those of Gammaproteobacteria and Firmicutes in these mutant soybeans. In the Alphaproteobacteria, cluster analyses identified two operational taxonomic units (OTUs) (Aurantimonas sp. and Methylobacterium sp.) that were especially sensitive to nodulation phenotypes under SN fertilization and to nitrogen fertilization levels. Arbuscular mycorrhizal infection was not observed on the root tissues examined, presumably due to the rotation of paddy and upland fields. These results suggest that a subpopulation of leaf-associated bacteria in wild-type Nod+ soybeans is controlled in similar ways through the systemic regulation of autoregulation of nodulation, which interferes with the impacts of N levels on the bacterial community of soybean leaves. PMID:21239540

Effects of root-zone acidity on utilization of nitrate and ammonium in tobacco plants

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Henry, L. T.; Raper, C. D. Jr; Raper CD, J. r. (Principal Investigator)

1989-01-01

Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L., cv. 'Coker 319') plants were grown for 28 days in flowing nutrient culture containing either 1.0 mM NO3- or 1.0 mM NH4+ as the nitrogen source in a complete nutrient solution. Acidities of the solutions were controlled at pH 6.0 or 4.0 for each nitrogen source. Plants were sampled at intervals of 6 to 8 days for determination of dry matter and nitrogen accumulation. Specific rates of NO3- or NH4+ uptake (rate of uptake per unit root mass) were calculated from these data. Net photosynthetic rates per unit leaf area were measured on attached leaves by infrared gas analysis. When NO3- [correction of NO-] was the sole nitrogen source, root growth and nitrogen uptake rate were unaffected by pH of the solution, and photosynthetic activity of leaves and accumulation of dry matter and nitrogen in the whole plant were similar. When NH4+ was the nitrogen source, photosynthetic rate of leaves and accumulation of dry matter and nitrogen in the whole plant were not statistically different from NO3(-) -fed plants when acidity of the solution was controlled at pH 6.0. When acidity for NH4(+) -fed plants was increased to pH 4.0, however, specific rate of NH4+ uptake decreased by about 50% within the first 6 days of treatment. The effect of acidity on root function was associated with a decreased rate of accumulation of nitrogen in shoots that was accompanied by a rapid cessation of leaf development between days 6 and 13. The decline in leaf growth rate of NH4(+) -fed plants at pH 4.0 was followed by reductions in photosynthetic rate per unit leaf area. These responses of NH4(+) -fed plants to increased root-zone acidity are characteristic of the sequence of responses that occur during onset of nitrogen stress.

Field- and Remote Sensing-based Structural Attributes Measured at Multiple Scales Influence the Relationship Between Nitrogen and Reflectance of Forest Canopies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sullivan, F.; Ollinger, S. V.; Palace, M. W.; Ouimette, A.; Sanders-DeMott, R.; Lepine, L. C.

2017-12-01

The correlation between near-infrared reflectance and forest canopy nitrogen concentration has been demonstrated at varying scales using a range of optical sensors on airborne and satellite platforms. Although the mechanism underpinning the relationship is unclear, at its basis are biologically-driven functional relationships of multiple plant traits that affect canopy chemistry and structure. The link between near-infrared reflectance and canopy nitrogen has been hypothesized to be partially driven by covariation of canopy nitrogen with canopy structure. In this study, we used a combination of airborne LiDAR data and field measured leaf and canopy chemical and structural traits to explore interrelationships between canopy nitrogen, near-infrared reflectance, and canopy structure on plots at Bartlett Experimental Forest in the White Mountain National Forest, New Hampshire. Over each plot, we developed a 1-meter resolution canopy height profile and a 1-meter resolution canopy height model. From canopy height profiles and canopy height models, we calculated a set of metrics describing the plot-level variability, breadth, depth, and arrangement of LiDAR returns. This combination of metrics was used to describe both vertical and horizontal variation in structure. In addition, we developed and measured several field-based metrics of leaf and canopy structure at the plot scale by directly measuring the canopy or by weighting leaf-level metrics by species leaf area contribution. We assessed relationships between leaf and structural metrics, near-infrared reflectance and canopy nitrogen concentration using multiple linear regression and mixed effects modeling. Consistent with our hypothesis, we found moderately strong links between both near-infrared reflectance and canopy nitrogen concentration with LiDAR-derived structural metrics, and we additionally found that leaf-level metrics scaled to the plot level share an important role in canopy reflectance. We suggest that canopy structure has a governing role in canopy reflectance, reducing maximum potential reflectance as structural complexity increases, and therefore also influences the relationship between canopy nitrogen and NIR reflectance.

Nodule and Leaf Nitrate Reductases and Nitrogen Fixation in Medicago sativa L. under Water Stress

PubMed Central

Aparicio-Tejo, P.; Sánchez-Díaz, Manuel

1982-01-01

The effect of water stress on patterns of nitrate reductase activity in the leaves and nodules and on nitrogen fixation were investigated in Medicago sativa L. plants watered 1 week before drought with or without NO3−. Nitrogen fixation was decreased by water stress and also inhibited strongly by the presence of NO3−. During drought, leaf nitrate reductase activity (NRA) decreased significantly particularly in plants watered with NO3−, while with rewatering, leaf NRA recovery was quite important especially in the NO3−-watered plants. As water stress progressed, the nodular NRA increased both in plants watered with NO3− and in those without NO3− contrary to the behavior of the leaves. Beyond −15.105 pascal, nodular NRA began to decrease in plants watered with NO3−. This phenomenon was not observed in nodules of plants given water only. Upon rewatering, it was observed that in plants watered with NO3− the nodular NRA increased again, while in plants watered but not given NO3−, such activity began to decrease. Nitrogen fixation increased only in plants without NO3−. PMID:16662233

Leaf reflectance-nitrogen-chlorophyll relations among three south Texas woody rangeland plant species

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gausman, H. W.; Everitt, J. H.; Escobar, D. E. (Principal Investigator)

1982-01-01

Annual variations in the nitrogen-chlorophyll leaf reflectance of hackberry, honey mesquite and live oak in south Texas, were compared. In spring, leaf reflectance at the 0.55 m wavelength and nitrogen (N) concentration was high but leaf chlorophyll (chl) concentrations were low. In summer, leaf reflectance and N-concentration were low but lead chl concentrations were high. Linear correlations for both spring and summer of leaf reflectance with N and chl concentration or deviations from linear regression were not statistically significant.

Apoplastic infusion of sucrose into stem internodes during female flowering does not increase grain yield in maize plants grown under nitrogen-limiting conditions.

PubMed

Peng, Yunfeng; Li, Chunjian; Fritschi, Felix B

2013-08-01

Nitrogen (N) limitation reduces leaf growth and photosynthetic rates of maize (Zea mays), and constrains photosynthate translocation to developing ears. Additionally, the period from about 1 week before to 2 weeks after silking is critical for establishing the reproductive sink capacity necessary to attain maximum yield. To investigate the influence of carbohydrate availability in plants of differing N status, a greenhouse study was performed in which exogenous sucrose (Suc) was infused around the time of silking into maize stems grown under different N regimes. N deficiency significantly reduced leaf area, leaf longevity, leaf chlorophyll content and photosynthetic rate. High N-delayed leaf senescence, particularly of the six uppermost leaves, compared to the other two N treatments. While N application increased ear leaf soluble protein concentration, it did not influence glucose and suc concentrations. Interestingly, ear leaf starch concentration decreased with increasing N application. Infusion of exogenous suc tended to increase non-structural carbohydrate concentrations in the developing ears of all N treatments at silking and 6 days after silking. However, leaf photosynthetic rates were not affected by suc infusion, and suc infusion failed to increase grain yield in any N treatment. The lack of an effect of suc infusion on ear growth and the high ear leaf starch concentration of N-deficient maize, suggest that yield reduction under N deficiency may not be due to insufficient photosynthate availability to the developing ear during silking, and that yield reduction under N deficiency may be determined at an earlier growth stage. Copyright © Physiologia Plantarum 2012.

Soil water availability and capacity of nitrogen accumulation influence variations of intrinsic water use efficiency in rice.

PubMed

Xue, Wei; Nay-Htoon, Bhone; Lindner, Steve; Dubbert, Maren; Otieno, Dennis; Ko, Jonghan; Werner, Christiane; Tenhunen, John

2016-04-01

Leaf intrinsic water use efficiency (WUEi) coupling maximum assimilation rate (Amax) and transpirable water lost via stomatal conductance (gsc) has been gaining increasing concern in sustainable crop production. Factors that influence leaf Amax and WUEi in rice (Oryza sativa L. cv Unkang) at flooding and rainfed conditions were evaluated. Positive correlations for leaf nitrogen content (Nm) and maximum carboxylation rate (Vcmax), for nitrogen allocation in Rubisco enzymes and mesophyll conductance (gm) were evident independent of cropping cultures. Rainfed rice exhibited enriched canopy leaf average Nm resulting in higher Amax, partially supporting improved leaf WUEi. Maximum WUEi (up to 0.14 μmol mmol(-1)) recorded in rainfed rice under drought conditions resulted from increasing gm/gsc ratio while at cost of significant decline in Amax due to hydraulically constrained gsc. Amax sensitivity related to gsc which was regulated by plant hydraulic conductance. WUEi was tightly correlated to Vcmax/gsc and gm/gsc ratios across the paddy and rainfed not to light environment, morphological and physiological traits, highlighting enhance capacity of Nm accumulation in rainfed rice with gsc at moderately high level similar to paddy rice facilitate optimization in Amax and WUEi while, is challenged by drought-vulnerable plant hydraulic conductance. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Long-Term Simulated Atmospheric Nitrogen Deposition Alters Leaf and Fine Root Decomposition

EPA Science Inventory

Atmospheric nitrogen deposition has been suggested to increase forest carbon sequestration across much of the Northern Hemisphere; slower organic matter decomposition could contribute to this increase. At four sugar maple (Acer saccharum)-dominated northern hardwood forests, we p...

Temporal variation in leaf nitrogen partitioning of a broad-leaved evergreen tree, Quercus myrsinaefolia.

PubMed

Yasumura, Yuko; Ishida, Atsushi

2011-01-01

We examined temporal changes in the amount of nitrogenous compounds in leaves from the outer and inner parts of the crown of Quercus myrsinaefolia growing in a seasonal climate. Throughout the leaf life span, metabolic protein and Rubisco content closely correlated with total nitrogen content, while structural protein content was relatively stable after full leaf expansion. Chlorophyll content was affected by shading as well as total nitrogen content in outer leaves that were overtopped by new shoots in the second year. Outer leaves showed a large seasonal variation in photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency (PNUE; the light-saturated photosynthetic rate per unit leaf nitrogen content) during the first year of their life, with PNUE decreasing from the peak in summer towards winter. Outer and inner leaves both showed age-related decline in PNUE in the second year. There were no such drastic changes in leaf nitrogen partitioning that could explain seasonal and yearly variations in PNUE. Nitrogen resorption occurred in overwintering leaves in spring. Metabolic protein explained the majority of nitrogen being resorbed, whereas structural protein, which was low in degradability, contributed little to nitrogen resorption.

Influence on wine biogenic amine composition of modifications to soil N availability and grapevine N by cover crops.

PubMed

Pérez-Álvarez, Eva P; Garde-Cerdán, Teresa; Cabrita, Maria João; García-Escudero, Enrique; Peregrina, Fernando

2017-11-01

Vineyard soil management can modify the nitrogen soil availability and, therefore, grape amino acid content. These compounds are precursors of biogenic amines, which have negative effects on wine quality and human health. The objective was to study whether the effect of conventional tillage and two cover crops (barley and clover) on grapevine nitrogen status could be related to wine biogenic amines. Over 4 years, soil NO 3 - -N, nitrogen content in leaf and wine biogenic amine concentration were determined. Barley reduced soil NO 3 - -N availability and clover increased it. In 2011, at bloom, nitrogen content decreased with barley treatment in both blade and petiole. In 2012, nitrogen content in both leaf tissues at bloom was greater with clover than with tillage and barley treatments. Also, total biogenic amines decreased in barley with respect to tillage and clover treatments. There were correlations between some individual and total biogenic amine concentrations with respect to nitrogen content in leaf tissues. Wine biogenic amine concentration can be affected by the grapevine nitrogen status, provoked by changes in the soil NO 3 - -N availability with both cover crop treatments. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

FOREST-BGC, A general model of forest ecosystem processes for regional applications. II. Dynamic carbon allocation and nitrogen budgets.

PubMed

Running, Steven W.; Gower, Stith T.

1991-01-01

A new version of the ecosystem process model FOREST-BGC is presented that uses stand water and nitrogen limitations to alter the leaf/root/stem carbon allocation fraction dynamically at each annual iteration. Water deficit is defined by integrating a daily soil water deficit fraction annually. Current nitrogen limitation is defined relative to a hypothetical optimum foliar N pool, computed as maximum leaf area index multiplied by maximum leaf nitrogen concentration. Decreasing availability of water or nitrogen, or both, reduces the leaf/root carbon partitioning ratio. Leaf and root N concentrations, and maximum leaf photosynthetic capacity are also redefined annually as functions of nitrogen availability. Test simulations for hypothetical coniferous forests were performed for Madison, WI and Missoula, MT, and showed simulated leaf area index ranging from 4.5 for a control stand at Missoula, to 11 for a fertilized stand at Madison, with Year 50 stem carbon biomasses of 31 and 128 Mg ha(-1), respectively. Total nitrogen incorporated into new tissue ranged from 34 kg ha(-1) year(-1) for the unfertilized Missoula stand, to 109 kg ha(-1) year(-1) for the fertilized Madison stand. The model successfully showed dynamic annual carbon partitioning controlled by water and nitrogen limitations.

Leaf nitrogen assimilation and partitioning differ among subtropical forest plants in response to canopy addition of nitrogen treatments

Treesearch

Nan Liu; Shuhua Wu; Qinfeng Guo; Jiaxin Wang; Ce Cao; Jun Wang

2018-01-01

Global increases in nitrogen deposition may alter forest structure and function by interferingwith plant nitrogen metabolism (e.g., assimilation and partitioning) and subsequent carbon assimilation, but it is unclear how these responses to nitrogen deposition differ among species. In this study, we conducted a 2-year experiment to investigate the effects of canopy...

Relationships of leaf dark respiration to leaf nitrogen, specific leaf area and leaf life-span: a test across biomes and functional groups

Treesearch

Peter B. Reich; Michael B. Walters; David S. Ellsworth; [and others; [Editor’s note: James M.. Vose is the SRS co-author for this publication.

1998-01-01

Based on prior evidence of coordinated multiple leaf trait scaling, the authors hypothesized that variation among species in leaf dark respiration rate (Rd) should scale with variation in traits such as leaf nitrogen (N), leaf life-span, specific leaf area (SLA), and net photosynthetic capacity (Amax). However, it is not known whether such scaling, if it exists, is...

A carnivorous sundew plant prefers protein over chitin as a source of nitrogen from its traps.

PubMed

Pavlovič, Andrej; Krausko, Miroslav; Adamec, Lubomír

2016-07-01

Carnivorous plants have evolved in nutrient-poor wetland habitats. They capture arthropod prey, which is an additional source of plant growth limiting nutrients. One of them is nitrogen, which occurs in the form of chitin and proteins in prey carcasses. In this study, the nutritional value of chitin and protein and their digestion traits in the carnivorous sundew Drosera capensis L. were estimated using stable nitrogen isotope abundance. Plants fed on chitin derived 49% of the leaf nitrogen from chitin, while those fed on the protein bovine serum albumin (BSA) derived 70% of its leaf nitrogen from this. Moreover, leaf nitrogen content doubled in protein-fed in comparison to chitin-fed plants indicating that the proteins were digested more effectively in comparison to chitin and resulted in significantly higher chlorophyll contents. The surplus chlorophyll and absorbed nitrogen from the protein digestion were incorporated into photosynthetic proteins - the light harvesting antennae of photosystem II. The incorporation of insect nitrogen into the plant photosynthetic apparatus may explain the increased rate of photosynthesis and plant growth after feeding. This general response in many genera of carnivorous plants has been reported in many previous studies. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Hydraulic conductance as well as nitrogen accumulation plays a role in the higher rate of leaf photosynthesis of the most productive variety of rice in Japan.

PubMed

Taylaran, Renante D; Adachi, Shunsuke; Ookawa, Taiichiro; Usuda, Hideaki; Hirasawa, Tadashi

2011-07-01

An indica variety Takanari is known as one of the most productive rice varieties in Japan and consistently produces 20-30% heavier dry matter during ripening than Japanese commercial varieties in the field. The higher rate of photosynthesis of individual leaves during ripening has been recognized in Takanari. By using pot-grown plants under conditions of minimal mutual shading, it was confirmed that the higher rate of leaf photosynthesis is responsible for the higher dry matter production after heading in Takanari as compared with a japonica variety, Koshihikari. The rate of leaf photosynthesis and shoot dry weight became larger in Takanari after the panicle formation and heading stages, respectively, than in Koshihikari. Roots grew rapidly in the panicle formation stage until heading in Takanari compared with Koshihikari. The higher rate of leaf photosynthesis in Takanari resulted not only from the higher content of leaf nitrogen, which was caused by its elevated capacity for nitrogen accumulation, but also from higher stomatal conductance. When measured under light-saturated conditions, stomatal conductance was already decreased due to the reduction in leaf water potential in Koshihikari even under conditions of a relatively small difference in leaf-air vapour pressure difference. In contrast, the higher stomatal conductance was supported by the maintenance of higher leaf water potential through the higher hydraulic conductance in Takanari with the larger area of root surface. However, no increase in root hydraulic conductivity was expected in Takanari. The larger root surface area of Takanari might be a target trait in future rice breeding for increasing dry matter production.

Community-weighted mean of leaf traits and divergence of wood traits predict aboveground biomass in secondary subtropical forests.

PubMed

Ali, Arshad; Yan, En-Rong; Chang, Scott X; Cheng, Jun-Yang; Liu, Xiang-Yu

2017-01-01

Subtropical forests are globally important in providing ecological goods and services, but it is not clear whether functional diversity and composition can predict aboveground biomass in such forests. We hypothesized that high aboveground biomass is associated with high functional divergence (FDvar, i.e., niche complementarity) and community-weighted mean (CWM, i.e., mass ratio; communities dominated by a single plant strategy) of trait values. Structural equation modeling was employed to determine the direct and indirect effects of stand age and the residual effects of CWM and FDvar on aboveground biomass across 31 plots in secondary forests in subtropical China. The CWM model accounted for 78, 20, 6 and 2% of the variation in aboveground biomass, nitrogen concentration in young leaf, plant height and specific leaf area of young leaf, respectively. The FDvar model explained 74, 13, 7 and 0% of the variation in aboveground biomass, plant height, twig wood density and nitrogen concentration in young leaf, respectively. The variation in aboveground biomass, CWM of leaf nitrogen concentration and specific leaf area, and FDvar of plant height, twig wood density and nitrogen concentration in young leaf explained by the joint model was 86, 20, 13, 7, 2 and 0%, respectively. Stand age had a strong positive direct effect but low indirect positive effects on aboveground biomass. Aboveground biomass was negatively related to CWM of nitrogen concentration in young leaf, but positively related to CWM of specific leaf area of young leaf and plant height, and FDvar of plant height, twig wood density and nitrogen concentration in young leaf. Leaf and wood economics spectra are decoupled in regulating the functionality of forests, communities with diverse species but high nitrogen conservative and light acquisitive strategies result in high aboveground biomass, and hence, supporting both the mass ratio and niche complementarity hypotheses in secondary subtropical forests. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of elevated atmospheric CO2 concentration on growth and leaf litter decomposition of Quercus acutissima and Fraxinus rhynchophylla

PubMed Central

Cha, Sangsub; Chae, Hee-Myung; Lee, Sang-Hoon; Shim, Jae-Kuk

2017-01-01

The atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) level is expected to increase substantially, which may change the global climate and carbon dynamics in ecosystems. We examined the effects of an elevated atmospheric CO2 level on the growth of Quercus acutissima and Fraxinus rhynchophylla seedlings. We investigated changes in the chemical composition of leaf litter, as well as litter decomposition. Q. acutissima and F. rhynchophylla did not show differences in dry weight between ambient CO2 and enriched CO2 treatments, but they exhibited different patterns of carbon allocation, namely, lower shoot/root ratio (S/R) and decreased specific leaf area (SLA) under CO2-enriched conditions. The elevated CO2 concentration significantly reduced the nitrogen concentration in leaf litter while increasing lignin concentrations and carbon/nitrogen (C/N) and lignin/N ratios. The microbial biomass associated with decomposing Q. acutissima leaf litter was suppressed in CO2 enrichment chambers, while that of F. rhynchophylla was not. The leaf litter of Q. acutissima from the CO2-enriched chambers, in contrast with F. rhynchophylla, contained much lower nutrient concentrations than that of the litter in the ambient air chambers. Consequently, poorer litter quality suppressed decomposition. PMID:28182638

Effect of elevated atmospheric CO2 concentration on growth and leaf litter decomposition of Quercus acutissima and Fraxinus rhynchophylla.

PubMed

Cha, Sangsub; Chae, Hee-Myung; Lee, Sang-Hoon; Shim, Jae-Kuk

2017-01-01

The atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) level is expected to increase substantially, which may change the global climate and carbon dynamics in ecosystems. We examined the effects of an elevated atmospheric CO2 level on the growth of Quercus acutissima and Fraxinus rhynchophylla seedlings. We investigated changes in the chemical composition of leaf litter, as well as litter decomposition. Q. acutissima and F. rhynchophylla did not show differences in dry weight between ambient CO2 and enriched CO2 treatments, but they exhibited different patterns of carbon allocation, namely, lower shoot/root ratio (S/R) and decreased specific leaf area (SLA) under CO2-enriched conditions. The elevated CO2 concentration significantly reduced the nitrogen concentration in leaf litter while increasing lignin concentrations and carbon/nitrogen (C/N) and lignin/N ratios. The microbial biomass associated with decomposing Q. acutissima leaf litter was suppressed in CO2 enrichment chambers, while that of F. rhynchophylla was not. The leaf litter of Q. acutissima from the CO2-enriched chambers, in contrast with F. rhynchophylla, contained much lower nutrient concentrations than that of the litter in the ambient air chambers. Consequently, poorer litter quality suppressed decomposition.

[Effects of postponing nitrogen application on photosynthetic characteristics and grain yield of winter wheat subjected to water stress after heading stage].

PubMed

Yang, Ming-da; Ma, Shou-chen; Yang, Shen-jiao; Zhang, Su-yu; Guan, Xiao-kang; Li, Xue-mei; Wang, Tong-chao; Li, Chun-xi

2015-11-01

A pot culture experiment was conducted to study the effects of postponing nitrogen (N) application on photosynthetic characteristics and grain yield of winter wheat subjected to water stress after heading stage. Equal in the total N rate in winter wheat growth season, N application was split before sowing, and/or at jointing and /or at anthesis at the ratio of 10:0:0 (N1), 6:4:0 (N2) and 4:3:3 (N3), combined with unfavorable water condition (either waterlogged or drought) with the sufficient water condition as control. The results showed that, under each of the water condition, both N2 and N3 treatments significantly improved the leaf photosynthetic rate and the SPAD value of flag leaf compared with N1 treatment during grain filling stage, and also the crop ear number, grain number per spike and above-ground biomass were increased. Although postponing nitrogen application increased water consumption, both grain yield and water use efficiency were increased. Compared with sufficient water supply, drought stress and waterlogging stress significantly reduced the photosynthetic rate of flag leaves at anthesis and grain filling stages, ear number, 1000-grain mass and yield under all of the N application patterns. The decline of photosynthetic rate under either drought stress or waterlogging stress was much less in N2 and N3 than in N1 treatments, just the same as the grain yield. The results indicated that postponing nitrogen application could regulate winter wheat yield as well as its components to alleviate the damages, caused by unfavorable water stress by increasing flag leaf SPAD and maintaining flag leaf photosynthetic rate after anthesis, and promoting above-ground dry matter accumulation.

Growth and reflectance characteristics of winter wheat canopies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hinzman, L. D.; Bauer, M. E.; Daughtry, C. S. T.

1984-01-01

A valuable input to crop growth and yield models would be estimates of current crop condition. If multispectral reflectance indicates crop condition, then remote sensing may provide an additional tool for crop assessment. The effects of nitrogen fertilization on the spectral reflectance and agronomic characteristics of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) were determined through field experiments. Spectral reflectance was measured during the 1979 and 1980 growing seasons with a spectroradiometer. Agronomic data included total leaf N concentration, leaf chlorophyll concentration, stage of development, leaf area index (LAI), plant moisture, and fresh and dry phytomass. Nitrogen deficiency caused increased visible, reduced near infrared, and increased middle infrared reflectance. These changes were related to lower levels of chlorophyll and reduced leaf area in the N-deficient plots. Green LAI, an important descriptor of wheat canopies, could be reliably estimated with multispectral data. The potential of remote sensing in distinguishing stressed from healthy crops is demonstrated. Evidence suggests multispectral imagery may be useful for monitoring crop condition.

Hydraulic conductance as well as nitrogen accumulation plays a role in the higher rate of leaf photosynthesis of the most productive variety of rice in Japan

PubMed Central

Taylaran, Renante D.; Adachi, Shunsuke; Ookawa, Taiichiro; Usuda, Hideaki; Hirasawa, Tadashi

2011-01-01

An indica variety Takanari is known as one of the most productive rice varieties in Japan and consistently produces 20–30% heavier dry matter during ripening than Japanese commercial varieties in the field. The higher rate of photosynthesis of individual leaves during ripening has been recognized in Takanari. By using pot-grown plants under conditions of minimal mutual shading, it was confirmed that the higher rate of leaf photosynthesis is responsible for the higher dry matter production after heading in Takanari as compared with a japonica variety, Koshihikari. The rate of leaf photosynthesis and shoot dry weight became larger in Takanari after the panicle formation and heading stages, respectively, than in Koshihikari. Roots grew rapidly in the panicle formation stage until heading in Takanari compared with Koshihikari. The higher rate of leaf photosynthesis in Takanari resulted not only from the higher content of leaf nitrogen, which was caused by its elevated capacity for nitrogen accumulation, but also from higher stomatal conductance. When measured under light-saturated conditions, stomatal conductance was already decreased due to the reduction in leaf water potential in Koshihikari even under conditions of a relatively small difference in leaf–air vapour pressure difference. In contrast, the higher stomatal conductance was supported by the maintenance of higher leaf water potential through the higher hydraulic conductance in Takanari with the larger area of root surface. However, no increase in root hydraulic conductivity was expected in Takanari. The larger root surface area of Takanari might be a target trait in future rice breeding for increasing dry matter production. PMID:21527630

Consumption and utilization of experimentally altered corn by southern armyworm: Iron, nitrogen, and cyclic hydroxamates.

PubMed

Manuwoto, S; Scriber, J M

1985-11-01

The effects of differential leaf water, leaf nitrogen and cyclic hydroxamate (DIMBOA) concentrations in corn seedlings were analyzed for a polyphagous insect, the southern armyworm (Spodoptera eridania Cram.). Six different combinations of nutrients and allelochemicals [DIMBOA = 2,4-dihydroxy-7-methoxy(2H)-benzoxazin-3(4H)-one] were generated using two corn genotypes (WF9 and CI3IA) and three fertility regimes (complete nutrient, Fe-deficient, and N-deficient solutions) in the University Biotron. Poorest larval growth was observed in the low-nitrogen treatments (1.2% and 1.7% leaf N) and was the result of both low consumption rates and high metabolic costs (low efficiency of conversion of digested food, ECD). Fastest growth rates were observed forthe larvae fed leaves from the high-nitrogen treatments (4.6% and 4.4% leaf N). It is noteworthy that these treatments also contained the highest concentration of cyclic hydroxamates, which are generally believed to be the primary defensive chemicals mediating resistance against the European corn borer,Ostrinia nubilalis (Hubner). If these hydroxamates do have any deleterious or costly effects (perhaps accounting for a large portion of metabolic expenditures), the high digestibility of the leaf tissue and the increased consumption rates more than compensate, resulting in rapid growth (growth rate = consumption rate × approximate digestibility × efficiency of conversion of the digested food). These studies illustrate that variation in key nutrients and allelochemicals within a single plant species (Zea mays L.) may have significantly different effects upon various potential leaf-chewing caterpillars, such as these armyworms versus corn borers (which cannot handle the cyclic hydroxamates, even if provided with young nutritious leaf tissues).

Leaf structural and photosynthetic characteristics, and biomass allocation to foliage in relation to foliar nitrogen content and tree size in three Betula species.

PubMed

Niinemets, Ulo; Portsmuth, Angelika; Truus, Laimi

2002-02-01

Young trees 0.03-1.7 m high of three coexisting Betula species were investigated in four sites of varying soil fertility, but all in full daylight, to separate nutrient and plant size controls on leaf dry mass per unit area (MA), light-saturated foliar photosynthetic electron transport rate (J) and the fraction of plant biomass in foliage (F(L)). Because the site effect was generally non-significant in the analyses of variance with foliar nitrogen content per unit dry mass (N(M)) as a covariate, N(M) was used as an explaining variable of leaf structural and physiological characteristics. Average leaf area (S) and dry mass per leaf scaled positively with N(M) and total tree height (H) in all species. Leaf dry mass per unit area also increased with increasing H, but decreased with increasing N(M), whereas the effects were species-specific. Increases in plant size led to a lower and increases in N(M) to a greater FL and total plant foliar area per unit plant biomass (LAR). Thus, the self-shading probably increased with increasing N(M) and decreased with increasing H. Nevertheless, the whole-plant average M(A), as well as M(A) values of topmost fully exposed leaves, correlated with N(M) and H in a similar manner, indicating that scaling of MA with N(M) and H did not necessarily result from the modified degree of within-plant shading. The rate of photosynthetic electron transport per unit dry mass (J(M)) scaled positively with N(M), but decreased with increasing H and M(A). Thus, increases in M(A) with tree height and decreasing nitrogen content not only resulted in a lower plant foliar area (LAR = F(L)/M(A)), but also led to lower physiological activity of unit foliar biomass. The leaf parameters (J(M), N(M) and M(A)) varied threefold, but the whole-plant characteristic FL varied 20-fold and LAR 30-fold, indicating that the biomass allocation was more plastically adjusted to different plant internal nitrogen contents and to tree height than the foliar variables. Our results demonstrate that: (1) tree height and N(M) may independently control foliar structure and physiology, and have an even greater impact on biomass allocation; and (2) the modified within-plant light availabilities alone do not explain the observed patterns. Although there were interspecific differences with respect to the statistical significance of the relationships, all species generally fit common regressions. However, these differences were consistent, and suggested that more competitive species with inherently larger growth rates also more plastically respond to N and H.

Leaf Structural and Photosynthetic Characteristics, and Biomass Allocation to Foliage in Relation to Foliar Nitrogen Content and Tree Size in Three Betula Species

PubMed Central

NIINEMETS, ÜLO; PORTSMUTH, ANGELIKA; TRUUS, LAIMI

2002-01-01

Young trees 0·03–1·7 m high of three coexisting Betula species were investigated in four sites of varying soil fertility, but all in full daylight, to separate nutrient and plant size controls on leaf dry mass per unit area (MA), light‐saturated foliar photosynthetic electron transport rate (J) and the fraction of plant biomass in foliage (FL). Because the site effect was generally non‐significant in the analyses of variance with foliar nitrogen content per unit dry mass (NM) as a covariate, NM was used as an explaining variable of leaf structural and physiological characteristics. Average leaf area (S) and dry mass per leaf scaled positively with NM and total tree height (H) in all species. Leaf dry mass per unit area also increased with increasing H, but decreased with increasing NM, whereas the effects were species‐specific. Increases in plant size led to a lower and increases in NM to a greater FL and total plant foliar area per unit plant biomass (LAR). Thus, the self‐shading probably increased with increasing NM and decreased with increasing H. Nevertheless, the whole‐plant average MA, as well as MA values of topmost fully exposed leaves, correlated with NM and H in a similar manner, indicating that scaling of MA with NM and H did not necessarily result from the modified degree of within‐plant shading. The rate of photosynthetic electron transport per unit dry mass (JM) scaled positively with NM, but decreased with increasing H and MA. Thus, increases in MA with tree height and decreasing nitrogen content not only resulted in a lower plant foliar area (LAR = FL/MA), but also led to lower physiological activity of unit foliar biomass. The leaf parameters (JM, NM and MA) varied threefold, but the whole‐plant characteristic FL varied 20‐fold and LAR 30‐fold, indicating that the biomass allocation was more plastically adjusted to different plant internal nitrogen contents and to tree height than the foliar variables. Our results demonstrate that: (1) tree height and NM may independently control foliar structure and physiology, and have an even greater impact on biomass allocation; and (2) the modified within‐plant light availabilities alone do not explain the observed patterns. Although there were interspecific differences with respect to the statistical significance of the relationships, all species generally fit common regressions. However, these differences were consistent, and suggested that more competitive species with inherently larger growth rates also more plastically respond to N and H. PMID:12099350

The impact of modifying photosystem antenna size on canopy photosynthetic efficiency—Development of a new canopy photosynthesis model scaling from metabolism to canopy level processes

PubMed Central

Song, Qingfeng; Wang, Yu; Qu, Mingnan; Ort, Donald R.

2017-01-01

Abstract Canopy photosynthesis (Ac) describes photosynthesis of an entire crop field and the daily and seasonal integrals of Ac positively correlate with daily and seasonal biomass production. Much effort in crop breeding has focused on improving canopy architecture and hence light distribution inside the canopy. Here, we develop a new integrated canopy photosynthesis model including canopy architecture, a ray tracing algorithm, and C3 photosynthetic metabolism to explore the option of manipulating leaf chlorophyll concentration ([Chl]) for greater Ac and nitrogen use efficiency (NUE). Model simulation results show that (a) efficiency of photosystem II increased when [Chl] was decreased by decreasing antenna size and (b) the light received by leaves at the bottom layers increased when [Chl] throughout the canopy was decreased. Furthermore, the modelling revealed a modest ~3% increase in Ac and an ~14% in NUE was accompanied when [Chl] reduced by 60%. However, if the leaf nitrogen conserved by this decrease in leaf [Chl] were to be optimally allocated to other components of photosynthesis, both Ac and NUE can be increased by over 30%. Optimizing [Chl] coupled with strategic reinvestment of conserved nitrogen is shown to have the potential to support substantial increases in Ac, biomass production, and crop yields. PMID:28755407

Root Cortical Aerenchyma Enhances Nitrogen Acquisition from Low-Nitrogen Soils in Maize1[W][OPEN

PubMed Central

Saengwilai, Patompong; Nord, Eric A.; Chimungu, Joseph G.; Brown, Kathleen M.; Lynch, Jonathan Paul

2014-01-01

Suboptimal nitrogen (N) availability is a primary constraint for crop production in developing nations, while in rich nations, intensive N fertilization carries substantial environmental and economic costs. Therefore, understanding root phenes that enhance N acquisition is of considerable importance. Structural-functional modeling predicts that root cortical aerenchyma (RCA) could improve N acquisition in maize (Zea mays). We evaluated the utility of RCA for N acquisition by physiological comparison of maize recombinant inbred lines contrasting in RCA grown under suboptimal and adequate N availability in greenhouse mesocosms and in the field in the United States and South Africa. N stress increased RCA formation by 200% in mesocosms and by 90% to 100% in the field. RCA formation substantially reduced root respiration and root N content. Under low-N conditions, RCA formation increased rooting depth by 15% to 31%, increased leaf N content by 28% to 81%, increased leaf chlorophyll content by 22%, increased leaf CO2 assimilation by 22%, increased vegetative biomass by 31% to 66%, and increased grain yield by 58%. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that RCA improves plant growth under N-limiting conditions by decreasing root metabolic costs, thereby enhancing soil exploration and N acquisition in deep soil strata. Although potential fitness tradeoffs of RCA formation are poorly understood, increased RCA formation appears be a promising breeding target for enhancing crop N acquisition. PMID:24891611

Leaf economics of evergreen and deciduous tree species along an elevational gradient in a subtropical mountain.

PubMed

Bai, Kundong; He, Chengxin; Wan, Xianchong; Jiang, Debing

2015-06-08

The ecophysiological mechanisms underlying the pattern of bimodal elevational distribution of evergreen tree species remain incompletely understood. Here we used leaf economics spectrum (LES) theory to explain such patterns. We measured leaf economic traits and constructed an LES for the co-existing 19 evergreen and 15 deciduous species growing in evergreen broad-leaved forest at low elevation, beech-mixed forest at middle elevation and hemlock-mixed forest at high elevation in Mao'er Mountain, Guangxi, Southern China (25°50'N, 110°49'E). Leaf economic traits presented low but significant phylogenetic signal, suggesting trait similarity between closely related species. After considering the effects of phylogenetic history, deciduous species in general showed a more acquisitive leaf strategy with a higher ratio of leaf water to dry mass, higher leaf nitrogen and phosphorous contents, higher photosynthetic and respiratory rates and greater photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency. In contrast, evergreen species exhibited a more conservative leaf strategy with higher leaf mass per area, greater construction costs and longer leaf life span. With the elevation-induced decreases of temperature and soil fertility, both evergreen and deciduous species showed greater resource conservation, suggesting the increasing importance of environmental filtering to community assembly with increasing elevation. We found close inter-specific correlations between leaf economic traits, suggesting that there are strong genetic constraints limiting the independent evolution of LES traits. Phylogenetic signal increased with decreasing evolutionary rate across leaf economic traits, suggesting that genetic constraints are important for the process of trait evolution. We found a significantly positive relationship between primary axis species score (PASS) distance and phylogenetic distance across species pairs and an increasing average PASS distance between evergreen and deciduous species with increasing elevation, implying that the frequency of distantly related evergreen and deciduous pairs with wide spreading of leaf economic values increases with increasing elevation. Our findings thus suggest that elevation acts as an environmental filter to both select the locally adapted evergreen and deciduous species with sufficient phylogenetic variation and regulate their distribution along the elevational gradient based on their coordinated spreading of phylogenetic divergence and leaf economic variation. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Annals of Botany Company.

Crops, Nitrogen, Water: Are Legumes Friend, Foe, or Misunderstood Ally?

PubMed

Adams, Mark A; Buchmann, Nina; Sprent, Janet; Buckley, Thomas N; Turnbull, Tarryn L

2018-06-01

Biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) by crop legumes reduces demand for industrial nitrogen fixation (INF). Nonetheless, rates of BNF in agriculture remain low, with strong negative feedback to BNF from reactive soil nitrogen (N) and drought. We show that breeding for yield has resulted in strong relationships between photosynthesis and leaf N in non-leguminous crops, whereas grain legumes show strong relations between leaf N and water use efficiency (WUE). We contrast these understandings with other studies that draw attention to the water costs of grain legume crops, and their potential for polluting the biosphere with N. We propose that breeding grain legumes for reduced stomatal conductance can increase WUE without compromising production or BNF. Legume crops remain a better bet than relying on INF. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Canopy-scale relationships between foliar nitrogen and albedo are not observed in leaf reflectance and transmittance within temperate deciduous tree species

Treesearch

Megan K. Bartlett; Scott V. Ollinger; David Y. Hollinger; Haley F. Wicklein; Andrew D. Richardson

2011-01-01

Strong positive correlations between the maximum rate of canopy photosynthesis, canopy-averaged foliar nitrogen concentration, and canopy albedo have been shown in previous studies. While leaf-level relationships between photosynthetic capacity and foliar nitrogen are well documented, it is not clear whether leaf-level relationships between solar-weighted reflectance...

Fagaceae tree species allocate higher fraction of nitrogen to photosynthetic apparatus than Leguminosae in Jianfengling tropical montane rain forest, China

PubMed Central

Cheng, Ruimei; Shi, Zuomin; Xu, Gexi; Liu, Shirong; Centritto, Mauro

2018-01-01

Variation in photosynthetic-nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE) is generally affected by several factors such as leaf nitrogen allocation and leaf diffusional conductances to CO2, although it is still unclear which factors significantly affect PNUE in tropical montane rain forest trees. In this study, comparison of PNUE, photosynthetic capacity, leaf nitrogen allocation, and diffusional conductances to CO2 between five Fagaceae tree species and five Leguminosae tree species were analyzed in Jianfengling tropical montane rain forest, Hainan Island, China. The result showed that PNUE of Fagaceae was significantly higher than that of Leguminosae (+35.5%), attributed to lower leaf nitrogen content per area (Narea, –29.4%). The difference in nitrogen allocation was the main biochemical factor that influenced interspecific variation in PNUE of these tree species. Fagaceae species allocated a higher fraction of leaf nitrogen to the photosynthetic apparatus (PP, +43.8%), especially to Rubisco (PR, +50.0%) and bioenergetics (PB +33.3%) in comparison with Leguminosae species. Leaf mass per area (LMA) of Leguminosae species was lower than that of Fagaceae species (-15.4%). While there was no significant difference shown for mesophyll conductance (gm), Fagaceae tree species may have greater chloroplast to total leaf surface area ratios and that offset the action of thicker cell walls on gm. Furthermore, weak negative relationship between nitrogen allocation in cell walls and in Rubisco was found for Castanopsis hystrix, Cyclobalanopsis phanera and Cy. patelliformis, which might imply that nitrogen in the leaves was insufficient for both Rubisco and cell walls. In summary, our study concluded that higher PNUE might contribute to the dominance of most Fagaceae tree species in Jianfengling tropical montane rain forest. PMID:29390007

Fagaceae tree species allocate higher fraction of nitrogen to photosynthetic apparatus than Leguminosae in Jianfengling tropical montane rain forest, China.

PubMed

Tang, Jingchao; Cheng, Ruimei; Shi, Zuomin; Xu, Gexi; Liu, Shirong; Centritto, Mauro

2018-01-01

Variation in photosynthetic-nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE) is generally affected by several factors such as leaf nitrogen allocation and leaf diffusional conductances to CO2, although it is still unclear which factors significantly affect PNUE in tropical montane rain forest trees. In this study, comparison of PNUE, photosynthetic capacity, leaf nitrogen allocation, and diffusional conductances to CO2 between five Fagaceae tree species and five Leguminosae tree species were analyzed in Jianfengling tropical montane rain forest, Hainan Island, China. The result showed that PNUE of Fagaceae was significantly higher than that of Leguminosae (+35.5%), attributed to lower leaf nitrogen content per area (Narea, -29.4%). The difference in nitrogen allocation was the main biochemical factor that influenced interspecific variation in PNUE of these tree species. Fagaceae species allocated a higher fraction of leaf nitrogen to the photosynthetic apparatus (PP, +43.8%), especially to Rubisco (PR, +50.0%) and bioenergetics (PB +33.3%) in comparison with Leguminosae species. Leaf mass per area (LMA) of Leguminosae species was lower than that of Fagaceae species (-15.4%). While there was no significant difference shown for mesophyll conductance (gm), Fagaceae tree species may have greater chloroplast to total leaf surface area ratios and that offset the action of thicker cell walls on gm. Furthermore, weak negative relationship between nitrogen allocation in cell walls and in Rubisco was found for Castanopsis hystrix, Cyclobalanopsis phanera and Cy. patelliformis, which might imply that nitrogen in the leaves was insufficient for both Rubisco and cell walls. In summary, our study concluded that higher PNUE might contribute to the dominance of most Fagaceae tree species in Jianfengling tropical montane rain forest.

Feed intake and utilization in sheep fed graded levels of dried moringa (Moringa stenopetala) leaf as a supplement to Rhodes grass hay.

PubMed

Gebregiorgis, Feleke; Negesse, Tegene; Nurfeta, Ajebu

2012-03-01

The effects of feeding graded levels of dried moringa (Moringa stenopetala) leaf on intake, body weight gain (BWG), digestibility and nitrogen utilization were studied using male sheep (BW of 13.8 ± 0.12 kg). Six sheep were randomly allocated to each of the four treatment diets: Rhodes grass (Chloris gayana) hay offered ad libitum (T1), hay + 150 g moringa leaf (T2), hay + 300 g moringa leaf (T3), hay + 450 g moringa leaf (T4) were offered daily. A 7-day digestibility trial and an 84-day growth experiments were conducted. Dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM) and crude protein (CP) intakes increased (P < 0.05) with increasing levels of moringa leaf in the diets. Sheep fed T2, T3 and T4 diets gained (P < 0.05) 40.2, 79.1 and 110.1 g/head/day, respectively, while the control group (T1) lost weight (-13.3 g/head/day). The apparent digestibilities of DM, OM, neutral detergent fibre and acid detergent fibre were similar (P > 0.05) among treatments. The digestibility of dietary CP increased (P < 0.05) with increasing levels of moringa leaf, but there was no significant difference between T2 and T3 diets. The nitrogen (N) intake and urinary N excretion increased (P < 0.05) with increasing levels of moringa leaf. The N retention was highest (P < 0.05) for 450 g moringa leaf supplementation. The control group was in a negative N balance. Supplementing a basal diet of Rhodes grass hay with dried moringa leaves improved DM intake, BWG and N retention. It is concluded that M. stenopetala can serve as a protein supplement to low-quality grass during the dry season under smallholder sheep production system.

Latitudinal patterns of leaf N, P stoichiometry and nutrient resorption of Metasequoia glyptostroboides along the eastern coastline of China.

PubMed

Zhang, Hui; Guo, Weihong; Yu, Mukui; Wang, G Geoff; Wu, Tonggui

2018-03-15

Latitudinal patterns of leaf stoichiometry and nutrient resorption were not consistent among published studies, likely due to confounding effects from taxonomy (e.g., plant distribution and community composition), and environment, which is also influenced by altitude and longitude. Thus, the latitudinal patterns and environmental mechanism could be best revealed by testing a given species along a latitude gradient with similar altitude and longitude. We determined nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations of green (leaf) and senesced leaves (litter) from eight Metasequoia glyptostroboides forests along the eastern coastline of China, with similar altitude and longitude. Leaf N, P concentrations increased along latitude, mainly driven by mean annual temperature (MAT), mean annual precipitation (MAP), annual evaporation (AE), aridity index (AI), and annual total solar radiation (ATSR); While leaf N:P ratio was stable with no latitudinal pattern. Nitrogen resorption efficiency (NRE) increased along latitude, and was also mainly influenced by MAT, MAP, AE, and AI. Phosphorus resorption efficiency (PRE) first increased and then decreased with latitude, which was impacted by soil available P. These results indicated that only climate (such as heat, water, and light) controlled the shift in leaf stoichiometry and NRE, while soil nutrient was likely responsible for the shift in PRE along eastern China. Our findings also suggested that leaf N, P stoichiometry and NRE displayed similar latitudinal patterns at regional scale when studied for a given species (this study) or multi-species (previous studies). Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Release of nitrogen and phosphorus from loblolly pine forest floor in a post-harvest microclimate

Treesearch

L. Chris Kiser; Thomas R. Fox

2012-01-01

Loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) plantations grown on nutrient deficient soils in the southeastern U.S. require nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fertilization to increase growth (Albaugh et al., 2007; Fox et al., 2007). Fertilization increases growth by increasing foliar nutrients and leaf area (Albaugh et al., 1998) which also results in higher...

Metabolic Profiling and Physiological Analysis of a Novel Rice Introgression Line with Broad Leaf Size

PubMed Central

Zhao, Xiuqin; Zhang, Guilian; Wang, Yun; Zhang, Fan; Wang, Wensheng; Zhang, Wenhao; Fu, Binying; Xu, Jianlong; Li, Zhikang

2015-01-01

A rice introgression line, NIL-SS1, and its recurrent parent, Teqing, were used to investigate the influence of the introgression segment on plant growth. The current research showed NIL-SS1 had an increased flag leaf width, total leaf area, spikelet number per panicle and grain yield, but a decreased photosynthetic rate. The metabolite differences in NIL-SS1 and Teqing at different developmental stages were assessed using gas chromatography—mass spectrometry technology. Significant metabolite differences were observed across the different stages. NIL-SS1 increased the plant leaf nitrogen content, and the greatest differences between NIL-SS1 and Teqing occurred at the booting stage. Compared to Teqing, the metabolic phenotype of NIL-SS1 at the booting stage has closer association with those at the flowering stage. The introgression segment induced more active competition for sugars and organic acids (OAs) from leaves to the growing young spikes, which resulted in more spikelet number per plant (SNP). The results indicated the introgression segment could improve rice grain yield by increasing the SNP and total leaf area per plant, which resulted from the higher plant nitrogen content across growth stages and stronger competition for sugars and OAs of young spikes at the booting stage. PMID:26713754

Relationships of leaf dark respiration to leaf nitrogen, specific leaf area and leaf life-span: a test across biomes and functional groups.

PubMed

Reich, Peter B; Walters, Michael B; Ellsworth, David S; Vose, James M; Volin, John C; Gresham, Charles; Bowman, William D

1998-05-01

Based on prior evidence of coordinated multiple leaf trait scaling, we hypothesized that variation among species in leaf dark respiration rate (R d ) should scale with variation in traits such as leaf nitrogen (N), leaf life-span, specific leaf area (SLA), and net photosynthetic capacity (A max ). However, it is not known whether such scaling, if it exists, is similar among disparate biomes and plant functional types. We tested this idea by examining the interspecific relationships between R d measured at a standard temperature and leaf life-span, N, SLA and A max for 69 species from four functional groups (forbs, broad-leafed trees and shrubs, and needle-leafed conifers) in six biomes traversing the Americas: alpine tundra/subalpine forest, Colorado; cold temperate forest/grassland, Wisconsin; cool temperate forest, North Carolina; desert/shrubland, New Mexico; subtropical forest, South Carolina; and tropical rain forest, Amazonas, Venezuela. Area-based R d was positively related to area-based leaf N within functional groups and for all species pooled, but not when comparing among species within any site. At all sites, mass-based R d (R d-mass ) decreased sharply with increasing leaf life-span and was positively related to SLA and mass-based A max and leaf N (leaf N mass ). These intra-biome relationships were similar in shape and slope among sites, where in each case we compared species belonging to different plant functional groups. Significant R d-mass -N mass relationships were observed in all functional groups (pooled across sites), but the relationships differed, with higher R d at any given leaf N in functional groups (such as forbs) with higher SLA and shorter leaf life-span. Regardless of biome or functional group, R d-mass was well predicted by all combinations of leaf life-span, N mass and/or SLA (r 2 ≥ 0.79, P < 0.0001). At any given SLA, R d-mass rises with increasing N mass and/or decreasing leaf life-span; and at any level of N mass , R d-mass rises with increasing SLA and/or decreasing leaf life-span. The relationships between R d and leaf traits observed in this study support the idea of a global set of predictable interrelationships between key leaf morphological, chemical and metabolic traits.

Alterations in leaf nitrogen metabolism indicated the structural changes of subtropical forest by canopy addition of nitrogen.

PubMed

Liu, Nan; Wang, Jiaxin; Guo, Qinfeng; Wu, Shuhua; Rao, Xingquan; Cai, Xi'an; Lin, Zhifang

2018-09-30

Globally, nitrogen deposition increment has caused forest structural changes due to imbalanced plant nitrogen metabolism and subsequent carbon assimilation. Here, a 2 consecutive-year experiment was conducted to reveal the effects of canopy addition of nitrogen (CAN) on nitrogen absorption, assimilation, and allocation in leaves of three subtropical forest woody species (Castanea henryi, Ardisia quinquegona, and Blastus cochinchinensis). We hypothesized that CAN altered leaf nitrogen absorption, assimilation and partitioning of different plants in different ways in subtropical forest. It shows that CAN increased maximum photosynthetic rate (A max ), photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE), and metabolic protein content of the two understory species A. quinquegona and B. cochinchinensis. By contrary, for the overstory species, C. henryi, A max , PNUE, and metabolic protein content were significantly reduced in response to CAN. We found that changes in leaf nitrogen metabolism were mainly due to the differences in enzyme (e.g. Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase, nitrate reductase, nitrite reductase and glutamine synthetase) activities under CAN treatment. Our results indicated that C. henryi may be more susceptible to CAN treatment, and both A. quinquegona and B. cochinchinensis could better adapt to CAN treatment but in different ways. Our findings may partially explain the ongoing degradation of subtropical forest into a community dominated by small trees and shrubs in recent decades. It is possible that persistent high levels of atmospheric nitrogen deposition will lead to the steady replacement of dominant woody species in this subtropical forest. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Photosynthesis and carbon allocation are both important predictors of genotype productivity responses to elevated CO2 in Eucalyptus camaldulensis.

PubMed

Aspinwall, Michael J; Blackman, Chris J; de Dios, Víctor Resco; Busch, Florian A; Rymer, Paul D; Loik, Michael E; Drake, John E; Pfautsch, Sebastian; Smith, Renee A; Tjoelker, Mark G; Tissue, David T

2018-05-08

Intraspecific variation in biomass production responses to elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide (eCO2) could influence tree species' ecological and evolutionary responses to climate change. However, the physiological mechanisms underlying genotypic variation in responsiveness to eCO2 remain poorly understood. In this study, we grew 17 Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh. subsp. camaldulensis genotypes (representing provenances from four different climates) under ambient atmospheric CO2 and eCO2. We tested whether genotype leaf-scale photosynthetic and whole-tree carbon (C) allocation responses to eCO2 were predictive of genotype biomass production responses to eCO2. Averaged across genotypes, growth at eCO2 increased in situ leaf net photosynthesis (Anet) (29%) and leaf starch concentrations (37%). Growth at eCO2 reduced the maximum carboxylation capacity of Rubisco (-4%) and leaf nitrogen per unit area (Narea, -6%), but Narea calculated on a total non-structural carbohydrate-free basis was similar between treatments. Growth at eCO2 also increased biomass production and altered C allocation by reducing leaf area ratio (-11%) and stem mass fraction (SMF, -9%), and increasing leaf mass area (18%) and leaf mass fraction (5%). Overall, we found few significant CO2 × provenance or CO2 × genotype (within provenance) interactions. However, genotypes that showed the largest increases in total dry mass at eCO2 had larger increases in root mass fraction (with larger decreases in SMF) and photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency (PNUE) with CO2 enrichment. These results indicate that genetic differences in PNUE and carbon sink utilization (in roots) are both important predictors of tree productivity responsiveness to eCO2.

Hydraulic constraints modify optimal photosynthetic profiles in giant sequoia trees.

PubMed

Ambrose, Anthony R; Baxter, Wendy L; Wong, Christopher S; Burgess, Stephen S O; Williams, Cameron B; Næsborg, Rikke R; Koch, George W; Dawson, Todd E

2016-11-01

Optimality theory states that whole-tree carbon gain is maximized when leaf N and photosynthetic capacity profiles are distributed along vertical light gradients such that the marginal gain of nitrogen investment is identical among leaves. However, observed photosynthetic N gradients in trees do not follow this prediction, and the causes for this apparent discrepancy remain uncertain. Our objective was to evaluate how hydraulic limitations potentially modify crown-level optimization in Sequoiadendron giganteum (giant sequoia) trees up to 90 m tall. Leaf water potential (Ψ l ) and branch sap flow closely followed diurnal patterns of solar radiation throughout each tree crown. Minimum leaf water potential correlated negatively with height above ground, while leaf mass per area (LMA), shoot mass per area (SMA), leaf nitrogen content (%N), and bulk leaf stable carbon isotope ratios (δ(13)C) correlated positively with height. We found no significant vertical trends in maximum leaf photosynthesis (A), stomatal conductance (g s), and intrinsic water-use efficiency (A/g s), nor in branch-averaged transpiration (E L), stomatal conductance (G S), and hydraulic conductance (K L). Adjustments in hydraulic architecture appear to partially compensate for increasing hydraulic limitations with height in giant sequoia, allowing them to sustain global maximum summer water use rates exceeding 2000 kg day(-1). However, we found that leaf N and photosynthetic capacity do not follow the vertical light gradient, supporting the hypothesis that increasing limitations on water transport capacity with height modify photosynthetic optimization in tall trees.

Effect of nitrogen sources on some morphological characteristics of in vitro stevia rebaudiana Bertoni.

PubMed

Akbari, F; Arminian, A; Kahrizi, D; Fazeli, A

2017-02-28

Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni belongs to Asteraceae family that leaves 200-300 times sweeter than sugar. Low seed fertility is one of the most important problems in Stevia production. So, Plant tissue culture is an efficient method for mass propagation of Stevia. In this research, we studied the effect of various concentrations of nitrogen on some morphological traits of stevia under in vitro conditions. We used axillary nodes as explants and they were cultured on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium containing inorganic nitrogen sources i.e. NH4NO3(0, 825 and 1650 mg/l), KNO3(0, 950 and 1900 mg/l) were observed. The cultures were kept for 4 weeks at a temperature of 25±2°C with a photoperiod of 16/8 hour low light/dark each day. Maximum shoot length (89.33 mm), dry weight of plants (0.10 mg) and leaf fresh weight (0.42 mg) was observed on MS medium with 1650 mg/l NH4NO3 and 950 mg/l KNO3. Minimum shoot length (6.13 mm), root length (6.60 mm), leaf number (4.26), leaf dry weight (0.01 mg), leaf fresh weight (0.05 mg), total dry and fresh weight (0.02 and 0.15 mg) and growth rate was observed on a MS medium without nitrogen sources. Moreover, presence of nitrogen sources increases both shooting and rooting in Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni.

Mediterranean, invasive, woody species grow larger than their less-invasive counterparts under potential global environmental change.

PubMed

Erskine-Ogden, Jennifer; Grotkopp, Eva; Rejmánek, Marcel

2016-04-01

Revealing biological differences between invasive and noninvasive species is essential for predicting species' distribution changes with global environmental change. While most research has focused on differences between invasive and noninvasive species under favorable conditions using herbaceous species, invasive woody angiosperms are also of great ecological concern. Our study focused on how growth and allocation may change for invasive and noninvasive, mediterranean, woody angiosperms under future conditions caused by global change, specifically increased nitrogen deposition and drought. We tested how seedling functional traits differed between invasive and noninvasive woody angiosperms under different experimental conditions in a greenhouse setting. We compared growth rates and allocation patterns using two levels of soil nitrogen and three levels of watering. We also examined trait log response ratios to increases in nitrogen and increases in water. Our study sampled angiosperm trees and shrubs, incorporating congeneric/confamilial relationships through 13 phylogenetically controlled contrasts. Three functional traits were highly and positively associated with plant invasiveness for most conditions studied: seedling plant mass, leaf area, and height. Invasive species also had significantly higher root mass ratios at low water regardless of nitrogen input. Invasive and noninvasive species had similar log response ratios to increases in nitrogen and watering for studied traits. Mediterranean, woody, invasive species' larger mass, leaf area, and early height advantage under elevated nitrogen input and increased root production in drought conditions may lead to increased invasion of these species with expected global climate change. © 2016 Botanical Society of America.

Leaf photosynthesis and respiration of three bioenergy crops in relation to temperature and leaf nitrogen: how conserved are biochemical model parameters among crop species?

PubMed Central

Archontoulis, S. V.; Yin, X.; Vos, J.; Danalatos, N. G.; Struik, P. C.

2012-01-01

Given the need for parallel increases in food and energy production from crops in the context of global change, crop simulation models and data sets to feed these models with photosynthesis and respiration parameters are increasingly important. This study provides information on photosynthesis and respiration for three energy crops (sunflower, kenaf, and cynara), reviews relevant information for five other crops (wheat, barley, cotton, tobacco, and grape), and assesses how conserved photosynthesis parameters are among crops. Using large data sets and optimization techniques, the C3 leaf photosynthesis model of Farquhar, von Caemmerer, and Berry (FvCB) and an empirical night respiration model for tested energy crops accounting for effects of temperature and leaf nitrogen were parameterized. Instead of the common approach of using information on net photosynthesis response to CO2 at the stomatal cavity (An–Ci), the model was parameterized by analysing the photosynthesis response to incident light intensity (An–Iinc). Convincing evidence is provided that the maximum Rubisco carboxylation rate or the maximum electron transport rate was very similar whether derived from An–Ci or from An–Iinc data sets. Parameters characterizing Rubisco limitation, electron transport limitation, the degree to which light inhibits leaf respiration, night respiration, and the minimum leaf nitrogen required for photosynthesis were then determined. Model predictions were validated against independent sets. Only a few FvCB parameters were conserved among crop species, thus species-specific FvCB model parameters are needed for crop modelling. Therefore, information from readily available but underexplored An–Iinc data should be re-analysed, thereby expanding the potential of combining classical photosynthetic data and the biochemical model. PMID:22021569

Effects of elevated atmospheric CO2 concentrations, clipping regimen and differential day/night atmospheric warming on tissue nitrogen concentrations of a perennial pasture grass

PubMed Central

Volder, Astrid; Gifford, Roger M.; Evans, John R.

2015-01-01

Forecasting the effects of climate change on nitrogen (N) cycling in pastures requires an understanding of changes in tissue N. We examined the effects of elevated atmospheric CO2 concentration, atmospheric warming and simulated grazing (clipping frequency) on aboveground and belowground tissue N concentrations and C : N ratios of a C3 pasture grass. Phalaris aquatica L. cv. ‘Holdfast’ was grown in the field in six transparent temperature gradient tunnels (18 × 1.5 × 1.5 m each), three at ambient atmospheric CO2 and three at 759 p.p.m. CO2. Within each tunnel, there were three air temperature treatments: ambient control, +2.2/+4.0 °C above ambient day/night warming and +3.0 °C continuous warming. A frequent and an infrequent clipping treatment were applied to each warming × CO2 combination. Green leaf N concentrations were decreased by elevated CO2 and increased by more frequent clipping. Both warming treatments increased leaf N concentrations under ambient CO2 concentrations, but did not significantly alter leaf N concentrations under elevated CO2 concentrations. Nitrogen resorption from leaves was decreased under elevated CO2 conditions as well as by more frequent clipping. Fine root N concentrations decreased strongly with increasing soil depth and were further decreased at the 10–60 cm soil depths by elevated CO2 concentrations. The interaction between the CO2 and warming treatments showed that leaf N concentration was affected in a non-additive manner. Changes in leaf C : N ratios were driven by changes in N concentration. Overall, the effects of CO2, warming and clipping treatments on aboveground tissue N concentrations were much greater than on belowground tissue. PMID:26272874

The impact of modifying photosystem antenna size on canopy photosynthetic efficiency-Development of a new canopy photosynthesis model scaling from metabolism to canopy level processes.

PubMed

Song, Qingfeng; Wang, Yu; Qu, Mingnan; Ort, Donald R; Zhu, Xin-Guang

2017-12-01

Canopy photosynthesis (A c ) describes photosynthesis of an entire crop field and the daily and seasonal integrals of A c positively correlate with daily and seasonal biomass production. Much effort in crop breeding has focused on improving canopy architecture and hence light distribution inside the canopy. Here, we develop a new integrated canopy photosynthesis model including canopy architecture, a ray tracing algorithm, and C 3 photosynthetic metabolism to explore the option of manipulating leaf chlorophyll concentration ([Chl]) for greater A c and nitrogen use efficiency (NUE). Model simulation results show that (a) efficiency of photosystem II increased when [Chl] was decreased by decreasing antenna size and (b) the light received by leaves at the bottom layers increased when [Chl] throughout the canopy was decreased. Furthermore, the modelling revealed a modest ~3% increase in A c and an ~14% in NUE was accompanied when [Chl] reduced by 60%. However, if the leaf nitrogen conserved by this decrease in leaf [Chl] were to be optimally allocated to other components of photosynthesis, both A c and NUE can be increased by over 30%. Optimizing [Chl] coupled with strategic reinvestment of conserved nitrogen is shown to have the potential to support substantial increases in A c , biomass production, and crop yields. © 2017 The Authors Plant, Cell & Environment Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Effects of nitrogen nutrition on the growth, yield and reflectance characteristics of corn canopies. [Purdue Agronomy Farm, Indiana

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bauer, M. E. (Principal Investigator); Walburg, G.; Daughtry, C. S. T.

1981-01-01

Spectral and agronomic measurements were collected from corn (Zea mays L.) canopies under four nitrogen treatment levels (0, 67, 134, and 202 kg/ha) on 11 dates during 1978 and 12 dates during 1979. Data were analyzed to determine the relationship between the spectral responses of canopies and their argonomic characteristics as well as the spectral separability of the four treatments. Red reflectance was increased, while the near infrared reflectance was decreased for canopies under nitrogen deprivation. Spectral differences between treatments were seen throughout each growing season. The near infrared/red reflectance ratio increased spectral treatment differences over those shown by single band reflectance measures. Of the spectral variables examined, the near infrared/red reflectance ratio most effectively separated the treatments. Differences in spectral response between treatments were attributed to varying soil cover, leaf area index, and leaf pigmentation values, all of which changed with N treatment.

Improving representation of nitrogen uptake, allocation, and carbon assimilation in the Community Land Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghimire, B.; Riley, W. J.; Koven, C.

2013-12-01

Nitrogen is the most important nutrient limiting plant carbon assimilation and growth, and is required for production of photosynthetic enzymes, growth and maintenance respiration, and maintaining cell structure. The forecasted rise in plant available nitrogen through atmospheric nitrogen deposition and the release of locked soil nitrogen by permafrost thaw in high latitude ecosystems is likely to result in an increase in plant productivity. However a mechanistic representation of plant nitrogen dynamics is lacking in earth system models. Most earth system models ignore the dynamic nature of plant nutrient uptake and allocation, and further lack tight coupling of below- and above-ground processes. In these models, the increase in nitrogen uptake does not translate to a corresponding increase in photosynthesis parameters, such as maximum Rubisco capacity and electron transfer rate. We present an improved modeling framework implemented in the Community Land Model version 4.5 (CLM4.5) for dynamic plant nutrient uptake, and allocation to different plant parts, including leaf enzymes. This modeling framework relies on imposing a more realistic flexible carbon to nitrogen stoichiometric ratio for different plant parts. The model mechanistically responds to plant nitrogen uptake and leaf allocation though changes in photosynthesis parameters. We produce global simulations, and examine the impacts of the improved nitrogen cycling. The improved model is evaluated against multiple observations including TRY database of global plant traits, nitrogen fertilization observations and 15N tracer studies. Global simulations with this new version of CLM4.5 showed better agreement with the observations than the default CLM4.5-CN model, and captured the underlying mechanisms associated with plant nitrogen cycle.

Simulated Nitrogen Deposition has Minor Effects on Ecosystem Pools and Fluxes of Energy, Elements, and Biochemicals in a Northern Hardwoods Forest

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Talhelm, A. F.; Pregitzer, K. S.; Burton, A. J.; Xia, M.; Zak, D. R.

2017-12-01

The elemental and biochemical composition of plant tissues is an important influence on primary productivity, decomposition, and other aspects of biogeochemistry. Human activity has greatly altered biogeochemical cycles in ecosystems downwind of industrialized regions through atmospheric nitrogen deposition, but most research on these effects focuses on individual elements or steps in biogeochemical cycles. Here, we quantified pools and fluxes of biomass, the four major organic elements (carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen), four biochemical fractions (lignin, structural carbohydrates, cell walls, and soluble material), and energy in a mature northern hardwoods forest in Michigan. We sampled the organic and mineral soil, fine and coarse roots, leaf litter, green leaves, and wood for chemical analyses. We then combined these data with previously published and archival information on pools and fluxes within this forest, which included replicated plots receiving either ambient deposition or simulated nitrogen deposition (3 g N m-2 yr-1 for 18 years). Live wood was the largest pool of energy and all elements and biochemical fractions. However, the production of wood, leaf litter, and fine roots represented similar fluxes of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, cell wall material, and energy, while nitrogen fluxes were dominated by leaf litter and fine roots. Notably, the flux of lignin via fine roots was 70% higher than any other flux. Experimental nitrogen deposition had relatively few significant effects, increasing foliar nitrogen, increasing the concentration of lignin in the soil organic horizon and decreasing pools of all elements and biochemical fractions in the soil organic horizon except nitrogen, lignin, and structural carbohydrates. Overall, we found that differences in tissue chemistry concentrations were important determinants of ecosystem-level pools and fluxes, but that nitrogen deposition had little effect on concentrations, pools, or fluxes in this mature forest. Disclaimer: The views expressed in this poster are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views or policies of the U.S. EPA.

Invasive species' leaf traits and dissimilarity from natives shape their impact on nitrogen cycling: a meta-analysis.

PubMed

Lee, Marissa R; Bernhardt, Emily S; van Bodegom, Peter M; Cornelissen, J Hans C; Kattge, Jens; Laughlin, Daniel C; Niinemets, Ülo; Peñuelas, Josep; Reich, Peter B; Yguel, Benjamin; Wright, Justin P

2017-01-01

Many exotic species have little apparent impact on ecosystem processes, whereas others have dramatic consequences for human and ecosystem health. There is growing evidence that invasions foster eutrophication. We need to identify species that are harmful and systems that are vulnerable to anticipate these consequences. Species' traits may provide the necessary insights. We conducted a global meta-analysis to determine whether plant leaf and litter functional traits, and particularly leaf and litter nitrogen (N) content and carbon: nitrogen (C : N) ratio, explain variation in invasive species' impacts on soil N cycling. Dissimilarity in leaf and litter traits among invaded and noninvaded plant communities control the magnitude and direction of invasion impacts on N cycling. Invasions that caused the greatest increases in soil inorganic N and mineralization rates had a much greater litter N content and lower litter C : N in the invaded than the reference community. Trait dissimilarities were better predictors than the trait values of invasive species alone. Quantifying baseline community tissue traits, in addition to those of the invasive species, is critical to understanding the impacts of invasion on soil N cycling. © 2016 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2016 New Phytologist Trust.

Nondestructive Optical Sensing of Flavonols and Chlorophyll in White Head Cabbage (Brassica oleracea L. var. capitata subvar. alba) Grown under Different Nitrogen Regimens.

PubMed

Agati, Giovanni; Tuccio, Lorenza; Kusznierewicz, Barbara; Chmiel, Tomasz; Bartoszek, Agnieszka; Kowalski, Artur; Grzegorzewska, Maria; Kosson, Ryszard; Kaniszewski, Stanislaw

2016-01-13

A multiparametric optical sensor was used to nondestructively estimate phytochemical compounds in white cabbage leaves directly in the field. An experimental site of 1980 white cabbages (Brassica oleracea L. var. capitata subvar. alba), under different nitrogen (N) treatments, was mapped by measuring leaf transmittance and chlorophyll fluorescence screening in one leaf/cabbage head. The provided indices of flavonols (FLAV) and chlorophyll (CHL) displayed the opposite response to applied N rates, decreasing and increasing, respectively. The combined nitrogen balance index (NBI = CHL/FLAV) calculated was able to discriminate all of the plots under four N regimens (0, 100, 200, and 400 kg/ha) and was correlated with the leaf N content determined destructively. CHL and FLAV were properly calibrated against chlorophyll (R(2) = 0.945) and flavonol (R(2) = 0.932) leaf contents, respectively, by using a homographic fit function. The proposed optical sensing of cabbage crops can be used to estimate the N status of plants and perform precision fertilization to maintain acceptable crop yield levels and, additionally, to rapidly detect health-promoting flavonol antioxidants in Brassica plants.

The Vegetation Nitrogen Content and its Latitudinal Patterns in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Hang; He, Nianpeng; Yu, Guirui; Wang, Qiufeng

2017-04-01

Nitrogen is an essential nutrient element in biological life activities, and plays an important role in plant production and growth. Vegetation nitrogen content can be used as an important component in estimating ecosystem nitrogen storage. In the present study, we used a large amount of data from the database of north-south transects of eastern China and published literatures. We explored the nitrogen content of different components of China terrestrial ecosystems and its latitude pattern at the scales of the plots and of 8 eco-regions. The average nitrogen content of the forest ecosystem was 1.797% in the tree leaves, 0.663% in the tree branch, 0.586% in the tree stem, 0.755% in the tree root. In the shrub layer, the average leaf nitrogen content is 1.845%, the average branch content is 0.968% and the average root nitrogen content is 0.995%. In the herb layer, the average nitrogen content of aboveground is 2.463% and 1.279% for underground. The average nitrogen content of aboveground in grassland ecosystem is 2.006% and 0.994% for underground. The average aboveground nitrogen content in desert ecosystem is 1.911%. The average nitrogen contents of the leaves, stems and roots in wetland ecosystem were 1.669%, 0.741% and 0.659%. There were significant differences in nitrogen content among different organs, and it showed that the nitrogen content of leaves > roots > branches > trunks and aboveground component > underground component. The nitrogen content of different components in China terrestrial ecosystems increased with increasing latitude, especially in leaf. These results demonstrated latitudinal patterns of nitrogen content in Chinese terrestrial ecosystems, based on field-measured data, and provided a reference or standard for regional vegetation nitrogen allocation and storage estimations.

The fate of nitrogen mineralized from leaf litter — Initial evidence from 15N-labeled litter

Treesearch

Kathryn B. Piatek

2011-01-01

Decomposition of leaf litter includes microbial immobilization of nitrogen (N), followed by N mineralization. The fate of N mineralized from leaf litter is unknown. I hypothesized that N mineralized from leaf litter will be re-immobilized into other forms of organic matter, including downed wood. This mechanism may retain N in some forests. To test this hypothesis, oak...

Water- and nitrogen-dependent alterations in the inheritance mode of transpiration efficiency in winter wheat at the leaf and whole-plant level.

PubMed

Ratajczak, Dominika; Górny, Andrzej G

2012-11-01

The effects of contrasting water and nitrogen (N) supply on the observed inheritance mode of transpiration efficiency (TE) at the flag-leaf and whole-season levels were examined in winter wheat. Major components of the photosynthetic capacity of leaves and the season-integrated efficiency of water use in vegetative and grain mass formation were evaluated in parental lines of various origins and their diallel F(2)-hybrids grown in a factorial experiment under different moisture and N status of the soil. A broad genetic variation was mainly found for the season-long TE measures. The variation range in the leaf photosynthetic indices was usually narrow, but tended to slightly enhance under water and N shortage. Genotype-treatment interaction effects were significant for most characters. No consistency between the leaf- and season-long TE measures was observed. Preponderance of additivity-dependent variance was mainly identified for the season-integrated TE and leaf CO(2) assimilation rate. Soil treatments exhibited considerable influence on the phenotypic expression of gene action for the residual leaf measures. The contribution of non-additive gene effects and degree of dominance tended to increase in water- and N-limited plants, especially for the leaf transpiration rate and stomatal conductance. The results indicate that promise exists to improve the season-integrated TE. However, selection for TE components should be prolonged for later hybrid generations to eliminate the masking of non-additive causes. Such evaluation among families grown under sub-optimal water and nitrogen supply seems to be the most promising strategy in winter wheat.

Invasive plant Alternanthera philoxeroides suffers more severe herbivory pressure than native competitors in recipient communities.

PubMed

Fan, Shufeng; Yu, Haihao; Dong, Xianru; Wang, Ligong; Chen, Xiuwen; Yu, Dan; Liu, Chunhua

2016-11-09

Host-enemy interactions are vital mechanisms that explain the success or failure of invasive plants in new ranges. We surveyed the defoliation of invasive Alternanthera philoxeroides and co-occurring native plants on two islands during different seasons over three consecutive years and measured the leaf nitrogen content and the C/N ratio of each plant species. To evaluate the effects of herbivory on A. philoxeroides, an herbivore exclosure experiment was conducted. We found that the mean defoliation of A. philoxeroides was higher than that of native plants, regardless of whether the dominant species was A. philoxeroides or native plants. A. philoxeroides defoliation increased significantly as the months progressed, whereas the defoliation of the total population of native plants was constant. The leaf nitrogen content was positively correlated with defoliation, and it was highest in A. philoxeroides. Additionally, A. philoxeroides in the herbivore exclusion treatment showed an increase in shoot biomass and total shoot length. Our study revealed that native generalist herbivores prefer the invasive plant to the natives because of the higher leaf nitrogen content. These results support the biotic resistance hypothesis, suggesting that native herbivore species can limit the population spread of invasive plants.

Autophagy Supports Biomass Production and Nitrogen Use Efficiency at the Vegetative Stage in Rice1[OPEN

PubMed Central

Hayashida, Yasukazu; Kurusu, Takamitsu; Kojima, Soichi; Makino, Amane

2015-01-01

Much of the nitrogen in leaves is distributed to chloroplasts, mainly in photosynthetic proteins. During leaf senescence, chloroplastic proteins, including Rubisco, are rapidly degraded, and the released nitrogen is remobilized and reused in newly developing tissues. Autophagy facilitates the degradation of intracellular components for nutrient recycling in all eukaryotes, and recent studies have revealed critical roles for autophagy in Rubisco degradation and nitrogen remobilization into seeds in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). Here, we examined the function of autophagy in vegetative growth and nitrogen usage in a cereal plant, rice (Oryza sativa). An autophagy-disrupted rice mutant, Osatg7-1, showed reduced biomass production and nitrogen use efficiency compared with the wild type. While Osatg7-1 showed early visible leaf senescence, the nitrogen concentration remained high in the senescent leaves. 15N pulse chase analysis revealed suppression of nitrogen remobilization during leaf senescence in Osatg7-1. Accordingly, the reduction of nitrogen available for newly developing tissues in Osatg7-1 likely led its reduced leaf area and tillers. The limited leaf growth in Osatg7-1 decreased the photosynthetic capacity of the plant. Much of the nitrogen remaining in senescent leaves of Osatg7-1 was in soluble proteins, and the Rubisco concentration in senescing leaves of Osatg7-1 was about 2.5 times higher than in the wild type. Transmission electron micrographs showed a cytosolic fraction rich with organelles in senescent leaves of Osatg7-1. Our results suggest that autophagy contributes to efficient nitrogen remobilization at the whole-plant level by facilitating protein degradation for nitrogen recycling in senescent leaves. PMID:25786829

Autophagy supports biomass production and nitrogen use efficiency at the vegetative stage in rice.

PubMed

Wada, Shinya; Hayashida, Yasukzu; Izumi, Masanori; Kurusu, Takamitsu; Hanamata, Shigeru; Kanno, Keiichi; Kojima, Soichi; Yamaya, Tomoyuki; Kuchitsu, Kazuyuki; Makino, Amane; Ishida, Hiroyuki

2015-05-01

Much of the nitrogen in leaves is distributed to chloroplasts, mainly in photosynthetic proteins. During leaf senescence, chloroplastic proteins, including Rubisco, are rapidly degraded, and the released nitrogen is remobilized and reused in newly developing tissues. Autophagy facilitates the degradation of intracellular components for nutrient recycling in all eukaryotes, and recent studies have revealed critical roles for autophagy in Rubisco degradation and nitrogen remobilization into seeds in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). Here, we examined the function of autophagy in vegetative growth and nitrogen usage in a cereal plant, rice (Oryza sativa). An autophagy-disrupted rice mutant, Osatg7-1, showed reduced biomass production and nitrogen use efficiency compared with the wild type. While Osatg7-1 showed early visible leaf senescence, the nitrogen concentration remained high in the senescent leaves. (15)N pulse chase analysis revealed suppression of nitrogen remobilization during leaf senescence in Osatg7-1. Accordingly, the reduction of nitrogen available for newly developing tissues in Osatg7-1 likely led its reduced leaf area and tillers. The limited leaf growth in Osatg7-1 decreased the photosynthetic capacity of the plant. Much of the nitrogen remaining in senescent leaves of Osatg7-1 was in soluble proteins, and the Rubisco concentration in senescing leaves of Osatg7-1 was about 2.5 times higher than in the wild type. Transmission electron micrographs showed a cytosolic fraction rich with organelles in senescent leaves of Osatg7-1. Our results suggest that autophagy contributes to efficient nitrogen remobilization at the whole-plant level by facilitating protein degradation for nitrogen recycling in senescent leaves. © 2015 American Society of Plant Biologists. All Rights Reserved.

Leaf Mass Area, Leaf Carbon and Nitrogen Content, Barrow, Alaska, 2012-2016

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rogers, Alistair; Ely, Kim; Serbin, Shawn

Carbon, Nitrogen and Leaf Mass Area of leaves sampled from the Barrow Environmental Observatory, Barrow, Alaska. Species measured; Arctophila fulva, Arctagrostis latifolia, Carex aquatilis, Dupontia fisheri, Eriophorum angustifolium, Petasites frigidus, Salix pulchra, Vaccinium vitis-idaea, Salix rotundifolia, Luzula arctica, Saxifraga punctata and Potentilla hyparctica.

[Effects of postponed basal nitrogen application with reduced nitrogen rate on grain yield and nitrogen use efficiency of south winter wheat].

PubMed

Zhang, Lei; Shao, Yu Hang; Gu, Shi Lu; Hu, Hang; Zhang, Wei Wei; Tian, Zhong Wei; Jiang, Dong; Dai, Ting Bo

2016-12-01

Excessive nitrogen (N) fertilizer application has led to a reduction of nitrogen use efficiency and environmental problems. It was of great significance for high-yield and high-efficiency cultivation to reduce N fertilizer application with modified application strategies. A two-year field experiment was conducted to study effects of different N application rates at basal and seedling application stages on grain yield and nitrogen use efficiency. Taking the conventional nitrogen application practice (240 kg N·hm -2 with application at basal, jointing, and booting stages at ratios of 5:3:2, respectively) as control, a field trial was conducted at different N application rates (240, 180 and 150 kg N·hm -2 , N 240 , N 180 and N 150 , respectively) and different application times [basal (L 0 ), fourth (L 4 ) and sixth leaf stage (L 6 )] to investigate the effects on grain yield and nitrogen use efficiency. The results indicated that grain yield decreased along with reducing the N application rate, but it had no significant difference between N 240 and N 180 while decreased significantly under N 150 . Nitrogen agronomy and recovery efficiency were all highest under N 180 . Among different N application stages, grain yield and nitrogen use efficiency were highest under L 4 . N 180 L 4 had no signifi-cant difference with control in grain yield, but its nitrogen use efficiency was significantly higher. The leaf area index, flag leaf photosynthesis rate, leaf nitrogen content, activity of nitrogen reductase and glutamine synthase in flag leaf, dry matter and N accumulation after jointing of N 180 L 4 had no significant difference with control. In an overall view, postponing basal N fertilizer application at reduced nitrogen rate could maintain high yield and improve nitrogen use efficiency through improving photosynthetic production capacity and promoting nitrogen uptake and assimilation.

Iron deficiency affects nitrogen metabolism in cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) plants

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Nitrogen is a principal limiting nutrient in plant growth and development. Among factors that may limit NO3- assimilation, Fe potentially plays a crucial role being a metal cofactor of enzymes of the reductive assimilatory pathway. Very few information is available about the changes of nitrogen metabolism occurring under Fe deficiency in Strategy I plants. The aim of this work was to study how cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) plants modify their nitrogen metabolism when grown under iron deficiency. Results The activity of enzymes involved in the reductive assimilation of nitrate and the reactions that produce the substrates for the ammonium assimilation both at root and at leaf levels in Fe-deficient cucumber plants were investigated. Under Fe deficiency, only nitrate reductase (EC 1.7.1.1) activity decreased both at the root and leaf level, whilst for glutamine synthetase (EC 6.3.1.2) and glutamate synthase (EC 1.4.1.14) an increase was found. Accordingly, the transcript analysis for these enzymes showed the same behaviour except for root nitrate reductase which increased. Furthermore, it was found that amino acid concentration greatly decreased in Fe-deficient roots, whilst it increased in the corresponding leaves. Moreover, amino acids increased in the xylem sap of Fe-deficient plants. Conclusions The data obtained in this work provided new insights on the responses of plants to Fe deficiency, suggesting that this nutritional disorder differentially affected N metabolism in root and in leaf. Indeed under Fe deficiency, roots respond more efficiently, sustaining the whole plant by furnishing metabolites (i.e. aa, organic acids) to the leaves. PMID:23057967

Phytohormones signaling and crosstalk regulating leaf angle in rice.

PubMed

Luo, Xiangyu; Zheng, Jingsheng; Huang, Rongyu; Huang, Yumin; Wang, Houcong; Jiang, Liangrong; Fang, Xuanjun

2016-12-01

Leaf angle is an important agronomic trait in rice (Oryza sativa L.). It affects both the efficiency of sunlight capture and nitrogen reservoirs. The erect leaf phenotype is suited for high-density planting and thus increasing crop yields. Many genes regulate leaf angle by affecting leaf structure, such as the lamina joint, mechanical tissues, and the midrib. Signaling of brassinosteroids (BR), auxin (IAA), and gibberellins (GA) plays important roles in the regulation of lamina joint bending in rice. In addition, the biosynthesis and signaling of BR are known to have dominant effects on leaf angle development. In this review, we summarize the factors and genes associated with the development of leaf angle in rice, outline the regulatory mechanisms based on the signaling of BR, IAA, and GA, and discuss the contribution of crosstalk between BR and IAA or GA in the formation of leaf angle. Promising lines of research in the transgenic engineering of rice leaf angle to increase grain yield are proposed.

Use of the Stable Nitrogen Isotope to Reveal the Source-Sink Regulation of Nitrogen Uptake and Remobilization during Grain Filling Phase in Maize

PubMed Central

Yang, Lan; Guo, Song; Chen, Qinwu; Chen, Fanjun; Yuan, Lixing; Mi, Guohua

2016-01-01

Although the remobilization of vegetative nitrogen (N) and post-silking N both contribute to grain N in maize (Zea mays L.), their regulation by grain sink strength is poorly understood. Here we use 15N labeling to analyze the dynamic behaviors of both pre- and post-silking N in relation to source and sink manipulation in maize plants. The results showed that the remobilization of pre-silking N started immediately after silking and the remobilized pre-silking N had a greater contribution to grain N during early grain filling, with post-silking N importance increasing during the later filling stage. The amount of post-silking N uptake was largely driven by post-silking dry matter accumulation in both grain as well as vegetative organs. Prevention of pollination during silking had less effect on post-silking N uptake, as a consequence of compensatory growth of stems, husk + cob and roots. Also, leaves continuously export N even though grain sink was removed. The remobilization efficiency of N in the leaf and stem increased with increasing grain yield (hence N requirement). It is suggested that the remobilization of N in the leaf is controlled by sink strength but not the leaf per se. Enhancing post-silking N uptake rather than N remobilization is more likely to increase grain N accumulation. PMID:27606628

Coupled long-term summer warming and deeper snow alters species composition and stimulates gross primary productivity in tussock tundra.

PubMed

Leffler, A Joshua; Klein, Eric S; Oberbauer, Steven F; Welker, Jeffrey M

2016-05-01

Climate change is expected to increase summer temperature and winter precipitation throughout the Arctic. The long-term implications of these changes for plant species composition, plant function, and ecosystem processes are difficult to predict. We report on the influence of enhanced snow depth and warmer summer temperature following 20 years of an ITEX experimental manipulation at Toolik Lake, Alaska. Winter snow depth was increased using snow fences and warming was accomplished during summer using passive open-top chambers. One of the most important consequences of these experimental treatments was an increase in active layer depth and rate of thaw, which has led to deeper drainage and lower soil moisture content. Vegetation concomitantly shifted from a relatively wet system with high cover of the sedge Eriophorum vaginatum to a drier system, dominated by deciduous shrubs including Betula nana and Salix pulchra. At the individual plant level, we observed higher leaf nitrogen concentration associated with warmer temperatures and increased snow in S. pulchra and B. nana, but high leaf nitrogen concentration did not lead to higher rates of net photosynthesis. At the ecosystem level, we observed higher GPP and NEE in response to summer warming. Our results suggest that deeper snow has a cascading set of biophysical consequences that include a deeper active layer that leads to altered species composition, greater leaf nitrogen concentration, and higher ecosystem-level carbon uptake.

A new optical leaf-clip meter for simultaneous non-destructive assessment of leaf chlorophyll and epidermal flavonoids

PubMed Central

Cerovic, Zoran G; Masdoumier, Guillaume; Ghozlen, NaÏma Ben; Latouche, Gwendal

2012-01-01

We have characterized a new commercial chlorophyll (Chl) and flavonoid (Flav) meter called Dualex 4 Scientific (Dx4). We compared this device to two other Chl meters, the SPAD-502 and the CCM-200. In addition, Dx4 was compared to the leaf-clip Dualex 3 that measures only epidermal Flav. Dx4 is factory-calibrated to provide a linear response to increasing leaf Chl content in units of µg cm–2, as opposed to both SPAD-502 and CCM-200 that have a non-linear response to leaf Chl content. Our comparative calibration by Chl extraction confirmed these responses. It seems that the linear response of Dx4 derives from the use of 710 nm as the sampling wavelength for transmittance. The major advantage of Dx4 is its simultaneous assessment of Chl and Flav on the same leaf spot. This allows the generation of the nitrogen balance index (NBI) used for crop surveys and nitrogen nutrition management. The Dx4 leaf clip, that incorporates a GPS receiver, can be useful for non-destructive estimation of leaf Chl and Flav contents for ecophysiological research and ground truthing of remote sensing of vegetation. In this work, we also propose a consensus equation for the transformation of SPAD units into leaf Chl content, for general use. PMID:22568678

A new optical leaf-clip meter for simultaneous non-destructive assessment of leaf chlorophyll and epidermal flavonoids.

PubMed

Cerovic, Zoran G; Masdoumier, Guillaume; Ghozlen, Naïma Ben; Latouche, Gwendal

2012-11-01

We have characterized a new commercial chlorophyll (Chl) and flavonoid (Flav) meter called Dualex 4 Scientific (Dx4). We compared this device to two other Chl meters, the SPAD-502 and the CCM-200. In addition, Dx4 was compared to the leaf-clip Dualex 3 that measures only epidermal Flav. Dx4 is factory-calibrated to provide a linear response to increasing leaf Chl content in units of µg cm(-2), as opposed to both SPAD-502 and CCM-200 that have a non-linear response to leaf Chl content. Our comparative calibration by Chl extraction confirmed these responses. It seems that the linear response of Dx4 derives from the use of 710 nm as the sampling wavelength for transmittance. The major advantage of Dx4 is its simultaneous assessment of Chl and Flav on the same leaf spot. This allows the generation of the nitrogen balance index (NBI) used for crop surveys and nitrogen nutrition management. The Dx4 leaf clip, that incorporates a GPS receiver, can be useful for non-destructive estimation of leaf Chl and Flav contents for ecophysiological research and ground truthing of remote sensing of vegetation. In this work, we also propose a consensus equation for the transformation of SPAD units into leaf Chl content, for general use. Copyright © Physiologia Plantarum 2012.

Light and nitrogen competition limit Lolium perenne in experimental grasslands of increasing plant diversity.

PubMed

Roscher, C; Kutsch, W L; Schulze, E-D

2011-01-01

Positive species richness effects on aboveground community productivity in experimental grasslands have been reported to correlate with variable responses of individual species. So far, it is largely unknown whether more complete use of resources at the community level correlates with resource limitation of particular species and may explain their decreasing performance with increasing plant diversity. Using the subordinate grass species Lolium perenne L. as a model, we monitored populations in 82 experimental grasslands of different plant diversity (Jena Experiment) from year 2 to 6 after establishment, and measured ecophysiological leaf traits related to light and nutrient acquisition and use. Population and plant individual sizes of L. perenne decreased with increasing species richness. A decrease in transmitted light with increasing species richness and legume proportion correlated with increasing specific leaf area (SLA). Despite this morphological adaptation to lower light availability, decreasing foliar δ(13) C signatures with increasing species richness and low variation in leaf gas exchange and chlorophyll concentrations suggested a low capacity of L. perenne for adjustment to canopy shade. Leaf nitrogen concentrations and foliar δ(15) N signatures indicated a better N supply in communities with legumes and a shift in the uptake of different N forms with increasing species richness. Leaf blade nitrate and carbohydrate concentrations as indicators of plants nutritional status supported that light limitation with increasing species richness and legume proportions, combined with a N limitation in communities with increasing proportions of non-legumes, correlated with the decreasing performance of L. perenne in communities of increasing plant diversity. © 2010 German Botanical Society and The Royal Botanical Society of the Netherlands.

[Effects of simulated warming on the growth, leaf phenology, and leaf traits of Salix eriostachya in sub-alpine timberline ecotone of western Sichuan, China].

PubMed

Xu, Zhen-feng; Hu, Ting-xing; Zhang, Li; Zhang, Yuan-bin; Xian, Jun-ren; Wang, Kai-yun

2009-01-01

By using open-top chamber (OTC), the effects of simulated warming on the growth, leaf phenology, and leaf traits of Salix eriostachya in sub-alpine timberline ecotone of Western Sichuan were studied. The results showed that comparing with the control, the mean air temperature at 1.2 m above the ground throughout S. eriostachya growth season in OTC increased by 2.9 degrees C, while the soil temperature at the depth of 5 cm only increased by 0.4 degrees C. The temperature increase in OTC made S. eriostachya budding advanced and defoliation postponed obviously, and the leaf life-span longer. The leaf and branch growth rates as well as the specific leaf area in OTC increased obviously, whereas the leaf nitrogen concentration decreased significantly. In OTC, the stomata conductance, net photosynthetic rate, photorespiration, and dark respiration rate of S. eriostachya all exhibited an increasing trend. It was suggested that S. eriostachya had stronger capability to adapt to warming, and, under the background of future global climate change, the elevation of S. eriostachya distribution in the timberline ecotone would be likely to ascend.

How the use of nitrogen fertiliser may switch plant suitability for aphids: the case of Miscanthus, a promising biomass crop, and the aphid pest Rhopalosiphum maidis.

PubMed

Bogaert, Florent; Chesnais, Quentin; Catterou, Manuella; Rambaud, Caroline; Doury, Géraldine; Ameline, Arnaud

2017-08-01

The use of nitrogen fertiliser in agrosystems can alter plant nitrogen and consequently improve nutrient availability for herbivores, potentially leading to better performance for herbivores and higher pest pressure in the field. We compared, in laboratory conditions, the effects of nitrogen fertilisation on a promising biomass crop, Miscanthus × giganteus, and its parents M. sinensis and M. sacchariflorus. The plant-mediated effects were compared on the second trophic level, the green corn leaf aphid Rhopalosiphum maidis. Results showed that the biomass and leaf C:N ratio of M. sinensis plants treated with nitrogen fertiliser were significantly greater than those of non-treated plants. As regards M. × giganteus and M. sacchariflorus, the only reported change was a significantly smaller leaf C:N ratio for treated M. sacchariflorus compared with non-treated plants. Surprisingly, nitrogen fertilisation had opposite effects on plant-herbivore interactions. Following nitrogen treatments, M. sinensis was less suitable in terms of intrinsic rate of increase for R. maidis, the feeding behaviour of which was negatively affected, while M. sacchariflorus and M. × giganteus exhibited greater suitability in terms of aphid weight. Nitrogen fertilisation had contrasting effects on the three species of Miscanthus plants. These effects cascaded up to the second trophic level, R. maidis aphid pests, either through a modification of their weight or demographic parameters. The implications of these results were discussed in the context of agricultural sustainability and intensive production practices. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

[Effect of water-nitrogen coupling on photosynthesis and ultrastructure of cucumber leaves under CO2 enrichment].

PubMed

Cui, Qing Qing; Dong, Yan Hong; Li, Man; Zhang, Wen Dong; Liu, Bin Bin; Ai, Xi Zhen; Bi, Huan Gai; Li, Qing Ming

2017-04-18

Using split plot and then-split plot design, effects of water-nitrogen coupling on photosynthesis and ultrastructure of cucumber (Cucumis sativus) (Jinyou No.35) under CO 2 enrichment were investigated. The main plot had two CO 2 concentrations: ambient CO 2 concentration (400 μmol·mol -1 , A) and doubled CO 2 concentration (800±20 μmol·mol -1 , E). The split plot had two treatments: no drought stress (95% of field capacity, W) and drought stress (75% of field capacity, D). The then-split plot contained low nitrogen treatment (450 kg·hm -2 , N 1 ) and high nitrogen treatment (900 kg·hm -2 , N 2 ). The results showed that under the condition of drought and high nitrogen, increasing CO 2 enhanced the cucumber plant height, and no matter what kinds of water treatment, CO 2 enrichment increased the leaf area significantly under high nitrogen. Under the condition of normal irrigation, the photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance and transpiration rate of high nitrogen treatment were higher than low nitrogen treatment, while it was under the drought condition. Elevated CO 2 enhanced the water use efficiency of cucumber leaf which increased with increasing nitrogen application rate. Under drought stress, cucumber adaxial surface porosity density was increased, and the CO 2 enrichment and high nitrogen significantly reduced the stomatal density. Increasing nitrogen application improved the number of chloroplast, and reduced that of starch grains. Drought stress decreased the number of chloroplast, but tended to promote the number of starch grains. Drought stress increased the chloroplast length and width, and the size of the starch grains, while high nitrogen reduced the length and width of the chloroplast and starch grains. CO 2 enrichment and high nitrogen increased grana thickness and layers (except ADN 2 ), and the slice layer of EDN 2 was significantly higher than that of ADN 2 . In conclusion, CO 2 enrichment and suitable water and nitrogen could promote the development of chloroplast thylakoid membrane system, significantly increase the thickness of grana and the number of grana lamella, and effectively improve the chloroplast structure of cucumber, which would benefit the photosynthesis of cucumber plants and ability to utilize CO 2 and water and nitrogen.

Mechanisms for Success after Long-term Nutrient Enrichment in a Boreal Forest Understory

PubMed Central

Grainger, Tess Nahanni; Turkington, Roy

2013-01-01

Global levels of reactive nitrogen are predicted to rise in the coming decades as a result of increased deposition from the burning of fossil fuels and the large-scale conversion of nitrogen into a useable form for agriculture. Many plant communities respond strongly to increases in soil nitrogen, particularly in northern ecosystems where nitrogen levels are naturally very low. An experiment in northern Canada that was initiated in 1990 has been investigating the effects of long-term nutrient enrichment (fertilizer added annually) on a boreal forest understory community. We used this experiment to investigate why some species increase in abundance under nutrient enrichment whereas others decline. We focused on four species that differed in their responses to fertilization: Mertensia paniculata and Epilobium angustifolium increased in abundance, Achillea millefolium remained relatively constant and Festuca altaica declined. We hypothesized that the two species that were successful in the new high-nutrient, light-limited environment would be taller, have higher specific leaf area, change phenology by growing earlier in the season and be more morphologically plastic than their less successful counterparts. We compared plant height, specific leaf area, growth spurt date and allocation to leaves in plants grown in control and fertilized plots. We demonstrated that each of the two species that came to dominate fertilized plots has a different combination of traits and responses that likely gave them a competitive advantage; M. paniculata has the highest specific leaf area of the four species whereas E. angustifolium is tallest and exhibits morphological plasticity when fertilized by increasing biomass allocation to leaves. These results indicate that rather than one strategy determining success when nutrients become available, a variety of traits and responses may contribute to a species' ability to persist in a nutrient-enriched boreal forest understory. PMID:23573298

Legumes are different: Leaf nitrogen, photosynthesis, and water use efficiency

PubMed Central

Adams, Mark Andrew; Turnbull, Tarryn L.; Sprent, Janet I.; Buchmann, Nina

2016-01-01

Using robust, pairwise comparisons and a global dataset, we show that nitrogen concentration per unit leaf mass for nitrogen-fixing plants (N2FP; mainly legumes plus some actinorhizal species) in nonagricultural ecosystems is universally greater (43–100%) than that for other plants (OP). This difference is maintained across Koppen climate zones and growth forms and strongest in the wet tropics and within deciduous angiosperms. N2FP mostly show a similar advantage over OP in nitrogen per leaf area (Narea), even in arid climates, despite diazotrophy being sensitive to drought. We also show that, for most N2FP, carbon fixation by photosynthesis (Asat) and stomatal conductance (gs) are not related to Narea—in distinct challenge to current theories that place the leaf nitrogen–Asat relationship at the center of explanations of plant fitness and competitive ability. Among N2FP, only forbs displayed an Narea–gs relationship similar to that for OP, whereas intrinsic water use efficiency (WUEi; Asat/gs) was positively related to Narea for woody N2FP. Enhanced foliar nitrogen (relative to OP) contributes strongly to other evolutionarily advantageous attributes of legumes, such as seed nitrogen and herbivore defense. These alternate explanations of clear differences in leaf N between N2FP and OP have significant implications (e.g., for global models of carbon fluxes based on relationships between leaf N and Asat). Combined, greater WUE and leaf nitrogen—in a variety of forms—enhance fitness and survival of genomes of N2FP, particularly in arid and semiarid climates. PMID:27035971

Growth temperature modulates the spatial variability of leaf morphology and chemical elements within crowns of climatically divergent Acer rubrum genotypes.

PubMed

Shahba, Mohamed A; Bauerle, William L

2009-07-01

Our understanding of leaf acclimation in relation to temperature of fully grown or juvenile tree crowns is mainly based on research involving spatially uncontrolled growth temperature. In this study, we test the hypothesis that leaf morphology and chemical elements are modulated by within-crown growth temperature differences. We ask whether within-species variation can influence acclimation to elevated temperatures. Within-crown temperature dependence of leaf morphology, carbon and nitrogen was examined in two genotypes of Acer rubrum L. (red maple) from different latitudes, where the mean annual temperature varies between 7.2 and 19.4 degrees C. Crown sections were grown in temperature-controlled chambers at three daytime growth temperatures (25, 33 and 38 degrees C). Leaf growth and resource acquisition were measured at regular intervals over long-term (50 days) controlled daytime growth temperatures. We found significant intraspecific variation in temperature dependence of leaf carbon and nitrogen accumulation between genotypes. Additionally, there was evidence that leaf morphology depended on inherited adaptation. Leaf dry matter and nitrogen content decreased as growth temperature was elevated above 25 degrees C in the genotype native to the cooler climate, whereas they remained fairly constant in response to temperature in the genotype native to the warmer climate. Specific leaf area (SLA) was correlated positively to leaf nitrogen content in both genotypes. The SLA and the relative leaf dry matter content (LM), on the other hand, were correlated negatively to leaf thickness. However, intraspecific variation in SLA and LM versus leaf thickness was highly significant. Intraspecific differences in leaf temperature response between climatically divergent genotypes yielded important implications for convergent evolution of leaf adaptation. Comparison of our results with those of previous studies showed that leaf carbon allocation along a vertical temperature gradient was modulated by growth temperature in the genotype native to the cooler climate. This indicates that within-crown temperature-induced variations in leaf morphology and chemical content should be accounted for in forest ecosystem models.

Response of rice cultivars to rates of nitrogen and potassium application in field and pot conditions.

PubMed

Bahmaniar, M A; Ranjbar, G A

2007-05-01

Nitrogen and potassium are the yield-limiting nutrients in rice production regions of Iran. Use of N and K efficient cultivars is an important complementary strategy in improving rice yield, increasing the quality properties of rice grains and reducing cost of production. In order to consider the effects of different amounts of N and K application on rice (Oryza sativa L.) yield and yield components in pot and field conditions these experiments were undertaken in 2004 at Sari Agricultural Station, Iran. Four levels of N (0, 50, 100 and 150 Kg N ha(-1) in field and 0, 0.6, 1.2 and 1.8 g N pot(-1) in pot) corresponding with four levels of K (0, 75, 150 and 225 kg K2O ha(-1) in field and 0, 0.5, 1 and 1.5 g K2O pot(-1) in pot) were applied in a split-factorial plot design with three replications in both pot and field experiments, variously. Grain yield, number of grain per panicle, number of tiller, plant height, length of flag leaf, total and shoot dry matter, 1000 grain weight and harvest index have been increased by N application in field conditions. However, in pot conditions grain yield, number of grain per panicle, number of tiller, plant height, width of flag leaf, total and shoot dry matter, leaf nitrogen contents and harvest index have significantly been increased (p < or = 0.05). Potassium application in field conditions has significantly affected on all characteristics but 1000 grain weight and leaf N and K contents. Simultaneous application of N and K have increasingly affected on grain yield, plant height, shoot dry matter and harvest index in field conditions and on plant height, length of flag leaf and shoot dry matter in pot conditions (p < or = 0.05).

Sites of action of elevated CO2 on leaf development in rice: discrimination between the effects of elevated CO2 and nitrogen deficiency.

PubMed

Tsutsumi, Koichi; Konno, Masae; Miyazawa, Shin-Ichi; Miyao, Mitsue

2014-02-01

Elevated CO2 concentrations (eCO2) trigger various plant responses. Despite intensive studies of these responses, the underlying mechanisms remain obscure. In this work, we investigated when and how leaf physiology and anatomy are affected by eCO2 in rice plants. We analyzed the most recently fully expanded leaves that developed successively after transfer of the plant to eCO2. To discriminate between the effects of eCO2 and those of nitrogen deficiency, we used three different levels of N application. We found that a decline in the leaf soluble protein content (on a leaf area basis) at eCO2 was only observed under N deficiency. The length and width of the leaf blade were reduced by both eCO2 and N deficiency, whereas the blade thickness was increased by eCO2 but was not affected by N deficiency. The change in length by eCO2 became detectable in the secondly fully expanded leaf, and those in width and thickness in the thirdly fully expanded leaf, which were at the leaf developmental stages P4 and P3, respectively, at the onset of the eCO2 treatment. The decreased blade length at eCO2 was associated with a decrease in the epidermal cell number on the adaxial side and a reduction in cell length on the abaxial side. The decreased width resulted from decreased numbers of small vascular bundles and epidermal cell files. The increased thickness was ascribed mainly to enhanced development of bundle sheath extensions at the ridges of vascular bundles. These observations enable us to identify the sites of action of eCO2 on rice leaf development.

Climate controls photosynthetic capacity more than leaf nitrogen contents

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ali, A. A.; Xu, C.; McDowell, N. G.

2013-12-01

Global vegetation models continue to lack the ability to make reliable predictions because the photosynthetic capacity varies a lot with growth conditions, season and among species. It is likely that vegetation models link photosynthetic capacity to concurrent changes in leaf nitrogen content only. To improve the predictions of the vegetation models, there is an urgent need to review species growth conditions and their seasonal response to changing climate. We sampled the global distribution of the Vcmax (maximum carboxylation rates) data of various species across different environmental gradients from the literature and standardized its value to 25 degree Celcius. We found that species explained the largest variation in (1) the photosynthetic capacity and (2) the proportion of nitrogen allocated for rubisco (PNcb). Surprisingly, climate variables explained more variations in photosynthetic capacity as well as PNcb than leaf nitrogen content and/or specific leaf area. The chief climate variables that explain variation in photosynthesis and PNcb were radiation, temperature and daylength. Our analysis suggests that species have the greatest control over photosynthesis and PNcb. Further, compared to leaf nitrogen content and/or specific leaf area, climate variables have more control over photosynthesis and PNcb. Therefore, climate variables should be incorporated in the global vegetation models when making predictions about the photosynthetic capacity.

Nitrogen Level Changes the Interactions between a Native (Scirpus triqueter) and an Exotic Species (Spartina anglica) in Coastal China

PubMed Central

Li, Hong-li; Lei, Guang-chun; Zhi, Ying-biao; An, Shu-qing; Huang, He-ping; Ouyang, Yan; Zhao, Lei; Deng, Zi-fa; Liu, Yu-hong

2011-01-01

The exotic species Spartina anglica, introduced from Europe in 1963, has been experiencing a decline in the past decade in coastal China, but the reasons for the decline are still not clear. It is hypothesized that competition with the native species Scirpus triqueter may have played an important role in the decline due to niche overlap in the field. We measured biomass, leaf number and area, asexual reproduction and relative neighborhood effect (RNE) of the two species in both monoculture and mixture under three nitrogen levels (control, low and high). S. anglica showed significantly lower biomass accumulation, leaf number and asexual reproduction in mixture than in monoculture. The inter- and intra-specific RNE of S. anglica were all positive, and the inter-specific RNE was significantly higher than the intra-specific RNE in the control. For S. triqueter, inter- and intra-specific RNE were negative at the high nitrogen level but positive in the control and at the low nitrogen level. This indicates that S. triqueter exerted an asymmetric competitive advantage over S. anglica in the control and low nitrogen conditions; however, S. anglica facilitated growth of S. triqueter in high nitrogen conditions. Nitrogen level changed the interactions between the two species because S. triqueter better tolerated low nitrogen. Since S. anglica is increasingly confined to upper, more nitrogen-limited marsh areas in coastal China, increased competition from S. triqueter may help explain its decline. PMID:21998676

Global scale analysis and evaluation of an improved mechanistic representation of plant nitrogen and carbon dynamics in the Community Land Model (CLM)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghimire, B.; Riley, W. J.; Koven, C. D.; Randerson, J. T.; Mu, M.; Kattge, J.; Rogers, A.; Reich, P. B.

2014-12-01

In many ecosystems, nitrogen is the most limiting nutrient for plant growth and productivity. However mechanistic representation of nitrogen uptake linked to root traits, and functional nitrogen allocation among different leaf enzymes involved in respiration and photosynthesis is currently lacking in Earth System models. The linkage between nitrogen availability and plant productivity is simplistically represented by potential photosynthesis rates, and is subsequently downregulated depending on nitrogen supply and other nitrogen consumers in the model (e.g., nitrification). This type of potential photosynthesis rate calculation is problematic for several reasons. Firstly, plants do not photosynthesize at potential rates and then downregulate. Secondly, there is considerable subjectivity on the meaning of potential photosynthesis rates. Thirdly, there exists lack of understanding on modeling these potential photosynthesis rates in a changing climate. In addition to model structural issues in representing photosynthesis rates, the role of plant roots in nutrient acquisition have been largely ignored in Earth System models. For example, in CLM4.5, nitrogen uptake is linked to leaf level processes (e.g., primarily productivity) rather than root scale process involved in nitrogen uptake. We present a new plant model for CLM with an improved mechanistic presentation of plant nitrogen uptake based on root scale Michaelis Menten kinetics, and stronger linkages between leaf nitrogen and plant productivity by inferring relationships observed in global databases of plant traits (including the TRY database and several individual studies). We also incorporate improved representation of plant nitrogen leaf allocation, especially in tropical regions where significant over-prediction of plant growth and productivity in CLM4.5 simulations exist. We evaluate our improved global model simulations using the International Land Model Benchmarking (ILAMB) framework. We conclude that mechanistic representation of leaf-level nitrogen allocation and a theoretically consistent treatment of competition with belowground consumers leads to overall improvements in CLM4.5's global carbon cycling predictions.

Effects of growth irradiance, nitrogen nutrition and watering regime on photosynthesis, leaf conductance and isoprene emission in leaves of Post Oak, Quercus stellata

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Harley, P.; Archer, S.; Guenther, A.

1994-06-01

Seedlings of Post Oak (Quercus stellata), the dominant woody species of oak savannas of east-central Texas, were grown outside in College Station, TX from April to November 1993. Plants were randomly placed in one cell of a 3 [times] 2 [times] 2 factorial experiment, employing 3 nitrogen fertilization (25, 100 and 225 ppm NH[sub 4]NO[sub 23]), 2 light levels (70% and 20% of full sun) and 2 watering regimes (to maintain 80-100% or 30-50% of field capacity). In November, net photosynthesis, leaf conductance and leaf isoprene emission rates at 30[degrees]C and PPFD=1000 [mu]mol m[sup [minus]2]s[sup [minus]1] were determined for twomore » mature leaves on each of four plants from eight growth treatments and data were analyzed stastically. For plants grown under the lower watering regime, photosynthesis and isoprene emission increased with both increasing PPFD and nitrogen (effects significant at p<0.01). For plants grown at 70% full sun, effects of nitrogen treatment on photosynthesis, conductance and isoprene emission were significant (p<0.0001) while effects of watering treatment were not significant (p<0.2). Although watering treatment did not lead to significant differences between treatments, in a short-term drying experiment conducted on four plants, isoprene emissions increased through the drying period in previously well-watered plants, but decreased in previously droughted plants. Measurements were also made on two leaves to determine the effects of varying PPFD and temperature on rates of isoprene emission.« less

Seasonal variation of leaf traits in two woody species of an urban park

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, H.; Ryu, Y.

2013-12-01

Leaf traits are important for understanding physiology of woody plants. Some leaf traits such as maximum carboxylation rate (Vcamx) and maximum electron transport rate (Jmax) are especially crucial parameters for photosynthesis modelling. In this study, we report leaf traits (leaf mass per unit area, leaf carbon and nitrogen contents and C:N, Vcmax, Jmax) of two species (Zelkova serrata and Prunus yedoensis) in the Seoul Forest Park in 2013. From May to July, Vcmax and Jmax show gradual increase. In contrast, N concentration and C:N show the opposite pattern. Also we find that the ratio of Jmax to Vcmax was 1.05, which is substantially lower than many previous studies. We discuss main factors that control seasonal variation of leaf traits and correlation between Vcmax and Jmax.

Evolutionarily stable strategy of carbon and nitrogen investments in forest leaves and its application in vegetation dynamic modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weng, E.; Farrior, C.; Dybzinski, R.; Pacala, S. W.

2015-12-01

Leaf mass per area (LMA) and leaf lifespan (LL) are two highly correlated plant traits that are key to plant physiological and ecological properties. Usually, low LMA means short LL, high nitrogen (N) content per unit mass, and fast turnover rates of nutrients; high LMA leads to long LL, low N content, and slow turnover rates. Deciduous trees with low LMA and short lifespan leaves have low carbon cost but high nitrogen demand; and evergreen trees, with high LMA and long lifespan leaves, have high carbon cost but low nitrogen demand. These relationships lead to: 1) evergreen trees have higher leaf area index than deciduous trees; 2) evergreen trees' carbon use efficiency is lower than the deciduous trees' because of their thick leaves and therefore high maintenance respiration; 3) the advantage of evergreens trees brought by their extra leaves over deciduous trees diminishes with increase N in ecosystem. These facts determine who will win when trees compete with each other in a N-limited ecosystem. In this study, we formulate a mathematical model according to the relationships between LMA, LL, leaf nitrogen, and leaf building and maintenance cost, where LMA is the fundamental variable determining the other three. We analyze the evolutionarily stable strategies (ESSs) of LMA with this mathematical model by examining the benefits of carbon and nitrogen investments to leaves in ecosystems with different N. The model shows the ESS converges to low LMA at high N and high LMA at low N. At intermediate N, there are two ESSs at low and high ends of LMA, respectively. The ESS also leads to low forest productivity by outcompeting the possible high productive strategies. We design a simulation scheme in an individual-based competition model (LM3-PPA) to simulate forest dynamics as results of the competition between deciduous and evergreen trees in three different biomes, which are temperate deciduous forest, deciduous-evergreen mixed forest, and boreal evergreen forest. The simulated results are consistent with the actual forests. Our model and simulated results indicate the distribution of evergreen and deciduous forests can be explained by one single leaf trait (i.e., LMA) and associated physiological and biogeochemical processes.

Variation in defence strategies in two species of the genus Beilschmiedia under differing soil nutrient and rainfall conditions.

PubMed

Simon, J; Miller, R E; Woodrow, I E

2007-01-01

The relationships between various leaf functional traits that are important in plant growth (e.g., specific leaf area) have been investigated in recent studies; however, research in this context on plants that are highly protected by chemical defences, particularly resource-demanding nitrogen-based defence, is lacking. We collected leaves from cyanogenic (N-defended) Beilschmiedia collina B. Hyland and acyanogenic (C-defended) Beilschmiedia tooram (F. M. Bailey) B. Hyland at high- and low-soil nutrient sites in two consecutive years that varied significantly in rainfall. We then measured the relationships between chemical defence and morphological and functional leaf traits under the different environmental conditions. We found that the two species differed significantly in their resource allocation to defence as well as leaf morphology and function. The N defended species had a higher leaf nitrogen concentration, whereas the C-defended species had higher amounts of C-based chemical defences (i.e., total phenolics and condensed tannins). The C-defended species also tended to have higher force to fracture and increased leaf toughness. In B. collina, cyanogenic glycoside concentration was higher with higher rainfall, but not with higher soil nutrients. Total phenolic concentration was higher at the high soil nutrient site in B. tooram, but lower in B. collina; however, with higher rainfall an increase was found in B. tooram, while phenolics decreased in B. collina. Condensed tannin concentration decreased in both species with rainfall and nutrient availability. We conclude that chemical defence is correlated with leaf functional traits and that variation in environmental resources affects this correlation.

To what extent is altitudinal variation of functional traits driven by genetic adaptation in European oak and beech?

PubMed

Bresson, Caroline C; Vitasse, Yann; Kremer, Antoine; Delzon, Sylvain

2011-11-01

The phenotypic responses of functional traits in natural populations are driven by genetic diversity and phenotypic plasticity. These two mechanisms enable trees to cope with rapid climate change. We studied two European temperate tree species (sessile oak and European beech), focusing on (i) in situ variations of leaf functional traits (morphological and physiological) along two altitudinal gradients and (ii) the extent to which these variations were under environmental and/or genetic control using a common garden experiment. For all traits, altitudinal trends tended to be highly consistent between species and transects. For both species, leaf mass per area displayed a positive linear correlation with altitude, whereas leaf size was negatively correlated with altitude. We also observed a significant increase in leaf physiological performance with increasing altitude: populations at high altitudes had higher maximum rates of assimilation, stomatal conductance and leaf nitrogen content than those at low altitudes. In the common garden experiment, genetic differentiation between populations accounted for 0-28% of total phenotypic variation. However, only two traits (leaf mass per area and nitrogen content) exhibited a significant cline. The combination of in situ and common garden experiments used here made it possible to demonstrate, for both species, a weaker effect of genetic variation than of variations in natural conditions, suggesting a strong effect of the environment on leaf functional traits. Finally, we demonstrated that intrapopulation variability was systematically higher than interpopulation variability, whatever the functional trait considered, indicating a high potential capacity to adapt to climate change.

Effects of CO(2) enrichment on photosynthesis, growth, and nitrogen metabolism of the seagrass Zostera noltii.

PubMed

Alexandre, Ana; Silva, João; Buapet, Pimchanok; Björk, Mats; Santos, Rui

2012-10-01

Seagrass ecosystems are expected to benefit from the global increase in CO(2) in the ocean because the photosynthetic rate of these plants may be C(i)-limited at the current CO(2) level. As well, it is expected that lower external pH will facilitate the nitrate uptake of seagrasses if nitrate is cotransported with H(+) across the membrane as in terrestrial plants. Here, we investigate the effects of CO(2) enrichment on both carbon and nitrogen metabolism of the seagrass Zostera noltii in a mesocosm experiment where plants were exposed for 5 months to two experimental CO(2) concentrations (360 and 700 ppm). Both the maximum photosynthetic rate (P(m)) and photosynthetic efficiency (α) were higher (1.3- and 4.1-fold, respectively) in plants exposed to CO(2)-enriched conditions. On the other hand, no significant effects of CO(2) enrichment on leaf growth rates were observed, probably due to nitrogen limitation as revealed by the low nitrogen content of leaves. The leaf ammonium uptake rate and glutamine synthetase activity were not significantly affected by increased CO(2) concentrations. On the other hand, the leaf nitrate uptake rate of plants exposed to CO(2)-enriched conditions was fourfold lower than the uptake of plants exposed to current CO(2) level, suggesting that in the seagrass Z. noltii nitrate is not cotransported with H(+) as in terrestrial plants. In contrast, the activity of nitrate reductase was threefold higher in plant leaves grown at high-CO(2) concentrations. Our results suggest that the global effects of CO(2) on seagrass production may be spatially heterogeneous and depend on the specific nitrogen availability of each system. Under a CO(2) increase scenario, the natural levels of nutrients will probably become limiting for Z. noltii. This potential limitation becomes more relevant because the expected positive effect of CO(2) increase on nitrate uptake rate was not confirmed.

Effects of CO2 enrichment on photosynthesis, growth, and nitrogen metabolism of the seagrass Zostera noltii

PubMed Central

Alexandre, Ana; Silva, João; Buapet, Pimchanok; Björk, Mats; Santos, Rui

2012-01-01

Seagrass ecosystems are expected to benefit from the global increase in CO2 in the ocean because the photosynthetic rate of these plants may be Ci-limited at the current CO2 level. As well, it is expected that lower external pH will facilitate the nitrate uptake of seagrasses if nitrate is cotransported with H+ across the membrane as in terrestrial plants. Here, we investigate the effects of CO2 enrichment on both carbon and nitrogen metabolism of the seagrass Zostera noltii in a mesocosm experiment where plants were exposed for 5 months to two experimental CO2 concentrations (360 and 700 ppm). Both the maximum photosynthetic rate (Pm) and photosynthetic efficiency (α) were higher (1.3- and 4.1-fold, respectively) in plants exposed to CO2-enriched conditions. On the other hand, no significant effects of CO2 enrichment on leaf growth rates were observed, probably due to nitrogen limitation as revealed by the low nitrogen content of leaves. The leaf ammonium uptake rate and glutamine synthetase activity were not significantly affected by increased CO2 concentrations. On the other hand, the leaf nitrate uptake rate of plants exposed to CO2-enriched conditions was fourfold lower than the uptake of plants exposed to current CO2 level, suggesting that in the seagrass Z. noltii nitrate is not cotransported with H+ as in terrestrial plants. In contrast, the activity of nitrate reductase was threefold higher in plant leaves grown at high-CO2 concentrations. Our results suggest that the global effects of CO2 on seagrass production may be spatially heterogeneous and depend on the specific nitrogen availability of each system. Under a CO2 increase scenario, the natural levels of nutrients will probably become limiting for Z. noltii. This potential limitation becomes more relevant because the expected positive effect of CO2 increase on nitrate uptake rate was not confirmed. PMID:23145346

Effects of nitrogen deposition on carbon and nitrogen dynamics: a model-data comparison at an alpine meadow on the Qinghai Tibetan Plateau

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, L.; Li, P.; Fang, H.; Ren, X.; He, H.; Li, Y.; Yu, G.

2015-12-01

Significant increases in atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition due to human activities are likely to alter the carbon (C) and nitrogen cycles of terrestrial ecosystems. N deposition has the potential to affect photosynthesis, plant and soil respiration, and thus vegetation and soil C storages. Accurate estimation of the change in plant uptake of carbon dioxide due to N deposition is essential to dealing with the climate change. Among the 11 earth system models which provide climate projection for the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change, only the community land model (CLM-CN) used in two of them includes a dynamic terrestrial nitrogen cycle. However, the responses of carbon and nitrogen dynamics to nitrogen deposition in CLM-CN have not been well evaluated. In this study, we examine the performance of CLM-CN (version 4.0) in simulating how leaf N content, leaf area index (LAI), aboveground biomass, soil respiration, and soil organic C and N respond to low-level N addition (40 kg N m-2 yr-1) using observations at an alpine meadow on the Qinghai Tibetan Plateau. CLM-CN well reproduced the positive responses of LAI and soil respiration (+13% and +8%) to the N addition, compared to observed increases (+14% and +12%). However, the CLM-CN leaf N content response to N addition (+13%) was larger than observed (+5%), and modeled response of aboveground biomass C (+5%) was smaller than observed (+12%). Moreover, modeled slight positive response (+0.2%) of soil organic C to N addition was inconsistent with observed decrease of 8.8%. Additional manipulation experimental data are required for evaluating and improving models in simulating responses of plant N uptake, C and N allocation, litter and soil organic matter decomposition to N deposition.

Comparison of leaf color chart observations with digital photographs and spectral measurements for estimating maize leaf chlorophyll content

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Crop nitrogen management is important world-wide, as much for small fields as it is for large operations. Developed as a non-destructive aid for estimating nitrogen content in rice crops, leaf color charts (LCC) are a numbered series of plastic panels that range from yellowgreen to dark green. By vi...

Leaf Mass Area, Leaf Carbon and Nitrogen Content, Kougarok Road and Teller Road, Seward Peninsula, Alaska, 2016

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Shawn Serbin; Alistair Rogers; Kim Ely

Carbon, Nitrogen and Leaf Mass Area of leaves sampled from locations on the Kougarok Rd (transect A) and Teller Rd NGEE Arctic study sites, Seward Peninsula, Alaska. Species include: Alnus viridis spp. fruticosa, Arctostaphylos rubra, Betula glandulosa, Chamerion latifolium, Petasites frigidus, Salix alaxensis, Salix glauca, Salix pulchra, Salix richardsonii and Vaccinium uliginosum.

Controls on mass loss and nitrogen dynamics of oak leaf litter along an urban-rural land-use gradient

Treesearch

Richard V. Pouyat; Margaret M. Carreiro

2003-01-01

Using reciprocal leaf litter transplants, we investigated the effects of contrasting environments (urban vs. rural) and intraspecific variations in oak leaf litter quality on mass loss rates and nitrogen (N) dynamics along an urban-rural gradient in the New York City metropolitan area. Differences in earthworm abundances and temperature had previously been documented...

Interrelationships among light, photosynthesis and nitrogen in the crown of mature Pinus contorta ssp. latifolia

Treesearch

A. W. Schoettle; W. K. Smith

1999-01-01

Scaling leaf-level measurements to estimate carbon gain of entire leaf crowns or canopies requires an understanding of the distribution of photosynthetic capacity and corresponding light microenvironments within a crown. We have compared changes in the photosynthetic light response and nitrogen (N) content (per unit leaf area) of Pinus contorta Dougl. ssp. latifolia...

Worldwide variation in within-canopy photosynthetic acclimation: differences in temporal and environmental controls among plant functional types

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Niinemets, Ülo; Keenan, Trevor

2017-04-01

Major light gradients, characteristically 10- to 50-fold, constitute the most prominent feature of plant canopies. These gradients drive within-canopy variation in foliage structural, chemical and physiological traits. As a key acclimation response to variation in light availability, foliage photosynthetic capacity per area (Aarea) increases with increasing light availability within the canopy, maximizing whole canopy photosynthesis. Recently, a worldwide database including 831 within-canopy gradients with standardized light estimates for 304 species belonging to major vascular plant functional types was constructed and within-canopy variation in photosynthetic acclimation was characterized (Niinemets Ü, Keenan TF, Hallik L (2015) Tansley review. A worldwide analysis of within-canopy variations in leaf structural, chemical and physiological traits across plant functional types. The New Phytologist 205: 973-993). However, the understanding of how within-canopy photosynthetic gradients vary during the growing season and in response to site and stand characteristics is still limited. Here we analyzed temporal, environmental and site (nutrient availability, stand density, ambient CO2 concentration, water availability) sources of variation in within-canopy photosynthetic acclimation in different plant functional types. Variation in key structural (leaf dry mass per unit area, MA), chemical (nitrogen content per dry mass, NM, and area, NA) and physiological (photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency, EN) photosynthetic capacity per dry mass, Amass and area, Aarea) was examined. The analysis demonstrates major, typically 1.5-2-fold, time-, environment and site-dependent modifications in within-canopy variation in foliage photosynthetic capacity. However, the magnitude and direction of temporal and environmental variations in plasticity significantly varied among functional types. Species with longer leaf life span and low rates of canopy expansion or flush-type canopy formation had lower within canopy plasticity during the growing season and in response to environmental and site modifications than species with high rates of canopy expansion and leaf turnover. The fast canopy-expanding species that grow in highly dynamic light environments, actively modified Aarea by nitrogen reallocation among and partitioning within leaves. In contrast, species with low rate of leaf turnover generally exhibited a passive acclimation response with variation in Aarea primarily determined by light-dependent modifications in leaf structure during leaf growth. Due to limited reacclimation capacity in species with low leaf turnover, within-canopy variation in Aarea decreased with increasing leaf age in these species. Furthermore, the plasticity responded less to modifications in environmental and site characteristics than in species with faster leaf turnover. This analysis concludes that the rate of leaf turnover is the key trait determining the temporal variation and environmental responses of canopy photosynthetic acclimation.

Nitrogen nutrition of tomato plant alters leafminer dietary intake dynamics.

PubMed

Coqueret, Victoire; Le Bot, Jacques; Larbat, Romain; Desneux, Nicolas; Robin, Christophe; Adamowicz, Stéphane

2017-05-01

The leafminer Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) is a major pest of the tomato crop and its development rate is known to decline when nitrogen availability for crop growth is limited. Because N limitation reduces plant primary metabolism but enhances secondary metabolism, one can infer that the slow larval development arises from lower leaf nutritive value and/or higher plant defence. As an attempt to study the first alternative, we examined the tomato-T. absoluta interaction in terms of resource supply by leaves and intake by larvae. Tomato plants were raised under controlled conditions on N-sufficient vs. N-limited complete nutrient solutions. Plants were kept healthy or artificially inoculated with larvae for seven days. Serial harvests were taken and the N, C, dry mass and water contents were determined in roots, stems and leaves. Leaf and mine areas were also measured and the N, C, dry mass and water surface densities were calculated in order to characterize the diet of the larvae. The infestation of a specific leaf lessened its local biomass by 8-26%, but this effect was undetectable at the whole plant scale. Infestation markedly increased resource density per unit leaf area (water, dry mass, C and N) suggesting that the insect induced changes in leaf composition. Nitrogen limitation lessened whole plant growth (by 50%) and infested leaflet growth (by 32-44%). It produced opposite effects on specific resource density per unit area, increasing that of dry mass and C while decreasing water and N. These changes were ineffective on insect mining activity, but slowed down larval development. Under N limitation, T. absoluta consumed less water and N but more dry mass and C. The resulting consequences were a 50-70% increase of C:N stoichiometry in their diet and the doubling of faeces excretion. The observed limitation of larval development is therefore consistent with a trophic explanation caused by low N and/or water intakes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Effects of water conditions and controlled release urea on yield and leaf senescence physiological characteristics in summer maize.

PubMed

Li, Guang Hao; Liu, Ping Ping; Zhao, Bin; Dong, Shu Ting; Liu, Peng; Zhang, Ji Wang; Tian, Cui Xia; He, Zai Ju

2017-02-01

In an soil column experiment with Zhengdan 958 (a summer maize cultivar planted widely in China), treatments of three water levels,severe water stress W 1 which the soil moisture kept (35±5)% of the field capacity, mild water stress W 2 which was (55±5)%,normal water W 3 which was (75±5)%, and four levels of controlled release urea fertilizer (N 0 , N 1 was 150 kg N·hm -2 ,N 2 was 225 kg N·hm -2 and N 3 was 300 kg N·hm -2 ) were included to study the interactive effects of water and controlled release urea on yield and leaf senescence characteristics of summer maize. The results showed that the coupling of water and controlled release urea had significant effects on increasing yield, delaying the senescence and keeping the high efficiency of the functional leaves. Under the same nitrogen condition, yield, LAI, chlorophyll content and the activities of SOD, POD, CAT and soluble protein content in summer maize ear leaf were significantly increased with more water supplying, and the content of MDA decreased significantly. Under the condition of the same moisture, these indicators were also significantly increased with the increasing nitrogen application and MDA content was reduced significantly. However, these indicators (except MDA) of W 3 N 3 , W 3 N 2 and W 2 N 3 treatments were maintained at a higher level and the MDA content was lo-wer compared with other treatments despite the fact that there were no significant difference among these three treatments, which indicated that the interactive effects of water and controlled release urea had an important role in maintaining the function of ear leaf, delaying the leaf senescence, and was beneficial to the photosynthates production and obtaining higher yield of summer maize. Integrating the yield, LAI, chlorophyll content, various protective enzymes activity, MDA and soluble protein content, controlled release urea application rate of 225 kg N·hm -2 was the best treatment as the soil moisture content was (75±5)% of field capacity. Continuous increase in the nitrogen application could not enhance the activities of protective enzymes, oppositely, it could cause the decline of protective enzymes activities and the increase of MDA content rapidly and speed up plants translation to senescence, which was not conductive to the efficient use of nitrogen. We suggested that coupling controlled release urea application rate of 300 kg N·hm -2 with soil moisture content of (55±5)% of field capacity was optimum.

Constraints on physiological function associated with branch architecture and wood density in tropical forest trees.

PubMed

Meinzer, Frederick C; Campanello, Paula I; Domec, Jean-Christophe; Genoveva Gatti, M; Goldstein, Guillermo; Villalobos-Vega, Randol; Woodruff, David R

2008-11-01

This study examined how leaf and stem functional traits related to gas exchange and water balance scale with two potential proxies for tree hydraulic architecture: the leaf area:sapwood area ratio (A(L):A(S)) and wood density (rho(w)). We studied the upper crowns of individuals of 15 tropical forest tree species at two sites in Panama with contrasting moisture regimes and forest types. Transpiration and maximum photosynthetic electron transport rate (ETR(max)) per unit leaf area declined sharply with increasing A(L):A(S), as did the ratio of ETR(max) to leaf N content, an index of photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency. Midday leaf water potential, bulk leaf osmotic potential at zero turgor, branch xylem specific conductivity, leaf-specific conductivity and stem and leaf capacitance all declined with increasing rho(w). At the branch scale, A(L):A(S) and total leaf N content per unit sapwood area increased with rho(w), resulting in a 30% increase in ETR(max) per unit sapwood area with a doubling of rho(w). These compensatory adjustments in A(L):A(S), N allocation and potential photosynthetic capacity at the branch level were insufficient to completely offset the increased carbon costs of producing denser wood, and exacerbated the negative impact of increasing rho(w) on branch hydraulics and leaf water status. The suite of tree functional and architectural traits studied appeared to be constrained by the hydraulic and mechanical consequences of variation in rho(w).

Carbon and nitrogen balance of leaf-eating sesarmid crabs ( Neoepisesarma versicolor) offered different food sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thongtham, Nalinee; Kristensen, Erik

2005-10-01

Carbon and nitrogen budgets for the leaf-eating crab, Neoepisesarma versicolor, were established for individuals living on pure leaf diets. Crabs were fed fresh (green), senescent (yellow) and partly degraded (brown) leaves of the mangrove tree Rhizophora apiculata. Ingestion, egestion and metabolic loss of carbon and nitrogen were determined from laboratory experiments. In addition, bacterial abundance in various compartments of the crabs' digestive tract was enumerated after dissection of live individuals. Ingestion and egestion rates (in terms of dry weight) were highest, while the assimilation efficiency was poorest for crabs fed on brown leaves. The low assimilation efficiency was more than counteracted by the high ingestion rate providing more carbon for growth than for crabs fed green and yellow leaves. In any case, the results show that all types of leaves can provide adequate carbon while nitrogen was insufficient to support both maintenance (yellow leaves) and growth (green, yellow and brown leaves). Leaf-eating crabs must therefore obtain supplementary nitrogen by other means in order to meet their nitrogen requirement. Three hypotheses were evaluated: (1) crabs supplement their diet with bacteria and benthic microalgae by ingesting own faeces and/or selective grazing at the sediment surface; (2) assimilation of symbiotic nitrogen-fixing bacteria in the crabs' own intestinal system; and (3) nitrogen storage following occasional feeding on animal tissues (e.g. meiofauna and carcasses). It appears that hypothesis 1 is of limited importance for N. versicolor since faeces and sediment can only supply a minor fraction of the missing nitrogen due to physical constraints on the amount of material the crabs can consume. Hypothesis 2 can be ruled out because tests showed no nitrogen fixation activity in the intestinal system of N. versicolor. It is therefore likely that leaf-eating crabs provide most of their nitrogen requirement from intracellular deposits following occasionally ingestion of animal tissue (hypothesis 3).

Morphological and biochemical changes in Azadirachta indica from coal combustion fly ash dumping site from a thermal power plant in Delhi, India.

PubMed

Qadir, Sami Ullah; Raja, Vaseem; Siddiqui, Weqar A

2016-07-01

The foliar and biochemical traits of Azadirachta indica A. Juss from fly ash (FA) dumping site in Badarpur thermal power plant (BTPP) New Delhi, India was studied. Three different experimental sites were selected at different distances from the thermal power plant. Ambient suspended particulate matter (SPM) and plant responses such as leaf pigments (chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, and carotenoids), total chlorophyll, net photosynthetic rate, stomatal index (SI), stomatal conductance (SC), intercellular carbon dioxide concentration [CO2]i, net photosynthetic rate (NPR), nitrogen, nitrate, nitrate reductase activity, proline, protein, reducing sugar and sulphur content were measured. Considerable reduction in pigments (chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b and carotenoids), and total chlorophyll was observed at fly ash dumping site. Fly ash stress revealed the inhibitory effect on Nitrate reductase activity (NRA), Nitrate, soluble protein, and reducing sugar content, whereas stimulatory effect was found for the stomatal index, nitrogen, proline, antioxidants and sulphur content in the leaves. Under fly ash stress, stomatal conductance was low, leading to declining in photosynthetic rate and increase in the internal CO2 concentration of leaf. Single leaf area (SLA), leaf length and leaf width also showed a declining trend from control to the polluted site. Antioxidant enzymes increased in leaves reflecting stress and extenuation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Least-cost input mixtures of water and nitrogen for photosynthesis.

PubMed

Wright, Ian J; Reich, Peter B; Westoby, Mark

2003-01-01

In microeconomics, a standard framework is used for determining the optimal input mix for a two-input production process. Here we adapt this framework for understanding the way plants use water and nitrogen (N) in photosynthesis. The least-cost input mixture for generating a given output depends on the relative cost of procuring and using nitrogen versus water. This way of considering the issue integrates concepts such as water-use efficiency and photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency into the more inclusive objective of optimizing the input mix for a given situation. We explore the implications of deploying alternative combinations of leaf nitrogen concentration and stomatal conductance to water, focusing on comparing hypothetical species occurring in low- versus high-humidity habitats. We then present data from sites in both the United States and Australia and show that low-rainfall species operate with substantially higher leaf N concentration per unit leaf area. The extra protein reflected in higher leaf N concentration is associated with a greater drawdown of internal CO2, such that low-rainfall species achieve higher photosynthetic rates at a given stomatal conductance. This restraint of transpirational water use apparently counterbalances the multiple costs of deploying high-nitrogen leaves.

[Effects of nitrogen-supply levels on leaf senescence and characteristics of distribution and utilization of 13C and 15N in Fuji 3 apple grafted on different stocks].

PubMed

Chen, Qian; Ding, Ning; Zhu, Zhan Ling; Peng, Ling; Ge, Shun Feng; Jiang, Yuan Mao

2017-07-18

Two-year-old potted Fuji 3 apple trees on different rootstocks [Fuji 3/M. micromalus Makin (joe), Fuji 3/M7 (semi-dwarf) and Fuji 3/M26/M. micromalus Makin (dwarf)] were used to study leaf morphology and photosynthesis and the characteristics of distribution and utilization of 13 C and 15 N at different nitrogen supply levels (0N, 25%N and 100%N, the N content in 100% N treatment was the same as that in Hoagland complete nutrient solution) under sand culture condition. The main results were as follows: At shoot growth cessation stage in autumn, the leaf chlorophyll content (SPAD), leaf nitrogen content and photosynthetic rate were found the highest in Fuji 3/M. micromalus Makin, followed by Fuji 3/M7, and the lowest was found in Fuji 3/M26/M. micromalus Makin under the same nitrogen stress treatments (0N and 25%N), however, under normal nitrogen treatment (100%N) Fuji 3/M26/M. micromalus Makin had the highest leaf SPAD value, photosynthetic rate and the nitrogen content, followed by Fuji 3/M7, and the lowest was found in Fuji 3/M. micromalus Makin. The leaf SOD and CAT activities showed Fuji 3/M. micromalus Makin > Fuji 3/M7 > Fuji 3/M26/M. micromalus Makin under the same nitrogen stress treatments, but showed Fuji 3/M26/M. micromalus Makin > Fuji 3/M7 > Fuji 3/M. micromalus Makin under the normal nitrogen treatment. There were significant differences in the distributions of 15 N and 13 C in root and leaf in the 3 scion-stock combinations, and the distribution rates of 15 N and 13 C in roots were the highest under nitrogen stress treatments and in the order of Fuji 3/M. micromalus Makin > Fuji 3/M7 > Fuji 3/M26/M. micromalus Makin. The distribution rates of 15 N and 13 C in leaves were the highest under the normal nitrogen treatment and in the order of Fuji 3/M26/M. micromalus Makin > Fuji 3/M7 > Fuji 3/M. micromalus Makin. The 15 N utilization ratio differed significantly among the 3 scion-stock combinations under different nitrogen application levels and was in the order of Fuji 3/M. micromalus Makin (44.3%, 37.5% and 31.4%)> Fuji 3/M7 (38.8%,30.7% and 26.6%) > Fuji 3/M26/M. micromalus Makin (32.0%,27.2% and 22.5%).

An enhanced approach for the use of satellite-derived leaf area index values in dry deposition modeling in the Athabasca oil sands region.

PubMed

Davies, Mervyn; Cho, Sunny; Spink, David; Pauls, Ron; Desilets, Michael; Shen, Yan; Bajwa, Kanwardeep; Person, Reid

2016-12-15

In the Athabasca oil sands region (AOSR) of Northern Alberta, the dry deposition of sulphur and nitrogen compounds represents a major fraction of total (wet plus dry) deposition due to oil sands emissions. The leaf area index (LAI) is a critical parameter that affects the dry deposition of these gaseous and particulate compounds to the surrounding boreal forest canopy. For this study, LAI values based on Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer satellite imagery were obtained and compared to ground-based measurements, and two limitations with the satellite data were identified. The satellite LAI data firstly represents one-sided LAI values that do not account for the enhanced LAI associated with needle leaf geometry, and secondly, underestimates LAI in winter-time northern latitude regions. An approach for adjusting satellite LAI values for different boreal forest cover types, as a function of time of year, was developed to produce more representative LAI values that can be used by air quality sulphur and nitrogen deposition models. The application of the approach increases the AOSR average LAI for January from 0.19 to 1.40, which represents an increase of 637%. Based on the application of the CALMET/CALPUFF model system, this increases the predicted regional average dry deposition of sulphur and nitrogen compounds for January by factors of 1.40 to 1.30, respectively. The corresponding AOSR average LAI for July increased from 2.8 to 4.0, which represents an increase of 43%. This increases the predicted regional average dry deposition of sulphur and nitrogen compounds for July by factors of 1.28 to 1.22, respectively. These findings reinforce the importance of the LAI metric for predicting the dry deposition of sulphur and nitrogen compounds. While satellite data can provide enhanced spatial and temporal resolution, adjustments are identified to overcome associated limitations. This work is considered to have application for other deposition model studies where dry deposition represents a significant fraction of total deposition. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Spatial variations in soil and plant nitrogen levels caused by ammonia deposition near a cattle feedlot

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shen, Jianlin; Chen, Deli; Bai, Mei; Sun, Jianlei; Lam, Shu Kee; Mosier, Arvin; Liu, Xinliang; Li, Yong

2018-03-01

Cattle feedlots are significant ammonia (NH3) emission sources, and cause high NH3 deposition. This study was conducted to investigate the responses of soil mineral nitrogen (N), percent cover of plant species, leaf N content, and leaf δ15N to NH3 deposition around a 17,500-head cattle feedlot in Victoria, Australia. Soil samples were collected in May 2015 at 100-m intervals along eight downwind transects, and plant samples were collected in June 2015 from five sites at 50- to 300-m intervals along a grassland transect within 1 km downwind of the feedlot. NH3 deposition was also monitored at five sites within 1 km downwind of the feedlot. The estimated NH3-N deposition rates ranged from 2.9 kg N ha-1 yr-1 at 1 km from the feedlot to 203 kg N ha-1 yr-1 at 100 m from the feedlot. The soil mineral N content was high (22-98 mg kg-1, mainly nitrate), significantly decreased with increasing distance from the feedlot, and significantly increased with increasing NH3-N deposition. With increasing NH3-N deposition, the percent cover of the herb species Cymbonotus lawsonianus increased significantly, but that of the grass species Microlaena stipoides decreased significantly. The leaf total N contents of the grass and herb species were high (>4%), and were linearly, positively correlated with the NH3-N deposition rate. Leaf δ15N values were linearly, negatively correlated with the N deposition rate. These results indicate that the leaf N contents and δ15N values of C. lawsonianus and M. stipoides may be bioindicators of N deposition.

Photosynthetic capacity regulation is uncoupled from nutrient limitation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, N. G.; Keenan, T. F.; Prentice, I. C.; Wang, H.

2017-12-01

Ecosystem and Earth system models need information on leaf-level photosynthetic capacity, but to date typically rely on empirical estimates and an assumed dependence on nitrogen supply. Recent evidence suggests that leaf nitrogen is actively controlled though plant responses to photosynthetic demand. Here, we propose and test a theory of demand-driven coordination of photosynthetic processes, and use it to assess the relative roles of nutrient supply and photosynthetic demand. The theory captured 63% of observed variability in a global dataset of Rubisco carboxylation capacity (Vcmax; 3,939 values at 219 sites), suggesting that environmentally regulated biophysical costs and light availability are the first-order drivers of photosynthetic capacity. Leaf nitrogen, on the other hand, was a weak secondary driver of Vcmax, explaining less than 6% of additional observed variability. We conclude that leaf nutrient allocation is primarily driven by demand. Our theory offers a simple, robust strategy for dynamically predicting leaf-level photosynthetic capacity in global models.

Nitrogen addition increases fecundity in the desert shrub Sarcobatus vermiculatus.

PubMed

Drenovsky, R E; Richards, J H

2005-04-01

Nutrients, in addition to water, limit desert primary productivity, but nutrient limitations to fecundity and seed quality in desert ecosystems have received little attention. Reduced seed production and quality may affect recruitment, population, and community processes. At the Mono Basin, CA, USA where the alkaline, sandy soil has very low availability of N, P, and most other nutrients, seed production, recruitment, and dominance of the desert shrub Sarcobatus vermiculatus decrease over a dune successional sequence. Concurrently, Sarcobatus leaf N, P, and Ca/Mg ratio decline from early to later successional dunes. At two later successional dune sites, we fertilized adult Sarcobatus shrubs for 2 years and determined which nutrient(s) limited growth, seed production, and seed quality. We also tested whether nutrient addition at these older sites made these fitness-related variables equivalent to a younger, high-fecundity site. Nitrogen addition, alone, increased Sarcobatus leaf N, growth, and seed production per shoot module. Any treatment including P, Ca, Mg, or micronutrients but not N had an insignificant effect on growth and fecundity. Nitrogen addition also increased filled seed weight, a predictor of potential seedling survival, at one of the sites. Nitrogen-limited seed production and seed mass may reduce Sarcobatus fitness and contribute to the observed successional changes in plant community composition in this alkaline desert ecosystem.

Proteomic Analysis Reveals the Leaf Color Regulation Mechanism in Chimera Hosta “Gold Standard” Leaves

PubMed Central

Yu, Juanjuan; Zhang, Jinzheng; Zhao, Qi; Liu, Yuelu; Chen, Sixue; Guo, Hongliang; Shi, Lei; Dai, Shaojun

2016-01-01

Leaf color change of variegated leaves from chimera species is regulated by fine-tuned molecular mechanisms. Hosta “Gold Standard” is a typical chimera Hosta species with golden-green variegated leaves, which is an ideal material to investigate the molecular mechanisms of leaf variegation. In this study, the margin and center regions of young and mature leaves from Hosta “Gold Standard”, as well as the leaves from plants after excess nitrogen fertilization were studied using physiological and comparative proteomic approaches. We identified 31 differentially expressed proteins in various regions and development stages of variegated leaves. Some of them may be related to the leaf color regulation in Hosta “Gold Standard”. For example, cytosolic glutamine synthetase (GS1), heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70), and chloroplastic elongation factor G (cpEF-G) were involved in pigment-related nitrogen synthesis as well as protein synthesis and processing. By integrating the proteomics data with physiological results, we revealed the metabolic patterns of nitrogen metabolism, photosynthesis, energy supply, as well as chloroplast protein synthesis, import and processing in various leaf regions at different development stages. Additionally, chloroplast-localized proteoforms involved in nitrogen metabolism, photosynthesis and protein processing implied that post-translational modifications were crucial for leaf color regulation. These results provide new clues toward understanding the mechanisms of leaf color regulation in variegated leaves. PMID:27005614

On the Relationship Between Hyperspectral Data and Foliar Nitrogen Content in Closed Canopy Forests

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knyazikhin, Y.; Schull, M.; Lepine, L. C.; Stenberg, P.; Mõttus, M.; Rautiainen, M.; Latorre, P.; Myneni, R.; Kaufmann, R.

2011-12-01

The importance of nitrogen for terrestrial ecosystem carbon dynamics and its climate feedback has been well recognized by the ecological community. Interaction between carbon and nitrogen at leaf level is among the fundamental mechanisms that directly control the dynamics of terrestrial vegetation carbon. This process influences absorption and scattering of solar radiation by foliage, which in turn impacts radiation reflected by the vegetation and measured by satellite sensors. NASA's Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) and ground based data on canopy structure and foliage nitrogen concentration acquired over six sites in Maine, New England, Florida, North Carolina and Washington were analyzed to assess the role of canopy structure, leaf optics and its biochemical constituents in the spectral variation of radiation reflected by the forest. The study sites represent closed canopy forests (LAI~5). Our results suggest: 1. Impact of canopy structure is so strong that it can significantly suppress the sensitivity of hyperspectral data to leaf optics. 2. Forest reflectance spectra in the interval [710, 790 nm] are required to obtain the fraction of the total leaf area that a "sensor sees" in a given direction. For closed canopy forests its retrieval does not require canopy reflectance models, suggesting that canopy reflectance spectra in this interval provide a direct estimate of the leaf area fraction. 3. The leaf area fraction fully explains variation in measured reflectance spectra due to variation in canopy structure. This variable is used to estimate the mean leaf scattering over foliage that the "sensor sees." For example the nadir-viewing AVIRIS sensor accumulates foliage optical properties over 25% of the total foliage area in needle leaf forest and about 50% in broadleaf forest. 4. Leaf surface properties have an impact on forest reflectivity, lowering its sensitivity to leaf absorbing pigments. 5. Variation in foliar nitrogen concentration can explain up to 55% of variation in AVIRIS spectra in the interval between 400 and 900 nm. The remaining factors could be due to (a) impact of leaf surface properties and/or (b) under-sampling of leaf optical properties due to the single view of the AVIRIS sensor. The theory of canopy spectral invariants underlies the separation of leaf scattering from the total canopy reflectance spectrum.

The relative importance of exogenous and substrate-derived nitrogen for microbial growth during leaf decomposition

Treesearch

B.M. Cheever; J. R. Webster; E. E. Bilger; S. A. Thomas

2013-01-01

Heterotrophic microbes colonizing detritus obtain nitrogen (N) for growth by assimilating N from their substrate or immobilizing exogenous inorganic N. Microbial use of these two pools has different implications for N cycling and organic matter decomposition in the face of the global increase in biologically available N. We used sugar maple leaves labeled with

Relating Stomatal Conductance to Leaf Functional Traits.

PubMed

Kröber, Wenzel; Plath, Isa; Heklau, Heike; Bruelheide, Helge

2015-10-12

Leaf functional traits are important because they reflect physiological functions, such as transpiration and carbon assimilation. In particular, morphological leaf traits have the potential to summarize plants strategies in terms of water use efficiency, growth pattern and nutrient use. The leaf economics spectrum (LES) is a recognized framework in functional plant ecology and reflects a gradient of increasing specific leaf area (SLA), leaf nitrogen, phosphorus and cation content, and decreasing leaf dry matter content (LDMC) and carbon nitrogen ratio (CN). The LES describes different strategies ranging from that of short-lived leaves with high photosynthetic capacity per leaf mass to long-lived leaves with low mass-based carbon assimilation rates. However, traits that are not included in the LES might provide additional information on the species' physiology, such as those related to stomatal control. Protocols are presented for a wide range of leaf functional traits, including traits of the LES, but also traits that are independent of the LES. In particular, a new method is introduced that relates the plants' regulatory behavior in stomatal conductance to vapor pressure deficit. The resulting parameters of stomatal regulation can then be compared to the LES and other plant functional traits. The results show that functional leaf traits of the LES were also valid predictors for the parameters of stomatal regulation. For example, leaf carbon concentration was positively related to the vapor pressure deficit (vpd) at the point of inflection and the maximum of the conductance-vpd curve. However, traits that are not included in the LES added information in explaining parameters of stomatal control: the vpd at the point of inflection of the conductance-vpd curve was lower for species with higher stomatal density and higher stomatal index. Overall, stomata and vein traits were more powerful predictors for explaining stomatal regulation than traits used in the LES.

Exogenous sodium sulfide improves morphological and physiological responses of a hybrid Populus species to nitrogen dioxide.

PubMed

Hu, Yanbo; Bellaloui, Nacer; Sun, Guangyu; Tigabu, Mulualem; Wang, Jinghong

2014-06-15

Gaseous nitrogen dioxide (NO2) can disturb normal plant growth and trigger complex physiological responses. NO2-induced responses are influenced by biotic or abiotic factors. In this study, we investigated the effects of exogenous sodium sulfide (Na2S, 5mmolL(-1)) on epidermis and stomata related physico-chemical responses of hybrid poplar cuttings (Pouplus alba×P. berolinensis) to gaseous NO2 (4μl1(-1)) for three time periods (0, 14 and 48h). We also investigated hydrogen sulfide (H2S), nitrate-nitrogen and nitrate reductase activity (NR) in control and Na2S treated plants. Our results showed that NO2 exposure for 48h led to the decline of NR, maximal PSII quantum yield (Fv/Fm), net photosynthetic rate (Pn), and dark respiration rate (Rd). The maximum rate for the post-illumination carbon dioxide burst (PIB) occurred in 48-h exposed leaves 13-15s after darkening. Moreover, NO2 exposure resulted in a significant increase in nitrogen percentage (from 0 to 33%) and a decrease in the macro and micro-elements of leaf surface. Spraying Na2S aqueous solution on the leaf surfaces significantly increased the thicknesses of palisade/spongy tissue and H2S content. Na2S pretreatment alleviated NO2-caused toxic effects as indicated by increased NR and higher values of Pn, Fv/Fm, and actual photochemical efficiency in light (ФPSII) compared with the control. Na2S pretreatment had no significant impacts on PIB-based photorespiration or elements composition of a leaf surface. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Nitrogen Limited Red and Green Leaf Lettuce Accumulate Flavonoid Glycosides, Caffeic Acid Derivatives, and Sucrose while Losing Chlorophylls, Β-Carotene and Xanthophylls.

PubMed

Becker, Christine; Urlić, Branimir; Jukić Špika, Maja; Kläring, Hans-Peter; Krumbein, Angelika; Baldermann, Susanne; Goreta Ban, Smiljana; Perica, Slavko; Schwarz, Dietmar

2015-01-01

Reduction of nitrogen application in crop production is desirable for ecological and health-related reasons. Interestingly, nitrogen deficiency can lead to enhanced concentrations of polyphenols in plants. The reason for this is still under discussion. The plants' response to low nitrogen concentration can interact with other factors, for example radiation intensity. We cultivated red and green leaf lettuce hydroponically in a Mediterranean greenhouse, supplying three different levels of nitrogen (12 mM, 3 mM, 0.75 mM), either in full or reduced (-50%) radiation intensity. In both red and green lettuce, we found clear effects of the nitrogen treatments on growth characteristics, phenolic and photosynthetic compounds, nitrogen, nitrate and carbon concentration of the plants. Interestingly, the concentrations of all main flavonoid glycosides, caffeic acid derivatives, and sucrose increased with decreasing nitrogen concentration, whereas those of chlorophylls, β-carotene, neoxanthin, lactucaxanthin, all trans- and cis-violaxanthin decreased. The constitutive concentrations of polyphenols were lower in the green cultivar, but their relative increase was more pronounced than in the red cultivar. The constitutive concentrations of chlorophylls, β-carotene, neoxanthin, all trans- and cis-violaxanthin were similar in red and green lettuce and with decreasing nitrogen concentration they declined to a similar extent in both cultivars. We only detected little influence of the radiation treatments, e.g. on anthocyanin concentration, and hardly any interaction between radiation and nitrogen concentration. Our results imply a greater physiological plasticity of green compared to the red lettuce regarding its phenolic compounds. They support the photoprotection theory regarding anthocyanins as well as the theory that the deamination activity of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase drives phenylpropanoid synthesis.

Nitrogen Limited Red and Green Leaf Lettuce Accumulate Flavonoid Glycosides, Caffeic Acid Derivatives, and Sucrose while Losing Chlorophylls, Β-Carotene and Xanthophylls

PubMed Central

Becker, Christine; Urlić, Branimir; Jukić Špika, Maja; Kläring, Hans-Peter; Krumbein, Angelika; Baldermann, Susanne; Goreta Ban, Smiljana; Perica, Slavko; Schwarz, Dietmar

2015-01-01

Reduction of nitrogen application in crop production is desirable for ecological and health-related reasons. Interestingly, nitrogen deficiency can lead to enhanced concentrations of polyphenols in plants. The reason for this is still under discussion. The plants’ response to low nitrogen concentration can interact with other factors, for example radiation intensity. We cultivated red and green leaf lettuce hydroponically in a Mediterranean greenhouse, supplying three different levels of nitrogen (12 mM, 3 mM, 0.75 mM), either in full or reduced (-50%) radiation intensity. In both red and green lettuce, we found clear effects of the nitrogen treatments on growth characteristics, phenolic and photosynthetic compounds, nitrogen, nitrate and carbon concentration of the plants. Interestingly, the concentrations of all main flavonoid glycosides, caffeic acid derivatives, and sucrose increased with decreasing nitrogen concentration, whereas those of chlorophylls, β-carotene, neoxanthin, lactucaxanthin, all trans- and cis-violaxanthin decreased. The constitutive concentrations of polyphenols were lower in the green cultivar, but their relative increase was more pronounced than in the red cultivar. The constitutive concentrations of chlorophylls, β-carotene, neoxanthin, all trans- and cis-violaxanthin were similar in red and green lettuce and with decreasing nitrogen concentration they declined to a similar extent in both cultivars. We only detected little influence of the radiation treatments, e.g. on anthocyanin concentration, and hardly any interaction between radiation and nitrogen concentration. Our results imply a greater physiological plasticity of green compared to the red lettuce regarding its phenolic compounds. They support the photoprotection theory regarding anthocyanins as well as the theory that the deamination activity of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase drives phenylpropanoid synthesis. PMID:26569488

Physiological and Morphological Responses of Ischaemum rugosum Salisb. (Wrinkled Grass) to Different Nitrogen Rates and Rice Seeding Rates

PubMed Central

Awan, Tahir Hussain; Chauhan, Bhagirath Singh; Cruz, Pompe C. Sta.

2014-01-01

Ischaemum rugosum is a competitive weed in direct-seeded rice systems. Developing integrated weed management strategies that promote the suppression of weeds by crop density, cultivar selection, and nutrition requires better understanding of the extent to which rice interferes with the growth of this weed and how it responds to resource limitation due to rice interference. The growth of I. rugosum was studied when grown with four rice seeding rates (0, 25, 50, and 100 kg ha−1) and four nitrogen (N) rates (0, 50, 100, and 150 kg ha−1). Compared to the weed plants grown alone, weed tiller number was reduced by 63–80%, leaf number by 68–77%, leaf area by 69–77%, leaf biomass by 72–84%, and inflorescence biomass by 81–93% at the rice seeding rates of 25–100 kg ha−1. All these parameters increased with increasing rates of N from 0 to 150 kg ha−1. At weed maturity, I. rugosum plants were 100% taller than rice at 0 kg N ha−1, whereas, with added N, the weeds were only 50% taller than rice. Weed biomass increased by 82–160%, whereas rice biomass increased by 92–229%, with the application of 50–150 kg N ha−1. Added N favored rice biomass production more than it did the weed. Rice interference reduced the height and biomass of I. rugosum, but did not suppress its growth completely. I. rugosum showed the ability to reduce the effects of rice interference by increasing leaf area, leaf weight ratio, and specific leaf area, and by decreasing the root-shoot weight ratio in comparison to the weed plants grown alone. The results suggest that rice crop interference alone may reduce I. rugosum growth but may not provide complete control of this weed. The need for integrated weed management practices to effectively control this weed species is highlighted. PMID:24910995

Physiological and morphological responses of Ischaemum rugosum Salisb. (wrinkled grass) to different nitrogen rates and rice seeding rates.

PubMed

Awan, Tahir Hussain; Chauhan, Bhagirath Singh; Cruz, Pompe C Sta

2014-01-01

Ischaemum rugosum is a competitive weed in direct-seeded rice systems. Developing integrated weed management strategies that promote the suppression of weeds by crop density, cultivar selection, and nutrition requires better understanding of the extent to which rice interferes with the growth of this weed and how it responds to resource limitation due to rice interference. The growth of I. rugosum was studied when grown with four rice seeding rates (0, 25, 50, and 100 kg ha(-1)) and four nitrogen (N) rates (0, 50, 100, and 150 kg ha(-1)). Compared to the weed plants grown alone, weed tiller number was reduced by 63-80%, leaf number by 68-77%, leaf area by 69-77%, leaf biomass by 72-84%, and inflorescence biomass by 81-93% at the rice seeding rates of 25-100 kg ha(-1). All these parameters increased with increasing rates of N from 0 to 150 kg ha(-1). At weed maturity, I. rugosum plants were 100% taller than rice at 0 kg N ha(-1), whereas, with added N, the weeds were only 50% taller than rice. Weed biomass increased by 82-160%, whereas rice biomass increased by 92-229%, with the application of 50-150 kg N ha(-1). Added N favored rice biomass production more than it did the weed. Rice interference reduced the height and biomass of I. rugosum, but did not suppress its growth completely. I. rugosum showed the ability to reduce the effects of rice interference by increasing leaf area, leaf weight ratio, and specific leaf area, and by decreasing the root-shoot weight ratio in comparison to the weed plants grown alone. The results suggest that rice crop interference alone may reduce I. rugosum growth but may not provide complete control of this weed. The need for integrated weed management practices to effectively control this weed species is highlighted.

Response of nitrogen metabolism to boron toxicity in tomato plants.

PubMed

Cervilla, L M; Blasco, B; Ríos, J J; Rosales, M A; Rubio-Wilhelmi, M M; Sánchez-Rodríguez, E; Romero, L; Ruiz, J M

2009-09-01

Boron (B) toxicity has become important in areas close to the Mediterranean Sea where intensive agriculture has been developed. The objective of this research was to study the effects of B toxicity (0.5 mM and 2.0 mM B) on nitrogen (N) assimilation of two tomato cultivars that are often used in these areas. Leaf biomass, relative leaf growth rate (RGR(L)), concentration of B, nitrate (NO(3) (-)), ammonium (NH(4) (+)), organic N, amino acids and soluble proteins, as well as nitrate reductase (NR), nitrite reductase (NiR), glutamine synthase (GS), glutamate synthetase (GOGAT) and glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) activities were analysed in leaves. Boron toxicity significantly decreased leaf biomass, RGR(L), organic N, soluble proteins, and NR and NiR activities. The lowest NO(3) (-) and NH(4) (+) concentration in leaves was recorded when plants were supplied with 2.0 mM B in the root medium. Total B, amino acids, activities of GS, GOGAT and GDH increased under B toxicity. Data from the present study prove that B toxicity causes inhibition of NO(3) (-) reduction and increases NH(4) (+) assimilation in tomato plants.

Nitrogen availability alters the expression of carnivory in the northern pitcher plant, Sarracenia purpurea.

PubMed

Ellison, Aaron M; Gotelli, Nicholas J

2002-04-02

Atmospheric transport and deposition of nutrients, especially nitrogen, is a global environmental problem with well-documented consequences for ecosystem dynamics. However, monitoring nitrogen deposition is relatively expensive, monitoring stations are widely spaced, and estimates and predicted impacts of nitrogen deposition are currently derived from spatial modeling and interpolation of limited data. Ombrotrophic ("rain-fed") bogs are nutrient-poor ecosystems that are especially sensitive to increasing nutrient input, and carnivorous plants, which are characteristic of these widespread ecosystem types, may be especially sensitive indicators of N deposition. Botanical carnivory is thought to have evolved in nutrient-poor and well-lit habitats such as bogs because the marginal benefits accruing from carnivory exceed the marginal photosynthetic costs associated with the maintenance of carnivorous organs. However, the production of carnivorous organs can be a phenotypically plastic trait. The northern pitcher plant, Sarracenia purpurea, produces leaves specialized for prey capture and nutrient uptake (pitchers) and leaves that are more efficient at photosynthesis (phyllodia). We hypothesized that relative allocation to these two types of leaves reflects ambient nitrogen availability. We manipulated nutrient availability to plants with leaf enrichment and whole-plot fertilization experiments. Increased nitrogen, but not phosphorus, reduced production of pitchers relative to phyllodia; this result provided empirical support for the cost-benefit model of the evolution of botanical carnivory. Because this phenotypic shift in leaf production occurs in ecological time, our results suggest that S. purpurea could be a reliable and inexpensive biological indicator of nitrogen deposition rates. This suggestion is supported by field observations across a geographic gradient of nitrogen deposition.

Nitrogen availability alters the expression of carnivory in the northern pitcher plant, Sarracenia purpurea

PubMed Central

Ellison, Aaron M.; Gotelli, Nicholas J.

2002-01-01

Atmospheric transport and deposition of nutrients, especially nitrogen, is a global environmental problem with well-documented consequences for ecosystem dynamics. However, monitoring nitrogen deposition is relatively expensive, monitoring stations are widely spaced, and estimates and predicted impacts of nitrogen deposition are currently derived from spatial modeling and interpolation of limited data. Ombrotrophic (“rain-fed”) bogs are nutrient-poor ecosystems that are especially sensitive to increasing nutrient input, and carnivorous plants, which are characteristic of these widespread ecosystem types, may be especially sensitive indicators of N deposition. Botanical carnivory is thought to have evolved in nutrient-poor and well-lit habitats such as bogs because the marginal benefits accruing from carnivory exceed the marginal photosynthetic costs associated with the maintenance of carnivorous organs. However, the production of carnivorous organs can be a phenotypically plastic trait. The northern pitcher plant, Sarracenia purpurea, produces leaves specialized for prey capture and nutrient uptake (pitchers) and leaves that are more efficient at photosynthesis (phyllodia). We hypothesized that relative allocation to these two types of leaves reflects ambient nitrogen availability. We manipulated nutrient availability to plants with leaf enrichment and whole-plot fertilization experiments. Increased nitrogen, but not phosphorus, reduced production of pitchers relative to phyllodia; this result provided empirical support for the cost–benefit model of the evolution of botanical carnivory. Because this phenotypic shift in leaf production occurs in ecological time, our results suggest that S. purpurea could be a reliable and inexpensive biological indicator of nitrogen deposition rates. This suggestion is supported by field observations across a geographic gradient of nitrogen deposition. PMID:11904363

A better way of representing stem area index in two-big-leaf models: the application and impact on canopy integration of leaf nitrogen content

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, M.; Butler, E. E.; Wythers, K. R.; Kattge, J.; Ricciuto, D. M.; Thornton, P. E.; Atkin, O. K.; Flores-Moreno, H.; Reich, P. B.

2017-12-01

In order to better estimate the carbon budget of the globe, accurately simulating gross primary productivity (GPP) in earth system models is critical. When upscaling leaf level photosynthesis to the canopy, climate models uses different big-leaf schemes. About half of the state-of-the-art earth system models use a "two-big-leaf" scheme that partitions canopies into direct and diffusively illuminated fractions to reduce high bias of GPP simulated by one-big-leaf models. Some two-big-leaf models, such as ACME (identical in this respect to CLM 4.5) add leaf area index (LAI) and stem area index (SAI) together when calculating canopy radiation transfer. This treatment, however, will result in higher fraction of sunlit leaves. It will also lead to an artificial overestimation of canopy nitrogen content. Here we introduce a new algorithm of simulating SAI in a two-big-leaf model. The new algorithm reduced the sunlit leave fraction of the canopy and conserved the nitrogen content from leaf to canopy level. The lower fraction of sunlit leaves reduced global GPP especially in tropical area. Compared to the default model, for the past 100 years (1909-2009), the averaged global annual GPP is lowered by 4.11 PgC year-1 using this new algorithm.

Leaf litter dynamics and nitrous oxide emission in a Mediterranean riparian forest: implications for soil nitrogen dynamics.

PubMed

Bernal, S; Butturini, A; Nin, E; Sabater, F; Sabater, S

2003-01-01

Mediterranean riparian zones can experience severe drought periods that lead to low soil moisture content, which dramatically affects their performance as nitrate removal systems. In the Mediterranean riparian zone of this study, we determined that N2O emission was practically nil. To understand the role of forest floor processes in nitrogen retention of a Mediterranean riparian area, we studied leaf litter dynamics of two tree species, London planetree [Platanus x acerifolia (Aiton) Willd.] and alder [Alnus glutinosa (L.) Gaertn.], for two years, along with soil nitrogen mineralization rates. Annual leaf litter fall equaled 562.6 +/- 10.1 (standard error) g dry wt. m(-2), 68% of which was planetree and 32% of which was alder. The temporal distribution of litterfall showed a two-peak annual cycle, one occurring in midsummer, the other in autumn. Planetree provided the major input of organic nitrogen to the forest floor, and the amount of planetree leaves remaining on the forest floor was equivalent to approximately four years of stock. Leaf litter decomposition was three times higher for alder (decay coefficient [k] = 1.13 yr(-1)) than for planetree (k = 0.365 yr(-1)). Mineralization rates showed a seasonal pattern, with the maximum rate in summer (1.92 mg N kg(-1) d(-1)). Although the forest floor was an important sink for nitrogen due to planetree leaf accumulation, 7.5% of this leaf litter was scoured to the streambed by wind. This loss was irrelevant for alder leaves. Due to the litter quality, the forest floor of this Mediterranean riparian forest acts as a nitrogen sink.

Utilization of ammonium as a nitrogen source: effects of ambient acidity on growth and nitrogen accumulation by soybean

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tolley-Henry, L.; Raper, C. D. Jr; Raper CD, J. r. (Principal Investigator)

1986-01-01

Dry matter accumulation of plants utilizing NH4+ as the sole nitrogen source generally is less than that of plants receiving NO3- unless acidity of the root-zone is controlled at a pH of about 6.0. To test the hypothesis that the reduction in growth is a consequence of nitrogen stress within the plant in response to effects of increased acidity during uptake of NH4+ by roots, nonnodulated soybean plants (Glycine max [L.] Merr. cv Ransom) were grown for 24 days in flowing nutrient culture containing 1.0 millimolar NH4+ as the nitrogen source. Acidities of the culture solutions were controlled at pH 6.1, 5.1, and 4.1 +/- 0.1 by automatic additions of 0.01 N H2SO4 or Ca(OH)2. Plants were sampled at intervals of 3 to 4 days for determination of dry matter and nitrogen accumulation. Rates of NH4+ uptake per gram root dry weight were calculated from these data. Net CO2 exchange rates per unit leaf area were measured on attached leaves by infrared gas analysis. When acidity of the culture solution was increased from pH 6.1 to 5.1, dry matter and nitrogen accumulation were reduced by about 40% within 14 days. Net CO2 exchange rates per unit leaf area, however, were not affected, and the decreased growth was associated with a reduction in rates of appearance and expansion of new leaves. The uptake rates of NH4+ per gram root were about 25% lower throughout the 24 days at pH 5.1 than at 6.1. A further increase in solution acidity from pH 5.1 to 4.1 resulted in cessation of net dry matter production and appearance of new leaves within 10 days. Net CO2 exchange rates per unit leaf area declined rapidly until all viable leaves had abscised by 18 days. Uptake rates of NH4+, which were initially about 50% lower at pH 4.1 than at 6.1 continued to decline with time of exposure until net uptake ceased at 10 days. Since these responses also are characteristic of the sequence of responses that occur during onset and progression of a nitrogen stress, they corroborate our hypothesis.

Effects of increasing temperature and, CO2 on quality of litter, shredders, and microorganisms in Amazonian aquatic systems

PubMed Central

Rezende, Renan de Souza; Gonçalves Júnior, José Francisco; Lopes, Aline; Piedade, Maria Teresa Fernandez; Cavalcante, Heloide de Lima; Hamada, Neusa

2017-01-01

Climate change may affect the chemical composition of riparian leaf litter and, aquatic organisms and, consequently, leaf breakdown. We evaluated the effects of different scenarios combining increased temperature and carbon dioxide (CO2) on leaf detritus of Hevea spruceana (Benth) Müll. and decomposers (insect shredders and microorganisms). We hypothesized that simulated climate change (warming and elevated CO2) would: i) decrease leaf-litter quality, ii) decrease survival and leaf breakdown by shredders, and iii) increase microbial leaf breakdown and fungal biomass. We performed the experiment in four microcosm chambers that simulated air temperature and CO2 changes in relation to a real-time control tracking current conditions in Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil. The experiment lasted seven days. During the experiment mean air temperature and CO2 concentration ranged from 26.96 ± 0.98ºC and 537.86 ± 18.36 ppmv in the control to 31.75 ± 0.50ºC and 1636.96 ± 17.99 ppmv in the extreme chamber, respectively. However, phosphorus concentration in the leaf litter decreased with warming and elevated CO2. Leaf quality (percentage of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, cellulose and lignin) was not influenced by soil flooding. Fungal biomass and microbial leaf breakdown were positively influenced by temperature and CO2 increase and reached their highest values in the intermediate condition. Both total and shredder leaf breakdown, and shredder survival rate were similar among all climatic conditions. Thus, low leaf-litter quality due to climate change and higher leaf breakdown under intermediate conditions may indicate an increase of riparian metabolism due to temperature and CO2 increase, highlighting the risk (e.g., decreased productivity) of global warming for tropical streams. PMID:29190723

Inhibition of tomato shoot growth by over-irrigation is linked to nitrogen deficiency and ethylene.

PubMed

Fiebig, Antje; Dodd, Ian C

2016-01-01

Although physiological effects of acute flooding have been well studied, chronic effects of suboptimal soil aeration caused by over-irrigation of containerized plants have not, despite its likely commercial significance. By automatically scheduling irrigation according to soil moisture thresholds, effects of over-irrigation on soil properties (oxygen concentration, temperature and moisture), leaf growth, gas exchange, phytohormone [abscisic acid (ABA) and ethylene] relations and nutrient status of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum Mill. cv. Ailsa Craig) were studied. Over-irrigation slowly increased soil moisture and decreased soil oxygen concentration by 4%. Soil temperature was approximately 1°C lower in the over-irrigated substrate. Over-irrigating tomato plants for 2 weeks significantly reduced shoot height (by 25%) and fresh weight and total leaf area (by 60-70%) compared with well-drained plants. Over-irrigation did not alter stomatal conductance, leaf water potential or foliar ABA concentrations, suggesting that growth inhibition was not hydraulically regulated or dependent on stomatal closure or changes in ABA. However, over-irrigation significantly increased foliar ethylene emission. Ethylene seemed to inhibit growth, as the partially ethylene-insensitive genotype Never ripe (Nr) was much less sensitive to over-irrigation than the wild type. Over-irrigation induced significant foliar nitrogen deficiency and daily supplementation of small volumes of 10 mM Ca(NO3 )2 to over-irrigated soil restored foliar nitrogen concentrations, ethylene emission and shoot fresh weight of over-irrigated plants to control levels. Thus reduced nitrogen uptake plays an important role in inhibiting growth of over-irrigated plants, in part by stimulating foliar ethylene emission. © 2015 Scandinavian Plant Physiology Society.

Partial shading of lateral branches affects growth, and foliage nitrogen- and water-use efficiencies in the conifer Cunninghamia lanceolata growing in a warm monsoon climate.

PubMed

Dong, Tingfa; Li, Junyu; Zhang, Yuanbin; Korpelainen, Helena; Niinemets, Ülo; Li, Chunyang

2015-06-01

The degree to which branches are autonomous in their acclimation responses to alteration in light environment is still poorly understood. We investigated the effects of shading of the sapling crown of Cunninghamia lanceolata (Lamb.) Hook on the whole-tree and mid-crown branch growth and current-year foliage structure and physiology. Four treatments providing 0, 50, 75 and 90% shading compared with full daylight (denoted as Treatment(0), Treatment(50%), Treatment(75%) and Treatment(90%), and Shaded(0), Shaded(50%), Shaded(75%) and Shaded(90%) for the shaded branches and Sunlit(0), Sunlit(50%), Sunlit(75%) and Sunlit(90%) for the opposite sunlit branches under natural light conditions, respectively), were applied over two consecutive growing seasons. Shading treatments decreased the growth of basal stem diameter, leaf dry mass per unit leaf area, stomatal conductance, transpiration rate, the ratio of water-soluble to structural leaf nitrogen content, photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency and instantaneous and long-term (estimated from carbon isotope composition) water-use efficiency in shaded branches. Differences between shaded and sunlit branches increased with increasing severity and duration of shading. A non-autonomous, partly compensatory behavior of non-shaded branches was observed for most traits, thus reflecting the dependence between the traits of sunlit branches and the severity of shading of the opposite crown half. The results collectively indicated that tree growth and branch and leaf acclimation responses of C. lanceolata are not only affected by the local light environment, but also by relative within-crown light conditions. We argue that such a non-autonomous branch response to changes in light conditions can improve whole-tree resource optimization. These results contribute to better understanding of tree growth and utilization of water and nitrogen under heterogeneous light conditions within tree canopies. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Effects of Applied Nitrogen Amounts on the Functional Components of Mulberry (Morus alba L.) Leaves.

PubMed

Sugiyama, Mari; Takahashi, Makoto; Katsube, Takuya; Koyama, Akio; Itamura, Hiroyuki

2016-09-21

This study investigated the effects of applied nitrogen amounts on specific functional components in mulberry (Morus alba L.) leaves. The relationships between mineral elements and the functional components in mulberry leaves were examined using mulberry trees cultivated in different soil conditions in four cultured fields. Then, the relationships between the nitrogen levels and the leaf functional components were studied by culturing mulberry in plastic pots and experimental fields. In the common cultured fields, total nitrogen was negatively correlated with the chlorogenic acid content (R(2) = -0.48) and positively correlated with the 1-deoxynojirimycin content (R(2) = 0.60). Additionally, differences in nitrogen fertilizer application levels affected each functional component in mulberry leaves. For instance, with increased nitrogen levels, the chlorogenic acid and flavonol contents significantly decreased, but the 1-deoxynojirimycin content significantly increased. Selection of the optimal nitrogen application level is necessary to obtain the desired functional components from mulberry leaves.

The photosynthesis - leaf nitrogen relationship at ambient and elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide: a meta-analysis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Andrew G. Peterson; J. Timothy Ball; Yiqi Luo

1998-09-25

Estimation of leaf photosynthetic rate (A) from leaf nitrogen content (N) is both conceptually and numerically important in models of plant, ecosystem and biosphere responses to global change. The relationship between A and N has been studied extensively at ambient CO{sub 2} but much less at elevated CO{sub 2}. This study was designed to (1) assess whether the A-N relationship was more similar for species within than between community and vegetation types, and (2) examine how growth at elevated CO{sub 2} affects the A-N relationship. Data were obtained for 39 C{sub 3} species grown at ambient CO{sub 2} and 10more » C{sub 3} species grown at ambient and elevated CO{sub 2}. A regression model was applied to each species as well as to species pooled within different community and vegetation types. Cluster analysis of the regression coefficients indicated that species measured at ambient CO{sub 2} did not separate into distinct groups matching community or vegetation type. Instead, most community and vegetation types shared the same general parameter space for regression coefficients. Growth at elevated CO{sub 2} increased photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency for pines and deciduous trees. When species were pooled by vegetation type, the A-N relationship for deciduous trees expressed on a leaf-mass bask was not altered by elevated CO{sub 2}, while the intercept increased for pines. When regression coefficients were averaged to give mean responses for different vegetation types, elevated CO{sub 2} increased the intercept and the slope for deciduous trees but increased only the intercept for pines. There were no statistical differences between the pines and deciduous trees for the effect of CO{sub 2}. Generalizations about the effect of elevated CO{sub 2} on the A-N relationship, and differences between pines and deciduous trees will be enhanced as more data become available.« less

Photosynthesis and aboveground carbon allocation of two co-occurring poplar species in an urban brownfield.

PubMed

Radwanski, Diane; Gallagher, Frank; Vanderklein, Dirk W; Schäfer, Karina V R

2017-04-01

Phytoremediation, a technique used to reclaim heavy metal-contaminated soils, requires an understanding of plant physiological responses to heavy metals. However, the majority of studies documenting heavy metal impact on plant functioning have been performed in laboratory or greenhouse settings. We predicted that increased soil heavy metal concentrations reduce photosynthesis and biomass production in trees growing in metal contaminated soil in a naturally re-vegetated urban brownfield. Leaf gas exchange, leaf carbon and nitrogen concentration, and tree biomass were recorded and compared for Populus deltoides and Populus tremuloides growing in an urban brownfield. The CO 2 compensation point (CCP) differed significantly between soil metal concentrations and species, with P. deltoides displaying a greater CCP and P. tremuloides displaying a lower CCP as soil metal concentration increased, despite no changes in dark respiration for either species. In terms of biomass, only total branch weight (TBW) and leaf area (LA) differed significantly between soil metal concentrations, though the difference was largely attributable to variation in diameter at breast height (DBH). Furthermore, TBW and LA values for P. deltoides did not decrease with increasing soil metal concentration. Soil metal concentration, thus, had minimal effect on the relationship between tree age and DBH, and no effect on relationships of tree age and height or LA, respectively. Significant differences between soil metal concentrations and species were found for δ 15 N (isotopic nitrogen ratio) while leaf nitrogen content (% N) also differed significantly between species. Long-term water use efficiency derived from carbon isotope analysis (iWUE isotope ) differed significantly between trees grown on different soil metal concentrations and a significant species-metal concentration interaction was detected indicating that the two study species responded differentially to the soil metal concentrations. Specifically, P. tremuloides enhanced while P. deltoides reduced long-term iWUE isotope as soil metal concentration increased, further emphasizing the importance of species and possible genotype selection for phytoremediation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Investigating a physical basis for spectroscopic estimates of leaf nitrogen concentration

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kokaly, R.F.

2001-01-01

The reflectance spectra of dried and ground plant foliage are examined for changes directly due to increasing nitrogen concentration. A broadening of the 2.1-??m absorption feature is observed as nitrogen concentration increases. The broadening is shown to arise from two absorptions at 2.054 ??m and 2.172 ??m. The wavelength positions of these absorptions coincide with the absorption characteristics of the nitrogen-containing amide bonds in proteins. The observed presence of these absorption features in the reflectance spectra of dried foliage is suggested to form a physical basis for high correlations established by stepwise multiple linear regression techniques between the reflectance of dry plant samples and their nitrogen concentration. The consistent change in the 2.1-??m absorption feature as nitrogen increases and the offset position of protein absorptions compared to those of other plant components together indicate that a generally applicable algorithm may be developed for spectroscopic estimates of nitrogen concentration from the reflectance spectra of dried plant foliage samples. ?? 2001 Published by Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd.

A Simulation of the Importance of Length of Growing Season and Canopy Functional Properties on the Seasonal Gross Primary Production of Temperate Alpine Meadows

PubMed Central

Baptist, Florence; Choler, Philippe

2008-01-01

Background and Aims Along snowmelt gradients, the canopies of temperate alpine meadows differ strongly in their structural and biochemical properties. Here, a study is made of the effects of these canopy dissimilarities combined with the snow-induced changes in length of growing season on seasonal gross primary production (GPP). Methods Leaf area index (LAI) and community-aggregated values of leaf angle and leaf nitrogen content were estimated for seven alpine plant canopies distributed along a marked snowmelt gradient, and these were used as input variables in a sun–shade canopy bulk-photosynthesis model. The model was validated for plant communities of early and late snowmelt sites by measuring the instantaneous CO2 fluxes with a canopy closed-chamber technique. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to estimate the relative impact of canopy properties and environmental factors on the daily and seasonal GPP. Key Results Carbon uptake was primarily related to the LAI and total canopy nitrogen content, but not to the leaf angle. For a given level of photosynthetically active radiation, CO2 assimilation was higher under overcast conditions. Sensitivity analysis revealed that increase of the length of the growing season had a higher effect on the seasonal GPP than a similar increase of any other factor. It was also found that the observed greater nitrogen content and larger LAI of canopies in late-snowmelt sites largely compensated for the negative impact of the reduced growing season. Conclusions The results emphasize the primary importance of snow-induced changes in length of growing season on carbon uptake in alpine temperate meadows. It was also demonstrated how using leaf-trait values of the dominants is a useful approach for modelling ecosystem carbon-cycle-related processes, particularly when continuous measurements of CO2 fluxes are technically difficult. The study thus represents an important step in addressing the challenge of using a plant functional-trait approach for biogeochemical modelling. PMID:18182383

Responses of Woody Plant Functional Traits to Nitrogen Addition: A Meta-Analysis of Leaf Economics, Gas Exchange, and Hydraulic Traits.

PubMed

Zhang, Hongxia; Li, Weibin; Adams, Henry D; Wang, Anzhi; Wu, Jiabing; Jin, Changjie; Guan, Dexin; Yuan, Fenghui

2018-01-01

Atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition has been found to significantly affect plant growth and physiological performance in terrestrial ecosystems. Many individual studies have investigated how N addition influences plant functional traits, however these investigations have usually been limited to a single species, and thereby do not allow derivation of general patterns or underlying mechanisms. We synthesized data from 56 papers and conducted a meta-analysis to assess the general responses of 15 variables related to leaf economics, gas exchange, and hydraulic traits to N addition among 61 woody plant species, primarily from temperate and subtropical regions. Results showed that under N addition, leaf area index (+10.3%), foliar N content (+7.3%), intrinsic water-use efficiency (+3.1%) and net photosynthetic rate (+16.1%) significantly increased, while specific leaf area, stomatal conductance, and transpiration rate did not change. For plant hydraulics, N addition significantly increased vessel diameter (+7.0%), hydraulic conductance in stems/shoots (+6.7%), and water potential corresponding to 50% loss of hydraulic conductivity ( P 50 , +21.5%; i.e., P 50 became less negative), while water potential in leaves (-6.7%) decreased (became more negative). N addition had little effect on vessel density, hydraulic conductance in leaves and roots, or water potential in stems/shoots. N addition had greater effects on gymnosperms than angiosperms and ammonium nitrate fertilization had larger effects than fertilization with urea, and high levels of N addition affected more traits than low levels. Our results demonstrate that N addition has coupled effects on both carbon and water dynamics of woody plants. Increased leaf N, likely fixed in photosynthetic enzymes and pigments leads to higher photosynthesis and water use efficiency, which may increase leaf growth, as reflected in LAI results. These changes appear to have downstream effects on hydraulic function through increases in vessel diameter, which leads to higher hydraulic conductance, but lower water potential and increased vulnerability to embolism. Overall, our results suggest that N addition will shift plant function along a tradeoff between C and hydraulic economies by enhancing C uptake while simultaneously increasing the risk of hydraulic dysfunction.

Chemical and mechanical changes during leaf expansion of four woody species of dry Restinga woodland.

PubMed

Schlindwein, C C D; Fett-Neto, A G; Dillenburg, L R

2006-07-01

Young leaves are preferential targets for herbivores, and plants have developed different strategies to protect them. This study aimed to evaluate different leaf attributes of presumed relevance in protection against herbivory in four woody species (Erythroxylum argentinum, Lithrea brasiliensis, Myrciaria cuspidata, and Myrsine umbellata), growing in a dry restinga woodland in southern Brazil. Evaluation of leaf parameters was made through single-point sampling of leaves (leaf mass per area and leaf contents of nitrogen, carbon, and pigments) at three developmental stages and through time-course sampling of expanding leaves (area and strength). Leaves of M. umbellata showed the highest leaf mass per area (LMA), the largest area, and the longest expansion period. On the other extreme, Myrc. cuspidata had the smallest LMA and leaf size, and the shortest expansion period. Similarly to L. brasiliensis, it displayed red young leaves. None of the species showed delayed-greening, which might be related to the high-irradiance growth conditions. Nitrogen contents reduced with leaf maturity and reached the highest values in the young leaves of E. argentinum and Myrc. cuspidata and the lowest in M. umbellata. Each species seems to present a different set of protective attributes during leaf expansion. Myrciaria cuspidata appears to rely mostly on chemical defences to protect its soft leaves, and anthocyanins might play this role at leaf youth, while M. umbellata seems to invest more on mechanical defences, even at early stages of leaf growth, as well as on a low allocation of nitrogen to the leaves. The other species display intermediate characteristics.

Optimal balance of water use efficiency and leaf construction cost with a link to the drought threshold of the desert steppe ecotone in northern China.

PubMed

Wei, Haixia; Luo, Tianxiang; Wu, Bo

2016-09-01

In arid environments, a high nitrogen content per leaf area (Narea) induced by drought can enhance water use efficiency (WUE) of photosynthesis, but may also lead to high leaf construction cost (CC). Our aim was to investigate how maximizing Narea could balance WUE and CC in an arid-adapted, widespread species along a rainfall gradient, and how such a process may be related to the drought threshold of the desert-steppe ecotone in northern China. Along rainfall gradients with a moisture index (MI) of 0·17-0·41 in northern China and the northern Tibetan Plateau, we measured leaf traits and stand variables including specific leaf area (SLA), nitrogen content relative to leaf mass and area (Nmass, Narea) and construction cost (CCmass, CCarea), δ(13)C (indicator of WUE), leaf area index (LAI) and foliage N-pool across populations of Artemisia ordosica In samples from northern China, a continuous increase of Narea with decreasing MI was achieved by a higher Nmass and constant SLA (reduced LAI and constant N-pool) in high-rainfall areas (MI > 0·29), but by a lower SLA and Nmass (reduced LAI and N-pool) in low-rainfall areas (MI ≤ 0·29). While δ(13)C, CCmass and CCarea continuously increased with decreasing MI, the low-rainfall group had higher Narea and δ(13)C at a given CCarea, compared with the high-rainfall group. Similar patterns were also found in additional data for the same species in the northern Tibetan Plateau. The observed drought threshold where MI = 0·29 corresponded well to the zonal boundary between typical and desert steppes in northern China. Our data indicated that below a climatic drought threshold, drought-resistant plants tend to maximize their intrinsic WUE through increased Narea at a given CCarea, which suggests a linkage between leaf functional traits and arid vegetation zonation. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Annals of Botany Company. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Optimal balance of water use efficiency and leaf construction cost with a link to the drought threshold of the desert steppe ecotone in northern China

PubMed Central

Wei, Haixia; Luo, Tianxiang; Wu, Bo

2016-01-01

Background and Aims In arid environments, a high nitrogen content per leaf area (Narea) induced by drought can enhance water use efficiency (WUE) of photosynthesis, but may also lead to high leaf construction cost (CC). Our aim was to investigate how maximizing Narea could balance WUE and CC in an arid-adapted, widespread species along a rainfall gradient, and how such a process may be related to the drought threshold of the desert–steppe ecotone in northern China. Methods Along rainfall gradients with a moisture index (MI) of 0·17–0·41 in northern China and the northern Tibetan Plateau, we measured leaf traits and stand variables including specific leaf area (SLA), nitrogen content relative to leaf mass and area (Nmass, Narea) and construction cost (CCmass, CCarea), δ13C (indicator of WUE), leaf area index (LAI) and foliage N-pool across populations of Artemisia ordosica. Key Results In samples from northern China, a continuous increase of Narea with decreasing MI was achieved by a higher Nmass and constant SLA (reduced LAI and constant N-pool) in high-rainfall areas (MI > 0·29), but by a lower SLA and Nmass (reduced LAI and N-pool) in low-rainfall areas (MI ≤ 0·29). While δ13C, CCmass and CCarea continuously increased with decreasing MI, the low-rainfall group had higher Narea and δ13C at a given CCarea, compared with the high-rainfall group. Similar patterns were also found in additional data for the same species in the northern Tibetan Plateau. The observed drought threshold where MI = 0·29 corresponded well to the zonal boundary between typical and desert steppes in northern China. Conclusions Our data indicated that below a climatic drought threshold, drought-resistant plants tend to maximize their intrinsic WUE through increased Narea at a given CCarea, which suggests a linkage between leaf functional traits and arid vegetation zonation. PMID:27443298

Impacts of water and nitrogen supplies on the physiology, leaf demography and nitrogen dynamics of Betula pendula.

PubMed

Wendler, Renate; Millard, Peter

1996-01-01

We determined the response of Betula pendula Roth. trees to a restricted water supply, and quantified the interactions between tree N and water status on leaf demography and internal N cycling. In April 1993, 3-year-old trees were planted in sand culture and four treatments applied: high-N supply (56 mg tree(-1) week(-1)) with either 2 dm(3) water week(-1) (HN+) or 0.9 dm(3) water week(-1) (HN-), or low-N supply (14 mg tree(-1) week(-1)) with 2 dm(3) (LN+) or 0.9 dm(3) (LN-) water week(-1). Until 1994, the N supplied to trees was enriched with (15)N to 5.4 atom %. During 1993, there were few differences in the growth or leaf demography of trees in the LN+ and LN- treatments, but the high-N treatment increased tree growth. Leaf mass and area were initially similar in trees in the HN+ and HN- treatments, but the trees in the HN- treatment had a smaller root system. Net assimilation rate under saturating light was higher in trees in the HN+ treatment than in trees in the LN+ treatment. There was an N x water supply interaction as a result of trees in the HN- treatment closing their stomata by the beginning of August. However, there was no difference in gas exchange characteristics of leaves in the LN+ and LN- treatments. Although leaf senescence and abscission started in the HN- treatment by mid-August and continued for about 90 days, whereas leaf abscission in the other treatments did not start until the beginning of October and only lasted 25-30 days, the trees in the HN+ and HN- treatments remobilized similar amounts of (15)N for leaf growth in the spring of 1994. There were no differences in predawn water potential among treatments and no evidence of osmotic adjustment. We conclude that B. pendula trees avoid rather than tolerate drought. The interaction between the effects of nitrogen and water supplies on leaf demography and internal cycling of N are discussed.

Construction and Maintenance of the Optimal Photosynthetic Systems of the Leaf, Herbaceous Plant and Tree: an Eco-developmental Treatise

PubMed Central

TERASHIMA, ICHIRO; ARAYA, TAKAO; MIYAZAWA, SHIN-ICHI; SONE, KOSEI; YANO, SATOSHI

2004-01-01

• Background and Aims The paper by Monsi and Saeki in 1953 (Japanese Journal of Botany 14: 22–52) was pioneering not only in mathematical modelling of canopy photosynthesis but also in eco-developmental studies of seasonal changes in leaf canopies. • Scope Construction and maintenance mechanisms of efficient photosynthetic systems at three different scaling levels—single leaves, herbaceous plants and trees—are reviewed mainly based on the nitrogen optimization theory. First, the nitrogen optimization theory with respect to the canopy and the single leaf is briefly introduced. Secondly, significance of leaf thickness in CO2 diffusion in the leaf and in leaf photosynthesis is discussed. Thirdly, mechanisms of adjustment of photosynthetic properties of the leaf within the herbaceous plant individual throughout its life are discussed. In particular, roles of sugar sensing, redox control and of cytokinin are highlighted. Finally, the development of a tree is considered. • Conclusions Various mechanisms contribute to construction and maintenance of efficient photosynthetic systems. Molecular backgrounds of these ecologically important mechanisms should be clarified. The construction mechanisms of the tree cannot be explained solely by the nitrogen optimization theory. It is proposed that the pipe model theory in its differential form could be a potential tool in future studies in this research area. PMID:15598701

Seasonal variations of leaf and canopy properties tracked by ground-based NDVI imagery in a temperate forest.

PubMed

Yang, Hualei; Yang, Xi; Heskel, Mary; Sun, Shucun; Tang, Jianwu

2017-04-28

Changes in plant phenology affect the carbon flux of terrestrial forest ecosystems due to the link between the growing season length and vegetation productivity. Digital camera imagery, which can be acquired frequently, has been used to monitor seasonal and annual changes in forest canopy phenology and track critical phenological events. However, quantitative assessment of the structural and biochemical controls of the phenological patterns in camera images has rarely been done. In this study, we used an NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) camera to monitor daily variations of vegetation reflectance at visible and near-infrared (NIR) bands with high spatial and temporal resolutions, and found that the infrared camera based NDVI (camera-NDVI) agreed well with the leaf expansion process that was measured by independent manual observations at Harvard Forest, Massachusetts, USA. We also measured the seasonality of canopy structural (leaf area index, LAI) and biochemical properties (leaf chlorophyll and nitrogen content). We found significant linear relationships between camera-NDVI and leaf chlorophyll concentration, and between camera-NDVI and leaf nitrogen content, though weaker relationships between camera-NDVI and LAI. Therefore, we recommend ground-based camera-NDVI as a powerful tool for long-term, near surface observations to monitor canopy development and to estimate leaf chlorophyll, nitrogen status, and LAI.

Light drives vertical gradients of leaf morphology in a sugar maple (Acer saccharum) forest.

PubMed

Coble, Adam P; Cavaleri, Molly A

2014-02-01

Leaf mass per area (LMA, g m(-2)) is an essential trait for modeling canopy function due to its strong association with photosynthesis, respiration and leaf nitrogen. Leaf mass per area, which is influenced by both leaf thickness and density (LMA = thickness × density), generally increases from the bottom to the top of tree canopies, yet the mechanisms behind this universal pattern are not yet resolved. For decades, the light environment was assumed to be the most influential driver of within-canopy variation in LMA, yet recent evidence has shown hydrostatic gradients to be more important in upper canopy positions, especially in tall evergreen trees in temperate and tropical forests. The aim of this study was to disentangle the importance of various environmental drivers on vertical LMA gradients in a mature sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marshall) forest. We compared LMA, leaf density and leaf thickness relationships with height, light and predawn leaf water potential (ΨPre) within a closed and an exposed canopy to assess leaf morphological traits at similar heights but different light conditions. Contrary to our expectations and recent findings in the literature, we found strong evidence that light was the primary driver of vertical gradients in leaf morphology. At similar heights (13-23 m), LMA was greater within the exposed canopy than the closed canopy, and light had a stronger influence over LMA compared with ΨPre. Light also had a stronger influence over both leaf thickness and density compared with ΨPre; however, the increase in LMA within both canopy types was primarily due to increasing leaf thickness with increasing light availability. This study provides strong evidence that canopy structure and crown exposure, in addition to height, should be considered as a parameter for determining vertical patterns in LMA and modeling canopy function.

How exogenous nitric oxide regulates nitrogen assimilation in wheat seedlings under different nitrogen sources and levels

PubMed Central

Balotf, Sadegh; Islam, Shahidul; Kavoosi, Gholamreza; Kholdebarin, Bahman; Juhasz, Angela

2018-01-01

Nitrogen (N) is one of the most important nutrients for plants and nitric oxide (NO) as a signaling plant growth regulator involved in nitrogen assimilation. Understanding the influence of exogenous NO on nitrogen metabolism at the gene expression and enzyme activity levels under different sources of nitrogen is vitally important for increasing nitrogen use efficiency (NUE). This study investigated the expression of key genes and enzymes in relation to nitrogen assimilation in two Australian wheat cultivars, a popular high NUE cv. Spitfire and a normal NUE cv. Westonia, under different combinations of nitrogen and sodium nitroprusside (SNP) as the NO donor. Application of NO increased the gene expressions and activities of nitrogen assimilation pathway enzymes in both cultivars at low levels of nitrogen. At high nitrogen supplies, the expressions and activities of N assimilation genes increased in response to exogenous NO only in cv. Spitfire but not in cv. Westonia. Exogenous NO caused an increase in leaf NO content at low N supplies in both cultivars, while under high nitrogen treatments, cv. Spitfire showed an increase under ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) treatment but cv. Westonia was not affected. N assimilation gene expression and enzyme activity showed a clear relationship between exogenous NO, N concentration and N forms in primary plant nitrogen assimilation. Results reveal the possible role of NO and different nitrogen sources on nitrogen assimilation in Triticum aestivum plants. PMID:29320529

How exogenous nitric oxide regulates nitrogen assimilation in wheat seedlings under different nitrogen sources and levels.

PubMed

Balotf, Sadegh; Islam, Shahidul; Kavoosi, Gholamreza; Kholdebarin, Bahman; Juhasz, Angela; Ma, Wujun

2018-01-01

Nitrogen (N) is one of the most important nutrients for plants and nitric oxide (NO) as a signaling plant growth regulator involved in nitrogen assimilation. Understanding the influence of exogenous NO on nitrogen metabolism at the gene expression and enzyme activity levels under different sources of nitrogen is vitally important for increasing nitrogen use efficiency (NUE). This study investigated the expression of key genes and enzymes in relation to nitrogen assimilation in two Australian wheat cultivars, a popular high NUE cv. Spitfire and a normal NUE cv. Westonia, under different combinations of nitrogen and sodium nitroprusside (SNP) as the NO donor. Application of NO increased the gene expressions and activities of nitrogen assimilation pathway enzymes in both cultivars at low levels of nitrogen. At high nitrogen supplies, the expressions and activities of N assimilation genes increased in response to exogenous NO only in cv. Spitfire but not in cv. Westonia. Exogenous NO caused an increase in leaf NO content at low N supplies in both cultivars, while under high nitrogen treatments, cv. Spitfire showed an increase under ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) treatment but cv. Westonia was not affected. N assimilation gene expression and enzyme activity showed a clear relationship between exogenous NO, N concentration and N forms in primary plant nitrogen assimilation. Results reveal the possible role of NO and different nitrogen sources on nitrogen assimilation in Triticum aestivum plants.

Leaf non-structural carbohydrate allocation and C:N:P stoichiometry in response to light acclimation in seedlings of two subtropical shade-tolerant tree species.

PubMed

Xie, Hongtao; Yu, Mukui; Cheng, Xiangrong

2018-03-01

Light availability greatly affects plant growth and development. In shaded environments, plants must respond to reduced light intensity to ensure a regular rate of photosynthesis to maintain the dynamic balance of nutrients, such as leaf non-structural carbohydrates (NSCs), carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). To improve our understanding of the nutrient utilization strategies of understory shade-tolerant plants, we compared the variations in leaf NSCs, C, N and P in response to heterogeneous controlled light conditions between two subtropical evergreen broadleaf shade-tolerant species, Elaeocarpus sylvestris (E. sylvestris) and Illicium henryi (I. henryi). Light intensity treatments were applied at five levels (100%, 52%, 33%, 15% and 6% full sunlight) for 30 weeks to identify the effects of reduced light intensity on leaf NSC allocation patterns and leaf C:N:P stoichiometry characteristics. We found that leaf soluble sugar, starch and NSC concentrations in E. sylvestris showed decreasing trends with reduced light intensity, whereas I. henryi presented slightly increasing trends from 100% to 15% full sunlight and then significant decreases at extremely low light intensity (6% full sunlight). The soluble sugar/starch ratio of E. sylvestris decreased with decreasing light intensity, whereas that of I. henryi remained stable. Moreover, both species exhibited increasing trends in leaf N and P concentrations but limited leaf N:P and C:P ratio fluctuations with decreasing light intensity, revealing their adaptive strategies for poor light environments and their growth strategies under ideal light environments. There were highly significant correlations between leaf NSC variables and C:N:P stoichiometric variables in both species, revealing a trade-off in photosynthesis production between leaf NSC and carbon allocation. Thus, shade-tolerant plants readjusted their allocation of leaf NSCs, C, N and P in response to light acclimation. Redundancy analysis showed that leaf morphological features of both E. sylvestris and I. henryi affected their corresponding leaf nutrient traits. These results improve our understanding of the dynamic balance between leaf NSCs and leaf C, N and P components in the nutritional metabolism of shade-tolerant plants. Two species of understory shade-tolerant plants responded differently to varying light intensities in terms of leaf non-structural carbohydrate allocation and the utilization of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus to balance nutritional metabolism and adapt to environmental stress. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Use of plant trait data in the ISBA-A-gs model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Calvet, Jean-Christophe

2014-05-01

ISBA-A-gs is a CO2-responsive LSM (Calvet et al., 1998; Gibelin et al., 2006), able to simulate the diurnal cycle of carbon and water vapour fluxes, together with LAI and soil moisture evolution. The various components of ISBA-A-gs are based to a large extent on meta-analyses of trait data. (1) Photosynthesis: ISBA-A-gs uses the model of Goudriaan et al. (1985) modified by Jacobs (1994) and Jacobs et al. (1996). The main parameter is mesophyll conductance (gm). Leaf-level photosynthesis observations were used together with canopy level flux observations to derive gm together with other key parameters of the Jacobs model, including in drought conditions. This permitted implementing detailed representations of the soil moisture stress. Two different types of drought responses are distinguished for both herbaceous vegetation (Calvet, 2000) and forests (Calvet et al., 2004), depending on the evolution of the water use efficiency (WUE) under moderate stress: WUE increases in the early soil water stress stages in the case of the drought-avoiding response, whereas WUE decreases or remains stable in the case of the drought-tolerant response. (2) Plant growth: the leaf biomass is provided by a growth model (Calvet et al., 1998; Calvet and Soussana, 2001) driven by photosynthesis. In contrast to other land surface models, no GDD-based phenology model is used in ISBA-A-gs, as the vegetation growth and senescence are entirely driven by photosynthesis. The leaf biomass is supplied with the carbon assimilated by photosynthesis, and decreased by a turnover and a respiration term. Turnover is increased by a deficit in photosynthesis. The leaf onset is triggered by sufficient photosynthesis levels and a minimum LAI value is prescribed. The maximum annual value of LAI is prognostic, i.e. it can be predicted by the model. LAI is derived from leaf biomass using SLA values. The latter are derived from the leaf nitrogen concentration using plasticity parameters. (3) CO2 effect: the photosynthesis model is able to represent the antitranspirant effect of CO2. The plant growth model represents the fertilization effect of CO2. However, the nitrogen dilution triggered by the CO2 increase has to be represented. A pragmatic solution consists in decreasing the leaf nitrogen concentration parameter in response to CO2, using existing meta-analyses of this parameter (Calvet et al., 2008). The TRY database could be used to improve the current parameterizations, together with the mapping of the model parameters.

Tissue-specific changes of glutamine synthetase activity in oats after rhizosphere infestation by Pseudomonas syringae pv. tabaci. Final report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Knight, T.J.; Temple, S.; Sengupta-Gopalan, C.

1996-05-15

Oats (Avena sativa L. lodi) tolerant of rhizosphere infestation by Pseudomonas syringae pv. tabaci when challenged by the pathogen experience tissue-specific alterations of ammonia assimilatory capabilities. Altered ammonia assimilatory potentials between root and leaf tissue result from selective inactivation of glutamine synthetase (GS) by the toxin Tabtoxinine-B-lactam (TBL). Root GS is sensitive and leaf GSs are resistant to TBL inactivation. With prolonged challenge by the pathogen root GS activity decreases but leaf GS specific activity increase. Higher leaf GS activity is due to decreased rates of degradation rather than increased GS synthesis. Higher leaf GS activity and elevated levels ofmore » GS polypeptide appear to result from a limited interaction between GS and TBL leading to the accumulation of a less active but more stable GS holoenzyme. Tolerant challenged oats besides surviving rhizosphere infestation, experience enhanced growth. A strong correlation exists between leaf GS activity and whole plant fresh weight, suggesting that tissue-specific changes in ammonia assimilatory capability provides the plant a more efficient mechanism for uptake and utilization of nitrogen.« less

Storage nitrogen co-ordinates leaf expansion and photosynthetic capacity in winter oilseed rape

PubMed Central

Liu, Tao; Ren, Tao; White, Philip J; Cong, Rihuan

2018-01-01

Abstract Storage nitrogen (N) is a buffer pool for maintaining leaf growth and synthesizing photosynthetic proteins, but the dynamics of its forms within the life cycle of a single leaf and how it is influenced by N supply remain poorly understood. A field experiment was conducted to estimate the influence of N supply on leaf growth, photosynthetic characteristics, and N partitioning inthe sixth leaf of winter oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.) from emergence through senescence. Storage N content (Nstore) decreased gradually along with leaf expansion. The relative growth rate based on leaf area (RGRa) was positively correlated with Nstore during leaf expansion. The water-soluble protein form of storage N was the main N source for leaf expansion. After the leaves fully expanded, the net photosynthetic rate (An) followed a linear–plateau response to Nstore, with An stabilizing at the highest value above a threshold and declining below the threshold. Non-protein and SDS (detergent)-soluble protein forms of storage N were the main N sources for maintaining photosynthesis. For the leaf N economy, storage N is used for co-ordinating leaf expansion and photosynthetic capacity. N supply can improve Nstore, thereby promoting leaf growth and biomass. PMID:29669007

Specific leaf area relates to the differences in leaf construction cost, photosynthesis, nitrogen allocation, and use efficiencies between invasive and noninvasive alien congeners.

PubMed

Feng, Yu-Long; Fu, Gai-Lan; Zheng, Yu-Long

2008-08-01

Comparisons between invasive and native species may not characterize the traits of invasive species, as native species might be invasive elsewhere if they were introduced. In this study, invasive Oxalis corymbosa and Peperomia pellucida were compared with their respective noninvasive alien congeners. We hypothesized that the invasive species have higher specific leaf (SLA) than their respective noninvasive alien congeners, and analyzed the physiological and ecological consequences of the higher SLA. Higher SLA was indeed the most important trait for the two invaders, which was associated with their lower leaf construction cost, higher nitrogen (N) allocation to photosynthesis and photosynthetic N use efficiency (PNUE). The higher N allocation to photosynthesis of the invaders in turn increased their PNUE, N content in photosynthesis, biochemical capacity for photosynthesis, and therefore light-saturated photosynthetic rate. The above resource capture-, use- and growth-related traits may facilitate the two invaders' invasion, while further comparative studies on a wider range of invasive and noninvasive congeners are needed to understand the generality of this pattern and to fully assess the competitive advantages afforded by these traits.

Influence of submarine springs and wastewater on nutrient dynamics of Caribbean seagrass meadows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carruthers, T. J. B.; van Tussenbroek, B. I.; Dennison, W. C.

2005-08-01

The east coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico, consists of highly permeable limestone, such that surface flow and rivers are absent in this region. Extensive underground cave systems connect sink holes (cenotes) to submarine springs (ojos de aqua), which vent into the seagrass meadows of the adjacent oligotrophic coastal lagoons. This study investigated the potential for these submarine springs to influence nutrient processes within seagrass meadows, by assessing nutrient status of Thalassia testudinum meadows in two contrasting coastal lagoons along the north eastern Yucatan peninsula. Tissue nutrient concentrations as well as δ 15N values of T. testudinum were surveyed in the Puerto Morelos Reef Lagoon and the Nichupte Lagoon System, Cancun Hotel Zone, during an extended dry period and again following heavy rainfall. After a period of heavy rainfall, T. testudinum near submarine springs in Puerto Morelos Reef Lagoon had exceptionally high leaf tissue phosphorus concentrations of 0.38±0.06%. These submarine springs may have been a direct source of phosphorus and/or a source of iron to this very iron limited carbonate system. Thalassia testudinum nutrient concentrations suggest that nitrogen loading to the Nichupte Lagoon System is regionally high and has increased over the past decade (mean leaf N: 2.04% N in 1991 to 2.71% N in 2002). Nitrogen content in leaf tissue of T. testudinum was significantly higher within the poorly flushed Nichupte Lagoon System (2.93±0.12% N) than in the well-flushed Puerto Morelos Reef Lagoon (1.80±0.07% N). Stable isotope ratios of nitrogen suggest that this high and increasing nitrogen loading within the Nichupte Lagoon System is a result of wastewater nitrogen (δ 15N 9.06±0.07 in northern Nichupte Lagoon System vs. 1.69±0.07 in Puerto Morelos Reef Lagoon).

Representing leaf and root physiological traits in CLM improves global carbon and nitrogen cycling predictions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ghimire, Bardan; Riley, William J.; Koven, Charles D.

In many ecosystems, nitrogen is the most limiting nutrient for plant growth and productivity. However, current Earth System Models (ESMs) do not mechanistically represent functional nitrogen allocation for photosynthesis or the linkage between nitrogen uptake and root traits. The current version of CLM (4.5) links nitrogen availability and plant productivity via (1) an instantaneous downregulation of potential photosynthesis rates based on soil mineral nitrogen availability, and (2) apportionment of soil nitrogen between plants and competing nitrogen consumers assumed to be proportional to their relative N demands. However, plants do not photosynthesize at potential rates and then downregulate; instead photosynthesis ratesmore » are governed by nitrogen that has been allocated to the physiological processes underpinning photosynthesis. Furthermore, the role of plant roots in nutrient acquisition has also been largely ignored in ESMs. We therefore present a new plant nitrogen model for CLM4.5 with (1) improved representations of linkages between leaf nitrogen and plant productivity based on observed relationships in a global plant trait database and (2) plant nitrogen uptake based on root-scale Michaelis-Menten uptake kinetics. Our model improvements led to a global bias reduction in GPP, LAI, and biomass of 70%, 11%, and 49%, respectively. Furthermore, water use efficiency predictions were improved conceptually, qualitatively, and in magnitude. The new model's GPP responses to nitrogen deposition, CO 2 fertilization, and climate also differed from the baseline model. The mechanistic representation of leaf-level nitrogen allocation and a theoretically consistent treatment of competition with belowground consumers led to overall improvements in global carbon cycling predictions.« less

Representing leaf and root physiological traits in CLM improves global carbon and nitrogen cycling predictions

DOE PAGES

Ghimire, Bardan; Riley, William J.; Koven, Charles D.; ...

2016-05-01

In many ecosystems, nitrogen is the most limiting nutrient for plant growth and productivity. However, current Earth System Models (ESMs) do not mechanistically represent functional nitrogen allocation for photosynthesis or the linkage between nitrogen uptake and root traits. The current version of CLM (4.5) links nitrogen availability and plant productivity via (1) an instantaneous downregulation of potential photosynthesis rates based on soil mineral nitrogen availability, and (2) apportionment of soil nitrogen between plants and competing nitrogen consumers assumed to be proportional to their relative N demands. However, plants do not photosynthesize at potential rates and then downregulate; instead photosynthesis ratesmore » are governed by nitrogen that has been allocated to the physiological processes underpinning photosynthesis. Furthermore, the role of plant roots in nutrient acquisition has also been largely ignored in ESMs. We therefore present a new plant nitrogen model for CLM4.5 with (1) improved representations of linkages between leaf nitrogen and plant productivity based on observed relationships in a global plant trait database and (2) plant nitrogen uptake based on root-scale Michaelis-Menten uptake kinetics. Our model improvements led to a global bias reduction in GPP, LAI, and biomass of 70%, 11%, and 49%, respectively. Furthermore, water use efficiency predictions were improved conceptually, qualitatively, and in magnitude. The new model's GPP responses to nitrogen deposition, CO 2 fertilization, and climate also differed from the baseline model. The mechanistic representation of leaf-level nitrogen allocation and a theoretically consistent treatment of competition with belowground consumers led to overall improvements in global carbon cycling predictions.« less

Representing leaf and root physiological traits in CLM improves global carbon and nitrogen cycling predictions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghimire, Bardan; Riley, William J.; Koven, Charles D.; Mu, Mingquan; Randerson, James T.

2016-06-01

In many ecosystems, nitrogen is the most limiting nutrient for plant growth and productivity. However, current Earth System Models (ESMs) do not mechanistically represent functional nitrogen allocation for photosynthesis or the linkage between nitrogen uptake and root traits. The current version of CLM (4.5) links nitrogen availability and plant productivity via (1) an instantaneous downregulation of potential photosynthesis rates based on soil mineral nitrogen availability, and (2) apportionment of soil nitrogen between plants and competing nitrogen consumers assumed to be proportional to their relative N demands. However, plants do not photosynthesize at potential rates and then downregulate; instead photosynthesis rates are governed by nitrogen that has been allocated to the physiological processes underpinning photosynthesis. Furthermore, the role of plant roots in nutrient acquisition has also been largely ignored in ESMs. We therefore present a new plant nitrogen model for CLM4.5 with (1) improved representations of linkages between leaf nitrogen and plant productivity based on observed relationships in a global plant trait database and (2) plant nitrogen uptake based on root-scale Michaelis-Menten uptake kinetics. Our model improvements led to a global bias reduction in GPP, LAI, and biomass of 70%, 11%, and 49%, respectively. Furthermore, water use efficiency predictions were improved conceptually, qualitatively, and in magnitude. The new model's GPP responses to nitrogen deposition, CO2 fertilization, and climate also differed from the baseline model. The mechanistic representation of leaf-level nitrogen allocation and a theoretically consistent treatment of competition with belowground consumers led to overall improvements in global carbon cycling predictions.

Effects of nitrogen fertilization on growth and reflectance characteristics of winter wheat

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hinzman, L. D.; Bauer, M. E.; Daughtry, C. S. T.

1986-01-01

The use of remote sensing to determine seasonal changes in agronomic and spectral properties of winter wheat canopies with different levels of N fertilization is investigated. Field experiments were conducted at Purdue Agronomy Farm, West Lafayette, IN during the 1978-1979 and 1979-1980 growing season. Spectral reflectance, total leaf N concentration, leaf chlorophyll concentration, leaf are index (LAI), and fresh and dry phytomass are measured and analyzed. Three distinct wheat canopies are detected for the O, 60, and 120 kg N/ha levels of fertilization; it is observed that with an increase in N the reflectance in the visible, and middle IR wavelengths decrease, and the IR reflectance is increased. The canopies with 120 kg N/ha display the highest LAI, maintain green leaf area the longest, and increase in fresh and dry phytomass. The relationship between spectral and agronomic variables is examined; the effect of changing chlorophyll concentration and LAI on the reflectance is studied.

Effects of the fungal endophyte Acremonium coenophialum on nitrogen accumulation and metabolism in tall fescue

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lyons, P.C.; Evans, J.J.; Bacon, C.W.

Infection by the fungal endophyte Acremonium coenophialum affected the accumulation of inorganic and organic N in leaf blades and leaf sheaths of KY31 tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) grown under greenhouse conditions. Total soluble amino acid concentrations were increased in either the blade or sheath of the leaf from infected plants. A number of amino acids were significantly increased in the sheath, but only asparagine increased in the blade. Infection resulted in higher sheath NH{sub 4}{sup +} concentrations, whereas NO{sub 3}{sup {minus}} concentrations decreased in both leaf parts. The effects on amino acid, NO{sub 3}{sup {minus}}, and NH{sub 4}{sup +}more » concentrations were dependent upon the level of N fertilization and were usually apparent only at the high rate (10 millimolar) of application. Administration of {sup 14}CO{sub 2} to the leaf blades increased the accumulation of {sup 14}C in their amino acid fraction but not in the sheaths of infected plants. This may indicate that infection increased amino acid synthesis in the blade but that translocation to the sheath, which is the site of fungal colonization, was not affected. Glutamine synthetase activity was greater in leaf blades of infected plants at high and low N rates of fertilization, but nitrate reductase activity was not affected in either part of the leaf. Increased activities of glutamine synthetase together with the other observed changes in N accumulation and metabolism in endophyte-infected tall fescue suggest that NH{sub 4}{sup +} reassimilation could also be affected in the leaf blade.« less

The Autophagic Degradation of Chloroplasts via Rubisco-Containing Bodies Is Specifically Linked to Leaf Carbon Status But Not Nitrogen Status in Arabidopsis1[W][OA

PubMed Central

Izumi, Masanori; Wada, Shinya; Makino, Amane; Ishida, Hiroyuki

2010-01-01

Autophagy is an intracellular process facilitating the vacuolar degradation of cytoplasmic components and is important for nutrient recycling during starvation. We previously demonstrated that chloroplasts can be partially mobilized to the vacuole by autophagy via spherical bodies named Rubisco-containing bodies (RCBs). Although chloroplasts contain approximately 80% of total leaf nitrogen and represent a major carbon and nitrogen source for new growth, the relationship between leaf nutrient status and RCB production remains unclear. We examined the effects of nutrient factors on the appearance of RCBs in leaves of transgenic Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) expressing stroma-targeted fluorescent proteins. In excised leaves, the appearance of RCBs was suppressed by the presence of metabolic sugars, which were added externally or were produced during photosynthesis in the light. The light-mediated suppression was relieved by the inhibition of photosynthesis. During a diurnal cycle, RCB production was suppressed in leaves excised at the end of the day with high starch content. Starchless mutants phosphoglucomutase and ADP-Glc pyrophosphorylase1 produced a large number of RCBs, while starch-excess mutants starch-excess1 and maltose-excess1 produced fewer RCBs. In nitrogen-limited plants, as leaf carbohydrates were accumulated, RCB production was suppressed. We propose that there exists a close relationship between the degradation of chloroplast proteins via RCBs and leaf carbon but not nitrogen status in autophagy. We also found that the appearance of non-RCB-type autophagic bodies was not suppressed in the light and somewhat responded to nitrogen in excised leaves, unlike RCBs. These results imply that the degradation of chloroplast proteins via RCBs is specifically controlled in autophagy. PMID:20807997

Functional indicators of response mechanisms to nitrogen deposition, ozone, and their interaction in two Mediterranean tree species

PubMed Central

Palma, Adriano; Salvatori, Elisabetta; Basile, Adriana; Maresca, Viviana; Asadi Karam, Elham; Manes, Fausto

2017-01-01

The effects of nitrogen (N) deposition, tropospheric ozone (O3) and their interaction were investigated in two Mediterranean tree species, Fraxinus ornus L. (deciduous) and Quercus ilex L. (evergreen), having different leaf habits and resource use strategies. An experiment was conducted under controlled condition to analyse how nitrogen deposition affects the ecophysiological and biochemical traits, and to explore how the nitrogen-induced changes influence the response to O3. For both factors we selected realistic exposures (20 kg N ha-1 yr-1 and 80 ppb h for nitrogen and O3, respectively), in order to elucidate the mechanisms implemented by the plants. Nitrogen addition resulted in higher nitrogen concentration at the leaf level in F. ornus, whereas a slight increase was detected in Q. ilex. Nitrogen enhanced the maximum rate of assimilation and ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate regeneration in both species, whereas it influenced the light harvesting complex only in the deciduous F. ornus that was also affected by O3 (reduced assimilation rate and accelerated senescence-related processes). Conversely, Q. ilex developed an avoidance mechanism to cope with O3, confirming a substantial O3 tolerance of this species. Nitrogen seemed to ameliorate the harmful effects of O3 in F. ornus: the hypothesized mechanism of action involved the production of nitrogen oxide as the first antioxidant barrier, followed by enzymatic antioxidant response. In Q. ilex, the interaction was not detected on gas exchange and photosystem functionality; however, in this species, nitrogen might stimulate an alternative antioxidant response such as the emission of volatile organic compounds. Antioxidant enzyme activity was lower in plants treated with both O3 and nitrogen even though reactive oxygen species production did not differ between the treatments. PMID:28973038

Functional indicators of response mechanisms to nitrogen deposition, ozone, and their interaction in two Mediterranean tree species.

PubMed

Fusaro, Lina; Palma, Adriano; Salvatori, Elisabetta; Basile, Adriana; Maresca, Viviana; Asadi Karam, Elham; Manes, Fausto

2017-01-01

The effects of nitrogen (N) deposition, tropospheric ozone (O3) and their interaction were investigated in two Mediterranean tree species, Fraxinus ornus L. (deciduous) and Quercus ilex L. (evergreen), having different leaf habits and resource use strategies. An experiment was conducted under controlled condition to analyse how nitrogen deposition affects the ecophysiological and biochemical traits, and to explore how the nitrogen-induced changes influence the response to O3. For both factors we selected realistic exposures (20 kg N ha-1 yr-1 and 80 ppb h for nitrogen and O3, respectively), in order to elucidate the mechanisms implemented by the plants. Nitrogen addition resulted in higher nitrogen concentration at the leaf level in F. ornus, whereas a slight increase was detected in Q. ilex. Nitrogen enhanced the maximum rate of assimilation and ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate regeneration in both species, whereas it influenced the light harvesting complex only in the deciduous F. ornus that was also affected by O3 (reduced assimilation rate and accelerated senescence-related processes). Conversely, Q. ilex developed an avoidance mechanism to cope with O3, confirming a substantial O3 tolerance of this species. Nitrogen seemed to ameliorate the harmful effects of O3 in F. ornus: the hypothesized mechanism of action involved the production of nitrogen oxide as the first antioxidant barrier, followed by enzymatic antioxidant response. In Q. ilex, the interaction was not detected on gas exchange and photosystem functionality; however, in this species, nitrogen might stimulate an alternative antioxidant response such as the emission of volatile organic compounds. Antioxidant enzyme activity was lower in plants treated with both O3 and nitrogen even though reactive oxygen species production did not differ between the treatments.

Cereal Leaf Beetle (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) Regional Dispersion and Relationship With Wheat Stand Denseness.

PubMed

Reisig, Dominic D; Bacheler, Jack S; Herbert, D Ames; Heiniger, Ron; Kuhar, Thomas; Malone, Sean; Philips, Chris; Tilley, M Scott

2017-06-01

Cereal leaf beetle, Oulema melanopus L., is a pest of small grains and the literature conflicts on whether it is more abundant in sparse or dense stands of wheat. Our objectives were to determine the impact of stand denseness on cereal leaf beetle abundance and to investigate the regional dispersion of cereal leaf beetles across North Carolina and Virginia. One-hundred twenty fields were sampled across North Carolina and Virginia during 2011 for stand denseness, and cereal leaf beetle eggs, larvae, and adults. Two small-plot wheat experiments were planted in North Carolina using a low and a high seeding rate. Main plots were split, with one receiving a single nitrogen application and one receiving two. Egg density, but not larva or adult density, was positively correlated with stand denseness in the regional survey. Furthermore, regional spatial patterns of aggregation were noted for both stand denseness and egg number. In the small-plot experiments, seeding rate influenced stand denseness, but not nitrogen application. In one experiment, egg densities per unit area were higher in denser wheat, while in the other experiment, egg densities per tiller were lower in denser wheat. Larvae were not influenced by any factor. Overall, there were more cereal leaf beetle eggs in denser wheat stands. Previous observations that sparse stands of wheat are more prone to cereal leaf beetle infestation can be attributed to the fact that sparser stands have fewer tillers, which increases the cereal leaf beetle to tiller ratio compared with denser stands. © The Authors 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Leaf-litter inputs from an invasive nitrogen-fixing tree influence organic-matter dynamics and nitrogen inputs in a Hawaiian river

Treesearch

Richard A. MacKenzie; Tracy N. Wiegner; Frances Kinslow; Nicole Cormier; Ayron M. Strauch

2013-01-01

Abstract. We examined how invasion of tropical riparian forests by an exotic N-fixing tree (Falcataria moluccana) affects organic-matter dynamics in a Hawaiian river by comparing early stages of leaf-litter breakdown between the exotic F. moluccana and native Metrosideros polymorpha trees. We examined early...

Estimating Leaf Nitrogen of Eastern Cottonwood Trees with a Chlorophyll Meter

Treesearch

Benoit Moreau; Emile S. Gardiner; John A. Stanturf; Ronald K. Fisher

2004-01-01

The utility of the SPAD-502 chlorophyll meter for nondestructive and rapid field determination of leaf nitrogen (N) has been demonstrated in agricultural crops, but this technology has not yet been extended to woody crop applications. Upper canopy leaves from a 5-year-old plantation of two eastern cottonwood (Populus deltoides Bartr. ex Marsh.)...

Variation in leaf and twig CO2 flux as a function of plant size: a comparison of seedlings, saplings and trees.

PubMed

Sendall, Kerrie M; Reich, Peter B

2013-07-01

Rates of tissue-level function have been hypothesized to decline as trees grow older and larger, but relevant evidence to assess such changes remains limited, especially across a wide range of sizes from saplings to large trees. We measured functional traits of leaves and twigs of three cold-temperate deciduous tree species in Minnesota, USA, to assess how these vary with tree height. Individuals ranging from 0.13 to 20 m in height were sampled in both relatively open and closed canopy environments to minimize light differences as a potential driver of size-related differences in leaf and twig properties. We hypothesized that (H1) gas-exchange rates, tissue N concentration and leaf mass per unit area (LMA) would vary with tree size in a pattern reflecting declining function in taller trees, yet maintaining (H2) bivariate trait relations, common among species as characterized by the leaf economics spectrum. Taking these two ideas together yielded a third, integrated hypothesis that (H3) nitrogen (N) content and gas-exchange rates should decrease monotonically with tree size and LMA should increase. We observed increasing LMA and decreasing leaf and twig Rd with increasing size, which matched predictions from H1 and H3. However, opposite to our predictions, leaf and twig N generally increased with size, and thus had inverse relations with respiration, rather than the predicted positive relations. Two exceptions were area-based leaf N of Prunus serotina Ehrh. in gaps and mass-based leaf N of Quercus ellipsoidalis E. J. Hill in gaps, both of which showed qualitatively hump-shaped patterns. Finally, we observed hump-shaped relationships between photosynthetic capacity and tree height, not mirroring any of the other traits, except in the two cases highlighted above. Bivariate trait relations were weak intra-specifically, but were generally significant and positive for area-based traits using the pooled dataset. Results suggest that different traits vary with tree size in different ways that are not consistent with a universal shift towards a lower 'return on investment' strategy. Instead, species traits vary with size in patterns that likely reflect complex variation in water, light, nitrogen and carbon availability, storage and use.

RESPONSE OF NUTRIENTS, BIOFILM, AND BENTHIC INSECTS TO SALMON CARCASS ADDITION

EPA Science Inventory

Salmon carcass addition to streams is expected to increase stream productivity at multiple trophic levels. This study examined stream nutrient (nitrogen, phosphorus, and carbon), epilithic biofilm (ash-free dry mass and chlorophyll a), leaf-litter decomposition, and macroinverte...

Particulate organic matter quality influences nitrate retention and denitrification in stream sediments: evidence from a carbon burial experiment

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stelzer, Robert S.; Scott, J. Thad; Bartsch, Lynn; Parr, Thomas B.

2014-01-01

Organic carbon supply is linked to nitrogen transformation in ecosystems. However, the role of organic carbon quality in nitrogen processing is not as well understood. We determined how the quality of particulate organic carbon (POC) influenced nitrogen transformation in stream sediments by burying identical quantities of varying quality POC (northern red oak (Quercus rubra) leaves, red maple (Acer rubrum) leaves, red maple wood) in stream mesocosms and measuring the effects on nitrogen retention and denitrification compared to a control of combusted sand. We also determined how POC quality affected the quantity and quality of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and dissolved oxygen concentration in groundwater. Nitrate and total dissolved nitrogen (TDN) retention were assessed by comparing solute concentrations and fluxes along groundwater flow paths in the mesocosms. Denitrification was measured by in situ changes in N2 concentrations (using MIMS) and by acetylene block incubations. POC quality was measured by C:N and lignin:N ratios and DOC quality was assessed by fluorescence excitation emission matrix spectroscopy. POC quality had strong effects on nitrogen processing. Leaf treatments had much higher nitrate retention, TDN retention and denitrification rates than the wood and control treatments and red maple leaf burial resulted in higher nitrate and TDN retention rates than burial of red oak leaves. Leaf, but not wood, burial drove pore water to severe hypoxia and leaf treatments had higher DOC production and different DOC chemical composition than the wood and control treatments. We think that POC quality affected nitrogen processing in the sediments by influencing the quantity and quality of DOC and redox conditions. Our results suggest that the type of organic carbon inputs can affect the rates of nitrogen transformation in stream ecosystems.

Mapping of Biophysical Parameters of Rice Agriculture System from Hyperspectral Imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moharana, Shreedevi; Duta, Subashisa

2017-04-01

Chlorophyll, nitrogen and leaf water content are the most essential parameters for paddy crop growth. Ground hyperspectral observations were collected at canopy level during critical growth period of rice by using hand held Spectroradiometer. Chemical analysis was carried out to quantify the total chlorophyll, nitrogen and leaf water content. By exploiting the in-situ hyperspectral measurements, regression models were established between each of the crop growth parameters and the spectral indices specifically designed for chlorophyll, nitrogen and water stress. Narrow band vegetation index models were developed for mapping these parameters from Hyperion imagery in an agriculture system. It was inferred that the modified simple ratio (SR) and leaf nitrogen concentration (LNC) predictive index models, which followed a linear and nonlinear relationship respectively, produced satisfactory results in predicting rice nitrogen content from hyperspectral imagery. The presently developed model was compared with other models proposed by researchers. It was ascertained that, nitrogen content varied widely from 1-4 percentage and only 2-3 percentage for paddy crop using present modified index models and well-known predicted Tian et al. (2011) model respectively. The modified present LNC index model performed better than the established Tian et al. (2011) model as far as the estimated nitrogen content from Hyperion imagery was concerned. Moreover, within the observed chlorophyll range attained from the rice genotypes cultivated in the studied rice agriculture system, the index models (LNC, OASVI, Gitelson, mSR and MTCI) accomplished satisfactory results in the spatial distribution of rice chlorophyll content from Hyperion imagery. Spatial distribution of total chlorophyll content widely varied from 1.77-5.81 mg/g (LNC), 3.0-13 mg/g (OASVI) and 2.90-5.40 mg/g (MTCI). Following the similar guideline, it was found that normalized difference water index (NDWI) and normalized difference infrared index (NDII) predictive models demonstrated the spatial variability of leaf water content from 40 percentage to 90 percentage in the same rice agriculture system which has a good agreement with observed in-situ leaf water measurements. The spatial information of these parameters will be useful for crop nutrient management and yield forecasting, and will serve as inputs to various crop-forecasting models for developing a precision rice agriculture system. Key words: Rice agriculture system, nitrogen, chlorophyll, leaf water content, vegetation index

Leaf Stable Isotope and Nutrient Status of Temperate Mangroves As Ecological Indicators to Assess Anthropogenic Activity and Recovery from Eutrophication

PubMed Central

Gritcan, Iana; Duxbury, Mark; Leuzinger, Sebastian; Alfaro, Andrea C.

2016-01-01

We measured nitrogen stable isotope values (δ15N), and total phosphorus (%P) and total nitrogen (%N) contents in leaves of the temperate mangrove (Avicennia marina sp. australasica) from three coastal ecosystems exposed to various levels of human impact (Manukau, high; Mangawhai, low; and Waitemata, intermediate) in northern New Zealand. We measured δ15N values around 10‰ in environments where the major terrestrial water inputs are sewage. The highest average total nitrogen contents and δ15N values were found in the Auckland city region (Manukau Harbour) at 2.2%N and 9.9‰, respectively. The lowest values were found in Mangawhai Harbour, situated about 80 km north of Auckland city, at 2.0%N and 5.2‰, respectively. In the Waitemata Harbour, also located in Auckland city but with less exposure to human derived sewage inputs, both parameters were intermediate, at 2.1%N and 6.4‰. Total phosphorus contents did not vary significantly. Additionally, analysis of historical mangrove leaf herbarium samples obtained from the Auckland War Memorial Museum indicated that a reduction in both leaf total nitrogen and δ15N content has occurred over the past 100 years in Auckland’s harbors. Collectively, these results suggest that anthropogenically derived nitrogen has had a significant impact on mangrove nutrient status in Auckland harbors over the last 100 years. The observed decrease in nitrogenous nutrients probably occurred due to sewage system improvements. We suggest that mangrove plant physiological response to nutrient excess could be used as an indicator of long-term eutrophication trends. Monitoring leaf nutrient status in mangroves can be used to assess environmental stress (sewage, eutrophication) on coastal ecosystems heavily impacted by human activities. Moreover, nitrogen and phosphorus leaf contents can be used to assess levels of available nutrients in the surrounding environments. PMID:28066477

Environmental modification of yield and nutrient composition of 'Waldmann's Green' leaf lettuce

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mitchell, C. A.; Chun, C.; Brandt, W. E.; Nielsen, S. S.

1997-01-01

Leaf number, dry weight, and nutrient composition of Lactuca sativa L. cv. Waldmann's Green leaves were compared following 9 days of treatment in a controlled environment room under various combinations of photosynthetic photon flux (PPF:350 vs 800 micromoles m-2 s-1), atmospheric CO2 level (ambient vs 1500 micromoles mol-1), and single-strength (1X:15 mM) vs double-strength (2X:30 mM) nitrogen (N) as NO3- alone or as NH4(+) + NO3- (1:5 molar ratio). CO2 enrichment greatly enhanced leaf number under all PPF and N conditions, but increased leaf dry weight only at high PPF. Conditions favoring high photosynthesis enhanced leaf starch content 3-fold, and protein content increased as much as 64% with 2X NH4(+)+NO3-. Free sugar content was 6 to 9% of leaf dry weight for all treatment combinations, while fat was 1.5 to 3.5%. Ash content varied from 15 to 20% of leaf dry weight. Modified controlled environments can be used to enhance the nutritional content as well as the yield of crops to be used for life support in space-deployed, self-sustaining human habitats. Leaf lettuce is a useful model crop for demonstrating the potential of nutritional value added by environmental manipulation.

Spatial variation in edaphic characteristics is a stronger control than nitrogen inputs in regulating soil microbial effects on a desert grass

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chung, Y. Anny; Sinsabaugh, Robert L.; Kuske, Cheryl Rae

Increased atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition can have wide-ranging effects on plant community structure and ecosystem function, some of which may be indirectly mediated by soil microbial responses to an altered biogeochemical environment. In this study, soils from a field N fertilization experiment that spanned a soil texture gradient were used as inocula in the greenhouse to assess the indirect effects of soil microbial communities on growth of a desert grass. Plant performance and interaction with soil microbiota were evaluated via plant above- and belowground biomass, leaf N concentration, and root fungal colonization. Nitrogen fertilization in the field increased the benefitsmore » of soil microbial inoculation to plant leaf N concentration, but did not alter the effect of soil microbes on plant growth. Plant-microbe interaction outcomes differed most strongly among sites with different soil textures, where the soil microbial community from the sandiest site was most beneficial to host plant growth. In conclusion, the findings of this study suggest that in a desert grassland, increases in atmospheric N deposition may exert a more subtle influence on plant-microbe interactions by altering plant nutrient status, whereas edaphic factors can alter the whole-plant growth response to soil microbial associates.« less

Spatial variation in edaphic characteristics is a stronger control than nitrogen inputs in regulating soil microbial effects on a desert grass

DOE PAGES

Chung, Y. Anny; Sinsabaugh, Robert L.; Kuske, Cheryl Rae; ...

2017-03-22

Increased atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition can have wide-ranging effects on plant community structure and ecosystem function, some of which may be indirectly mediated by soil microbial responses to an altered biogeochemical environment. In this study, soils from a field N fertilization experiment that spanned a soil texture gradient were used as inocula in the greenhouse to assess the indirect effects of soil microbial communities on growth of a desert grass. Plant performance and interaction with soil microbiota were evaluated via plant above- and belowground biomass, leaf N concentration, and root fungal colonization. Nitrogen fertilization in the field increased the benefitsmore » of soil microbial inoculation to plant leaf N concentration, but did not alter the effect of soil microbes on plant growth. Plant-microbe interaction outcomes differed most strongly among sites with different soil textures, where the soil microbial community from the sandiest site was most beneficial to host plant growth. In conclusion, the findings of this study suggest that in a desert grassland, increases in atmospheric N deposition may exert a more subtle influence on plant-microbe interactions by altering plant nutrient status, whereas edaphic factors can alter the whole-plant growth response to soil microbial associates.« less

Spatial variation in edaphic characteristics is a stronger control than nitrogen inputs in regulating soil microbial effects on a desert grass

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chung, Y. Anny; Sinsabaugh, Robert L; Kuske, Cheryl R.; Reed, Sasha C.; Rudgers, Jennifer A.

2017-01-01

Increased atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition can have wide-ranging effects on plant community structure and ecosystem function, some of which may be indirectly mediated by soil microbial responses to an altered biogeochemical environment. In this study, soils from a field N fertilization experiment that spanned a soil texture gradient were used as inocula in the greenhouse to assess the indirect effects of soil microbial communities on growth of a desert grass. Plant performance and interaction with soil microbiota were evaluated via plant above- and belowground biomass, leaf N concentration, and root fungal colonization. Nitrogen fertilization in the field increased the benefits of soil microbial inoculation to plant leaf N concentration, but did not alter the effect of soil microbes on plant growth. Plant-microbe interaction outcomes differed most strongly among sites with different soil textures, where the soil microbial community from the sandiest site was most beneficial to host plant growth. The findings of this study suggest that in a desert grassland, increases in atmospheric N deposition may exert a more subtle influence on plant-microbe interactions by altering plant nutrient status, whereas edaphic factors can alter the whole-plant growth response to soil microbial associates.

Patterns of leaf morphology and leaf N content in relation to winter temperatures in three evergreen tree species

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mediavilla, Sonia; Gallardo-López, Victoria; González-Zurdo, Patricia; Escudero, Alfonso

2012-09-01

The competitive equilibrium between deciduous and perennial species in a new scenario of climate change may depend closely on the productivity of leaves along the different seasons of the year and on the morphological and chemical adaptations required for leaf survival during the different seasons. The aim of the present work was to analyze such adaptations in the leaves of three evergreen species ( Quercus ilex, Q. suber and Pinus pinaster) and their responses to between-site differences in the intensity of winter harshness. We explore the hypothesis that the harshness of winter would contribute to enhancing the leaf traits that allow them to persist under conditions of stress. The results revealed that as winter harshness increases a decrease in leaf size occurs in all three species, together with an increase in the content of nitrogen per unit leaf area and a greater leaf mass per unit area, which seems to be achieved only through increased thickness, with no associated changes in density. P. pinaster was the species with the most intense response to the harshening of winter conditions, undergoing a more marked thickening of its needles than the two Quercus species. Our findings thus suggest that lower winter temperatures involve an increase in the cost of leaf production of evergreen species, which must be taken into account in the estimation of the final cost and benefit balance of evergreens. Such cost increases would be more pronounced for those species that, like P. pinaster, show a stronger response to the winter cold.

The response of the soil microbial food web to extreme rainfall under different plant systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Feng; Pan, Kaiwen; Tariq, Akash; Zhang, Lin; Sun, Xiaoming; Li, Zilong; Wang, Sizhong; Xiong, Qinli; Song, Dagang; Olatunji, Olusanya Abiodun

2016-11-01

An agroforestry experiment was conducted that involved four planting systems: monoculture of the focal species Zanthoxylum bungeanum and mixed cultures of Z. bungeanum and Capsicum annuum, Z. bungeanum and Medicago sativa and Z. bungeanum and Glycine max. Soil microbial food web (microorganisms and nematodes) was investigated under manipulated extreme rainfall in the four planting systems to assess whether presence of neighbor species alleviated the magnitude of extreme rainfall on nutrient uptake of the focal species by increasing the stability of soil food web. Our results indicate that in the focal species and G. max mixed culture, leaf nitrogen contents of the focal species were higher than in the monoculture and in the other mixed cultures under extreme rainfall. This result was mainly due to the significant increase under extreme rainfall of G. max species root biomass, resulting in enhanced microbial resistance and subsequent net nitrogen mineralization rate and leaf nitrogen uptake for the focal species. Differences in functional traits of neighbors had additive effects and led to a marked divergence of soil food-web resistance and nutrient uptake of the focal species. Climate change can indirectly alleviate focal species via its influence on their neighbors.

The response of the soil microbial food web to extreme rainfall under different plant systems

PubMed Central

Sun, Feng; Pan, Kaiwen; Tariq, Akash; Zhang, Lin; Sun, Xiaoming; Li, Zilong; Wang, Sizhong; Xiong, Qinli; Song, Dagang; Olatunji, Olusanya Abiodun

2016-01-01

An agroforestry experiment was conducted that involved four planting systems: monoculture of the focal species Zanthoxylum bungeanum and mixed cultures of Z. bungeanum and Capsicum annuum, Z. bungeanum and Medicago sativa and Z. bungeanum and Glycine max. Soil microbial food web (microorganisms and nematodes) was investigated under manipulated extreme rainfall in the four planting systems to assess whether presence of neighbor species alleviated the magnitude of extreme rainfall on nutrient uptake of the focal species by increasing the stability of soil food web. Our results indicate that in the focal species and G. max mixed culture, leaf nitrogen contents of the focal species were higher than in the monoculture and in the other mixed cultures under extreme rainfall. This result was mainly due to the significant increase under extreme rainfall of G. max species root biomass, resulting in enhanced microbial resistance and subsequent net nitrogen mineralization rate and leaf nitrogen uptake for the focal species. Differences in functional traits of neighbors had additive effects and led to a marked divergence of soil food-web resistance and nutrient uptake of the focal species. Climate change can indirectly alleviate focal species via its influence on their neighbors. PMID:27874081

Evaluation of four seagrass species as early warning indicators for nitrogen overloading: Implications for eutrophic evaluation and ecosystem management.

PubMed

Yang, Xiaolong; Zhang, Peidong; Li, Wentao; Hu, Chengye; Zhang, Xiumei; He, Pingguo

2018-04-23

Seagrasses are major coastal primary producers and are widely distributed on coasts worldwide. Seagrasses show sensitivity to environmental stress due to their high phenotypic plasticity, and therefore, we evaluated the use of constituent elements in four dominant seagrass species as early warning indicators for nitrogen eutrophication of coastal regions. A meta-analysis was conducted with published data to develop a global benchmark for the selected indicator, which was used to evaluate nitrogen loading at a global scale. A case study at three bays was subsequently conducted to test for local-scale differences in leaf C/N ratios in four seagrasses. Additionally, morphological and physiological metrics of seagrasses were measured from the three locations under varied nitrogen levels to develop further assessment indexes. The benchmark and local study showed that leaf C/N ratios of Zostera marina were sensitive to nitrogen discharge, which could be a highly valuable early warning indicator on a global scale. Moreover, the threshold value of seagrass leaf C/N was determined according to the benchmark to differentiate eutrophic and low nitrogen levels at a local scale. Of the eight phenotypic metrics measured, leaf width, total chlorophyll (a + b), chlorophyll ratio (a/b), and starch in the rhizome were the most effective at discriminating between the three locations and could also be promising indicators for monitoring eutrophication. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Red Reveals Branch Die-back in Norway Maple Acer platanoides

PubMed Central

Sinkkonen, Aki

2008-01-01

Background and Aims Physiological data suggest that autumn leaf colours of deciduous trees are adaptations to environmental stress. Recently, the evolution of autumn colouration has been linked to tree condition and defence. Most current hypotheses presume that autumn colours vary between tree individuals. This study was designed to test if within-tree variation should be taken into account in experimental and theoretical research on autumn colouration. Methods Distribution of red autumn leaf colours was compared between partially dead and vigorous specimens of Norway maple (Acer platanoides) in a 3-year study. In August, the amount of reddish foliage was estimated in pairs of partially dead and control trees. Within-tree variation in the distribution of reddish leaves was evaluated. Leaf nitrogen and carbon concentrations were analysed. Key Results Reddish leaf colours were more frequent in partially dead trees than in control trees. Reddish leaves were evenly distributed in control trees, while patchiness of red leaf pigments was pronounced in partially dead trees. Large patches of red leaves were found beneath or next to dead tree parts. These patches reoccurred every year. Leaf nitrogen concentration was lower in reddish than in green leaves but the phenomenon seemed similar in both partially dead and control trees. Conclusions The results suggest that red leaf colouration and branch condition are interrelated in Norway maple. Early reddish colours may be used as an indication of leaf nitrogen and carbon levels but not as an indication of tree condition. Studies that concentrate on entire trees may not operate at an optimal level to detect the evolutionary mechanisms behind autumnal leaf colour variation. PMID:18567914

Red reveals branch die-back in Norway maple Acer platanoides.

PubMed

Sinkkonen, Aki

2008-09-01

Physiological data suggest that autumn leaf colours of deciduous trees are adaptations to environmental stress. Recently, the evolution of autumn colouration has been linked to tree condition and defence. Most current hypotheses presume that autumn colours vary between tree individuals. This study was designed to test if within-tree variation should be taken into account in experimental and theoretical research on autumn colouration. Distribution of red autumn leaf colours was compared between partially dead and vigorous specimens of Norway maple (Acer platanoides) in a 3-year study. In August, the amount of reddish foliage was estimated in pairs of partially dead and control trees. Within-tree variation in the distribution of reddish leaves was evaluated. Leaf nitrogen and carbon concentrations were analysed. Reddish leaf colours were more frequent in partially dead trees than in control trees. Reddish leaves were evenly distributed in control trees, while patchiness of red leaf pigments was pronounced in partially dead trees. Large patches of red leaves were found beneath or next to dead tree parts. These patches reoccurred every year. Leaf nitrogen concentration was lower in reddish than in green leaves but the phenomenon seemed similar in both partially dead and control trees. The results suggest that red leaf colouration and branch condition are interrelated in Norway maple. Early reddish colours may be used as an indication of leaf nitrogen and carbon levels but not as an indication of tree condition. Studies that concentrate on entire trees may not operate at an optimal level to detect the evolutionary mechanisms behind autumnal leaf colour variation.

Reconciling leaf physiological traits and canopy flux data: Use of the TRY and FLUXNET databases in the Community Land Model version 4

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bonan, Gordon B.; Oleson, Keith W.; Fisher, Rosie A.; Lasslop, Gitta; Reichstein, Markus

2012-06-01

The Community Land Model version 4 overestimates gross primary production (GPP) compared with estimates from FLUXNET eddy covariance towers. The revised model of Bonan et al. (2011) is consistent with FLUXNET, but values for the leaf-level photosynthetic parameterVcmaxthat yield realistic GPP at the canopy-scale are lower than observed in the global synthesis of Kattge et al. (2009), except for tropical broadleaf evergreen trees. We investigate this discrepancy betweenVcmaxand canopy fluxes. A multilayer model with explicit calculation of light absorption and photosynthesis for sunlit and shaded leaves at depths in the canopy gives insight to the scale mismatch between leaf and canopy. We evaluate the model with light-response curves at individual FLUXNET towers and with empirically upscaled annual GPP. Biases in the multilayer canopy with observedVcmaxare similar, or improved, compared with the standard two-leaf canopy and its lowVcmax, though the Amazon is an exception. The difference relates to light absorption by shaded leaves in the two-leaf canopy, and resulting higher photosynthesis when the canopy scaling parameterKn is low, but observationally constrained. Larger Kndecreases shaded leaf photosynthesis and reduces the difference between the two-leaf and multilayer canopies. The low modelVcmaxis diagnosed from nitrogen reduction of GPP in simulations with carbon-nitrogen biogeochemistry. Our results show that the imposed nitrogen reduction compensates for deficiency in the two-leaf canopy that produces high GPP. Leaf trait databases (Vcmax), within-canopy profiles of photosynthetic capacity (Kn), tower fluxes, and empirically upscaled fields provide important complementary information for model evaluation.

Seasonal variations of leaf and canopy properties tracked by ground-based NDVI imagery in a temperate forest

DOE PAGES

Yang, Hualei; Yang, Xi; Heskel, Mary; ...

2017-04-28

Changes in plant phenology affect the carbon flux of terrestrial forest ecosystems due to the link between the growing season length and vegetation productivity. Digital camera imagery, which can be acquired frequently, has been used to monitor seasonal and annual changes in forest canopy phenology and track critical phenological events. However, quantitative assessment of the structural and biochemical controls of the phenological patterns in camera images has rarely been done. In this study, we used an NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) camera to monitor daily variations of vegetation reflectance at visible and near-infrared (NIR) bands with high spatial and temporalmore » resolutions, and found that the infrared camera based NDVI (camera-NDVI) agreed well with the leaf expansion process that was measured by independent manual observations at Harvard Forest, Massachusetts, USA. We also measured the seasonality of canopy structural (leaf area index, LAI) and biochemical properties (leaf chlorophyll and nitrogen content). Here we found significant linear relationships between camera-NDVI and leaf chlorophyll concentration, and between camera-NDVI and leaf nitrogen content, though weaker relationships between camera-NDVI and LAI. Therefore, we recommend ground-based camera-NDVI as a powerful tool for long-term, near surface observations to monitor canopy development and to estimate leaf chlorophyll, nitrogen status, and LAI.« less

Seasonal variations of leaf and canopy properties tracked by ground-based NDVI imagery in a temperate forest

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yang, Hualei; Yang, Xi; Heskel, Mary

Changes in plant phenology affect the carbon flux of terrestrial forest ecosystems due to the link between the growing season length and vegetation productivity. Digital camera imagery, which can be acquired frequently, has been used to monitor seasonal and annual changes in forest canopy phenology and track critical phenological events. However, quantitative assessment of the structural and biochemical controls of the phenological patterns in camera images has rarely been done. In this study, we used an NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) camera to monitor daily variations of vegetation reflectance at visible and near-infrared (NIR) bands with high spatial and temporalmore » resolutions, and found that the infrared camera based NDVI (camera-NDVI) agreed well with the leaf expansion process that was measured by independent manual observations at Harvard Forest, Massachusetts, USA. We also measured the seasonality of canopy structural (leaf area index, LAI) and biochemical properties (leaf chlorophyll and nitrogen content). Here we found significant linear relationships between camera-NDVI and leaf chlorophyll concentration, and between camera-NDVI and leaf nitrogen content, though weaker relationships between camera-NDVI and LAI. Therefore, we recommend ground-based camera-NDVI as a powerful tool for long-term, near surface observations to monitor canopy development and to estimate leaf chlorophyll, nitrogen status, and LAI.« less

Effects of UV-B radiation on growth, photosynthesis, UV-B-absorbing compounds and NADP-malic enzyme in bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) grown under different nitrogen conditions.

PubMed

Pinto, M E; Casati, P; Hsu, T P; Ku, M S; Edwards, G E

1999-02-01

The effects of UV-B radiation on growth, photosynthesis, UV-B-absorbing compounds and NADP-malic enzyme have been examined in different cultivars of Phaseolous vulgaris L. grown under 1 and 12 mM nitrogen. Low nitrogen nutrition reduces chlorophyll and soluble protein contents in the leaves and thus the photosynthesis rate and dry-matter accumulation. Chlorophyll, soluble protein and Rubisco contents and photosynthesis rate are not significantly altered by ambient levels of UV-B radiation (17 microW m-2, 290-320 nm, 4 h/day for one week). Comparative studies show that under high nitrogen, UV-B radiation slightly enhances leaf expansion and dry-matter accumulation in cultivar Pinto, but inhibits these parameters in Vilmorin. These results suggest that the UV-B effect on growth is mediated through leaf expansion, which is particularly sensitive to UV-B, and that Pinto is more tolerant than Vilmorin. The effect of UV-B radiation on UV-B-absorbing compounds and on NADP-malic enzyme (NADP-ME) activity is also examined. Both UV-B radiation and low-nitrogen nutrition enhance the content of UV-B-absorbing compounds, and among the three cultivars used, Pinto exhibits the highest increases and Arroz the lowest. The same trend is observed for the specific activity and content of NADP-ME. On a leaf-area basis, the amount of UV-B-absorbing compounds is highly correlated with the enzyme activity (r2 = 0.83), suggesting that NADP-ME plays a key role in biosynthesis of these compounds. Furthermore, the higher sensitivity of Vilmorin than Pinto to UV-B radiation appears to be related to the activity of NADP-ME and the capacity of the plants to accumulate UV-B-absorbing compounds.

Connecting Source with Sink: The Role of Arabidopsis AAP8 in Phloem Loading of Amino Acids1[OPEN

PubMed Central

Santiago, James P.; Tegeder, Mechthild

2016-01-01

Allocation of large amounts of nitrogen to developing organs occurs in the phloem and is essential for plant growth and seed development. In Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) and many other plant species, amino acids represent the dominant nitrogen transport forms in the phloem, and they are mainly synthesized in photosynthetically active source leaves. Following their synthesis, a broad spectrum of the amino nitrogen is actively loaded into the phloem of leaf minor veins and transported within the phloem sap to sinks such as developing leaves, fruits, or seeds. Controlled regulation of the source-to-sink transport of amino acids has long been postulated; however, the molecular mechanism of amino acid phloem loading was still unknown. In this study, Arabidopsis AMINO ACID PERMEASE8 (AAP8) was shown to be expressed in the source leaf phloem and localized to the plasma membrane, suggesting its function in phloem loading. This was further supported by transport studies with aap8 mutants fed with radiolabeled amino acids and by leaf exudate analyses. In addition, biochemical and molecular analyses revealed alterations in leaf nitrogen pools and metabolism dependent on the developmental stage of the mutants. Decreased amino acid phloem loading and partitioning to sinks led to decreased silique and seed numbers, but seed protein levels were unchanged, demonstrating the importance of AAP8 function for sink development rather than seed quality. Overall, these results show that AAP8 plays an important role in source-to-sink partitioning of nitrogen and that its function affects source leaf physiology and seed yield. PMID:27016446

Leaf traits and associated ecosystem characteristics across subtropical and timberline forests in the Gongga Mountains, Eastern Tibetan Plateau

Treesearch

Tianxiang Luo; Ji Luo; Yude Pan

2005-01-01

Knowledge of how leaf characteristics might be used to deduce information on ecosystem functioning and how this scaling task could be done is limited. In this study, we present field data for leaf lifespan, specific leaf area (SLA) and mass and area-based leaf nitrogen concentrations (Nmass, Narea) of dominant tree species...

Introgression of two chromosome regions for leaf photosynthesis from an indica rice into the genetic background of a japonica rice

PubMed Central

Hirasawa, Tadashi

2014-01-01

Increases in rates of individual leaf photosynthesis (P n) are critical for future increases of rice yields. A previous study, using introgression lines derived from a cross between indica cultivar Habataki, with one of the highest recorded values of P n, and the Japanese elite cultivar Koshihikari, identified four QTLs (qCAR4, qCAR5, qCAR8, and qCAR11) that affect P n. The present study examined the combined effect of qCAR4 and qCAR8 on P n in the genetic background of Koshihikari. The pyramided near-isogenic line NIL(qCAR4+qCAR8) showed higher P n than both NIL(qCAR4) and NIL(qCAR8), equivalent to that of Habataki despite being due to only two out of the four QTLs. The high P n of NIL(qCAR4+qCAR8) may be attributable to the high leaf nitrogen content, which may have been inherited from NIL(qCAR4), to the large hydraulic conductance due to the large root surface area from NIL(qCAR4), and to the high hydraulic conductivity from NIL(qCAR8). It might be also attributable to high mesophyll conductance, which may have been inherited from NIL(qCAR4). The induction of mesophyll conductance and the high leaf nitrogen content and high hydraulic conductivity could not be explained in isolation from the Koshihikari background. These results suggest that QTL pyramiding is a useful approach in rice breeding aimed at increasing P n. PMID:24591053

Effects of soil compaction, forest leaf litter and nitrogen fertilizer on two oak species and microbial activity

Treesearch

D. Jordan; F., Jr. Ponder; V. C. Hubbard

2003-01-01

A greenhouse study examined the effects of soil compaction and forest leaf litter on the growth and nitrogen (N) uptake and recovery of red oak (Quercus rubra L.) and scarlet oak (Quercus coccinea Muencch) seedlings and selected microbial activity over a 6-month period. The experiment had a randomized complete block design with...

Regulation Effects of Water and Nitrogen on the Source-Sink Relationship in Potato during the Tuber Bulking Stage

PubMed Central

Li, Wenting; Xiong, Binglin; Wang, Shiwen; Deng, Xiping; Yin, Lina; Li, Hongbing

2016-01-01

The source-sink relationship determines crop yield, and it is largely regulated by water and nutrients in agricultural production. This has been widely investigated in cereals, but fewer studies have been conducted in root and tuber crops such as potato (Solanum tuberosum L.). The objective of this study was to investigate the source-sink relationship in potato and the regulation of water and nitrogen on the source-sink relationship during the tuber bulking stage. A pot experiment using virus-free plantlets of the Atlantic potato cultivar was conducted, using three water levels (50%, 70% and 90% of field capacity) and three nitrogen levels (0, 0.2, 0.4 g N∙kg−1 soil). The results showed that, under all water and nitrogen levels, plant source capacity were small at the end of the experiment, since photosynthetic activity in leaves were low and non-structural reserves in underground stems were completely remobilized. While at this time, there were very big differences in maximum and minimum tuber number and tuber weight, indicating that the sink tuber still had a large potential capacity to take in assimilates. These results suggest that the source-supplied assimilates were not sufficient enough to meet the demands of sink growth. Thus, we concluded that, unlike cereals, potato yield is more likely to be source-limited than sink-limited during the tuber bulking stage. Water and nitrogen are two key factors in potato production management. Our results showed that water level, nitrogen level and the interaction between water and nitrogen influence potato yield mainly through affecting source capacity via the net photosynthetic rate, total leaf area and leaf life span. Well-watered, sufficient nitrogen and well-watered combined with sufficient nitrogen increased yield mainly by enhancing the source capacity. Therefore, this suggests that increasing source capacity is more crucial to improve potato yield. PMID:26752657

N-fertilization has different effects on the growth, carbon and nitrogen physiology, and wood properties of slow- and fast-growing Populus species

PubMed Central

Luo, Zhi-Bin

2012-01-01

To investigate how N-fertilization affects the growth, carbon and nitrogen (N) physiology, and wood properties of poplars with contrasting growth characteristics, slow-growing (Populus popularis, Pp) and fast-growing (P. alba×P. glandulosa, Pg) poplar saplings were exposed to different N levels. Above-ground biomass, leaf area, photosynthetic rates (A), instantaneous photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE i), chlorophyll and foliar sugar concentrations were higher in Pg than in Pp. Foliar nitrate reductase (NR) activities and root glutamate synthase (GOGAT) activities were higher in Pg than in Pp as were the N amount and NUE of new shoots. Lignin contents and calorific values of Pg wood were less than that of Pp wood. N-fertilization reduced root biomass of Pg more than of Pp, but increased leaf biomass, leaf area, A, and PNUEi of Pg more than of Pp. Among 13 genes involved in the transport of ammonium or nitrate or in N assimilation, transcripts showed more pronounced changes to N-fertilization in Pg than in Pp. Increases in NR activities and N contents due to N-fertilization were larger in Pg than in Pp. In both species, N-fertilization resulted in lower calorific values as well as shorter and wider vessel elements/fibres. These results suggest that growth, carbon and N physiology, and wood properties are more sensitive to increasing N availability in fast-growing poplars than in slow-growing ones, which is probably due to prioritized resource allocation to the leaves and accelerated N physiological processes in fast-growing poplars under higher N levels. PMID:23028021

N-fertilization has different effects on the growth, carbon and nitrogen physiology, and wood properties of slow- and fast-growing Populus species.

PubMed

Li, Hong; Li, Mengchun; Luo, Jie; Cao, Xu; Qu, Long; Gai, Ying; Jiang, Xiangning; Liu, Tongxian; Bai, Hua; Janz, Dennis; Polle, Andrea; Peng, Changhui; Luo, Zhi-Bin

2012-10-01

To investigate how N-fertilization affects the growth, carbon and nitrogen (N) physiology, and wood properties of poplars with contrasting growth characteristics, slow-growing (Populus popularis, Pp) and fast-growing (P. alba×P. glandulosa, Pg) poplar saplings were exposed to different N levels. Above-ground biomass, leaf area, photosynthetic rates (A), instantaneous photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE (i)), chlorophyll and foliar sugar concentrations were higher in Pg than in Pp. Foliar nitrate reductase (NR) activities and root glutamate synthase (GOGAT) activities were higher in Pg than in Pp as were the N amount and NUE of new shoots. Lignin contents and calorific values of Pg wood were less than that of Pp wood. N-fertilization reduced root biomass of Pg more than of Pp, but increased leaf biomass, leaf area, A, and PNUE(i) of Pg more than of Pp. Among 13 genes involved in the transport of ammonium or nitrate or in N assimilation, transcripts showed more pronounced changes to N-fertilization in Pg than in Pp. Increases in NR activities and N contents due to N-fertilization were larger in Pg than in Pp. In both species, N-fertilization resulted in lower calorific values as well as shorter and wider vessel elements/fibres. These results suggest that growth, carbon and N physiology, and wood properties are more sensitive to increasing N availability in fast-growing poplars than in slow-growing ones, which is probably due to prioritized resource allocation to the leaves and accelerated N physiological processes in fast-growing poplars under higher N levels.

[Estimation and Visualization of Nitrogen Content in Citrus Canopy Based on Two Band Vegetation Index (TBVI)].

PubMed

Wang, Qiao-nan; Ye, Xu-jun; Li, Jin-meng; Xiao, Yu-zhao; He, Yong

2015-03-01

Nitrogen is a necessary and important element for the growth and development of fruit orchards. Timely, accurate and nondestructive monitoring of nitrogen status in fruit orchards would help maintain the fruit quality and efficient production of the orchard, and mitigate the pollution of water resources caused by excessive nitrogen fertilization. This study investigated the capability of hyperspectral imagery for estimating and visualizing the nitrogen content in citrus canopy. Hyperspectral images were obtained for leaf samples in laboratory as well as for the whole canopy in the field with ImSpector V10E (Spectral Imaging Ltd., Oulu, Finland). The spectral datas for each leaf sample were represented by the average spectral data extracted from the selected region of interest (ROI) in the hyperspectral images with the aid of ENVI software. The nitrogen content in each leaf sample was measured by the Dumas combustion method with the rapid N cube (Elementar Analytical, Germany). Simple correlation analysis and the two band vegetation index (TBVI) were then used to develop the spectra data-based nitrogen content prediction models. Results obtained through the formula calculation indicated that the model with the two band vegetation index (TBVI) based on the wavelengths 811 and 856 nm achieved the optimal estimation of nitrogen content in citrus leaves (R2 = 0.607 1). Furthermore, the canopy image for the identified TBVI was calculated, and the nitrogen content of the canopy was visualized by incorporating the model into the TBVI image. The tender leaves, middle-aged leaves and elder leaves showed distinct nitrogen status from highto low-levels in the canopy image. The results suggested the potential of hyperspectral imagery for the nondestructive detection and diagnosis of nitrogen status in citrus canopy in real time. Different from previous studies focused on nitrogen content prediction at leaf level, this study succeeded in predicting and visualizing the nutrient content of fruit trees at canopy level. This would provide valuable information for the implementation of individual tree-based fertilization schemes in precision orchard management practices.

Linking Xylem Hydraulic Conductivity and Vulnerability to the Leaf Economics Spectrum—A Cross-Species Study of 39 Evergreen and Deciduous Broadleaved Subtropical Tree Species

PubMed Central

Kröber, Wenzel; Zhang, Shouren; Ehmig, Merten; Bruelheide, Helge

2014-01-01

While the fundamental trade-off in leaf traits related to carbon capture as described by the leaf economics spectrum is well-established among plant species, the relationship of the leaf economics spectrum to stem hydraulics is much less known. Since carbon capture and transpiration are coupled, a close connection between leaf traits and stem hydraulics should be expected. We thus asked whether xylem traits that describe drought tolerance and vulnerability to cavitation are linked to particular leaf traits. We assessed xylem vulnerability, using the pressure sleeve technique, and anatomical xylem characteristics in 39 subtropical tree species grown under common garden conditions in the BEF-China experiment and tested for correlations with traits related to the leaf economics spectrum as well as to stomatal control, including maximum stomatal conductance, vapor pressure deficit at maximum stomatal conductance and vapor pressure deficit at which stomatal conductance is down-regulated. Our results revealed that specific xylem hydraulic conductivity and cavitation resistance were closely linked to traits represented in the leaf economic spectrum, in particular to leaf nitrogen concentration, as well as to log leaf area and leaf carbon to nitrogen ratio but not to any parameter of stomatal conductance. The study highlights the potential use of well-known leaf traits from the leaf economics spectrum to predict plant species' drought resistance. PMID:25423316

Linking xylem hydraulic conductivity and vulnerability to the leaf economics spectrum--a cross-species study of 39 evergreen and deciduous broadleaved subtropical tree species.

PubMed

Kröber, Wenzel; Zhang, Shouren; Ehmig, Merten; Bruelheide, Helge

2014-01-01

While the fundamental trade-off in leaf traits related to carbon capture as described by the leaf economics spectrum is well-established among plant species, the relationship of the leaf economics spectrum to stem hydraulics is much less known. Since carbon capture and transpiration are coupled, a close connection between leaf traits and stem hydraulics should be expected. We thus asked whether xylem traits that describe drought tolerance and vulnerability to cavitation are linked to particular leaf traits. We assessed xylem vulnerability, using the pressure sleeve technique, and anatomical xylem characteristics in 39 subtropical tree species grown under common garden conditions in the BEF-China experiment and tested for correlations with traits related to the leaf economics spectrum as well as to stomatal control, including maximum stomatal conductance, vapor pressure deficit at maximum stomatal conductance and vapor pressure deficit at which stomatal conductance is down-regulated. Our results revealed that specific xylem hydraulic conductivity and cavitation resistance were closely linked to traits represented in the leaf economic spectrum, in particular to leaf nitrogen concentration, as well as to log leaf area and leaf carbon to nitrogen ratio but not to any parameter of stomatal conductance. The study highlights the potential use of well-known leaf traits from the leaf economics spectrum to predict plant species' drought resistance.

Sward structure and nutritive value of Alexandergrass fertilized with nitrogen.

PubMed

Salvador, Paulo R; Pötter, Luciana; Rocha, Marta G; Hundertmarck, Anelise P; Sichonany, Maria José O; Amaral Neto, Luiz G; Negrini, Mateus; Moterle, Paulo H

2016-03-01

This experiment evaluated forage production, sward structure, stocking rate, weight gain per area and nutritive value of forage as grazed by beef heifers on Alexandergrass (Urochloa plantaginea (Link) Hitch) pasture fertilized with nitrogen (N): 0; 100; 200 or 300 kg of N/ha. The experiment was a completely randomized design following a repeated measurement arrangement. The experimental animals were Angus heifers with initial age and weight of 15 months and 241.5±5 kg, respectively. The grazing method was continuous, with put-and-take stocking. N utilization, regardless of the level, increase by 25% the daily forage accumulation rate and the weight gain per area by 23%. The level of 97.2 kg N/ha leads to a higher leaf blade mass and increases by 20% the leaf:stem ratio. Alterations in sward structure changes the nutritive value of forage as grazed. The utilization of 112.7 kg of N/ha allows the highest stocking rate (2049.8 kg of BW/ha), equivalent to 7.5 heifers per hectare.

Photosynthesis and chlorophyll fluorescence characteristics in relationship to changes in pigment and element composition of leaves of Platanus occidentalis L. during autumnal leaf senescence

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Adams, W.W. III; Winter, K.; Schreiber, U.

1990-04-01

The loss of chlorophyll and total leaf nitrogen during autumnal senescence of leaves from the deciduous tree Platanus occidentalis L. was accompanied by a marked decline in the photosynthetic capacity of O{sub 2} evolution on a leaf area basis. When expressed on a chlorophyll basis, however, the capacity for light- and CO{sub 2}-saturated O{sub 2} evolution did not decline, but rather increased as leaf chlorophyll content decreased. The photon yield of O{sub 2} evolution in white light (400-700 nanometers) declined markedly with decreases in leaf chlorophyll content below 150 milligrams of chlorophyll per square meter on both an incident andmore » an absorbed basis, due largely to the absorption of light by nonphotosynthetic pigments which were not degraded as rapidly as the chlorophylls. Data indicate that the efficiency for photochemical energy conversion of the remaining functional components was maintained at a high level during the natural course of autumnal senescence, and are consistent with previous studies which have characterized leaf senescence as being a controlled process. The loss of chlorophyll during senescence was also accompanied by a decline in fluorescence emanating from PSI, whereas there was little change in PSII fluorescence (measured at 77 Kelvin), presumably due to decreased reabsorption of PSII fluorescence by chlorophyll. Nitrogen was the only element examined to exhibit a decline with senescence on a dry weight basis. However, on a leaf area basis, all elements (C, Ca, K, Mg, N, P, S) declined in senescent leaves, although the contents of sulfur and calcium, which are not easily retranslocated, decreased to the smallest extent.« less

Leaf nitrogen from first principles: field evidence for adaptive variation with climate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dong, Ning; Prentice, Iain Colin; Evans, Bradley J.; Caddy-Retalic, Stefan; Lowe, Andrew J.; Wright, Ian J.

2017-01-01

Nitrogen content per unit leaf area (Narea) is a key variable in plant functional ecology and biogeochemistry. Narea comprises a structural component, which scales with leaf mass per area (LMA), and a metabolic component, which scales with Rubisco capacity. The co-ordination hypothesis, as implemented in LPJ and related global vegetation models, predicts that Rubisco capacity should be directly proportional to irradiance but should decrease with increases in ci : ca and temperature because the amount of Rubisco required to achieve a given assimilation rate declines with increases in both. We tested these predictions using LMA, leaf δ13C, and leaf N measurements on complete species assemblages sampled at sites on a north-south transect from tropical to temperate Australia. Partial effects of mean canopy irradiance, mean annual temperature, and ci : ca (from δ13C) on Narea were all significant and their directions and magnitudes were in line with predictions. Over 80 % of the variance in community-mean (ln) Narea was accounted for by these predictors plus LMA. Moreover, Narea could be decomposed into two components, one proportional to LMA (slightly steeper in N-fixers), and the other to Rubisco capacity as predicted by the co-ordination hypothesis. Trait gradient analysis revealed ci : ca to be perfectly plastic, while species turnover contributed about half the variation in LMA and Narea. Interest has surged in methods to predict continuous leaf-trait variation from environmental factors, in order to improve ecosystem models. Coupled carbon-nitrogen models require a method to predict Narea that is more realistic than the widespread assumptions that Narea is proportional to photosynthetic capacity, and/or that Narea (and photosynthetic capacity) are determined by N supply from the soil. Our results indicate that Narea has a useful degree of predictability, from a combination of LMA and ci : ca - themselves in part environmentally determined - with Rubisco activity, as predicted from local growing conditions. This finding is consistent with a plant-centred approach to modelling, emphasizing the adaptive regulation of traits. Models that account for biodiversity will also need to partition community-level trait variation into components due to phenotypic plasticity and/or genotypic differentiation within species vs. progressive species replacement, along environmental gradients. Our analysis suggests that variation in Narea is about evenly split between these two modes.

Is leaf dry matter content a better predictor of soil fertility than specific leaf area?

PubMed Central

Hodgson, J. G.; Montserrat-Martí, G.; Charles, M.; Jones, G.; Wilson, P.; Shipley, B.; Sharafi, M.; Cerabolini, B. E. L.; Cornelissen, J. H. C.; Band, S. R.; Bogard, A.; Castro-Díez, P.; Guerrero-Campo, J.; Palmer, C.; Pérez-Rontomé, M. C.; Carter, G.; Hynd, A.; Romo-Díez, A.; de Torres Espuny, L.; Royo Pla, F.

2011-01-01

Background and Aims Specific leaf area (SLA), a key element of the ‘worldwide leaf economics spectrum’, is the preferred ‘soft’ plant trait for assessing soil fertility. SLA is a function of leaf dry matter content (LDMC) and leaf thickness (LT). The first, LDMC, defines leaf construction costs and can be used instead of SLA. However, LT identifies shade at its lowest extreme and succulence at its highest, and is not related to soil fertility. Why then is SLA more frequently used as a predictor of soil fertility than LDMC? Methods SLA, LDMC and LT were measured and leaf density (LD) estimated for almost 2000 species, and the capacity of LD to predict LDMC was examined, as was the relative contribution of LDMC and LT to the expression of SLA. Subsequently, the relationships between SLA, LDMC and LT with respect to soil fertility and shade were described. Key Results Although LD is strongly related to LDMC, and LDMC and LT each contribute equally to the expression of SLA, the exact relationships differ between ecological groupings. LDMC predicts leaf nitrogen content and soil fertility but, because LT primarily varies with light intensity, SLA increases in response to both increased shade and increased fertility. Conclusions Gradients of soil fertility are frequently also gradients of biomass accumulation with reduced irradiance lower in the canopy. Therefore, SLA, which includes both fertility and shade components, may often discriminate better between communities or treatments than LDMC. However, LDMC should always be the preferred trait for assessing gradients of soil fertility uncoupled from shade. Nevertheless, because leaves multitask, individual leaf traits do not necessarily exhibit exact functional equivalence between species. In consequence, rather than using a single stand-alone predictor, multivariate analyses using several leaf traits is recommended. PMID:21948627

Is leaf dry matter content a better predictor of soil fertility than specific leaf area?

PubMed

Hodgson, J G; Montserrat-Martí, G; Charles, M; Jones, G; Wilson, P; Shipley, B; Sharafi, M; Cerabolini, B E L; Cornelissen, J H C; Band, S R; Bogard, A; Castro-Díez, P; Guerrero-Campo, J; Palmer, C; Pérez-Rontomé, M C; Carter, G; Hynd, A; Romo-Díez, A; de Torres Espuny, L; Royo Pla, F

2011-11-01

Specific leaf area (SLA), a key element of the 'worldwide leaf economics spectrum', is the preferred 'soft' plant trait for assessing soil fertility. SLA is a function of leaf dry matter content (LDMC) and leaf thickness (LT). The first, LDMC, defines leaf construction costs and can be used instead of SLA. However, LT identifies shade at its lowest extreme and succulence at its highest, and is not related to soil fertility. Why then is SLA more frequently used as a predictor of soil fertility than LDMC? SLA, LDMC and LT were measured and leaf density (LD) estimated for almost 2000 species, and the capacity of LD to predict LDMC was examined, as was the relative contribution of LDMC and LT to the expression of SLA. Subsequently, the relationships between SLA, LDMC and LT with respect to soil fertility and shade were described. Although LD is strongly related to LDMC, and LDMC and LT each contribute equally to the expression of SLA, the exact relationships differ between ecological groupings. LDMC predicts leaf nitrogen content and soil fertility but, because LT primarily varies with light intensity, SLA increases in response to both increased shade and increased fertility. Gradients of soil fertility are frequently also gradients of biomass accumulation with reduced irradiance lower in the canopy. Therefore, SLA, which includes both fertility and shade components, may often discriminate better between communities or treatments than LDMC. However, LDMC should always be the preferred trait for assessing gradients of soil fertility uncoupled from shade. Nevertheless, because leaves multitask, individual leaf traits do not necessarily exhibit exact functional equivalence between species. In consequence, rather than using a single stand-alone predictor, multivariate analyses using several leaf traits is recommended.

Intra-Specific Latitudinal Clines in Leaf Carbon, Nitrogen, and Phosphorus and their Underlying Abiotic Correlates in Ruellia Nudiflora.

PubMed

Abdala-Roberts, Luis; Covelo, Felisa; Parra-Tabla, Víctor; Terán, Jorge C Berny Mier Y; Mooney, Kailen A; Moreira, Xoaquín

2018-01-12

While plant intra-specific variation in the stoichiometry of nutrients and carbon is well documented, clines for such traits have been less studied, despite their potential to reveal the mechanisms underlying such variation. Here we analyze latitudinal variation in the concentration of leaf nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), carbon (C) and their ratios across 30 populations of the perennial herb Ruellia nudiflora. In addition, we further determined whether climatic and soil variables underlie any such latitudinal clines in leaf traits. The sampled transect spanned 5° latitude (ca. 900 km) and exhibited a four-fold precipitation gradient and 2 °C variation in mean annual temperature. We found that leaf P concentration increased with precipitation towards lower latitudes, whereas N and C did not exhibit latitudinal clines. In addition, N:P and C:P decreased towards lower latitudes and latitudinal variation in the former was weakly associated with soil conditions (clay content and cation exchange capacity); C:N did not exhibit a latitudinal gradient. Overall, these results emphasize the importance of addressing and disentangling the simultaneous effects of abiotic factors associated with intra-specific clines in plant stoichiometric traits, and highlight the previously underappreciated influence of abiotic factors on plant nutrients operating under sharp abiotic gradients over smaller spatial scales.

Relationships between phenology and the remobilization of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in branches of eight Mediterranean evergreens.

PubMed

Milla, R; Castro-Díez, P; Maestro-Martínez, M; Montserrat-Martí, G

2005-10-01

Few studies have examined the effects of plant growth on nutrient remobilization in phenologically contrasting species. Here we evaluated the consequences of above-ground seasonality of growth and leaf shedding on the remobilization of nutrients from branches in eight evergreen Mediterranean phanaerophytes that differ widely in phenology. Vegetative growth, flower bud formation, flowering, fruiting, leaf shedding, and the variations in nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) pools in branches throughout the year were monitored in each species. Nitrogen and P remobilization occurred in summer, after vegetative growth and synchronously with leaf shedding. Despite the time-lag between growth and remobilization, the branches that invested more nutrients in vegetative growth also remobilized more nutrients from their old organs. Potassium remobilization peaked in the climatically harshest periods, and appears to be related to osmotic requirements. We conclude that N and P remobilization occurs mainly associated with leaf senescence, which might be triggered by factors such as the replenishment of nutrient reserves in woody organs, the hormonal relations between new and old leaves, or the constraints that summer drought poses on the amount of leaf area per branch in summer.

Modeling forest stand dynamics from optimal balances of carbon and nitrogen

Treesearch

Harry T. Valentine; Annikki Makela

2012-01-01

We formulate a dynamic evolutionary optimization problem to predict the optimal pattern by which carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) are co-allocated to fine-root, leaf, and wood production, with the objective of maximizing height growth rate, year by year, in an even-aged stand. Height growth is maximized with respect to two adaptive traits, leaf N concentration and the ratio...

Warming increases the sensitivity of seedling growth capacity to rainfall in six temperate deciduous tree species

PubMed Central

Smith, Nicholas G; Hoeppner, Susanne S; Dukes, Jeffrey S

2018-01-01

Abstract Predicting the effects of climate change on tree species and communities is critical for understanding the future state of our forested ecosystems. We used a fully factorial precipitation (three levels; ambient, −50 % ambient, +50 % ambient) by warming (four levels; up to +4 °C) experiment in an old-field ecosystem in the northeastern USA to study the climatic sensitivity of seedlings of six native tree species. We measured whole plant-level responses: survival, total leaf area (TLA), seedling insect herbivory damage, as well as leaf-level responses: specific leaf area (SLA), leaf-level water content (LWC), foliar nitrogen (N) concentration, foliar carbon (C) concentration and C:N ratio of each of these deciduous species in each treatment across a single growing season. We found that canopy warming dramatically increased the sensitivity of plant growth (measured as TLA) to rainfall across all species. Warm, dry conditions consistently reduced TLA and also reduced leaf C:N in four species (Acer rubrum, Betula lenta, Prunus serotina, Ulmus americana), primarily as a result of reduced foliar C, not increased foliar N. Interestingly, these conditions also harmed the other two species in different ways, increasing either mortality (Populus grandidentata) or herbivory (Quercus rubra). Specific leaf area and LWC varied across species, but did not show strong treatment responses. Our results indicate that, in the northeastern USA, dry years in a future warmer environment could have damaging effects on the growth capacity of these early secondary successional forests, through species-specific effects on leaf production (total leaves and leaf C), herbivory and mortality. PMID:29484151

Fine Mapping of Carbon Assimilation Rate 8, a Quantitative Trait Locus for Flag Leaf Nitrogen Content, Stomatal Conductance and Photosynthesis in Rice

PubMed Central

Adachi, Shunsuke; Yoshikawa, Kazuaki; Yamanouchi, Utako; Tanabata, Takanari; Sun, Jian; Ookawa, Taiichiro; Yamamoto, Toshio; Sage, Rowan F.; Hirasawa, Tadashi; Yonemaru, Junichi

2017-01-01

Increasing the rate of leaf photosynthesis is one important approach for increasing grain yield in rice (Oryza sativa). Exploiting the natural variation in CO2 assimilation rate (A) between rice cultivars using quantitative genetics is one promising means to identify genes contributing to higher photosynthesis. In this study, we determined precise location of Carbon Assimilation Rate 8 (CAR8) by crossing a high-yielding indica cultivar with a Japanese commercial cultivar. Fine mapping suggested that CAR8 encodes a putative Heme Activator Protein 3 (OsHAP3) subunit of a CCAAT-box-binding transcription factor called OsHAP3H. Sequencing analysis revealed that the indica allele of CAR8 has a 1-bp deletion at 322 bp from the start codon, resulting in a truncated protein of 125 amino acids. In addition, CAR8 is identical to DTH8/Ghd8/LHD1, which was reported to control rice flowering date. The increase of A is largely due to an increase of RuBP regeneration rate via increased leaf nitrogen content, and partially explained by reduced stomatal limitation via increased stomatal conductance relative to A. This allele also increases hydraulic conductivity, which would promote higher stomatal conductance. This indicates that CAR8 affects multiple physiological aspects relating to photosynthesis. The detailed analysis of molecular functions of CAR8 would help to understand the association between photosynthesis and flowering and demonstrate specific genetic mechanisms that can be exploited to improve photosynthesis in rice and potentially other crops. PMID:28197156

Nitrogen recycling from the xylem in rice leaves: dependence upon metabolism and associated changes in xylem hydraulics

PubMed Central

Bailey, Karen J.

2016-01-01

Measurements of amino acids in the guttation fluid and in the xylem exudates of cut leaves from intact plants provide evidence of the remarkable efficiency with which these nitrogenous compounds are reabsorbed from the xylem sap. This could be achieved by mechanisms involving intercellular transport and/or metabolism. Developmental changes in transcripts and protein showed that transcripts for phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK) increased from the base to the leaf tip, and were markedly increased by supplying asparagine. Supplying amino acids also increased the amounts of protein of PEPCK and, to a lesser extent, of pyruvate, Pi dikinase. PEPCK is present in the hydathodes, stomata and vascular parenchyma of rice leaves. Evidence for the role of PEPCK was obtained by using 3-mercaptopicolinic acid (MPA), a specific inhibitor of PEPCK, and by using an activation-tagged rice line that had an increase in PEPCK activity, to show that activation of PEPCK resulted in a decrease in N in the guttation fluid and that treatment by MPA resulted in an increase in amino acids in the guttation fluid and xylem sap towards the leaf tip. Furthermore, increasing PEPCK activity decreased the amount of guttation fluid, whereas decreasing PEPCK activity increased the amount of xylem sap or guttation fluid towards the leaf tip. The findings suggest the following hypotheses: (i) both metabolism and transport are involved in xylem recycling and (ii) excess N is the signal involved in modulating xylem hydraulics, perhaps via nutrient regulation of water-transporting aquaporins. Water relations and vascular metabolism and transport are thus intimately linked. PMID:27053722

Do the rich always become richer? Characterizing the leaf physiological response of the high-yielding rice cultivar Takanari to free-air CO2 enrichment.

PubMed

Chen, Charles P; Sakai, Hidemitsu; Tokida, Takeshi; Usui, Yasuhiro; Nakamura, Hirofumi; Hasegawa, Toshihiro

2014-02-01

The development of crops which are well suited to growth under future environmental conditions such as higher atmospheric CO2 concentrations ([CO2]) is essential to meeting the challenge of ensuring food security in the face of the growing human population and changing climate. A high-yielding indica rice variety (Oryza sativa L. cv. Takanari) has been recently identified as a potential candidate for such breeding, due to its high productivity in present [CO2]. To test if it could further increase its productivity under elevated [CO2] (eCO2), Takanari was grown in the paddy field under season-long free-air CO2 enrichment (FACE, approximately 200 µmol mol(-1) above ambient [CO2]) and its leaf physiology was compared with the representative japonica variety 'Koshihikari'. Takanari showed consistently higher midday photosynthesis and stomatal conductance than Koshihikari under both ambient and FACE growth conditions over 2 years. Maximum ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylation and electron transport rates were higher for Takanari at the mid-grain filling stage in both years. Mesophyll conductance was higher in Takanari than in Koshihikari at the late grain-filling stage. In contrast to Koshihikari, Takanari grown under FACE conditions showed no decrease in total leaf nitrogen on an area basis relative to ambient-grown plants. Chl content was higher in Takanari than in Koshihikari at the same leaf nitrogen level. These results indicate that Takanari maintains its superiority over Koshihikari in regards to its leaf-level productivity when grown in elevated [CO2] and it may be a valuable resource for rice breeding programs which seek to increase crop productivity under current and future [CO2].

Do the Rich Always Become Richer? Characterizing the Leaf Physiological Response of the High-Yielding Rice Cultivar Takanari to Free-Air CO2 Enrichment

PubMed Central

Chen, Charles P.; Sakai, Hidemitsu; Tokida, Takeshi; Usui, Yasuhiro; Nakamura, Hirofumi; Hasegawa, Toshihiro

2014-01-01

The development of crops which are well suited to growth under future environmental conditions such as higher atmospheric CO2 concentrations ([CO2]) is essential to meeting the challenge of ensuring food security in the face of the growing human population and changing climate. A high-yielding indica rice variety (Oryza sativa L. cv. Takanari) has been recently identified as a potential candidate for such breeding, due to its high productivity in present [CO2]. To test if it could further increase its productivity under elevated [CO2] (eCO2), Takanari was grown in the paddy field under season-long free-air CO2 enrichment (FACE, approximately 200 µmol mol−1 above ambient [CO2]) and its leaf physiology was compared with the representative japonica variety ‘Koshihikari’. Takanari showed consistently higher midday photosynthesis and stomatal conductance than Koshihikari under both ambient and FACE growth conditions over 2 years. Maximum ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylation and electron transport rates were higher for Takanari at the mid-grain filling stage in both years. Mesophyll conductance was higher in Takanari than in Koshihikari at the late grain-filling stage. In contrast to Koshihikari, Takanari grown under FACE conditions showed no decrease in total leaf nitrogen on an area basis relative to ambient-grown plants. Chl content was higher in Takanari than in Koshihikari at the same leaf nitrogen level. These results indicate that Takanari maintains its superiority over Koshihikari in regards to its leaf-level productivity when grown in elevated [CO2] and it may be a valuable resource for rice breeding programs which seek to increase crop productivity under current and future [CO2]. PMID:24443497

The penalty of a long, hot summer. Photosynthetic acclimation to high CO2 and continuous light in "living fossil" conifers.

PubMed

Osborne, Colin P; Beerling, David J

2003-10-01

Deciduous forests covered the ice-free polar regions 280 to 40 million years ago under warm "greenhouse" climates and high atmospheric pCO2. Their deciduous habit is frequently interpreted as an adaptation for minimizing carbon losses during winter, but experiments with "living fossils" in a simulated warm polar environment refute this explanation. Measured carbon losses through leaf abscission of deciduous trees are significantly greater than losses through winter respiration in evergreens, yet annual rates of primary productivity are similar in all species. Here, we investigate mechanisms underlying this apparent paradox by measuring the seasonal patterns of leaf photosynthesis (A) under pCO2 enrichment in the same trees. During spring, A increased significantly in coastal redwood (Sequoia sempervirens), dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides), and swamp cypress (Taxodium distichum) at an elevated pCO2 of 80 Pa compared with controls at 40 Pa. However, strong acclimation in Rubisco carboxylation capacity (Vc,max) completely offset the CO2 response of A in all species by the end of 6 weeks of continuous illumination in the simulated polar summer. Further measurements demonstrated the temporary nature of acclimation, with increases in Vc,max during autumn restoring the CO2 sensitivity of A. Contrary to expectations, the acclimation of Vc,max was not always accompanied by accumulation of leaf carbohydrates, but was associated with a decline in leaf nitrogen in summer, suggesting an alteration of the balance in plant sources and sinks for carbon and nitrogen. Preliminary calculations using A indicated that winter carbon losses through deciduous leaf abscission and respiration were recovered by 10 to 25 d of canopy carbon fixation during summer, thereby explaining the productivity paradox.

The Penalty of a Long, Hot Summer. Photosynthetic Acclimation to High CO2 and Continuous Light in “Living Fossil” Conifers1

PubMed Central

Osborne, Colin P.; Beerling, David J.

2003-01-01

Deciduous forests covered the ice-free polar regions 280 to 40 million years ago under warm “greenhouse” climates and high atmospheric pCO2. Their deciduous habit is frequently interpreted as an adaptation for minimizing carbon losses during winter, but experiments with “living fossils” in a simulated warm polar environment refute this explanation. Measured carbon losses through leaf abscission of deciduous trees are significantly greater than losses through winter respiration in evergreens, yet annual rates of primary productivity are similar in all species. Here, we investigate mechanisms underlying this apparent paradox by measuring the seasonal patterns of leaf photosynthesis (A) under pCO2 enrichment in the same trees. During spring, A increased significantly in coastal redwood (Sequoia sempervirens), dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides), and swamp cypress (Taxodium distichum) at an elevated pCO2 of 80 Pa compared with controls at 40 Pa. However, strong acclimation in Rubisco carboxylation capacity (Vc,max) completely offset the CO2 response of A in all species by the end of 6 weeks of continuous illumination in the simulated polar summer. Further measurements demonstrated the temporary nature of acclimation, with increases in Vc,max during autumn restoring the CO2 sensitivity of A. Contrary to expectations, the acclimation of Vc,max was not always accompanied by accumulation of leaf carbohydrates, but was associated with a decline in leaf nitrogen in summer, suggesting an alteration of the balance in plant sources and sinks for carbon and nitrogen. Preliminary calculations using A indicated that winter carbon losses through deciduous leaf abscission and respiration were recovered by 10 to 25 d of canopy carbon fixation during summer, thereby explaining the productivity paradox. PMID:12972654

[Photosynthetic physiological adaptabilities of Pinus tabulaeformis and Robinia pseudoacacia in the Loess Plateau].

PubMed

Zheng, Shu-xia; Shangguan, Zhou-ping

2007-01-01

With Yangling, Yongshou, Fuxian, Ansai, Mizhi and Shenmu, the s ix counties from the south to the north in the Loess Plateau as study sites, this paper studied thoe photosynthetic charac teristics and leaf traits of Pinus tabulaeformis and Robinia pseudoacacia. The results showed that among the six sites, there were significant differences in the photosynthetic rate (Pn), photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE), water use efficiency (WUE), leaf mass per area (LMA), nitrogen content (Nmass), and chlorophyll content (Chl) of P. tabulaeformis and R. pseudoacacia, suggesting that the photosynthetic capacity and leaf traits of the two species differed with sites. From the south to the north, the Pn, PNUE and WUE of P. tabulaeformis increased slightly while those of R. pseudoacacia decreased significantly, indicating that in drought habitat, P. tabulaef6rmis could still maintain high photosynthetic capacity, hut the photosynthetic capacity of R. pseudoacacia was greatly restrained. Also from the south to the north, the LMA of P. tabulaeformis and R. pseudoacacia had a slight increasing trend, while Nmass and Chl decreased slightly. The variation ranges of the three parameters were greater for R. pseudoacacia than for P. tabulaeformis, indicating that P. tabulaeformis had stronger drought-tolerant capability than R. pseudoacacia, which was not only exhibited in physiological metabolism, but also in leaf morphological acclimation. The correlation analysis between photosynthetic parameters and leaf traits of P. tabulaeformis and R. pseudoacacia in the six sites showed that there was a significant negative correlation between LMA and Nmass. The Pn and PNUE of both test species had no correlations with LMA and Nmass, but had significant positive correlation with Chl. The WUE of the species was negatively correlated with LMA, but positively correlated with Nmass.

Blade life span, structural investment, and nutrient allocation in giant kelp.

PubMed

Rodriguez, Gabriel E; Reed, Daniel C; Holbrook, Sally J

2016-10-01

The turnover of plant biomass largely determines the amount of energy flowing through an ecosystem and understanding the processes that regulate turnover has been of interest to ecologists for decades. Leaf life span theory has proven useful in explaining patterns of leaf turnover in relation to resource availability, but the predictions of this theory have not been tested for macroalgae. We measured blade life span, size, thickness, nitrogen content, pigment content, and maximum photosynthetic rate (P max) in the giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) along a strong resource (light) gradient to test whether the predictions of leaf life span theory applied to this alga. We found that shorter blade life spans and larger blade areas were associated with increased light availability. In addition, nitrogen and P max decreased with blade age, and their decrease was greater in shorter lived blades. These observations are generally consistent with patterns observed for higher plants and the prevailing theory of leaf life span. By contrast, variation observed in pigments of giant kelp was inconsistent with that predicted by leaf life span theory, as blades growing in the most heavily shaded portion of the forest had the lowest chlorophyll content. This result may reflect the dual role of macroalgal blades in carbon fixation and nutrient absorption and the ability of giant kelp to modify blade physiology to optimize the acquisition of light and nutrients. Thus, the marine environment may place demands on resource acquisition and allocation that have not been previously considered with respect to leaf life span optimization.

Relationships between Community Level Functional Traits of Trees and Seedlings during Secondary Succession in a Tropical Lowland Rainforest.

PubMed

Lu, XingHui; Zang, RunGuo; Huang, JiHong

2015-01-01

Most of the previous studies on functional traits focus exclusively on either seedlings or trees. Little knowledge exists on the relationships between community level functional traits of trees and seedlings during succession. Here, we examine variations of the community-level functional traits for trees and seedlings and their correlations along a secondary successional and environmental gradient in a tropical lowland rainforest after shifting cultivation. The results showed that the dynamic patterns in community level functional traits of seedlings were generally consistent with those of the trees during secondary succession. Compared with seedlings, community level traits for trees were less affected by abiotic factors during secondary succession. Correlations between community level functional traits of trees and seedlings were significant for: leaf dry matter content and leaf nitrogen concentration in the 18-year-old fallow; leaf chlorophyll content in the 30-year-old fallow; specific leaf area, leaf dry matter content and leaf nitrogen concentration in the 60-year-old fallow; and leaf nitrogen concentration in old growth. However, these traits except specific leaf area for the tree and seedling communities were all significantly correlated if all the successional stages were combined. Our results suggest that the correlations between community level functional traits of trees and those of seedlings depend on the actual traits and the successional stages examined. However, if all the four successional stages are combined, then four out of five of the community level functional traits for trees could be well predicted by those of the seedlings in the tropical lowland rain forest.

Relationships between Community Level Functional Traits of Trees and Seedlings during Secondary Succession in a Tropical Lowland Rainforest

PubMed Central

Lu, XingHui; Zang, RunGuo; Huang, JiHong

2015-01-01

Most of the previous studies on functional traits focus exclusively on either seedlings or trees. Little knowledge exists on the relationships between community level functional traits of trees and seedlings during succession. Here, we examine variations of the community-level functional traits for trees and seedlings and their correlations along a secondary successional and environmental gradient in a tropical lowland rainforest after shifting cultivation. The results showed that the dynamic patterns in community level functional traits of seedlings were generally consistent with those of the trees during secondary succession. Compared with seedlings, community level traits for trees were less affected by abiotic factors during secondary succession. Correlations between community level functional traits of trees and seedlings were significant for: leaf dry matter content and leaf nitrogen concentration in the 18-year-old fallow; leaf chlorophyll content in the 30-year-old fallow; specific leaf area, leaf dry matter content and leaf nitrogen concentration in the 60-year-old fallow; and leaf nitrogen concentration in old growth. However, these traits except specific leaf area for the tree and seedling communities were all significantly correlated if all the successional stages were combined. Our results suggest that the correlations between community level functional traits of trees and those of seedlings depend on the actual traits and the successional stages examined. However, if all the four successional stages are combined, then four out of five of the community level functional traits for trees could be well predicted by those of the seedlings in the tropical lowland rain forest. PMID:26172543

A global trait-based approach to estimate leaf nitrogen functional allocation from observations

DOE PAGES

Ghimire, Bardan; Riley, William J.; Koven, Charles D.; ...

2017-03-28

Nitrogen is one of the most important nutrients for plant growth and a major constituent of proteins that regulate photosynthetic and respiratory processes. However, a comprehensive global analysis of nitrogen allocation in leaves for major processes with respect to different plant functional types is currently lacking. This study integrated observations from global databases with photosynthesis and respiration models to determine plant-functional-type-specific allocation patterns of leaf nitrogen for photosynthesis (Rubisco, electron transport, light absorption) and respiration (growth and maintenance), and by difference from observed total leaf nitrogen, an unexplained “residual” nitrogen pool. Based on our analysis, crops partition the largest fractionmore » of nitrogen to photosynthesis (57%) and respiration (5%) followed by herbaceous plants (44% and 4%). Tropical broadleaf evergreen trees partition the least to photosynthesis (25%) and respiration (2%) followed by needle-leaved evergreen trees (28% and 3%). In trees (especially needle-leaved evergreen and tropical broadleaf evergreen trees) a large fraction (70% and 73% respectively) of nitrogen was not explained by photosynthetic or respiratory functions. Compared to crops and herbaceous plants, this large residual pool is hypothesized to emerge from larger investments in cell wall proteins, lipids, amino acids, nucleic acid, CO2 fixation proteins (other than Rubisco), secondary compounds, and other proteins. Our estimates are different from previous studies due to differences in methodology and assumptions used in deriving nitrogen allocation estimates. Unlike previous studies, we integrate and infer nitrogen allocation estimates across multiple plant functional types, and report substantial differences in nitrogen allocation across different plant functional types. Furthermore, the resulting pattern of nitrogen allocation provides insights on mechanisms that operate at a cellular scale within leaves, and can be integrated with ecosystem models to derive emergent properties of ecosystem productivity at local, regional, and global scales.« less

A global trait-based approach to estimate leaf nitrogen functional allocation from observations

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ghimire, Bardan; Riley, William J.; Koven, Charles D.

Nitrogen is one of the most important nutrients for plant growth and a major constituent of proteins that regulate photosynthetic and respiratory processes. However, a comprehensive global analysis of nitrogen allocation in leaves for major processes with respect to different plant functional types is currently lacking. This study integrated observations from global databases with photosynthesis and respiration models to determine plant-functional-type-specific allocation patterns of leaf nitrogen for photosynthesis (Rubisco, electron transport, light absorption) and respiration (growth and maintenance), and by difference from observed total leaf nitrogen, an unexplained “residual” nitrogen pool. Based on our analysis, crops partition the largest fractionmore » of nitrogen to photosynthesis (57%) and respiration (5%) followed by herbaceous plants (44% and 4%). Tropical broadleaf evergreen trees partition the least to photosynthesis (25%) and respiration (2%) followed by needle-leaved evergreen trees (28% and 3%). In trees (especially needle-leaved evergreen and tropical broadleaf evergreen trees) a large fraction (70% and 73% respectively) of nitrogen was not explained by photosynthetic or respiratory functions. Compared to crops and herbaceous plants, this large residual pool is hypothesized to emerge from larger investments in cell wall proteins, lipids, amino acids, nucleic acid, CO2 fixation proteins (other than Rubisco), secondary compounds, and other proteins. Our estimates are different from previous studies due to differences in methodology and assumptions used in deriving nitrogen allocation estimates. Unlike previous studies, we integrate and infer nitrogen allocation estimates across multiple plant functional types, and report substantial differences in nitrogen allocation across different plant functional types. Furthermore, the resulting pattern of nitrogen allocation provides insights on mechanisms that operate at a cellular scale within leaves, and can be integrated with ecosystem models to derive emergent properties of ecosystem productivity at local, regional, and global scales.« less

Simple Assessment of Nitrogen Nutrition Index in Summer Maize by Using Chlorophyll Meter Readings.

PubMed

Zhao, Ben; Ata-Ul-Karim, Syed Tahir; Liu, Zhandong; Zhang, Jiyang; Xiao, Junfu; Liu, Zugui; Qin, Anzhen; Ning, Dongfeng; Yang, Qiuxia; Zhang, Yonghui; Duan, Aiwang

2018-01-01

Rapid and non-destructive diagnostic tools to accurately assess crop nitrogen nutrition index (NNI) are imperative for improving crop nitrogen (N) diagnosis and sustaining crop production. This study was aimed to develop the relationships among NNI, leaf N gradient, chlorophyll meter (CM) readings gradient, and positional differences chlorophyll meter index [PDCMI, the ratio of CM readings between different leaf layers (LLs) of crop canopy] and to validate the accuracy and stability of these relationships across the different LLs, years, sites, and cultivars. Six multi-N rates (0-320 kg ha -1 ) field experiments were conducted with four summer maize cultivars (Zhengdan958, Denghai605, Xundan20, and Denghai661) at two different sites located in China. Six summer maize plants per plot were harvested at each sampling stage to assess NNI, leaf N concentration and CM readings of different LLs during the vegetative growth period. The results showed that the leaf N gradient, CM readings gradient and PDCMI of different LLs decreased, while the NNI values increased with increasing N supply. The leaf N gradient and CM readings gradient increased gradually from top to bottom of the canopy and CM readings of the bottom LL were more sensitive to changes in plant N concentration. The significantly positive relationship between NNI and CM readings of different LLs ( LL 1 to LL 3) was observed, yet these relationships varied across the years. In contrast, the relationships between NNI and PDCMI of different LLs ( LL 1 to LL 3) were significantly negative. The strongest relationship between PDCMI and NNI which was stable across the cultivars and years was observed for PDCMI1-3 (NNI = -5.74 × PDCMI1-3+1.5, R 2 = 0.76 ** ). Additionally, the models developed in this study were validated with the data acquired from two independent experiments to assess their accuracy of prediction. The root mean square error value of 0.1 indicated that the most accurate and robust relationship was observed between PDCMI1-3 and NNI. The projected results would help to develop a simple, non-destructive and reliable approach to accurately assess the crop N status for precisely managing N application during the growth period of summer maize crop.

The effect of chaya (Cnidoscolus aconitifolius) leaf meal and of exogenous enzymes on amino acid digestibility in broilers.

PubMed

Sarmiento-Franco, L; McNab, J M; Pearson, A; Belmar-Casso, R

2003-07-01

1. The apparent ileal nitrogen (N) and amino acid digestibilities in chaya leaf meal (CLM) (Cnidoscolus aconitifolius) with added enzymes, and the same variables in diets containing different amounts of CLM were studied in chickens. 2. In the first experiment pectinase, beta-glucanase, and pectinase + beta-glucanase were added to CLM. In the second experiment, there were three diets based on maize and soybean: 0, 150 and 250 g/kg CLM. 3. Pectinase significantly increased both lysine and overall amino acid digestibilities in CLM. 4. In experiment 2, the amino acid digestibility in birds fed on CLM250 was lower than that from birds fed on either control or CLM150. Only the digestibilities of alanine, arginine and proline were lower in birds fed on CLM150 than in those fed on the control diet. Nitrogen digestibility was lower in birds fed on the CLM250 diet than on either control or CLM150 diets. These findings were attributed to the increasing concentration of fibre with increasing dietary CLM.

Ecophysiological responses of a young blue gum (Eucalyptus globulus) plantation to weed control.

PubMed

Eyles, Alieta; Worledge, Dale; Sands, Peter; Ottenschlaeger, Maria L; Paterson, Steve C; Mendham, Daniel; O'Grady, Anthony P

2012-08-01

Early weed control may improve the growth of forest plantations by influencing soil water and nutrient availability. To understand eucalypt growth responses to weed control, we examined the temporal responses of leaf gas-exchange, leaf nitrogen concentration (N) and water status of 7-month-old Eucalyptus globulus L. trees in a paired-plot field trial. In addition, we monitored the growth, leaf N and water status of the competing vegetation in the weed treatment. By the end of the 11-month experiment, complete weed control (WF treatment) of largely woody competitors increased the basal diameter of E. globulus by 14%. As indicated by pre-dawn water potentials of > - 0.05 MPa, interspecies competition for water resources was minimal at this site. In contrast, competition for N appeared to be the major factor limiting growth. Estimations of total plot leaf N (g m(-2) ground) showed that competing vegetation accounted for up to 70% of the total leaf N at the start of the trial. This value fell to 15% by the end of the trial. Despite increased leaf N(area) in WF trees 5 months after imposition of weed control, the photosynthetic capacity (A(1500)) of E. globulus was unaffected by treatment suggesting that the growth gains from weed control were largely unrelated to changes in leaf-level photosynthesis. Increased nutrient availability brought about by weed control enabled trees to increase investment into leaf-area production. Estimates of whole-tree carbon budget based on direct measurements of dark respiration and A(1500) allowed us to clearly demonstrate the importance of leaf area driving greater productivity following early weed control in a nutrient-limited site.

Flood flows, leaf breakdown, and plant-available nitrogen on a dryland river floodplain

USGS Publications Warehouse

Andersen, Douglas C.; Nelson, S. Mark; Binkley, Dan

2003-01-01

We tested the hypothesis that decomposition in flood-inundated patches of riparian tree leaf litter results in higher plant-available nitrogen in underlying, nutrient-poor alluvium. We used leafpacks (n = 56) containing cottonwood (Populus deltoides ssp. wislizenii) leaf litter to mimic natural accumulations of leaves in an experiment conducted on the Yampa River floodplain in semi-arid northwestern Colorado, USA. One-half of the leafpacks were set on the sandy alluvial surface, and one-half were buried 5 cm below the surface. The presence of NO3− and NH4+ presumed to result from a leafpack's submergence during the predictable spring flood pulse was assessed using an ion-exchange resin bag (IER) placed beneath each leafpack and at control locations. Leafpacks and IERs were collected one week after flood peak (71 days total exposure) at half the stations; the remainder were collected three weeks later (93 days exposure). A multi-peaked spring flood with above-average maximum discharge inundated leafpacks for total time periods ranging from 133 to 577 hours. Litter lost from 43 to 68 percent of its initial organic matter (OM) content. Organic matter loss increased with total time inundated and total time of exposure on the floodplain. Burial retarded OM loss if the total time inundated was relatively long, and substrate texture (sand vs. silt) affected OM loss in a complex manner through interactions with total time inundated and total time of exposure. No pulse of N attributable to leaf breakdown was detected in the IERs, and leafpack litter showed no net change in the mass of nitrogen present. Patterns of leafpack and IER nitrogen levels suggested that litter removed N from floodwater and thereby reduced N availability in underlying sediment. Immobilization of floodwater-N by litter and N mineralization outside the flood period may be important components of N flux in semi-arid and arid floodplain environments.

How Diverse Detrital Environments Influence Nutrient Stoichiometry between Males and Females of the Co-Occurring Container Mosquitoes Aedes albopictus, Ae. aegypti, and Culex quinquefasciatus

PubMed Central

Yee, Donald A.; Kaufman, Michael G.; Ezeakacha, Nnaemeka F.

2015-01-01

Allocation patterns of carbon and nitrogen in animals are influenced by food quality and quantity, as well as by inherent metabolic and physiological constraints within organisms. Whole body stoichiometry also may vary between the sexes who differ in development rates and reproductive allocation patterns. In aquatic containers, such as tree holes and tires, detrital inputs, which vary in amounts of carbon and nitrogen, form the basis of the mosquito-dominated food web. Differences in development times and mass between male and female mosquitoes may be the result of different reproductive constraints, which could also influence patterns of nutrient allocation. We examined development time, survival, and adult mass for males and females of three co-occurring species, Aedes albopictus, Ae. aegypti, and Culex quinquefasciatus, across environments with different ratios of animal and leaf detritus. We quantified the contribution of detritus to biomass using stable isotope analysis and measured tissue carbon and nitrogen concentrations among species and between the sexes. Development times were shorter and adults were heavier for Aedes in animal versus leaf-only environments, whereas Culex development times were invariant across detritus types. Aedes displayed similar survival across detritus types whereas C. quinquefasciatus showed decreased survival with increasing leaf detritus. All species had lower values of 15N and 13C in leaf-only detritus compared to animal, however, Aedes generally had lower tissue nitrogen compared to C. quinquefasciatus. There were no differences in the C:N ratio between male and female Aedes, however, Aedes were different than C. quinquefasciatus adults, with male C. quinquefasciatus significantly higher than females. Culex quinquefasciatus was homeostatic across detrital environments. These results allow us to hypothesize an underlying stoichiometric explanation for the variation in performance of different container species under similar detrital environments, and if supported may assist in explaining the production of vector populations in nature. PMID:26244643

How Diverse Detrital Environments Influence Nutrient Stoichiometry between Males and Females of the Co-Occurring Container Mosquitoes Aedes albopictus, Ae. aegypti, and Culex quinquefasciatus.

PubMed

Yee, Donald A; Kaufman, Michael G; Ezeakacha, Nnaemeka F

2015-01-01

Allocation patterns of carbon and nitrogen in animals are influenced by food quality and quantity, as well as by inherent metabolic and physiological constraints within organisms. Whole body stoichiometry also may vary between the sexes who differ in development rates and reproductive allocation patterns. In aquatic containers, such as tree holes and tires, detrital inputs, which vary in amounts of carbon and nitrogen, form the basis of the mosquito-dominated food web. Differences in development times and mass between male and female mosquitoes may be the result of different reproductive constraints, which could also influence patterns of nutrient allocation. We examined development time, survival, and adult mass for males and females of three co-occurring species, Aedes albopictus, Ae. aegypti, and Culex quinquefasciatus, across environments with different ratios of animal and leaf detritus. We quantified the contribution of detritus to biomass using stable isotope analysis and measured tissue carbon and nitrogen concentrations among species and between the sexes. Development times were shorter and adults were heavier for Aedes in animal versus leaf-only environments, whereas Culex development times were invariant across detritus types. Aedes displayed similar survival across detritus types whereas C. quinquefasciatus showed decreased survival with increasing leaf detritus. All species had lower values of 15N and 13C in leaf-only detritus compared to animal, however, Aedes generally had lower tissue nitrogen compared to C. quinquefasciatus. There were no differences in the C:N ratio between male and female Aedes, however, Aedes were different than C. quinquefasciatus adults, with male C. quinquefasciatus significantly higher than females. Culex quinquefasciatus was homeostatic across detrital environments. These results allow us to hypothesize an underlying stoichiometric explanation for the variation in performance of different container species under similar detrital environments, and if supported may assist in explaining the production of vector populations in nature.

Remote sensing of crop parameters with a polarized, frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kalshoven, James E., Jr.; Tierney, Michael R., Jr.; Daughtry, Craig S. T.; McMurtrey, James E., III

1995-05-01

Polarized laser remote-sensing measurements that correlate the yield, the normalized difference vegetation index, and the leaf area index with the depolarized backscattered radiation from corn plots grown with eight different nitrogen fertilization dosages are presented. A polarized Nd:YAG laser emitting at 1064 and 532 nm is used. Depolarization increased significantly with increasing fertilization at the infrared wavelength, and there was a decrease in the depolarization at the green wavelength. The depolarization spectral difference index, defined as the absolute difference in the depolarization at the two wavelengths, is introduced as a parameter that is an indicator of the condition of the internal leaf structure.

[Influence of simulated acid rain on nitrogen and phosphorus contents and their stoichiome-tric ratios of tea organs in a red soil region, China].

PubMed

Zhang, Yu Fei; Fang, Xiang Min; Chen, Fu Sheng; Zong, Ying Ying; Gu, Han Jiao; Hu, Xiao Fei

2017-04-18

A 25-year-old tea plantation in a typical red soil region was selected for an in situ simulated acid rain experiment treated by pH 4.5, 3.5, 2.5 and water (control, CK). Roots with different functions, leaves and twigs with different ages were collected to measure nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) contents in the third year after simulated acid rain treatment. The N/P and acid rain sensitivity coefficient of tea plant organs were also calculated. The results indicated that with the increase of acid rain intensity, the soil pH, NO 3 - -N and available P decreased, while the absorption root N content increased. Compared with the control, the N content in absorption root was increased by 32.9% under the treatment of pH 2.5. The P content in storage root significantly decreased with enhanced acid rain intensity, and the acid rain treatment significantly enhanced N/P of absorption root. Young and mature leaf N, P contents were not sensitive to different intensities of acid rain, but the mature leaf N/P was significantly increased under pH 3.5 treatment compared with the control. The effects of acid rain treatments differed with tea twig ages. Compared with the control, low intensity acid treatment (pH 4.5) significantly increased young twig N content and N/P, while no signi-ficant differences in old twig N content and N/P were observed among four acid rain treatments. Acid rain sensitivity coefficients of absorption root, young leaf and twig N contents were higher than that of storage root, old leaf and twig, respectively. And the storage root and leaf P had higher acid rain sensitivity coefficient than other tea organs. In sum, tea organs N content was sensitive to acid rain treatment, and moderate acid rain could increase young organ N content and N/P, and change the cycle and balance of N and P in tea plantation.

Increasing plant growth by modulating omega-amidase expression in plants

DOEpatents

Unkefer, Pat J.; Anderson, Penelope S.; Knight, Thomas J.

2015-06-30

The present disclosure relates to compositions and methods for increasing the leaf-to-root ratio of the signal metabolite 2-oxoglutaramate and related proline molecules in plants by modulating levels of .omega.-amidase to increase nitrogen use efficiency, resulting in enhanced growth, faster growth rates, greater seed and fruit/pod yields, earlier and more productive flowering, increased tolerance to high salt conditions, and increased biomass yields.

High Resolution Spectrometry of Leaf and Canopy Chemistry for Biochemical Cycling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spanner, M. A.; Peterson, D. L.; Acevedo, W.; Matson, P.

1985-01-01

High-resolution laboratory spectrophotometer and Airborne Imaging Spectrometer (AIS) data were used to analyze forest leaf and canopy chemistry. Fundamental stretching frequencies of organic bonds in the visible, near infrared and short-wave infrared are indicative of concentrations and total content of nitrogen, phosphorous, starch and sugar. Laboratory spectrophotometer measurements showed very strong negative correlations with nitrogen (measured using wet chemistry) in the visible wavelengths. Strong correlations with green wet canopy weight in the atmospheric water absorption windows were observed in the AIS data. A fairly strong negative correlation between the AIS data at 1500 nm and total nitrogen and nitrogen concentration was evident. This relationship corresponds very closely to protein absorption features near 1500 nm.

High-Throughput Phenotyping of Maize Leaf Physiological and Biochemical Traits Using Hyperspectral Reflectance1[OPEN

PubMed Central

Yendrek, Craig R.; Tomaz, Tiago; Montes, Christopher M.; Cao, Youyuan; Morse, Alison M.; Brown, Patrick J.; McIntyre, Lauren M.; Leakey, Andrew D.B.

2017-01-01

High-throughput, noninvasive field phenotyping has revealed genetic variation in crop morphological, developmental, and agronomic traits, but rapid measurements of the underlying physiological and biochemical traits are needed to fully understand genetic variation in plant-environment interactions. This study tested the application of leaf hyperspectral reflectance (λ = 500–2,400 nm) as a high-throughput phenotyping approach for rapid and accurate assessment of leaf photosynthetic and biochemical traits in maize (Zea mays). Leaf traits were measured with standard wet-laboratory and gas-exchange approaches alongside measurements of leaf reflectance. Partial least-squares regression was used to develop a measure of leaf chlorophyll content, nitrogen content, sucrose content, specific leaf area, maximum rate of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylation, [CO2]-saturated rate of photosynthesis, and leaf oxygen radical absorbance capacity from leaf reflectance spectra. Partial least-squares regression models accurately predicted five out of seven traits and were more accurate than previously used simple spectral indices for leaf chlorophyll, nitrogen content, and specific leaf area. Correlations among leaf traits and statistical inferences about differences among genotypes and treatments were similar for measured and modeled data. The hyperspectral reflectance approach to phenotyping was dramatically faster than traditional measurements, enabling over 1,000 rows to be phenotyped during midday hours over just 2 to 4 d, and offers a nondestructive method to accurately assess physiological and biochemical trait responses to environmental stress. PMID:28049858

Transcriptional profiling of mechanically and genetically sink-limited soybeans

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The absence of a reproductive sink causes physiological and morphological changes in soybean plants. These include increased accumulation of nitrogen and starch in the leaves and delayed leaf senescence. To identify transcriptional changes that occur in leaves of these sink-limited plants, we used R...

Improvement of pea biomass and seed productivity by simultaneous increase of phloem and embryo loading with amino acids.

PubMed

Zhang, Lizhi; Garneau, Matthew G; Majumdar, Rajtilak; Grant, Jan; Tegeder, Mechthild

2015-01-01

The development of sink organs such as fruits and seeds strongly depends on the amount of nitrogen that is moved within the phloem from photosynthetic-active source leaves to the reproductive sinks. In many plant species nitrogen is transported as amino acids. In pea (Pisum sativum L.), source to sink partitioning of amino acids requires at least two active transport events mediated by plasma membrane-localized proteins, and these are: (i) amino acid phloem loading; and (ii) import of amino acids into the seed cotyledons via epidermal transfer cells. As each of these transport steps might potentially be limiting to efficient nitrogen delivery to the pea embryo, we manipulated both simultaneously. Additional copies of the pea amino acid permease PsAAP1 were introduced into the pea genome and expression of the transporter was targeted to the sieve element-companion cell complexes of the leaf phloem and to the epidermis of the seed cotyledons. The transgenic pea plants showed increased phloem loading and embryo loading of amino acids resulting in improved long distance transport of nitrogen, sink development and seed protein accumulation. Analyses of root and leaf tissues further revealed that genetic manipulation positively affected root nitrogen uptake, as well as primary source and sink metabolism. Overall, the results suggest that amino acid phloem loading exerts regulatory control over pea biomass production and seed yield, and that import of amino acids into the cotyledons limits seed protein levels. © 2014 The Authors The Plant Journal © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Capone, D.G.; Penhale, P.A.; Oremland, R.S.

N/sub 2/ (C/sub 2/H/sub 2/) fixation and primary production were measured in communities of Thalassia testudinum at two sites in Bimini Harbor (Bahamas). Production was determined by uptake of (/sup 14/C)NaHCO/sub 3/, by leaf growth measurements, and by applying an empirical formula based on leaf dimensions. The last two methods gave similar results but the /sup 14/C method gave higher values. Anaerobic sediment N/sub 2/ fixation supplied about 1/4 to 1/2 of the nitrogen demand for leaf production (by leaf growth method) and there was a significant correlation between N/sub 2/ fixation and CO/sub 2/ fixation rates when all componentsmore » of the communities were considered (macrophyte, phyllosphere epiphytes, and detrital leaves). N/sub 2/ fixation is important to production in Thalassia communities and the plant and its leaf epiphytes may be distinct entities in terms of nitrogen and carbon metabolism.« less

Monocot Leaves are Eaten Less than Dicot Leaves in Tropical Lowland Rain Forests: Correlations with Toughness and Leaf Presentation

PubMed Central

Grubb, Peter J.; Jackson, Robyn V.; Barberis, Ignacio M.; Bee, Jennie N.; Coomes, David A.; Dominy, Nathaniel J.; De La Fuente, Marie Ann S.; Lucas, Peter W.; Metcalfe, Daniel J.; Svenning, Jens-Christian; Turner, Ian M.; Vargas, Orlando

2008-01-01

Background and Aims In tropical lowland rain forest (TLRF) the leaves of most monocots differ from those of most dicots in two ways that may reduce attack by herbivores. Firstly, they are tougher. Secondly, the immature leaves are tightly folded or rolled until 50–100 % of their final length. It was hypothesized that (a) losses of leaf area to herbivorous invertebrates are generally greatest during leaf expansion and smaller for monocots than for dicots, and (b) where losses after expansion are appreciable any difference between monocots and dicots then is smaller than that found during expansion. Methods At six sites on four continents, estimates were made of lamina area loss from the four most recently mature leaves of focal monocots and of the nearest dicot shoot. Measurements of leaf mass per unit area, and the concentrations of water and nitrogen were made for many of the species. In Panama, the losses from monocots (palms) and dicots were also measured after placing fully expanded palm leaflets and whole dicot leaves on trails of leaf-cutter ants. Key Results At five of six sites monocots experienced significantly smaller leaf area loss than dicots. The results were not explicable in terms of leaf mass per unit area, or concentrations of water or nitrogen. At only one site was the increase in loss from first to fourth mature leaf significant (also large and the same in monocots and dicots), but the losses sustained during expansion were much smaller in the monocots. In the leaf-cutter ant experiment, losses were much smaller for palms than for dicots. Conclusions The relationship between toughness and herbivory is complex; despite the negative findings of some recent authors for dicots we hypothesize that either greater toughness or late folding can protect monocot leaves against herbivorous insects in tropical lowland rain forest, and that the relative importance varies widely with species. The difficulties of establishing unequivocally the roles of leaf toughness and leaf folding or rolling in a given case are discussed. PMID:18387972

Physiological indicators of nitrogen response in short-rotation sycamore plantations. [Platanus occidentalis L

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tschaplinski, T.J.; Norby, R.J.

1989-04-01

American sycamore (Platanus occidentalis L.) seedlings were grown in the field under urea-nitrogen fertilization regimes to identify physiological variables that characterize the growth responses. Treatments included trees fertilized at the beginning of the growing season with 450 kg N/ha, trees fertilized periodically (three times during the growing season) at 37.5 kg N/ha, and unfertilized controls. Above ground biomass accumulation in the heaviest nitrogen treatment was three times that of the controls, and nearly as much growth occurred when less nitrogen was added periodically. Photosynthesis, chlorophyll concentrations, and growth increased rapidly after a midseason application of a small amount of nitrogen,more » but not to a late-season application. There was no evidence that fertilization extended the physiologically active season or increased susceptibility to drought or cold. Sycamore leaves accumulated sucrose and mannose in response to water and cold stress in all treatments. Photosynthetic pigment concentrations, net photosynthetic rate, and leaf nitrate reductase activity were sensitive indicators of nitrogen fertilization, but foliar concentrations of nitrate, total nitrogen, soluble carbohydrate and soluble protein were not.« less

The influence of leaf-atmosphere NH3(g ) exchange on the isotopic composition of nitrogen in plants and the atmosphere.

PubMed

Johnson, Jennifer E; Berry, Joseph A

2013-10-01

The distribution of nitrogen isotopes in the biosphere has the potential to offer insights into the past, present and future of the nitrogen cycle, but it is challenging to unravel the processes controlling patterns of mixing and fractionation. We present a mathematical model describing a previously overlooked process: nitrogen isotope fractionation during leaf-atmosphere NH3(g ) exchange. The model predicts that when leaf-atmosphere exchange of NH3(g ) occurs in a closed system, the atmospheric reservoir of NH3(g ) equilibrates at a concentration equal to the ammonia compensation point and an isotopic composition 8.1‰ lighter than nitrogen in protein. In an open system, when atmospheric concentrations of NH3(g ) fall below or rise above the compensation point, protein can be isotopically enriched by net efflux of NH3(g ) or depleted by net uptake. Comparison of model output with existing measurements in the literature suggests that this process contributes to variation in the isotopic composition of nitrogen in plants as well as NH3(g ) in the atmosphere, and should be considered in future analyses of nitrogen isotope circulation. The matrix-based modelling approach that is introduced may be useful for quantifying isotope dynamics in other complex systems that can be described by first-order kinetics. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Height-related changes in leaf photosynthetic traits in diverse Bornean tropical rain forest trees.

PubMed

Kenzo, Tanaka; Inoue, Yuta; Yoshimura, Mitsunori; Yamashita, Megumi; Tanaka-Oda, Ayumi; Ichie, Tomoaki

2015-01-01

Knowledge of variations in morphophysiological leaf traits with forest height is essential for quantifying carbon and water fluxes from forest ecosystems. Here, we examined changes in leaf traits with forest height in diverse tree species and their role in environmental acclimation in a tropical rain forest in Borneo that does not experience dry spells. Height-related changes in leaf physiological and morphological traits [e.g., maximum photosynthetic rate (Amax), stomatal conductance (gs), dark respiration rate (Rd), carbon isotope ratio (δ(13)C), nitrogen (N) content, and leaf mass per area (LMA)] from understory to emergent trees were investigated in 104 species in 29 families. We found that many leaf area-based physiological traits (e.g., A(max-area), Rd, gs), N, δ(13)C, and LMA increased linearly with tree height, while leaf mass-based physiological traits (e.g., A(max-mass)) only increased slightly. These patterns differed from other biomes such as temperate and tropical dry forests, where trees usually show decreased photosynthetic capacity (e.g., A(max-area), A(max-mass)) with height. Increases in photosynthetic capacity, LMA, and δ(13)C are favored under bright and dry upper canopy conditions with higher photosynthetic productivity and drought tolerance, whereas lower R d and LMA may improve shade tolerance in lower canopy trees. Rapid recovery of leaf midday water potential to theoretical gravity potential during the night supports the idea that the majority of trees do not suffer from strong drought stress. Overall, leaf area-based photosynthetic traits were associated with tree height and the degree of leaf drought stress, even in diverse tropical rain forest trees.

Effect of two doses of urea foliar application on leaves and grape nitrogen composition during two vintages.

PubMed

Pérez-Álvarez, Eva P; Garde-Cerdán, Teresa; García-Escudero, Enrique; Martínez-Vidaurre, José María

2017-06-01

Nitrogen affects grapevine growth and also yeast metabolism, which have a direct influence on fermentation kinetics and the formation of different volatile compounds. Throughout the grapevine cycle, soil nitrogen availability and grape nitrogen composition can vary because of different factors. Nitrogen foliar applications can contribute toward enhancing grapevine nitrogen status and minimize the problem of leaching that traditional nitrogen-soil applications can provoke. The present study aimed to evaluate the influence of urea foliar applications on grapevine nitrogen status and grape amino acid content. Accordingly, two different doses of urea were applied over the leaves of a 'Tempranillo' vineyard. The highest urea doses affected nitrogen content on blade leaf tissues after veraison. Must amino acid profiles were modified by urea application and some of the compounds increased their concentrations. The effect of year on the increase of must total amino acid concentrations was more important than the effect of the doses applied. Urea foliar applications can be an interesting tool for decreasing grapevine nitrogen deficiencies. This method of nitrogen implementation in the vineyard could avoid sluggish fermentation problems during winemaking, enhance must nitrogen composition, and contribute to improving wine quality. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

Leaf primordium size specifies leaf width and vein number among row-type classes in barley.

PubMed

Thirulogachandar, Venkatasubbu; Alqudah, Ahmad M; Koppolu, Ravi; Rutten, Twan; Graner, Andreas; Hensel, Goetz; Kumlehn, Jochen; Bräutigam, Andrea; Sreenivasulu, Nese; Schnurbusch, Thorsten; Kuhlmann, Markus

2017-08-01

Exploring genes with impact on yield-related phenotypes is the preceding step to accomplishing crop improvements while facing a growing world population. A genome-wide association scan on leaf blade area (LA) in a worldwide spring barley collection (Hordeum vulgare L.), including 125 two- and 93 six-rowed accessions, identified a gene encoding the homeobox transcription factor, Six-rowed spike 1 (VRS1). VRS1 was previously described as a key domestication gene affecting spike development. Its mutation converts two-rowed (wild-type VRS1, only central fertile spikelets) into six-rowed spikes (mutant vrs1, fully developed fertile central and lateral spikelets). Phenotypic analyses of mutant and wild-type leaves revealed that mutants had an increased leaf width with more longitudinal veins. The observed significant increase of LA and leaf nitrogen (%) during pre-anthesis development in vrs1 mutants also implies a link between wider leaf and grain number, which was validated from the association of vrs1 locus with wider leaf and grain number. Histological and gene expression analyses indicated that VRS1 might influence the size of leaf primordia by affecting cell proliferation of leaf primordial cells. This finding was supported by the transcriptome analysis of mutant and wild-type leaf primordia where in the mutant transcriptional activation of genes related to cell proliferation was detectable. Here we show that VRS1 has an independent role on barley leaf development which might influence the grain number. © 2017 The Authors. The Plant Journal published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd and Society for Experimental Biology.

A model explaining genotypic and ontogenetic variation of leaf photosynthetic rate in rice (Oryza sativa) based on leaf nitrogen content and stomatal conductance.

PubMed

Ohsumi, Akihiro; Hamasaki, Akihiro; Nakagawa, Hiroshi; Yoshida, Hiroe; Shiraiwa, Tatsuhiko; Horie, Takeshi

2007-02-01

Identification of physiological traits associated with leaf photosynthetic rate (Pn) is important for improving potential productivity of rice (Oryza sativa). The objectives of this study were to develop a model which can explain genotypic variation and ontogenetic change of Pn in rice under optimal conditions as a function of leaf nitrogen content per unit area (N) and stomatal conductance (g(s)), and to quantify the effects of interaction between N and g(s) on the variation of Pn. Pn, N and g(s) were measured at different developmental stages for the topmost fully expanded leaves in ten rice genotypes with diverse backgrounds grown in pots (2002) and in the field (2001 and 2002). A model of Pn that accounts for carboxylation and CO diffusion processes, and assumes that the ratio of internal conductance to g(s) is constant, was constructed, and its goodness of fit was examined. Considerable genotypic differences in Pn were evident for rice throughout development in both the pot and field experiments. The genotypic variation of Pn was correlated with that of g(s) at a given stage, and the change of Pn with plant development was closely related to the change of N. The variation of g(s) among genotypes was independent of that of N. The model explained well the variation in Pn of the ten genotypes grown under different conditions at different developmental stages. Conclusions The response of Pn to increased N differs with g(s), and the increase in Pn of genotypes with low g(s) is smaller than that of genotypes with high g(s). Therefore, simultaneous improvements of these two traits are essential for an effective breeding of rice genotypes with increased Pn.

Weak leaf photosynthesis and nutrient content relationships from tropical vegetation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Domingues, T. F.; Ishida, F. Y.; Feldpaush, T.; Saiz, G.; Grace, J.; Meir, P.; Lloyd, J.

2015-12-01

Evergreen rain forests and savannas are the two major vegetations of tropical land ecosystems, in terms of land area, biomass, biodiversity, biogeochemical cycles and rates of land use change. Mechanistically understanding ecosystem functioning on such ecosystems is still far from complete, but important for generation of future vegetation scenarios in response to global changes. Leaf photosynthetic rates is a key processes usually represented on land surface-atmosphere models, although data from tropical ecosystems is scarce, considering the high biodiversity they contain. As a shortcut, models usually recur to relationships between leaf nutrient concentration and photosynthetic rates. Such strategy is convenient, given the possibility of global datasets on leave nutrients derived from hyperspectral remote sensing data. Given the importance of Nitrogen on enzyme composition, this nutrient is usually used to infer photosynthetic capacity of leaves. Our experience, based on individual measurements on 1809 individual leaves from 428 species of trees and shrubs naturally occurring on tropical forests and savannas from South America, Africa and Australia, indicates that the relationship between leaf nitrogen and its assimilation capacity is weak. Therefore, leaf Nitrogen alone is a poor predictor of photosynthetic rates of tropical vegetation. Phosphorus concentrations from tropical soils are usually low and is often implied that this nutrient limits primary productivity of tropical vegetation. Still, phosphorus (or other nutrients) did not exerted large influence over photosynthetic capacity, although potassium influenced vegetation structure and function. Such results draw attention to the risks of applying universal nitrogen-photosynthesis relationships on biogeochemical models. Moreover, our data suggests that affiliation of plant species within phylogenetic hierarchy is an important aspect in understanding leaf trait variation. The lack of a strong single predictor of leaf photosynthesis indicates that the importance of other factors such as secondary compounds, mesophyll conductance, Rubisco activation state, etc might be more influential than anticipated.

Changes in leaf area, nitrogen content and canopy photosynthesis in soybean exposed to an ozone concentration gradient.

PubMed

Oikawa, Shimpei; Ainsworth, Elizabeth A

2016-08-01

Influences of ozone (O3) on light-saturated rates of photosynthesis in crop leaves have been well documented. To increase our understanding of O3 effects on individual- or stand level productivity, a mechanistic understanding of factors determining canopy photosynthesis is necessary. We used a canopy model to scale photosynthesis from leaf to canopy, and analyzed the importance of canopy structural and leaf ecophysiological characteristics in determining canopy photosynthesis in soybean stands exposed to 9 concentrations of [O3] (37-116 ppb; 9-h mean). Light intensity and N content peaked in upper canopy layers, and sharply decreased through the lower canopy. Plant leaf area decreased with increasing [O3] allowing for greater light intensity to reach lower canopy levels. At the leaf level, light-saturated photosynthesis decreased and dark respiration increased with increasing [O3]. These data were used to calculate daily net canopy photosynthesis (Pc). Pc decreased with increasing [O3] with an average decrease of 10% for an increase in [O3] of 10 ppb, and which was similar to changes in above-ground dry mass production of the stands. Absolute daily net photosynthesis of lower layers was very low and thus the decrease in photosynthesis in the lower canopy caused by elevated [O3] had only minor significance for total canopy photosynthesis. Sensitivity analyses revealed that the decrease in Pc was associated with changes in leaf ecophysiology but not with decrease in leaf area. The soybean stands were very crowded, the leaves were highly mutually shaded, and sufficient light for positive carbon balance did not penetrate to lower canopy leaves, even under elevated [O3]. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Litter dynamics in two Sierran mixed conifer forests. II. Nutrient release in decomposing leaf litter

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stohlgren, Thomas J.

1988-01-01

The factors influencing leaf litter decomposition and nutrient release patterns were investigated for 3.6 years in two mixed conifer forests in the southern Sierra Nevada of California. The giant sequoia–fir forest was dominated by giant sequoia (Sequoiadendrongiganteum (Lindl.) Buchh.), white fir (Abiesconcolor Lindl. & Gord.), and sugar pine (Pinuslambertiana Dougl.). The fir–pine forest was dominated by white fir, sugar pine, and incense cedar (Calocedrusdecurrens (Torr.) Florin). Initial concentrations of nutrients and percent lignin, cellulose, and acid detergent fiber vary considerably in freshly abscised leaf litter of the studied species. Giant sequoia had the highest concentration of lignin (20.3%) and the lowest concentration of nitrogen (0.52%), while incense cedar had the lowest concentration of lignin (9.6%) and second lowest concentration of nitrogen (0.63%). Long-term (3.6 years) foliage decomposition rates were best correlated with initial lignin/N (r2 = 0.94, p r2 = 0.92, p r2 = 0.80, p < 0.05). Patterns of nutrient release were highly variable. Giant sequoia immobilized N and P, incense cedar immobilized N and to a lesser extent P, while sugar pine immobilized Ca. Strong linear or negative exponential relationships existed between initial concentrations of N, P, K, and Ca and percent original mass remaining of those nutrients after 3.6 years. This suggests efficient retention of these nutrients in the litter layer of these ecosystems. Nitrogen concentrations steadily increase in decomposing leaf litter, effectively reducing the C/N ratios from an initial range of 68–96 to 27–45 after 3.6 years.

Plant features measurements for robotics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miles, Gaines E.

1989-01-01

Initial studies of the technical feasibility of using machine vision and color image processing to measure plant health were performed. Wheat plants were grown in nutrient solutions deficient in nitrogen, potassium, and iron. An additional treatment imposed water stress on wheat plants which received a full complement of nutrients. The results for juvenile (less than 2 weeks old) wheat plants show that imaging technology can be used to detect nutrient deficiencies. The relative amount of green color in a leaf declined with increased water stress. The absolute amount of green was higher for nitrogen deficient leaves compared to the control plants. Relative greenness was lower for iron deficient leaves, but the absolute green values were higher. The data showed patterns across the leaf consistent with visual symptons. The development of additional color image processing routines to recognize these patterns would improve the performance of this sensor of plant health.

Nutrient allocation strategies of woody plants: an approach from the scaling of nitrogen and phosphorus between twig stems and leaves.

PubMed

Yan, Zhengbing; Li, Peng; Chen, Yahan; Han, Wenxuan; Fang, Jingyun

2016-02-05

Allocation of limited nutrients, such as nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), among plant organs reflects the influences of evolutionary and ecological processes on functional traits of plants, and thus is related to functional groups and environmental conditions. In this study, we tested this hypothesis by exploring the stoichiometric scaling of N and P concentrations between twig stems and leaves of 335 woody species from 12 forest sites across eastern China. Scaling exponents of twig stem N (or P) to leaf N (or P) varied among functional groups. With increasing latitude, these scaling exponents significantly decreased from >1 at low latitude to <1 at high latitude across the study area. These results suggested that, as plant nutrient concentration increased, plants at low latitudes showed a faster increase in twig stem nutrient concentration, whereas plants at high latitudes presented a faster increase in leaf nutrient concentration. Such shifts in nutrient allocation strategy from low to high latitudes may be controlled by temperature. Overall, our findings provide a new approach to explore plant nutrient allocation strategies by analysing the stoichiometric scaling of nutrients among organs, which could broaden our understanding of the interactions between plants and their environments.

Plant Chlorophyll fluorescence: active and passive measurements at canopy and leaf scales with different nitrogen treatments

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Most studies assessing chlorophyll fluorescence (ChlF) have examined leaf responses to environmental stress conditions using active techniques. Alternatively, passive techniques are able to measure ChlF at both leaf and canopy scales. However, although the measurement principles of both techniques a...

Interspecific and environmentally induced variation in foliar dark respiration among eighteen southeastern deciduous tree species

Treesearch

Katherine A. Mitchell; Paul V. Bolstad; James M. Vose

1999-01-01

We measured variations in leaf dark respiration rate (Rd) and leaf nitrogen (N) across species, canopy light environment, and elevation for 18 co-occurring deciduous hardwood species in the Southern Appalachian Mountains of Western North Carolina. Our overall objective was to estimate leaf...

Leaf age affects the responses of foliar injury and gas exchange to tropospheric ozone in Prunus serotina seedlings

Treesearch

Jianwei Zhang; Marcus Schaub; Jonathan A. Ferdinand; John M. Skelly; Kim C. Steiner; James E. Savage

2010-01-01

We investigated the effect of leaf age on the response of net photosynthesis (A), stomatal conductance (gwv), foliar injury, and leaf nitrogen concentration (NL) to tropospheric ozone (O3) on Prunus serotina seedlings grown in open-plots (AA) and open-top...

Biochar-manure compost in conjunction with pyroligneous solution alleviated salt stress and improved leaf bioactivity of maize in a saline soil from central China: a 2-year field experiment.

PubMed

Lashari, Muhammad Siddique; Ye, Yingxin; Ji, Haishi; Li, Lianqing; Kibue, Grace Wanjiru; Lu, Haifei; Zheng, Jufeng; Pan, Genxing

2015-04-01

Salinity is a major stress threatening crop production in dry lands. A 2-year field experiment was conducted to assess the potential of a biochar product to alleviate salt-stress to a maize crop in a saline soil. The soil was amended with a compost at 12 t ha(-1) of wheat straw biochar and poultry manure compost (BPC), and a diluted pyroligneous solution (PS) at 0.15 t ha(-1) (BPC-PS). Changes in soil salinity and plant performance, leaf bioactivity were examined in the first (BPC-PS1) and second (BPC-PS2) year following a single amendment. While soil salinity significantly decreased, there were large increases in leaf area index, plant performance, and maize grain yield, with a considerable decrease in leaf electrolyte leakage when grown in amendments. Maize leaf sap nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium increased while sodium and chloride decreased, leaf bioactivity related to osmotic stress was significantly improved following the treatments. These effects were generally greater in the second than in the first year. A combined amendment of crop straw biochar with manure compost plus pyroligneous solution could help combat salinity stress to maize and improve productivity in saline croplands in arid/semi-arid regions threatened increasingly by global climate change. © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry.

A Functional Characterisation of a Wide Range of Cover Crop Species: Growth and Nitrogen Acquisition Rates, Leaf Traits and Ecological Strategies

PubMed Central

Tribouillois, Hélène; Fort, Florian; Cruz, Pablo; Charles, Raphaël; Flores, Olivier; Garnier, Eric; Justes, Eric

2015-01-01

Cover crops can produce ecosystem services during the fallow period, as reducing nitrate leaching and producing green manure. Crop growth rate (CGR) and crop nitrogen acquisition rate (CNR) can be used as two indicators of the ability of cover crops to produce these services in agrosystems. We used leaf functional traits to characterise the growth strategies of 36 cover crops as an approach to assess their ability to grow and acquire N rapidly. We measured specific leaf area (SLA), leaf dry matter content (LDMC), leaf nitrogen content (LNC) and leaf area (LA) and we evaluated their relevance to characterise CGR and CNR. Cover crop species were positioned along the Leaf Economics Spectrum (LES), the SLA-LDMC plane, and the CSR triangle of plant strategies. LA was positively correlated with CGR and CNR, while LDMC was negatively correlated with CNR. All cover crops could be classified as resource-acquisitive species from their relative position on the LES and the SLA-LDMC plane. Most cover crops were located along the Competition/Ruderality axis in the CSR triangle. In particular, Brassicaceae species were classified as very competitive, which was consistent with their high CGR and CNR. Leaf functional traits, especially LA and LDMC, allowed to differentiate some cover crops strategies related to their ability to grow and acquire N. LDMC was lower and LNC was higher in cover crop than in wild species, pointing to an efficient acquisitive syndrome in the former, corresponding to the high resource availability found in agrosystems. Combining several leaf traits explained approximately half of the CGR and CNR variances, which might be considered insufficient to precisely characterise and rank cover crop species for agronomic purposes. We hypothesised that may be the consequence of domestication process, which has reduced the range of plant strategies and modified the leaf trait syndrome in cultivated species. PMID:25789485

Study on the change law of hyperspectral data and pigments for rice in mature process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Jingfeng; Tang, Yanlin; Wang, Renchao

2004-01-01

The hyperspectral reflectances of the canopy, the sword leaf, the third unfolding leaf from the top and ear of the main stem of two varieties of rice are measured by a ASD FieldSpec Pro FR in field and indoor under 3 nitrogen support levels in mature process. The concentrations of chlorophyll and carotenoid of leaves and ears corresponding to the spectra were determined by biochemical method. The spectral differences are significant for the canopy and leaves of rice under differet nitrogen support level, and the concentrations of chlorophyll and carotenoid of leaves increase with the increasing of nitrogen applying. There exist significant differences for the pigment concentrations of the leaves of rice under different nitrogen levels. The spectral reflectances of the canopy are gradually getting bigger in the visible region and smaller in the near infrared region as the growth stage goes on. 'Blue shift' phenomena for the spectra red edge position of the canopy, leaves and ears were proved. The concentrations of chlorophyll and carotenoid of leaves and ears are very significantly correlative to the spectral vegetation indices VI1(= R990/R553), VI2(=R1200/R553), VI3(=R750/R553), VI4(=R670/R440), VI5(= R553/R670), PRVI(=R800/R553), PSSRa, PSNDa and λred (the red edge position). The results show that these VIs can be used to estimate the concentrations of chlorophyll and carotenoid of leaves and ears of rice.

Quantifying the Stress Responses of Brassica Rapa Genotypes, With Experimental Drought in Two Nitrogen Treatments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hickerson, J. L.; Pleban, J. R.; Mackay, D. S.; Aston, T.; Ewers, B. E.; Weinig, C.

2014-12-01

In a greenhouse study designed to quantify and compare stress responses of four genotypes of Brassica rapa, broccolette (bro), cabbage (cab), turnip (tur), and oil, leaf water potential and net CO2 assimilations were measured. Individuals from each genotype, grown either with high or low nitrogen, were exposed to experimental drought of the same duration. One hypothesis was that the genotypes would differ significantly in their responses to periodic drought. The other hypothesis was that the nitrogen treatment versus no nitrogen treatment would play a significant role in the stress responses during drought. It would be expected that the nitrogen treated would have greater dry leaf mass. A LI-6400 XT portable photosynthesis system was used to obtain A/Ci curves (net CO2 assimilation rate versus substomatal CO2) for each treatment group. Predawn and midday water potentials were obtained throughout the hydrated and drought periods using a Model 670 pressure chamber. The dry leaf mass was significantly greater among the high nitrogen group versus the low nitrogen group for each genotype. Nitrogen and genotype were both determinants in variation of water potentials and net CO2 assimilation. Bro and cab genotypes with high nitrogen showed the highest net CO2 assimilation rates during hydration, but the assimilation rates dropped to the lowest during droughts. The water potentials for bro and cab were lower than values for tur and oil. Nitrogen treated genotypes had lower water potentials, but higher net CO2 assimilation rates. Bayesian ecophysiological modeling with the TREES model showed significant differences in trait expression, quantified in terms of differences in model parameter posteriors, among the four genotypes.

How succulent leaves of Aizoaceae avoid mesophyll conductance limitations of photosynthesis and survive drought.

PubMed

Ripley, Brad S; Abraham, Trevor; Klak, Cornelia; Cramer, Michael D

2013-12-01

In several taxa, increasing leaf succulence has been associated with decreasing mesophyll conductance (g M) and an increasing dependence on Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM). However, in succulent Aizoaceae, the photosynthetic tissues are adjacent to the leaf surfaces with an internal achlorophyllous hydrenchyma. It was hypothesized that this arrangement increases g M, obviating a strong dependence on CAM, while the hydrenchyma stores water and nutrients, both of which would only be sporadically available in highly episodic environments. These predictions were tested with species from the Aizoaceae with a 5-fold variation in leaf succulence. It was shown that g M values, derived from the response of photosynthesis to intercellular CO2 concentration (A:C i), were independent of succulence, and that foliar photosynthate δ(13)C values were typical of C3, but not CAM photosynthesis. Under water stress, the degree of leaf succulence was positively correlated with an increasing ability to buffer photosynthetic capacity over several hours and to maintain light reaction integrity over several days. This was associated with decreased rates of water loss, rather than tolerance of lower leaf water contents. Additionally, the hydrenchyma contained ~26% of the leaf nitrogen content, possibly providing a nutrient reservoir. Thus the intermittent use of C3 photosynthesis interspersed with periods of no positive carbon assimilation is an alternative strategy to CAM for succulent taxa (Crassulaceae and Aizoaceae) which occur sympatrically in the Cape Floristic Region of South Africa.

How succulent leaves of Aizoaceae avoid mesophyll conductance limitations of photosynthesis and survive drought

PubMed Central

Ripley, Brad S.

2013-01-01

In several taxa, increasing leaf succulence has been associated with decreasing mesophyll conductance (g M) and an increasing dependence on Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM). However, in succulent Aizoaceae, the photosynthetic tissues are adjacent to the leaf surfaces with an internal achlorophyllous hydrenchyma. It was hypothesized that this arrangement increases g M, obviating a strong dependence on CAM, while the hydrenchyma stores water and nutrients, both of which would only be sporadically available in highly episodic environments. These predictions were tested with species from the Aizoaceae with a 5-fold variation in leaf succulence. It was shown that g M values, derived from the response of photosynthesis to intercellular CO2 concentration (A:C i), were independent of succulence, and that foliar photosynthate δ13C values were typical of C3, but not CAM photosynthesis. Under water stress, the degree of leaf succulence was positively correlated with an increasing ability to buffer photosynthetic capacity over several hours and to maintain light reaction integrity over several days. This was associated with decreased rates of water loss, rather than tolerance of lower leaf water contents. Additionally, the hydrenchyma contained ~26% of the leaf nitrogen content, possibly providing a nutrient reservoir. Thus the intermittent use of C3 photosynthesis interspersed with periods of no positive carbon assimilation is an alternative strategy to CAM for succulent taxa (Crassulaceae and Aizoaceae) which occur sympatrically in the Cape Floristic Region of South Africa. PMID:24127513

A Novel Remote Sensing Approach for Prediction of Maize Yield Under Different Conditions of Nitrogen Fertilization

PubMed Central

Vergara-Díaz, Omar; Zaman-Allah, Mainassara A.; Masuka, Benhildah; Hornero, Alberto; Zarco-Tejada, Pablo; Prasanna, Boddupalli M.; Cairns, Jill E.; Araus, José L.

2016-01-01

Maize crop production is constrained worldwide by nitrogen (N) availability and particularly in poor tropical and subtropical soils. The development of affordable high-throughput crop monitoring and phenotyping techniques is key to improving maize cultivation under low-N fertilization. In this study several vegetation indices (VIs) derived from Red-Green-Blue (RGB) digital images at the leaf and canopy levels are proposed as low-cost tools for plant breeding and fertilization management. They were compared with the performance of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) measured at ground level and from an aerial platform, as well as with leaf chlorophyll content (LCC) and other leaf composition and structural parameters at flowering stage. A set of 10 hybrids grown under five different nitrogen regimes and adequate water conditions were tested at the CIMMYT station of Harare (Zimbabwe). Grain yield and leaf N concentration across N fertilization levels were strongly predicted by most of these RGB indices (with R2~ 0.7), outperforming the prediction power of the NDVI and LCC. RGB indices also outperformed the NDVI when assessing genotypic differences in grain yield and leaf N concentration within a given level of N fertilization. The best predictor of leaf N concentration across the five N regimes was LCC but its performance within N treatments was inefficient. The leaf traits evaluated also seemed inefficient as phenotyping parameters. It is concluded that the adoption of RGB-based phenotyping techniques may significantly contribute to the progress of plant breeding and the appropriate management of fertilization. PMID:27242867

The winter-red-leaf syndrome in Pistacia lentiscus: evidence that the anthocyanic phenotype suffers from nitrogen deficiency, low carboxylation efficiency and high risk of photoinhibition.

PubMed

Nikiforou, Constantinos; Nikolopoulos, Dimosthenis; Manetas, Yiannis

2011-12-15

Recent evidence indicates that winter-red leaf phenotypes in the mastic tree (Pistacia lentiscus) are more vulnerable to chronic photoinhibition during the cold season relative to winter-green phenotypes occurring in the same high light environment. This was judged by limitations in the maximum quantum yield of photosystem II (PSII), found in previous studies. In this investigation, we asked whether corresponding limitations in leaf gas exchange and carboxylation reactions could also be manifested. During the cold ("red") season, net CO₂ assimilation rates (A) and stomatal conductances (g(s)) in the red phenotype were considerably lower than in the green phenotype, while leaf internal CO₂ concentration (Ci) was higher. The differences were abolished in the "green" period of the year, the dry summer included. Analysis of A versus Ci curves indicated that CO₂ assimilation during winter in the red phenotype was limited by Rubisco content and/or activity rather than stomatal conductance. Leaf nitrogen levels in the red phenotype were considerably lower during the red-leaf period. Consequently, we suggest that the inherently low leaf nitrogen levels are linked to the low net photosynthetic rates of the red plants through a decrease in Rubisco content. Accordingly, the reduced capacity of the carboxylation reactions to act as photosynthetic electron sinks may explain the corresponding loss of PSII photon trapping efficiency, which cannot be fully alleviated by the screening effect of the accumulated anthocyanins. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Alterations in internal partitioning of carbon in soybean plants in response to nitrogen stress

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rufty, T. W. Jr; Raper, C. D. Jr; Huber, S. C.

1984-01-01

Alterations in internal partitioning of carbon were evaluated in plants exposed to limited nitrogen supply. Vegetative, nonnodulated soybean plants (Glycine max (L.) Merrill, 'Ransom') were grown for 21 days with 1.0 mM NO3- and then exposed to solutions containing 1.0, 0.1, or 0.0 mM NO3- for a 25-day treatment period. In nitrogen-limited plants, there were decreases in emergence of new leaves and in the expansion rate and final area at full expansion of individual leaves. As indicated by alterations in accumulation of dry weight, a larger proportion of available carbon in the plant was partitioned to the roots with decreased availability of nitrogen. Partitioning of reduced nitrogen to the root also was increased and, in plants devoid of an external supply, considerable redistribution of reduced nitrogen from leaves to the root occurred. The general decrease in growth potential and sink strength for nutrients in leaves of nitrogen-limited plants suggested that factors other than simply availability of nitrogen likely were involved in the restriction of growth in the leaf canopy and the associated increase in carbon allocation to the roots.

Coordinated changes in photosynthesis, water relations and leaf nutritional traits of canopy trees along a precipitation gradient in lowland tropical forest.

PubMed

Santiago, Louis S; Kitajima, Kaoru; Wright, S Joseph; Mulkey, Stephen S

2004-05-01

We investigated leaf physiological traits of dominant canopy trees in four lowland Panamanian forests with contrasting mean annual precipitation (1,800, 2,300, 3,100 and 3,500 mm). There was near complete turn-over of dominant canopy tree species among sites, resulting in greater dominance of evergreen species with long-lived leaves as precipitation increased. Mean structural and physiological traits changed along this gradient as predicted by cost-benefit theories of leaf life span. Nitrogen content per unit mass (Nmass) and light- and CO2-saturated photosynthetic rates per unit mass (Pmass) of upper canopy leaves decreased with annual precipitation, and these changes were partially explained by increasing leaf thickness and decreasing specific leaf area (SLA). Comparison of 1,800 mm and 3,100 mm sites, where canopy access was available through the use of construction cranes, revealed an association among extended leaf longevity, greater structural defense, higher midday leaf water potential, and lower Pmass, Nmass, and SLA at wetter sites. Shorter leaf life spans and more enriched foliar delta15N values in drier sites suggest greater resorption and re-metabolism of leaf N in drier forest. Greater dominance of short-lived leaves with relatively high Pmass in drier sites reflects a strategy to maximize photosynthesis when water is available and to minimize water loss and respiration costs during rainless periods. Overall, our study links coordinated change in leaf functional traits that affect productivity and nutrient cycling to seasonality in lowland tropical forests. Copyright 2004 Springer-Verlag

Nitrogen recycling from the xylem in rice leaves: dependence upon metabolism and associated changes in xylem hydraulics.

PubMed

Bailey, Karen J; Leegood, Richard C

2016-04-01

Measurements of amino acids in the guttation fluid and in the xylem exudates of cut leaves from intact plants provide evidence of the remarkable efficiency with which these nitrogenous compounds are reabsorbed from the xylem sap. This could be achieved by mechanisms involving intercellular transport and/or metabolism. Developmental changes in transcripts and protein showed that transcripts for phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK) increased from the base to the leaf tip, and were markedly increased by supplying asparagine. Supplying amino acids also increased the amounts of protein of PEPCK and, to a lesser extent, of pyruvate, Pi dikinase. PEPCK is present in the hydathodes, stomata and vascular parenchyma of rice leaves. Evidence for the role of PEPCK was obtained by using 3-mercaptopicolinic acid (MPA), a specific inhibitor of PEPCK, and by using an activation-tagged rice line that had an increase in PEPCK activity, to show that activation of PEPCK resulted in a decrease in N in the guttation fluid and that treatment by MPA resulted in an increase in amino acids in the guttation fluid and xylem sap towards the leaf tip. Furthermore, increasing PEPCK activity decreased the amount of guttation fluid, whereas decreasing PEPCK activity increased the amount of xylem sap or guttation fluid towards the leaf tip. The findings suggest the following hypotheses: (i) both metabolism and transport are involved in xylem recycling and (ii) excess N is the signal involved in modulating xylem hydraulics, perhaps via nutrient regulation of water-transporting aquaporins. Water relations and vascular metabolism and transport are thus intimately linked. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology.

Community Characteristics and Leaf Stoichiometric Traits of Desert Ecosystems Regulated by Precipitation and Soil in an Arid Area of China.

PubMed

Zhang, Xiaolong; Guan, Tianyu; Zhou, Jihua; Cai, Wentao; Gao, Nannan; Du, Hui; Jiang, Lianhe; Lai, Liming; Zheng, Yuanrun

2018-01-10

Precipitation is a key environmental factor determining plant community structure and function. Knowledge of how community characteristics and leaf stoichiometric traits respond to variation in precipitation is crucial for assessing the effects of global changes on terrestrial ecosystems. In this study, we measured community characteristics, leaf stoichiometric traits, and soil properties along a precipitation gradient (35-209 mm) in a desert ecosystem of Northwest China to explore the drivers of these factors. With increasing precipitation, species richness, aboveground biomass, community coverage, foliage projective cover (FPC), and leaf area index (LAI) all significantly increased, while community height decreased. The hyperarid desert plants were characterized by lower leaf carbon (C) and nitrogen/phosphorus (N/P) levels, and stable N and P, and these parameters did not change significantly with precipitation. The growth of desert plants was limited more by N than P. Soil properties, rather than precipitation, were the main drivers of desert plant leaf stoichiometric traits, whereas precipitation made the biggest contribution to vegetation structure and function. These results test the importance of precipitation in regulating plant community structure and composition together with soil properties, and provide further insights into the adaptive strategy of communities at regional scale in response to global climate change.

Community Characteristics and Leaf Stoichiometric Traits of Desert Ecosystems Regulated by Precipitation and Soil in an Arid Area of China

PubMed Central

Guan, Tianyu; Zhou, Jihua; Cai, Wentao; Gao, Nannan; Du, Hui; Jiang, Lianhe; Lai, Liming; Zheng, Yuanrun

2018-01-01

Precipitation is a key environmental factor determining plant community structure and function. Knowledge of how community characteristics and leaf stoichiometric traits respond to variation in precipitation is crucial for assessing the effects of global changes on terrestrial ecosystems. In this study, we measured community characteristics, leaf stoichiometric traits, and soil properties along a precipitation gradient (35–209 mm) in a desert ecosystem of Northwest China to explore the drivers of these factors. With increasing precipitation, species richness, aboveground biomass, community coverage, foliage projective cover (FPC), and leaf area index (LAI) all significantly increased, while community height decreased. The hyperarid desert plants were characterized by lower leaf carbon (C) and nitrogen/phosphorus (N/P) levels, and stable N and P, and these parameters did not change significantly with precipitation. The growth of desert plants was limited more by N than P. Soil properties, rather than precipitation, were the main drivers of desert plant leaf stoichiometric traits, whereas precipitation made the biggest contribution to vegetation structure and function. These results test the importance of precipitation in regulating plant community structure and composition together with soil properties, and provide further insights into the adaptive strategy of communities at regional scale in response to global climate change. PMID:29320458

Modelling climate change impacts on viticultural yield, phenology and stress conditions in Europe.

PubMed

Fraga, Helder; García de Cortázar Atauri, Iñaki; Malheiro, Aureliano C; Santos, João A

2016-11-01

Viticulture is a key socio-economic sector in Europe. Owing to the strong sensitivity of grapevines to atmospheric factors, climate change may represent an important challenge for this sector. This study analyses viticultural suitability, yield, phenology, and water and nitrogen stress indices in Europe, for present climates (1980-2005) and future (2041-2070) climate change scenarios (RCP4.5 and 8.5). The STICS crop model is coupled with climate, soil and terrain databases, also taking into account CO 2 physiological effects, and simulations are validated against observational data sets. A clear agreement between simulated and observed phenology, leaf area index, yield and water and nitrogen stress indices, including the spatial differences throughout Europe, is shown. The projected changes highlight an extension of the climatic suitability for grapevines up to 55°N, which may represent the emergence of new winemaking regions. Despite strong regional heterogeneity, mean phenological timings (budburst, flowering, veraison and harvest) are projected to undergo significant advancements (e.g. budburst/harvest can be >1 month earlier), with implications also in the corresponding phenophase intervals. Enhanced dryness throughout Europe is also projected, with severe water stress over several regions in southern regions (e.g. southern Iberia and Italy), locally reducing yield and leaf area. Increased atmospheric CO 2 partially offsets dryness effects, promoting yield and leaf area index increases in central/northern Europe. Future biomass changes may lead to modifications in nitrogen demands, with higher stress in northern/central Europe and weaker stress in southern Europe. These findings are critical decision support systems for stakeholders from the European winemaking sector. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Contrasted nitrogen utilization in annual C 3 grass and legume crops: Physiological explorations and ecological considerations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Del Pozo, Alejandro; Garnier, Eric; Aronson, James

2000-01-01

Although it is well known that legumes have unusually high levels of nitrogen in both reproductive and vegetative organs, the physiological implications of this pattern have been poorly assessed. We conducted a literature survey and used data from two (unpublished) experiments on annual legumes and C 3 grasses in order to test whether these high nitrogen concentrations in legumes are correlated to high rates of carbon gain. Three different temporal/spatial scales were considered: full growing season/stand, days to month/whole plant and seconds/leaf. At the stand level, and for plants grown under both extratropical and tropical settings, biomass per unit organic-nitrogen was lower in legume than in grass crops. At a shorter time scale, the relative growth rate per unit plant nitrogen (`nitrogen productivity') was lower in faba bean ( Vicia faba var. minor cv. Tina) than in wheat ( Triticum aestivum cv. Alexandria), and this was confirmed in a comparison of two wild, circum-Mediterranean annuals - Medicago minima, a legume, and Bromus madritensis, a grass. Finally, at the leaf level, a synthesis of published data comparing soybean ( Glycine max) and rice ( Oryza sativa) on the one hand, and our own data on faba bean and wheat on the other hand, demonstrates that the photosynthetic rate per unit leaf nitrogen (the photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency) is consistently lower in legumes than in grasses. These results demonstrate that, regardless of the scale considered and although the organic-nitrogen concentration in vegetative organs of legumes is higher than in grasses, this does not lead to higher rates of carbon gain in the former. Various physiological factors affecting the efficiency of nitrogen utilization at the three time scales considered are discussed. The suggestion is made that the ecological significance of the high nitrogen concentration in legumes may be related to a high nitrogen demand for high quality seed production at a time when nitrogen fixation is shut off rather than to a high production potential.

Functional relationships between leaf hydraulics and leaf economic traits in response to nutrient addition in subtropical tree species.

PubMed

Villagra, Mariana; Campanello, Paula I; Bucci, Sandra J; Goldstein, Guillermo

2013-12-01

Leaves can be both a hydraulic bottleneck and a safety valve against hydraulic catastrophic dysfunctions, and thus changes in traits related to water movement in leaves and associated costs may be critical for the success of plant growth. A 4-year fertilization experiment with nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) addition was done in a semideciduous Atlantic forest in northeastern Argentina. Saplings of five dominant canopy species were grown in similar gaps inside the forests (five control and five N + P addition plots). Leaf lifespan (LL), leaf mass per unit area (LMA), leaf and stem vulnerability to cavitation, leaf hydraulic conductance (K(leaf_area) and K(leaf_mass)) and leaf turgor loss point (TLP) were measured in the five species and in both treatments. Leaf lifespan tended to decrease with the addition of fertilizers, and LMA was significantly higher in plants with nutrient addition compared with individuals in control plots. The vulnerability to cavitation of leaves (P50(leaf)) either increased or decreased with the nutrient treatment depending on the species, but the average P50(leaf) did not change with nutrient addition. The P50(leaf) decreased linearly with increasing LMA and LL across species and treatments. These trade-offs have an important functional significance because more expensive (higher LMA) and less vulnerable leaves (lower P50(leaf)) are retained for a longer period of time. Osmotic potentials at TLP and at full turgor became more negative with decreasing P50(leaf) regardless of nutrient treatment. The K(leaf) on a mass basis was negatively correlated with LMA and LL, indicating that there is a carbon cost associated with increased water transport that is compensated by a longer LL. The vulnerability to cavitation of stems and leaves were similar, particularly in fertilized plants. Leaves in the species studied may not function as safety valves at low water potentials to protect the hydraulic pathway from water stress-induced cavitation. The lack of rainfall seasonality in the subtropical forest studied probably does not act as a selective pressure to enhance hydraulic segmentation between leaves and stems.

Leaf litter decomposition rates increase with rising mean annual temperature in Hawaiian tropical montane wet forests

PubMed Central

Bothwell, Lori D.; Giardina, Christian P.; Litton, Creighton M.

2014-01-01

Decomposing litter in forest ecosystems supplies nutrients to plants, carbon to heterotrophic soil microorganisms and is a large source of CO2 to the atmosphere. Despite its essential role in carbon and nutrient cycling, the temperature sensitivity of leaf litter decay in tropical forest ecosystems remains poorly resolved, especially in tropical montane wet forests where the warming trend may be amplified compared to tropical wet forests at lower elevations. We quantified leaf litter decomposition rates along a highly constrained 5.2 °C mean annual temperature (MAT) gradient in tropical montane wet forests on the Island of Hawaii. Dominant vegetation, substrate type and age, soil moisture, and disturbance history are all nearly constant across this gradient, allowing us to isolate the effect of rising MAT on leaf litter decomposition and nutrient release. Leaf litter decomposition rates were a positive linear function of MAT, causing the residence time of leaf litter on the forest floor to decline by ∼31 days for each 1 °C increase in MAT. Our estimate of the Q10 temperature coefficient for leaf litter decomposition was 2.17, within the commonly reported range for heterotrophic organic matter decomposition (1.5–2.5) across a broad range of ecosystems. The percentage of leaf litter nitrogen (N) remaining after six months declined linearly with increasing MAT from ∼88% of initial N at the coolest site to ∼74% at the warmest site. The lack of net N immobilization during all three litter collection periods at all MAT plots indicates that N was not limiting to leaf litter decomposition, regardless of temperature. These results suggest that leaf litter decay in tropical montane wet forests may be more sensitive to rising MAT than in tropical lowland wet forests, and that increased rates of N release from decomposing litter could delay or prevent progressive N limitation to net primary productivity with climate warming. PMID:25493213

Urea retranslocation from senescing Arabidopsis leaves is promoted by DUR3-mediated urea retrieval from leaf apoplast

PubMed Central

Bohner, Anne; Kojima, Soichi; Hajirezaei, Mohammad; Melzer, Michael; von Wirén, Nicolaus

2015-01-01

In plants, urea derives either from root uptake or protein degradation. Although large quantities of urea are released during senescence, urea is mainly seen as a short-lived nitrogen (N) catabolite serving urease-mediated hydrolysis to ammonium. Here, we investigated the roles of DUR3 and of urea in N remobilization. During natural leaf senescence urea concentrations and DUR3 transcript levels showed a parallel increase with senescence markers like ORE1 in a plant age- and leaf age-dependent manner. Deletion of DUR3 decreased urea accumulation in leaves, whereas the fraction of urea lost to the leaf apoplast was enhanced. Under natural and N deficiency-induced senescence DUR3 promoter activity was highest in the vasculature, but was also found in surrounding bundle sheath and mesophyll cells. An analysis of petiole exudates from wild-type leaves revealed that N from urea accounted for >13% of amino acid N. Urea export from senescent leaves further increased in ureG-2 deletion mutants lacking urease activity. In the dur3 ureG double insertion line the absence of DUR3 reduced urea export from leaf petioles. These results indicate that urea can serve as an early metabolic marker for leaf senescence, and that DUR3-mediated urea retrieval contributes to the retranslocation of N from urea during leaf senescence. PMID:25440717

Nitrogen Limitation Alters Biomass Production but Enhances Steviol Glycoside Concentration in Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni

PubMed Central

Barbet-Massin, Claire; Giuliano, Simon; Alletto, Lionel; Daydé, Jean; Berger, Monique

2015-01-01

The need for medicinal and aromatic plants for industrial uses creates an opportunity for farmers to produce alternative crops. Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni, a perennial shrub originating from Paraguay, is of increasing interest as a source of zero-calorie natural sweeteners: the steviol glycosides (SVglys). The aim of this study was to investigate the relevance of nitrogen (N) supply for leaf yield and for SVgly concentrations in leaves, which are the two major components of S. rebaudiana productivity. In this regard, the relationship between leaf N concentration, CO2 assimilation, leaf production and SVgly accumulation was investigated. The experiments were conducted consecutively in growth-chamber (CC: controlled conditions), in greenhouse (SCC: semi-controlled conditions) and in field conditions (FC) on two genotypes. In CC and SCC, three levels of N fertilization were applied. Plants were grown on four locations in the FC experiment. Both N supply (CC and SCC) and location (FC) had a significant effect on N content in leaves. When light was not limiting (SCC and FC) N content in leaves was positively correlated with CO2 assimilation rate and biomass accumulation. Irrespective of the growth conditions, N content in leaves was negatively correlated with SVgly content. However, increased SVgly content was correlated with a decreased ratio of rebaudioside A over stevioside. The evidence that the increased SVgly accumulation compensates for the negative effect on biomass production suggests that adequate SVgly productivity per plant may be achieved with relatively low fertilization. PMID:26192921

Plant hydraulic responses to long-term dry season nitrogen deposition alter drought tolerance in a Mediterranean-type ecosystem.

PubMed

Pivovaroff, Alexandria L; Santiago, Louis S; Vourlitis, George L; Grantz, David A; Allen, Michael F

2016-07-01

Anthropogenic nitrogen (N) deposition represents a significant N input for many terrestrial ecosystems. N deposition can affect plants on scales ranging from photosynthesis to community composition, yet few studies have investigated how changes in N availability affect plant water relations. We tested the effects of N addition on plant water relations, hydraulic traits, functional traits, gas exchange, and leaf chemistry in a semi-arid ecosystem in Southern California using long-term experimental plots fertilized with N for over a decade. The dominant species were Artemisia california and Salvia mellifera at Santa Margarita Ecological Reserve and Adenostoma fasciculatum and Ceanothus greggii at Sky Oaks Field Station. All species, except Ceanothus, showed increased leaf N concentration, decreased foliar carbon to N ratio, and increased foliar N isotopic composition with fertilization, indicating that added N was taken up by study species, yet each species had a differing physiological response to long-term N addition. Dry season predawn water potentials were less negative with N addition for all species except Adenostoma, but there were no differences in midday water potentials, or wet season water potentials. Artemisia was particularly responsive, as N addition increased stem hydraulic conductivity, stomatal conductance, and leaf carbon isotopic composition, and decreased wood density. The alteration of water relations and drought resistance parameters with N addition in Artemisia, as well as Adenostoma, Ceanothus, and Salvia, indicate that N deposition can affect the ability of native Southern California shrubs to respond to drought.

Herbivores sculpt leaf traits differently in grasslands depending on life form and land-use histories.

PubMed

Firn, Jennifer; Schütz, Martin; Nguyen, Huong; Risch, Anita C

2017-01-01

Vertebrate and invertebrate herbivores alter plant communities directly by selectively consuming plant species; and indirectly by inducing morphological and physiological changes to plant traits that provide competitive or survivorship advantages to some life forms over others. Progressively excluding aboveground herbivore communities (ungulates, medium and small sized mammals, invertebrates) over five growing seasons, we explored how leaf morphology (specific leaf area or SLA) and nutrition (nitrogen, carbon, phosphorous, potassium, sodium, and calcium) of different plant life forms (forbs, legumes, grasses, sedges) correlated with their dominance. We experimented in two subalpine grassland types with different land-use histories: (1) heavily grazed, nutrient-rich, short-grass vegetation and (2) lightly grazed, lower nutrient tall-grass vegetation. We found differences in leaf traits between treatments where either all herbivores were excluded or all herbivores were present, showing the importance of considering the impacts of both vertebrates and invertebrates on the leaf traits of plant species. Life forms responses to the progressive exclusion of herbivores were captured by six possible combinations: (1) increased leaf size and resource use efficiency (leaf area/nutrients) where lower nutrient levels are invested in leaf construction, but a reduction in the number of leaves, for example, forbs in both vegetation types, (2) increased leaf size and resource use efficiency, for example, legumes in short grass, (3) increased leaf size but a reduction in the number of leaves, for example, legumes in the tall grass, (4) increased number of leaves produced and increased resource use efficiency, for example, grasses in the short grass, (5) increased resource use efficiency of leaves only, for example, grasses and sedges in the tall grass, and (6) no response in terms of leaf construction or dominance, for example, sedges in the short grass. Although we found multiple possible responses by life forms to progressive exclusion of herbivores, we also found some important generalities. Changes in leaf traits of legumes and grasses correlated with their increasing dominance in the short-grass vegetation and plants were more efficient at constructing photosynthetic tissue when herbivores are present with few exceptions. These results demonstrate that vertebrate and invertebrate herbivores are essential to maintain plant species richness and resource-use efficiency. © 2016 by the Ecological Society of America.

Physiology-phenology interactions in a productive semi-arid pine forest.

PubMed

Maseyk, Kadmiel S; Lin, Tongbao; Rotenberg, Eyal; Grünzweig, José M; Schwartz, Amnon; Yakir, Dan

2008-01-01

This study explored possible advantages conferred by the phase shift between leaf phenology and photosynthesis seasonality in a semi-arid Pinus halepensis forest system, not seen in temperate sites. Leaf-scale measurements of gas exchange, nitrogen and phenology were used on daily, seasonal and annual time-scales. Peak photosynthesis was in late winter, when high soil moisture, mild temperatures and low leaf vapour pressure deficit (D(L)) allowed high rates associated with high water- and nitrogen-use efficiencies. Self-sustained new needle growth through the dry and hot summer maximized photosynthesis in the following wet season, without straining carbon storage. Low rates of water loss were associated with increasing sensitivity of stomatal conductance (g(s)) to soil moisture below a relative extractable water (REW) of 0.4, and decreased g(s )sensitivity to D(L) below REW of approx. 0.2. This response was captured by the modified Ball-Berry (Leuning) model. While most physiological parameters and responses measured were typical of temperate pines, the photosynthesis-phenological phasing contributed to high productivity under warm-dry conditions. This contrasts with reported effects of short-term periodical droughts and could lead to different predictions of the effect of warming and drying climate on pine forest productivity.

Elevated CO2 alters distribution of nodal leaf area and enhances nitrogen uptake contributing to yield increase of soybean cultivars grown in Mollisols.

PubMed

Jin, Jian; Li, Yansheng; Liu, Xiaobing; Wang, Guanghua; Tang, Caixian; Yu, Zhenhua; Wang, Xiaojuan; Herbert, Stephen J

2017-01-01

Understanding how elevated CO2 affects dynamics of nodal leaf growth and N assimilation is crucial for the construction of high-yielding canopy via breeding and N management to cope with the future climate change. Two soybean cultivars were grown in two Mollisols differing in soil organic carbon (SOC), and exposed to ambient CO2 (380 ppm) or elevated CO2 (580 ppm) throughout the growth stages. Elevated CO2 induced 4-5 more nodes, and nearly doubled the number of branches. Leaf area duration at the upper nodes from R5 to R6 was 4.3-fold greater and that on branches 2.4-fold higher under elevated CO2 than ambient CO2, irrespective of cultivar and soil type. As a result, elevated CO2 markedly increased the number of pods and seeds at these corresponding positions. The yield response to elevated CO2 varied between the cultivars but not soils. The cultivar-specific response was likely attributed to N content per unit leaf area, the capacity of C sink in seeds and N assimilation. Elevated CO2 did not change protein concentration in seeds of either cultivar. These results indicate that elevated CO2 increases leaf area towards the upper nodes and branches which in turn contributes yield increase.

Overexpression of PSP1 enhances growth of transgenic Arabidopsis plants under ambient air conditions.

PubMed

Han, Xiaofang; Peng, Keli; Wu, Haixia; Song, Shanshan; Zhu, Yerong; Bai, Yanling; Wang, Yong

2017-07-01

The importance of the phosphorylated pathway (PPSB) of L-serine (Ser) biosynthesis in plant growth and development has been demonstrated, but its specific role in leaves and interaction with photorespiration, the main leaf Ser biosynthetic pathway at daytime, are still unclear. To investigate whether changes in biosynthesis of Ser by the PPSB in leaves could have an impact on photorespiration and plant growth, we overexpressed PSP1, the last enzyme of this pathway, under control of the Cauliflower Mosaic Virus 35S promoter in Arabidopsis thaliana. Overexpressor plants grown in normal air displayed larger rosette diameter and leaf area as well as higher fresh and dry weight than the wild type. By contrast, no statistically significant differences to the wild type were observed when the overexpressor seedlings were transferred to elevated CO 2 , indicating a relationship between PSP1 overexpression and photorespiration. Additionally, the transgenic plants displayed higher photorespiration, an increase in CO 2 net-uptake and stronger expression in the light of genes encoding enzymes involved in photorespiration. We further demonstrated that expression of many genes involved in nitrogen assimilation was also promoted in leaves of transgenic plants and that leaf nitrate reductase activity increased in the light, too, although not in the dark. Our results suggest a close correlation between the function of PPSB and photorespiration, and also nitrogen metabolism in leaves.

Genotype, environment, seeding rate, and top-dressed nitrogen effects on end-use quality of modern Nebraska winter wheat.

PubMed

Bhatta, Madhav; Regassa, Teshome; Rose, Devin J; Baenziger, P Stephen; Eskridge, Kent M; Santra, Dipak K; Poudel, Rachana

2017-12-01

Fine-tuning production inputs such as seeding rate, nitrogen (N), and genotype may improve end-use quality of hard red winter wheat (Triticum aestivium L.) when growing conditions are unpredictable. Studies were conducted at the Agronomy Research Farm (ARF; Lincoln, NE, USA) and the High Plains Agricultural Laboratory (HPAL; Sidney, NE, USA) in 2014 and 2015 in Nebraska, USA, to determine the effects of genotype (6), environment (4), seeding rate (3), and flag leaf top-dressed N (0 and 34 kg N ha -1 ) on the end-use quality of winter wheat. End-use quality traits were influenced by environment, genotype, seeding rate, top-dressed N, and their interactions. Mixograph parameters had a strong correlation with grain volume weight and flour yield. Doubling the recommended seeding rate and N at the flag leaf stage increased grain protein content by 8.1% in 2014 and 1.5% in 2015 at ARF and 4.2% in 2014 and 8.4% in 2015 at HPAL. The key finding of this research is that increasing seeding rates up to double the current recommendations with N at the flag leaf stage improved most of the end-use quality traits. This will have a significant effect on the premium for protein a farmer could receive when marketing wheat. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

[Effects of alternative furrow irrigation and nitrogen application rate on photosynthesis, growth, and yield of cucumber in solar greenhouse].

PubMed

Zhang, Liu-xia; Wang, Shu-zhong; Sui, Xiao-lei; Zhang, Zhen-xian

2011-09-01

This paper studied the effects of alternative furrow irrigation and nitrogen (N) application rate (no N, optimal N, and conventional N) on the photosynthesis, growth characteristics, yield formation, and fruit quality of cucumber (Cucumis sativus) cultivar Jinyu No. 5 in a solar greenhouse in winter-spring growth season and autumn-winter season. Under alternative furrow irrigation, the net photosynthetic rate of upper, middle, eand lower leaves was appreciably lower and the transpiration rate decreased significantly, and the transient water use efficiency of upper and middle leaves improved, as compared with those under conventional irrigation. Stomatal factor was the limiting factor of photosynthesis under alternative furrow irrigation. The photosynthesis and transient water use efficiency of functional leaves under alternative furrow irrigation increased with increasing N application rate. Comparing with conventional irrigation, alternative furrow irrigation decreased leaf chlorophyll content and plant biomass, but increased root biomass, root/shoot ratio, and dry matter allocation in root and fruit. The economic output under alternative furrow irrigation was nearly the same as that under conventional irrigation, whereas the water use efficiency for economic yield increased significantly, suggesting the beneficial effects of alternative furrow irrigation on root development and fruit formation. With the increase of N application rate, the leaf chlorophyll content, chlorophyll a/b, specific leaf mass, plant biomass, economic yield, and fruit Vc and soluble sugar contents under alternative furrow irrigation increased, but no significant difference was observed between the treatments optimal N and conventional N. N application had little effects on the water use efficiency for economic yield. The economic yield and biomass production of the cucumber were significantly higher in winter-spring growth season than in autumn-winter growth season.

Single-wavelength based rice leaf color analyzer for nitrogen status estimation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sumriddetchkajorn, Sarun; Intaravanne, Yuttana

2014-02-01

With the need of a tool for efficient nitrogen (N) fertilizer management in the rice field, this paper proposes a low-cost compact single-wavelength based colorimeter that can be used to indicate the specified six color levels of a rice leaf associated with the desired amount of N fertilizer for the rice field. Our key design is in a reflective optical architecture that allows us to investigate the amount of light scattered from only one side of the rice leaf. We also show how we implement this needed rice leaf color analyzer by integrating an off-the-shelf 562-nm wavelength light emitting diode (LED), a silicon photodiode, an 8-bit microcontroller, and a 6×1 LED panel in a compact plastic package. Field test results in rice fields confirm that leaf color levels of 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6 are effectively identified and their corresponding amount of N fertilizer can be determined. For the leaf color level of 4, our single-wavelength based rice leaf color analyzer sometimes indicates a higher color level of 5 whose suggested amount of N fertilizer is equal to that for the leaf color level of 4. Other key features include ease of use and upgradability for different color levels.

[Effects of alien species Robinia pseudoacacia on plant community functional structure in hilly-gully region of Loess Plateau, China.

PubMed

Zhu, Duo Ju; Wen, Zhong Ming; Zhang, Jing; Tao, Yu; Zeng, Hong Wen; Tang, Yang

2018-02-01

To investigate the effects of the introduction of Robinia pseudoacacia on the functional structure of plant communities, we selected paired-plots of R. pseudoacacia communities and native plant communities across different vegetation zones, i.e., steppe zone, forest-steppe zone, forest zone in hilly-gully region of Loess Plateau, China. We measured several functional characteristics and then compared the functional structures of R. pseudoacacia and native plant communities in different vegetation zones. The results showed that the variation of the functional traits across different vegetation zones were consistent in R. pseudoacacia community and native plant community, including leaf carbon concentration, leaf nitrogen concentration, leaf phosphorus concentration, specific leaf area, and leaf tissue density. The leaf carbon concentration, leaf nitrogen concentration, and specific leaf area of the R. pseudoacacia community were significantly higher than those of the native plant community. The trend of change that the functional diversity indices, i.e., FR ic , FE ve , FD iv , FD is , Rao of the R. pseudoacacia community and the native plant community with vegetation zones were different. The introduction of R. pseudoacacia enhanced the plant community functional diversity in the forest zone but reduced community functional diversity in the steppe zone.

Changes in leaf area, nitrogen content and canopy photosynthesis in soybean exposed to an ozone concentration gradient

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Influences of ozone (O3) on light-saturated rates of photosynthesis in crop leaves have been well documented. To increase our understanding of O3 effects on individual- or stand level productivity, a mechanistic understanding of factors determining canopy photosynthesis is necessary. We used a canop...

Response of nutrients, biofilm, and benthic insects to salmon carcass addition.

Treesearch

Shannon M. Claeson; Judith L. Li; Jana E. Compton; Peter A. Bisson

2006-01-01

Salmon carcass addition to streams is expected to increase stream productivity at multiple trophic levels. This study examined stream nutrient (nitrogen, phosphorus, and carbon), epilithic biofilm (ash-free dry mass and chlorophyll a), leaf-litter decomposition, and macroinvertebrate (density and biomass) responses to carcass addition in three headwater streams of...

Nurse plants transfer more nitrogen to distantly related species.

PubMed

Montesinos-Navarro, Alicia; Verdú, Miguel; Querejeta, José Ignacio; Valiente-Banuet, Alfonso

2017-05-01

Plant facilitative interactions enhance co-occurrence between distant relatives, partly due to limited overlap in resource requirements. We propose a different mechanism for the coexistence of distant relatives based on positive interactions of nutrient sharing. Nutrients move between plants following source-sink gradients driven by plant traits that allow these gradients to establish. Specifically, nitrogen (N) concentration gradients can arise from variation in leaf N content across plants species. As many ecologically relevant traits, we hypothesize that leaf N content is phylogenetically conserved and can result in N gradients promoting N transfer among distant relatives. In a Mexican desert community governed by facilitation, we labelled nurse plants (Mimosa luisana) with 15 N and measured its transfer to 14 other species in the community, spanning the range of phylogenetic distances to the nurse plant. Nurses established steeper N source-sink gradients with distant relatives, increasing 15 N transfer toward these species. Nutrient sharing may provide long-term benefits to facilitated plants and may be an overlooked mechanism maintaining coexistence and increasing the phylogenetic diversity of plant communities. © 2017 by the Ecological Society of America.

Short-term effect of nutrient availability and rainfall distribution on biomass production and leaf nutrient content of savanna tree species.

PubMed

Barbosa, Eduardo R M; Tomlinson, Kyle W; Carvalheiro, Luísa G; Kirkman, Kevin; de Bie, Steven; Prins, Herbert H T; van Langevelde, Frank

2014-01-01

Changes in land use may lead to increased soil nutrient levels in many ecosystems (e.g. due to intensification of agricultural fertilizer use). Plant species differ widely in their response to differences in soil nutrients, and for savannas it is uncertain how this nutrient enrichment will affect plant community dynamics. We set up a large controlled short-term experiment in a semi-arid savanna to test how water supply (even water supply vs. natural rainfall) and nutrient availability (no fertilisation vs. fertilisation) affects seedlings' above-ground biomass production and leaf-nutrient concentrations (N, P and K) of broad-leafed and fine-leafed tree species. Contrary to expectations, neither changes in water supply nor changes in soil nutrient level affected biomass production of the studied species. By contrast, leaf-nutrient concentration did change significantly. Under regular water supply, soil nutrient addition increased the leaf phosphorus concentration of both fine-leafed and broad-leafed species. However, under uneven water supply, leaf nitrogen and phosphorus concentration declined with soil nutrient supply, this effect being more accentuated in broad-leafed species. Leaf potassium concentration of broad-leafed species was lower when growing under constant water supply, especially when no NPK fertilizer was applied. We found that changes in environmental factors can affect leaf quality, indicating a potential interactive effect between land-use changes and environmental changes on savanna vegetation: under more uneven rainfall patterns within the growing season, leaf quality of tree seedlings for a number of species can change as a response to changes in nutrient levels, even if overall plant biomass does not change. Such changes might affect herbivore pressure on trees and thus savanna plant community dynamics. Although longer term experiments would be essential to test such potential effects of eutrophication via changes in leaf nutrient concentration, our findings provide important insights that can help guide management plans that aim to preserve savanna biodiversity.

Biotic and abiotic factors associated with altitudinal variation in plant traits and herbivory in a dominant oak species.

PubMed

Abdala-Roberts, Luis; Rasmann, Sergio; Berny-Mier Y Terán, Jorge C; Covelo, Felisa; Glauser, Gaétan; Moreira, Xoaquín

2016-12-01

It is generally thought that herbivore pressure is higher at lower elevations where climate is warmer and less seasonal, and that this has led to higher levels of plant defense investment at low elevations. However, the generality of this expectation has been called into question by recent studies. We tested for altitudinal gradients in insect leaf damage, plant defenses (phenolic compounds), and nutritional traits (phosphorus and nitrogen) in leaves of the long-lived tree Quercus robur, and further investigated the abiotic factors associated with such gradients. We sampled 20 populations of Q. robur distributed along an altitudinal gradient spanning 35-869 m above sea level, which covered most of the altitudinal range of this species and varied substantially in abiotic conditions, plant traits, and herbivory. Univariate regressions showed that leaf herbivory, phenolics, and phosphorus increased toward higher elevations, whereas leaf nitrogen did not vary with altitude. Multiple regression analyses indicated that temperature was the single most important factor associated with herbivory and appears to be strongly associated with altitudinal variation in damage. Leaf phenolics were also correlated with herbivory, but in a manner that suggests these chemical defenses do not underlie altitudinal variation in damage. In addition, we found that variation in leaf traits (phenolics and nutrients) was in turn associated with both climatic and soil variables. Overall, these findings suggest that altitudinal gradients in herbivory and defenses in Q. robur are uncoupled and that elevational variation in herbivory and plant traits responds mainly to abiotic factors. © 2016 Botanical Society of America.

Chronic Nitrogen Deposition Influences the Chemical Dynamics of Leaf Litter and Fine Roots During Decomposition

EPA Science Inventory

Atmospheric nitrogen deposition induces a forest carbon sink across broad parts of the Northern Hemisphere; this carbon sink may partly result from slower litter decomposition. Although microbial responses to experimental nitrogen deposition have been well-studied, evidence linki...

Plant chlorophyll fluorescence: active and passive measurements at canopy and leaf scales with different nitrogen treatments

PubMed Central

Cendrero-Mateo, M. Pilar; Moran, M. Susan; Papuga, Shirley A.; Thorp, K.R.; Alonso, L.; Moreno, J.; Ponce-Campos, G.; Rascher, U.; Wang, G.

2016-01-01

Most studies assessing chlorophyll fluorescence (ChlF) have examined leaf responses to environmental stress conditions using active techniques. Alternatively, passive techniques are able to measure ChlF at both leaf and canopy scales. However, the measurement principles of both techniques are different, and only a few datasets concerning the relationships between them are reported in the literature. In this study, we investigated the potential for interchanging ChlF measurements using active techniques with passive measurements at different temporal and spatial scales. The ultimate objective was to determine the limits within which active and passive techniques are comparable. The results presented in this study showed that active and passive measurements were highly correlated over the growing season across nitrogen treatments at both canopy and leaf-average scale. At the single-leaf scale, the seasonal relation between techniques was weaker, but still significant. The variability within single-leaf measurements was largely related to leaf heterogeneity associated with variations in CO2 assimilation and stomatal conductance, and less so to variations in leaf chlorophyll content, leaf size or measurement inputs (e.g. light reflected and emitted by the leaf and illumination conditions and leaf spectrum). This uncertainty was exacerbated when single-leaf analysis was limited to a particular day rather than the entire season. We concluded that daily measurements of active and passive ChlF at the single-leaf scale are not comparable. However, canopy and leaf-average active measurements can be used to better understand the daily and seasonal behaviour of passive ChlF measurements. In turn, this can be used to better estimate plant photosynthetic capacity and therefore to provide improved information for crop management. PMID:26482242

Nutrients stimulate leaf breakdown rates and detritivore biomass: Bottom-up effects via heterotrophic pathways

USGS Publications Warehouse

Greenwood, J.L.; Rosemond, A.D.; Wallace, J.B.; Cross, W.F.; Weyers, H.S.

2007-01-01

Most nutrient enrichment studies in aquatic systems have focused on autotrophic food webs in systems where primary producers dominate the resource base. We tested the heterotrophic response to long-term nutrient enrichment in a forested, headwater stream. Our study design consisted of 2 years of pretreatment data in a reference and treatment stream and 2 years of continuous nitrogen (N) + phosphorus addition to the treatment stream. Studies were conducted with two leaf species that differed in initial C:N, Rhododendron maximum (rhododendron) and Acer rubrum (red maple). We determined the effects of nutrient addition on detrital resources (leaf breakdown rates, litter C:N and microbial activity) and tested whether nutrient enrichment affected macroinvertebrate consumers via increased biomass. Leaf breakdown rates were ca. 1.5 and 3?? faster during the first and second years of enrichment, respectively, in the treatment stream for both leaf types. Microbial respiration rates of both leaf types were 3?? higher with enrichment, and macroinvertebrate biomass associated with leaves increased ca. 2-3?? with enrichment. The mass of N in macroinvertebrate biomass relative to leaves tended to increase with enrichment up to 6?? for red maple and up to 44?? for rhododendron leaves. Lower quality (higher C:N) rhododendron leaves exhibited greater changes in leaf nutrient content and macroinvertebrate response to nutrient enrichment than red maple leaves, suggesting a unique response by different leaf species to nutrient enrichment. Nutrient concentrations used in this study were moderate and equivalent to those in streams draining watersheds with altered land use. Thus, our results suggest that similarly moderate levels of enrichment may affect detrital resource quality and subsequently lead to altered energy and nutrient flow in detrital food webs. ?? 2006 Springer-Verlag.

[Satellite remote sensing retrieval of canopy nitrogen nutritional status of apple trees at blossom stage].

PubMed

Wang, Ling; Zhao, Geng-Xing; Zhu, Xi-Cun; Wang, Rui-Yan; Chang, Chun-Yan

2013-10-01

Taking Qixia City of Shandong, China as the study area, and based on the Landsat-5 TM and ALOS AVNIR-2 images, the canopy retrieval reflectance of apple trees at blossom stage was acquired. In combining with the measured reflectance of sample trees, the nitrogen-sensitive spectral indices were constructed and selected. By using the sensitive spectral indices as the independent variables, the nitrogen retrieval models were established, and the model with the best accuracy was used for spatial retrieve. The correlations between the spectral indices and the nitrogen nutritional status were in the order of canopy > leaf > flower. The sensitive indices were mainly composed of green, red, and near infrared bands. The accuracy of the retrieval models was in the order of support vector regression > multi-variable stepwise regression > one-variable regression. The retrieval results based on different images were similar, and showed that the leaf nitrogen content was mainly of grades 3-4 (27-33 g x kg(-1)), and the canopy nitrogen nutrient indices were mainly of grades 2-4 (TM: 38-47 g x kg(-1); ALOS: 32-41 g x kg(-1)). The spatial distribution of the retrieval nitrogen nutritional status based on different images also showed the similar trend, i. e., the nitrogen nutritional status was higher in the north and south than that in the middle part of the study area, and the areas with the high grades of leaf nitrogen and canopy nitrogen were mainly located in Sujiadian Town and Songshan subdistrict in the northwest, Zangjiazhuang Town and Tingkou Town in the northeast, and Shewopo Town in the south, which were consistent with the distribution of the key towns for apple production in Qixia City. This study provided a feasible method for the acquisition of nitrogen nutritional status of apple trees on macroscopic scale, and also, provided reference for other similar remote sensing retrievals.

Cyclic variations in nitrogen uptake rate of soybean plants: ammonium as a nitrogen source

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Henry, L. T.; Raper, C. D. Jr

1989-01-01

When NO3- is the sole nitrogen source in flowing solution culture, the net rate of nitrogen uptake by nonnodulated soybean (Glycine max L. Merr. cv Ransom) plants cycles between maxima and minima with a periodicity of oscillation that corresponds with the interval of leaf emergence. Since soybean plants accumulate similar quantities of nitrogen when either NH4+ or NO3- is the sole source in solution culture controlled at pH 6.0, an experiment was conducted to determine if the oscillations in net rate of nitrogen uptake also occur when NH4+ is the nitrogen source. During a 21-day period of vegetative development, net uptake of NH4+ was measured daily by ion chromatography as depletion of NH4+ from a replenished nutrient solution containing 1.0 millimolar NH4+. The net rate of NH4+ uptake oscillated with a periodicity that was similar to the interval of leaf emergence. Instances of negative net rates of uptake indicate that the transition between maxima and minima involved changes in influx and efflux components of net NH4+ uptake.

Photosynthetic properties of C4 plants growing in an African savanna/wetland mosaic.

PubMed

Mantlana, K B; Arneth, A; Veenendaal, E M; Wohland, P; Wolski, P; Kolle, O; Wagner, M; Lloyd, J

2008-01-01

Photosynthesis rates and photosynthesis-leaf nutrient relationships were analysed in nine tropical grass and sedge species growing in three different ecosystems: a rain-fed grassland, a seasonal floodplain, and a permanent swamp, located along a hydrological gradient in the Okavango Delta, Botswana. These investigations were conducted during the rainy season, at a time of the year when differences in growth conditions between the sites were relatively uniform. At the permanent swamp, the largest variations were found for area-based leaf nitrogen contents, from 20 mmol m(-2) to 140 mmol m(-2), nitrogen use efficiencies (NUE), from 0.2 mmol (C) mol(-1) (N) s(-1) to 2.0 mmol (C) mol(-1) (N) s(-1), and specific leaf areas (SLA), from 50 cm(2) g(-1) to 400 cm(2) g(-1). For the vegetation growing at the rain-fed grassland, the highest leaf gas exchange rates, high leaf nutrient levels, a low ratio of intercellular to ambient CO(2) concentration, and high carboxylation efficiency were found. Taken together, these observations indicate a very efficient growth strategy that is required for survival and reproduction during the relatively brief period of water availability. The overall lowest values of light-saturated photosynthesis (A(sat)) were observed at the seasonal floodplain; around 25 micromol m(-2) s(-1) and 30 micromol m(-2) s(-1). To place these observations into the broader context of functional leaf trait analysis, relationships of photosynthesis rates, specific leaf area, and foliar nutrient levels were plotted, in the same way as was done for previously published 'scaling relationships' that are based largely on C(3) plants, noting the differences in the analyses between this study and the previous study. The within- and across-species variation in both A(sat) and SLA appeared better predicted by foliar phosphorus content (dry mass or area basis) rather than by foliar nitrogen concentrations, possibly because the availability of phosphorus is even more critical than the availability of nitrogen in the studied relatively oligotrophic ecosystems.

Proximate nutritional composition of CELSS crops grown at different CO2 partial pressures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wheeler, R. M.; Mackowiak, C. L.; Sager, J. C.; Knott, W. M.; Berry, W. L.

1994-01-01

Two Controlled Ecological Life Support System (CELSS) candidate crops, soybean (Glycine max) and potato (Solanum tuberosum), were grown hydroponically in controlled environments maintained at carbon dioxide (CO2) partial pressures ranging from 0.05 to 1.00 kPa (500 to 10,000 ppm at 101 kPa atmospheric pressure). Plants were harvested at maturity (90 days for soybean and 105 days for potato) and all tissues analyzed for proximate nutritional composition (i.e. protein, fat, carbohydrate, crude fiber, and ash content). Soybean seed ash and crude fiber were higher and carbohydrate was lower than values reported for field-grown seed. Potato tubers showed little difference from field-grown tubers. Crude fiber of soybean stems and leaves increased with increased CO2, as did soybean leaf protein (total nitrogen). Potato leaf and stem (combined) protein levels also increased with increased CO2, while leaf and stem carbohydrates decreased. Values for leaf and stem protein and ash were higher than values generally reported for field-grown plants for both species. Results suggest that CO2 partial pressure should have little influence on proximate composition of potato tubers or soybean seed, but that high ash and protein levels might be expected from leaves and stems of crops grown in controlled environments of a CELSS.

Speciation of vanadium in Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa L.) and soils in response to different levels of vanadium in soils and cabbage growth.

PubMed

Tian, Liyan; Yang, Jinyan; Alewell, Christine; Huang, Jen-How

2014-09-01

This study highlights the accumulation and speciation of vanadium in Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa L.) in relation to the speciation of soil vanadium with pot experiments at 122-622mgVkg(-1) by spiking NH4VO3. Cabbage planting decreased the bioavailable and residual vanadium based on sequential extraction, leading to enrichment of oxalate-extractable vanadium in soils. The biomass production increased with increasing concentrations of soil vanadium from 122 to 372mgVkg(-1), probably due to the increasing nitrogen availability and low vanadium availability in our soils with a consequent low vanadium toxicity. Although the concentrations of root vanadium (14.4-24.9mgVkg(-1)) related positively with soil vanadium, the bio-dilution alleviated the increase of leaf vanadium (2.1-2.7mgVkg(-1)). The predominance of vanadium(IV) in leaves (∼60-80% of total vanadium) indicates bio-reduction of vanadium in Chinese cabbage, since the mobile vanadium in oxic soils was usually pentavalent. Approximately 15-20% of the leaf vanadium was associated with recalcitrant leaf tissues. The majority of leaf vanadium was water and ethanol extractable, which is considered mobile and may cause more toxic effects on Chinese cabbage. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Title: Potassium application regulates nitrogen metabolism and osmotic adjustment in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) functional leaf under drought stress.

PubMed

Zahoor, Rizwan; Zhao, Wenqing; Abid, Muhammad; Dong, Haoran; Zhou, Zhiguo

2017-08-01

To evaluate the role of potassium (K) in maintaining nitrogen metabolism and osmotic adjustment development of cotton functional leaves to sustain growth under soil drought and rewatering conditions, the plants of two cotton cultivars Siza 3 (low-K sensitive) and Simian 3 (low-K tolerant), were grown under three different K rates (K0, K1, and K2; 0, 150, and 300kgK 2 Oha -1 , respectively) and exposed to drought stress with 40±5% soil relative water content (SRWC). The drought stress was applied at flowering stage by withholding water for eight days followed by rewatering to a well-watered level (75±5% SRWC). The results showed that drought-stressed plants of both cultivars showed a decrease in leaf relative water content (RWC) and osmotic potential in the functional leaves and developed osmotic adjustment with an increase in the contents of free amino acids, soluble sugars, inorganic K, and nitrate as compared to well-watered plants. In drought-stressed plants, nitrogen-metabolizing enzyme activities of nitrogen reductase (NR), glutamine synthetase (GS), and glutamate synthase (GOGAT) were diminished significantly (P≤0.05) along with decreased chlorophyll content and soluble proteins. However, drought-stressed plants under K application not only exhibited higher osmotic adjustment with greater accumulation of osmolytes but also regulated nitrogen metabolism by maintaining higher enzyme activities, soluble proteins, and chlorophyll content in functional leaves as compared to the plants without K application. Siza 3 showed better stability in enzyme activities and resulted in 89% higher seed cotton yield under K2 as compared to K0 in drought-stressed plants, whereas this increase was 53% in the case of Simian 3. The results of the study suggested that K application enhances cotton plants' potential for sustaining high nitrogen-metabolizing enzyme activities and related components to supplement osmotic adjustment under soil drought conditions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Soil, Leaf and Root Ecological Stoichiometry of Caragana korshinskii on the Loess Plateau of China in Relation to Plantation Age

PubMed Central

Zeng, Quanchao; Lal, Rattan; Chen, Yanan; An, Shaoshan

2017-01-01

Caragana korshinskii, a leguminous shrub, a common specie, is widely planted to prevent soil erosion on the Loess Plateau. The objective of this study was to determine how the plantation ages affected soil, leaf and root nutrients and ecological stoichiometry. The chronosequence ages of C. korshinskii plantations selected for this study were 10, 20 and 30 years. Soil organic carbon (SOC) and soil total nitrogen (STN) of C. korshinskii plantations significantly increased with increase in the chronosequence age. However, soil total phosphorous (STP) was not affected by the chronosequence age. The soil C: N ratio decreased and the soil C: P and N: P ratios increased with increasing plantation age. The leaf and root concentrations of C, N, and P increased and the ratios C: N, C: P, and N: P decreased with age increase. Leaf N: P ratios were >20, indicating that P was the main factor limiting the growth of C. korshinskii. This study also demonstrated that the regeneration of natural grassland (NG) effectively preserved and enhanced soil nutrient contents. Compared with NG, shrub lands (C. korshinskii) had much lower soil nutrient concentrations, especially for long (>20 years) chronosequence age. Thus, the regeneration of natural grassland is an ecologically beneficial practice for the recovery of degraded soils in this area. PMID:28076357

How vertical patterns in leaf traits shift seasonally and the implications for modeling canopy photosynthesis in a temperate deciduous forest.

PubMed

Coble, Adam P; VanderWall, Brittany; Mau, Alida; Cavaleri, Molly A

2016-09-01

Leaf functional traits are used in modeling forest canopy photosynthesis (Ac) due to strong correlations between photosynthetic capacity, leaf mass per area (LMA) and leaf nitrogen per area (Narea). Vertical distributions of these traits may change over time in temperate deciduous forests as a result of acclimation to light, which may result in seasonal changes in Ac To assess both spatial and temporal variations in key traits, we measured vertical profiles of Narea and LMA from leaf expansion through leaf senescence in a sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marshall) forest. To investigate mechanisms behind coordinated changes in leaf morphology and function, we also measured vertical variation in leaf carbon isotope composition (δ(13)C), predawn turgor pressure, leaf water potential and osmotic potential. Finally, we assessed potential biases in Ac estimations by parameterizing models with and without vertical and seasonal Narea variations following leaf expansion. Our data are consistent with the hypothesis that hydrostatic constraints on leaf morphology drive the vertical increase in LMA with height early in the growing season; however, LMA in the upper canopy continued to increase over time during light acclimation, indicating that light is primarily driving gradients in LMA later in the growing season. Models with no seasonal variation in Narea overestimated Ac by up to 11% early in the growing season, while models with no vertical variation in Narea overestimated Ac by up to 60% throughout the season. According to the multilayer model, the upper 25% of leaf area contributed to over 50% of Ac, but when gradients of intercellular CO2, as estimated from δ(13)C, were accounted for, the upper 25% of leaf area contributed to 26% of total Ac Our results suggest that ignoring vertical variation of key traits can lead to considerable overestimation of Ac. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

HIGH FOLIAR NITROGEN IN DESERT SHRUBS: AN IMPORTANT ECOSYSTEM TRAIT OR DEFECTIVE DESERT DOCTRINE?

EPA Science Inventory

Nitrogen concentrations in green and senesced leaves of perennial desert shrubs were compiled from a worldwide literature search to test the validity of the doctrine that desert shrubs produce foliage and leaf litter much richer in nitrogen than that in the foliage of plants from...

Variations of leaf N and P concentrations in shrubland biomes across northern China: phylogeny, climate, and soil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Xian; Chi, Xiulian; Ji, Chengjun; Liu, Hongyan; Ma, Wenhong; Mohhammat, Anwar; Shi, Zhaoyong; Wang, Xiangping; Yu, Shunli; Yue, Ming; Tang, Zhiyao

2016-08-01

Concentrations of leaf nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) are two key traits of plants for ecosystem functioning and dynamics. Foliar stoichiometry varies remarkably among life forms. However, previous studies have focused on the stoichiometric patterns of trees and grasses, leaving a significant knowledge gap for shrubs. In this study, we explored the intraspecific and interspecific variations of leaf N and P concentrations in response to the changes in climate, soil property, and evolutionary history. We analysed 1486 samples composed of 163 shrub species from 361 shrubland sites in northern China encompassing 46.1° (86.7-132.8° E) in longitude and 19.8° (32.6-52.4° N) in latitude. Leaf N concentrations decreased with precipitation, while leaf P concentrations decreased with temperature and increased with precipitation and soil total P concentrations. Both leaf N and P concentrations were phylogenetically conserved, but leaf P concentrations were less conserved than leaf N concentrations. At the community level, climate explained more interspecific variation of leaf nutrient concentrations, while soil nutrients explained most of the intraspecific variation. These results suggested that leaf N and P concentrations responded to climate, soil, and phylogeny in different ways. Climate influenced the community chemical traits through the shift in species composition, whereas soil directly influenced the community chemical traits. New patterns were discovered using our observations on specific regions and vegetation types, which improved our knowledge of broad biogeographic patterns of leaf chemical traits.

Nutrient composition of blades, petioles, and whole leaves from fertilized and unfertilized yellow-poplar

Treesearch

L. R. Auchmoody

1974-01-01

Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations in leaf blades and petioles obtained from three fertilized and three unfertilized yellow-poplar sample trees were determined annually during a 4-year period. Concentrations were substantially higher in blades than in petioles. Fertilization increased N and P concentrations in blades, but petioles showed only a slight...

Global scale environmental control of plant photosynthetic capacity

DOE PAGES

Ali, Ashehad; Xu, Chonggang; Rogers, Alistair; ...

2015-12-01

Photosynthetic capacity, determined by light harvesting and carboxylation reactions, is a key plant trait that determines the rate of photosynthesis; however, in Earth System Models (ESMs) at a reference temperature, it is either a fixed value for a given plant functional type or derived from a linear function of leaf nitrogen content. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive analysis that considered correlations of environmental factors with photosynthetic capacity as determined by maximum carboxylation (V c,m) rate scaled to 25°C (i.e., V c,25; μmol CO 2·m –2·s –1) and maximum electron transport rate (Jmax) scaled to 25°C (i.e., J 25;more » μmol electron·m –2·s –1) at the global scale. Our results showed that the percentage of variation in observed Vc,25 and J25 explained jointly by the environmental factors (i.e., day length, radiation, temperature, and humidity) were 2–2.5 times and 6–9 times of that explained by area-based leaf nitrogen content, respectively. Environmental factors influenced photosynthetic capacity mainly through photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency, rather than through leaf nitrogen content. The combination of leaf nitrogen content and environmental factors was able to explain ~56% and ~66% of the variation in V c,25 and J 25 at the global scale, respectively. As a result, our analyses suggest that model projections of plant photosynthetic capacity and hence land–atmosphere exchange under changing climatic conditions could be substantially improved if environmental factors are incorporated into algorithms used to parameterize photosynthetic capacity in ESMs.« less

The Leaf of Diospyros kaki Thumb Ameliorates Renal Oxidative Damage in Mice with Type 2 Diabetes

PubMed Central

Choi, Myung-Sook; Jeong, Mi Ji; Park, Yong Bok; Kim, Sang Ryong; Jung, Un Ju

2016-01-01

Diabetic kidney disease is the most common and severe chronic complication of diabetes. The leaf of Diospyros kaki Thumb (persimmon) has been commonly used for herbal tea and medicinal purposes to treat a variety of conditions, including hypertension and atherosclerosis. However, the effect of persimmon leaf on kidney failure has not been investigated. This study aimed to examine the role of persimmon leaf in protecting the diabetes-associated kidney damage in a mouse model of type 2 diabetes. Mice were fed either a normal chow diet with or without powered persimmon leaf (5%, w/w) for 5 weeks. In addition to kidney morphology and blood markers of kidney function, we assessed levels of oxidative stress markers as well as antioxidant enzymes activities and mRNA expression in the kidney. Supplementation of the diet with powered persimmon leaf not only decreased the concentration of blood urea nitrogen in the plasma but also improved glomerular hypertrophy. Furthermore, the persimmon leaf significantly decreased the levels of hydrogen peroxide and lipid peroxide in the kidney. The activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase and the mRNA expression of their respective genes were also increased in the kidney of persimmon leaf-supplemented db/db mice. Taken together, these results suggest that supplementation with the persimmon leaf may have protective effects against type 2 diabetes-induced kidney dysfunction and oxidative stress. PMID:28078262

Spectroscopic determination of leaf biochemistry using band-depth analysis of absorption features and stepwise multiple linear regression

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kokaly, R.F.; Clark, R.N.

1999-01-01

We develop a new method for estimating the biochemistry of plant material using spectroscopy. Normalized band depths calculated from the continuum-removed reflectance spectra of dried and ground leaves were used to estimate their concentrations of nitrogen, lignin, and cellulose. Stepwise multiple linear regression was used to select wavelengths in the broad absorption features centered at 1.73 ??m, 2.10 ??m, and 2.30 ??m that were highly correlated with the chemistry of samples from eastern U.S. forests. Band depths of absorption features at these wavelengths were found to also be highly correlated with the chemistry of four other sites. A subset of data from the eastern U.S. forest sites was used to derive linear equations that were applied to the remaining data to successfully estimate their nitrogen, lignin, and cellulose concentrations. Correlations were highest for nitrogen (R2 from 0.75 to 0.94). The consistent results indicate the possibility of establishing a single equation capable of estimating the chemical concentrations in a wide variety of species from the reflectance spectra of dried leaves. The extension of this method to remote sensing was investigated. The effects of leaf water content, sensor signal-to-noise and bandpass, atmospheric effects, and background soil exposure were examined. Leaf water was found to be the greatest challenge to extending this empirical method to the analysis of fresh whole leaves and complete vegetation canopies. The influence of leaf water on reflectance spectra must be removed to within 10%. Other effects were reduced by continuum removal and normalization of band depths. If the effects of leaf water can be compensated for, it might be possible to extend this method to remote sensing data acquired by imaging spectrometers to give estimates of nitrogen, lignin, and cellulose concentrations over large areas for use in ecosystem studies.We develop a new method for estimating the biochemistry of plant material using spectroscopy. Normalized band depths calculated from the continuum-removed reflectance spectra of dried and ground leaves were used to estimate their concentrations of nitrogen, lignin, and cellulose. Stepwise multiple linear regression was used to select wavelengths in the broad absorption features centered at 1.73 ??m, 2.10 ??m, and 2.301 ??m that were highly correlated with the chemistry of samples from eastern U.S. forests. Band depths of absorption features at these wavelengths were found to also be highly correlated with the chemistry of four other sites. A subset of data from the eastern U.S. forest sites was used to derive linear equations that were applied to the remaining data to successfully estimate their nitrogen, lignin, and cellulose concentrations. Correlations were highest for nitrogen (R2 from 0.75 to 0.94). The consistent results indicate the possibility of establishing a single equation capable of estimating the chemical concentrations in a wide variety of species from the reflectance spectra of dried leaves. The extension of this method to remote sensing was investigated. The effects of leaf water content, sensor signal-to-noise and bandpass, atmospheric effects, and background soil exposure were examined. Leaf water was found to be the greatest challenge to extending this empirical method to the analysis of fresh whole leaves and complete vegetation canopies. The influence of leaf water on reflectance spectra must be removed to within 10%. Other effects were reduced by continuum removal and normalization of band depths. If the effects of leaf water can be compensated for, it might be possible to extend this method to remote sensing data acquired by imaging spectrometers to give estimates of nitrogen, lignin, and cellulose concentrations over large areas for use in ecosystem studies.

Leaf nitrogen and phosphorus of temperate desert plants in response to climate and soil nutrient availability

PubMed Central

He, Mingzhu; Dijkstra, Feike A.; Zhang, Ke; Li, Xinrong; Tan, Huijuan; Gao, Yanhong; Li, Gang

2014-01-01

In desert ecosystems, plant growth and nutrient uptake are restricted by availability of soil nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). The effects of both climate and soil nutrient conditions on N and P concentrations among desert plant life forms (annual, perennial and shrub) remain unclear. We assessed leaf N and P levels of 54 desert plants and measured the corresponding soil N and P in shallow (0–10 cm), middle (10–40 cm) and deep soil layers (40–100 cm), at 52 sites in a temperate desert of northwest China. Leaf P and N:P ratios varied markedly among life forms. Leaf P was higher in annuals and perennials than in shrubs. Leaf N and P showed a negative relationship with mean annual temperature (MAT) and no relationship with mean annual precipitation (MAP), but a positive relationship with soil P. Leaf P of shrubs was positively related to soil P in the deep soil. Our study indicated that leaf N and P across the three life forms were influenced by soil P. Deep-rooted plants may enhance the availability of P in the surface soil facilitating growth of shallow-rooted life forms in this N and P limited system, but further research is warranted on this aspect. PMID:25373739

Leaf nitrogen and phosphorus of temperate desert plants in response to climate and soil nutrient availability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Mingzhu; Dijkstra, Feike A.; Zhang, Ke; Li, Xinrong; Tan, Huijuan; Gao, Yanhong; Li, Gang

2014-11-01

In desert ecosystems, plant growth and nutrient uptake are restricted by availability of soil nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). The effects of both climate and soil nutrient conditions on N and P concentrations among desert plant life forms (annual, perennial and shrub) remain unclear. We assessed leaf N and P levels of 54 desert plants and measured the corresponding soil N and P in shallow (0-10 cm), middle (10-40 cm) and deep soil layers (40-100 cm), at 52 sites in a temperate desert of northwest China. Leaf P and N:P ratios varied markedly among life forms. Leaf P was higher in annuals and perennials than in shrubs. Leaf N and P showed a negative relationship with mean annual temperature (MAT) and no relationship with mean annual precipitation (MAP), but a positive relationship with soil P. Leaf P of shrubs was positively related to soil P in the deep soil. Our study indicated that leaf N and P across the three life forms were influenced by soil P. Deep-rooted plants may enhance the availability of P in the surface soil facilitating growth of shallow-rooted life forms in this N and P limited system, but further research is warranted on this aspect.

Measured and modelled leaf and stand-scale productivity across a soil moisture gradient and a severe drought.

PubMed

Wright, J K; Williams, M; Starr, G; McGee, J; Mitchell, R J

2013-02-01

Environmental controls on carbon dynamics operate at a range of interacting scales from the leaf to landscape. The key questions of this study addressed the influence of water and nitrogen (N) availability on Pinus palustris (Mill.) physiology and primary productivity across leaf and canopy scales, linking the soil-plant-atmosphere (SPA) model to leaf and stand-scale flux and leaf trait/canopy data. We present previously unreported ecophysiological parameters (e.g. V(cmax) and J(max)) for P. palustris and the first modelled estimates of its annual gross primary productivity (GPP) across xeric and mesic sites and under extreme drought. Annual mesic site P. palustris GPP was ∼23% greater than at the xeric site. However, at the leaf level, xeric trees had higher net photosynthetic rates, and water and light use efficiency. At the canopy scale, GPP was limited by light interception (canopy level), but co-limited by nitrogen and water at the leaf level. Contrary to expectations, the impacts of an intense growing season drought were greater at the mesic site. Modelling indicated a 10% greater decrease in mesic GPP compared with the xeric site. Xeric P. palustris trees exhibited drought-tolerant behaviour that contrasted with mesic trees' drought-avoidance behaviour. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Leaf blade versus petiole nutrient tests as predictors of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium status of ‘Pinot noir’ grapevines

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Grape growers rely on tissues tests of leaf blades or petioles for routine monitoring of vine nutritional health and for diagnosing potential nutrient deficiency or toxicity. There has been a long standing debate as to which tissue better reflects the nutrient status of vines. A comparison of leaf b...

Effects of Nitrogen Fertilization on Synthesis of Primary and Secondary Metabolites in Three Varieties of Kacip Fatimah (Labisia Pumila Blume)

PubMed Central

Ibrahim, Mohd Hafiz; Jaafar, Hawa Z.E.; Rahmat, Asmah; Rahman, Zaharah Abdul

2011-01-01

A split plot 3 by 4 experiment was designed to examine the impact of 15-week variable levels of nitrogen fertilization (0, 90, 180 and 270 kg N/ha) on the characteristics of total flavonoids (TF), total phenolics (TP), total non structurable carbohydrate (TNC), net assimilation rate, leaf chlorophyll content, carbon to nitrogen ratio (C/N), phenyl alanine lyase activity (PAL) and protein content, and their relationships, in three varieties of Labisia pumila Blume (alata, pumila and lanceolata). The treatment effects were solely contributed by nitrogen application; there was neither varietal nor interaction effect observed. As nitrogen levels increased from 0 to 270 kg N/ha, the production of TNC was found to decrease steadily. Production of TF and TP reached their peaks under 0 followed by 90, 180 and 270 kg N/ha treatment. However, net assimilation rate was enhanced as nitrogen fertilization increased from 0 to 270 kg N/ha. The increase in production of TP and TF under low nitrogen levels (0 and 90 kg N/ha) was found to be correlated with enhanced PAL activity. The enhancement in PAL activity was followed by reduction in production of soluble protein under low nitrogen fertilization indicating more availability of amino acid phenyl alanine (phe) under low nitrogen content that stimulate the production of carbon based secondary metabolites (CBSM). The latter was manifested by high C/N ratio in L. pumila plants. PMID:21954355

Nitrogen and phosphorus availabilities interact to modulate leaf trait scaling relationships across six plant functional types in a controlled-environment study.

PubMed

Crous, Kristine Y; O'Sullivan, Odhran S; Zaragoza-Castells, Joana; Bloomfield, Keith J; Negrini, A Clarissa A; Meir, Patrick; Turnbull, Matthew H; Griffin, Kevin L; Atkin, Owen K

2017-08-01

Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) have key roles in leaf metabolism, resulting in a strong coupling of chemical composition traits to metabolic rates in field-based studies. However, in such studies, it is difficult to disentangle the effects of nutrient supply per se on trait-trait relationships. Our study assessed how high and low N (5 mM and 0.4 mM, respectively) and P (1 mM and 2 μM, respectively) supply in 37 species from six plant functional types (PTFs) affected photosynthesis (A) and respiration (R) (in darkness and light) in a controlled environment. Low P supply increased scaling exponents (slopes) of area-based log-log A-N or R-N relationships when N supply was not limiting, whereas there was no P effect under low N supply. By contrast, scaling exponents of A-P and R-P relationships were altered by P and N supply. Neither R : A nor light inhibition of leaf R was affected by nutrient supply. Light inhibition was 26% across nutrient treatments; herbaceous species exhibited a lower degree of light inhibition than woody species. Because N and P supply modulates leaf trait-trait relationships, the next generation of terrestrial biosphere models may need to consider how limitations in N and P availability affect trait-trait relationships when predicting carbon exchange. © 2017 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2017 New Phytologist Trust.

Optimal plant nitrogen use improves model representation of vegetation response to elevated CO2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Caldararu, Silvia; Kern, Melanie; Engel, Jan; Zaehle, Sönke

2017-04-01

Existing global vegetation models often cannot accurately represent observed ecosystem behaviour under transient conditions such as elevated atmospheric CO2, a problem that can be attributed to an inflexibility in model representation of plant responses. Plant optimality concepts have been proposed as a solution to this problem as they offer a way to represent plastic plant responses in complex models. Here we present a novel, next generation vegetation model which includes optimal nitrogen allocation to and within the canopy as well as optimal biomass allocation between above- and belowground components in response to nutrient and water availability. The underlying hypothesis is that plants adjust their use of nitrogen in response to environmental conditions and nutrient availability in order to maximise biomass growth. We show that for two FACE (Free Air CO2 enrichment) experiments, the Duke forest and Oak Ridge forest sites, the model can better predict vegetation responses over the duration of the experiment when optimal processes are included. Specifically, under elevated CO2 conditions, the model predicts a lower optimal leaf N concentration as well as increased biomass allocation to fine roots, which, combined with a redistribution of leaf N between the Rubisco and chlorophyll components, leads to a continued NPP response under high CO2, where models with a fixed canopy stoichiometry predict a quick onset of N limitation.Existing global vegetation models often cannot accurately represent observed ecosystem behaviour under transient conditions such as elevated atmospheric CO2, a problem that can be attributed to an inflexibility in model representation of plant responses. Plant optimality concepts have been proposed as a solution to this problem as they offer a way to represent plastic plant responses in complex models. Here we present a novel, next generation vegetation model which includes optimal nitrogen allocation to and within the canopy as well as optimal biomass allocation between above- and belowground components in response to nutrient and water availability. The underlying hypothesis is that plants adjust their use of nitrogen in response to environmental conditions and nutrient availability in order to maximise biomass growth. We show that for two FACE (Free Air CO2 enrichment) experiments, the Duke forest and Oak Ridge forest sites, the model can better predict vegetation responses over the duration of the experiment when optimal processes are included. Specifically, under elevated CO2 conditions, the model predicts a lower optimal leaf N concentration as well as increased biomass allocation to fine roots, which, combined with a redistribution of leaf N between the Rubisco and chlorophyll components, leads to a continued NPP response under high CO2, where models with a fixed canopy stoichiometry predict a quick onset of N limitation.

Soil nitrogen dynamics and Capsicum Annuum sp. plant response to biochar amendment in silt loam soil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Horel, Agota; Gelybo, Gyorgyi; Dencso, Marton; Toth, Eszter; Farkas, Csilla; Kasa, Ilona; Pokovai, Klara

2017-04-01

The present study investigated the growth of Capsicum Annuum sp. (pepper) in small-scale experiment to observe changes in plant growth and health as reflected by leaf area, plant height, yield, root density, and nitrogen usage. Based on field conditions, part of the study aimed to examine the photosynthetic and photochemical responses of plants to treatments resulting from different plant growth rates. During the 12.5 week long study, four treatments were investigated with biochar amount of 0, 0.5%, 2.5%, and 5.0% (by weight) added to silt loam soil. The plants were placed under natural environmental conditions, such that photosynthetic activities from photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) and the plants photochemical reflectance index (PRI) could be continuously measured after exposure to sunlight. In this study we found that benefits from biochar addition to silt loam soil most distinguishable occurred in the BC2.5 treatments, where the highest plant yield, highest root density, and highest leaf areas were observed compared to other treatments. Furthermore, data showed that too low (0.5%) or too high (5.0%) biochar addition to the soil had diminishing effects on Capsicum Annuum sp. growth and yield over time. At the end of the 12th week, BC2.5 had 22.2%, while BC0.5 and BC5.0 showed 17.4% and 15.7% increase in yield dry weight respectively compared to controls. The collected data also showed that the PRI values of plants growing on biochar treated soils were generally lower compared to control treatments, which could relate to leaf nitrogen levels. Total nitrogen amount showed marginal changes over time in all treatments. The total nitrogen concentration showed 28.6% and 17.7% increase after the 6th week of the experiment for BC2.5 and BC5.0, respectively, while inorganic nutrients of NO3-N and NH4+-N showed a continuous decrease during the course of the study, with a substantial drop during the first few weeks. The present study provides evidence for impact of biochar on plant stress levels and growth function in biochar amended soils. Our findings emphasize the necessity for optimization to local parameters prior to biochar additions to soils.

Influence of atmospheric oxygen on leaf structure and starch deposition in Arabidopsis thaliana

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ramonell, K. M.; Kuang, A.; Porterfield, D. M.; Crispi, M. L.; Xiao, Y.; McClure, G.; Musgrave, M. E.

2001-01-01

Plant culture in oxygen concentrations below ambient is known to stimulate vegetative growth, but apart from reports on increased leaf number and weight, little is known about development at subambient oxygen concentrations. Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. (cv. Columbia) plants were grown full term in pre-mixed atmospheres with oxygen partial pressures of 2.5, 5.1, 10.1, 16.2, and 21.3 kPa O2, 0.035 kPa CO2 and the balance nitrogen under continuous light. Fully expanded leaves were harvested and processed for light and transmission electron microscopy or for starch quantification. Growth in subambient oxygen concentrations caused changes in leaf anatomy (increased thickness, stomatal density and starch content) that have also been described for plants grown under carbon dioxide enrichment. However, at the lowest oxygen treatment (2.5 kPa), developmental changes occurred that could not be explained by changes in carbon budget caused by suppressed photorespiration, resulting in very thick leaves and a dwarf morphology. This study establishes the leaf parameters that change during growth under low O2, and identifies the lower concentration at which O2 limitation on transport and biosynthetic pathways detrimentally affects leaf development. Grant numbers: NAG5-3756, NAG2-1020, NAG2-1375.

Mycorrhiza Symbiosis Increases the Surface for Sunlight Capture in Medicago truncatula for Better Photosynthetic Production

PubMed Central

Adolfsson, Lisa; Keresztes, Áron; Uddling, Johan; Schoefs, Benoît; Spetea, Cornelia

2015-01-01

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi play a prominent role in plant nutrition by supplying mineral nutrients, particularly inorganic phosphate (Pi), and also constitute an important carbon sink. AM stimulates plant growth and development, but the underlying mechanisms are not well understood. In this study, Medicago truncatula plants were grown with Rhizophagus irregularis BEG141 inoculum (AM), mock inoculum (control) or with Pi fertilization. We hypothesized that AM stimulates plant growth through either modifications of leaf anatomy or photosynthetic activity per leaf area. We investigated whether these effects are shared with Pi fertilization, and also assessed the relationship between levels of AM colonization and these effects. We found that increased Pi supply by either mycorrhization or fertilization led to improved shoot growth associated with increased nitrogen uptake and carbon assimilation. Both mycorrhized and Pi-fertilized plants had more and longer branches with larger and thicker leaves than the control plants, resulting in an increased photosynthetically active area. AM-specific effects were earlier appearance of the first growth axes and increased number of chloroplasts per cell section, since they were not induced by Pi fertilization. Photosynthetic activity per leaf area remained the same regardless of type of treatment. In conclusion, the increase in growth of mycorrhized and Pi-fertilized Medicago truncatula plants is linked to an increase in the surface for sunlight capture, hence increasing their photosynthetic production, rather than to an increase in the photosynthetic activity per leaf area. PMID:25615871

Mycorrhiza symbiosis increases the surface for sunlight capture in Medicago truncatula for better photosynthetic production.

PubMed

Adolfsson, Lisa; Solymosi, Katalin; Andersson, Mats X; Keresztes, Áron; Uddling, Johan; Schoefs, Benoît; Spetea, Cornelia

2015-01-01

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi play a prominent role in plant nutrition by supplying mineral nutrients, particularly inorganic phosphate (Pi), and also constitute an important carbon sink. AM stimulates plant growth and development, but the underlying mechanisms are not well understood. In this study, Medicago truncatula plants were grown with Rhizophagus irregularis BEG141 inoculum (AM), mock inoculum (control) or with P(i) fertilization. We hypothesized that AM stimulates plant growth through either modifications of leaf anatomy or photosynthetic activity per leaf area. We investigated whether these effects are shared with P(i) fertilization, and also assessed the relationship between levels of AM colonization and these effects. We found that increased P(i) supply by either mycorrhization or fertilization led to improved shoot growth associated with increased nitrogen uptake and carbon assimilation. Both mycorrhized and P(i)-fertilized plants had more and longer branches with larger and thicker leaves than the control plants, resulting in an increased photosynthetically active area. AM-specific effects were earlier appearance of the first growth axes and increased number of chloroplasts per cell section, since they were not induced by P(i) fertilization. Photosynthetic activity per leaf area remained the same regardless of type of treatment. In conclusion, the increase in growth of mycorrhized and P(i)-fertilized Medicago truncatula plants is linked to an increase in the surface for sunlight capture, hence increasing their photosynthetic production, rather than to an increase in the photosynthetic activity per leaf area.

Potassium deficiency affects the carbon-nitrogen balance in cotton leaves.

PubMed

Hu, Wei; Coomer, Taylor D; Loka, Dimitra A; Oosterhuis, Derrick M; Zhou, Zhiguo

2017-06-01

Potassium (K) plays important roles in the metabolism of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N), but studies of K deficiency affecting C-N balance are lacking. This study explored the influence of K deficiency on C-N interaction in cotton leaves by conducting a field experiment with cotton cultivar DP0912 under two K rates (K0: 0 kg K 2 O ha -1 and K67: 67 kg K 2 O ha -1 ) and a controlled environment experiment with K-deficient solution (K1: 0 mM K + ) and K-sufficient solution (K2: 6 mM K + ). The results showed that leaf K content, leaf number, leaf area, boll number, reproductive dry weight and total dry weight were significant lower under K deficiency (K0 or K1). Lower total chlorophyll content and Chl a/b ratio, and decreased Pn along with lower Gs and higher Ci were measured under K deficiency, suggesting that the decrease in Pn was resulted from non-stomatal limitation. Leaf glucose, fructose, sucrose and starch contents were higher under K deficiency, because lower sucrose export was detected in phloem. Although leaf nitrate and ammonium contents significantly decreased, free amino acid content was increased by 40-63% under K deficiency, since lower amino acid export was also measured in phloem. K deficiency also induced lower soluble protein content in leaves. Leaf ATP level was significantly increased under K deficiency, indicating ATP utilization was lower, so that less energy was supplied to C and N metabolism. The ratio of soluble sugar to free amino acid and the C/N ratio markedly increased under K deficiency, and one reason was that the phloem export reduced more prominent for sucrose (54.6-78.0%) than amino acid (36.7-85.4%) under K deficiency. In addition, lower phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase activity limited malate and citrate biosynthesis under K deficiency, causing a decrease of C flux into the amino acids, which was not beneficial for maintaining C-N balance. Sucrose phosphate synthase and nitrate reductase activities were lower under K deficiency, which would limit sucrose biosynthesis and nitrate assimilation. This was another factor altering soluble sugar to free amino acid ratio and C/N ratio in the K-deficient leaves. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

The relationships between leaf economics and hydraulic traits of woody plants depend on water availability.

PubMed

Yin, Qiulong; Wang, Lei; Lei, Maolin; Dang, Han; Quan, Jiaxin; Tian, Tingting; Chai, Yongfu; Yue, Ming

2018-04-15

Leaf economics and hydraulic traits are simultaneously involved in the process of trading water for CO 2 , but the relationships between these two suites of traits remain ambiguous. Recently, Li et al. (2015) reported that leaf economics and hydraulic traits were decoupled in five tropical-subtropical forests in China. We tested the hypothesis that the relationships between economics and hydraulic traits may depend on water availability. We analysed five leaf economics traits, four hydraulic traits and anatomical structures of 47 woody species on the Loess Plateau with poor water availability and compared those data with Li et al. (2015) obtained in tropical-subtropical regions with adequate water. The results showed that plants on the Loess Plateau tend to have higher leaf tissue density (TD), leaf nitrogen concentrations and venation density (VD) and lower stomatal guard cell length (SL) and maximum stomatal conductance to water vapour (g wmax ). VD showed positive correlations with leaf nitrogen concentrations, palisade tissue thickness (PT) and ratio of palisade tissue thickness to spongy tissue thickness (PT/ST). Principal component analysis (PCA) showed a result opposite from those of tropical-subtropical regions: leaf economics and hydraulic traits were coupled on the Loess Plateau. A stable correlation between these two suites of traits may be more cost-effective on the Loess Plateau, where water availability is poor. The correlation of leaf economics and hydraulic traits may be a type of adaptation mechanism in arid conditions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

[Effects of short-term continuous lighting with LED lamps and nitrogen nutrition conditions on quality of hydroponically grown purple lettuce].

PubMed

Yu, Yi; Yang, Qi-chang; Liu, Wen-ke

2015-11-01

Purple lettuce was grown hydroponically under six different nitrogen nutrition conditions, with NO(3-)-N:NH(4+)-N at 1:0, 4:1 and 1:1 combined with nitrogen application levels of 10 and 15 mmol · L(-1), for 25 days in solar greenhouse, then treated with short-term continuous lighting (SCL) before harvest to study the changes in contents of nutrients and analyze the effects of nitrogen nutrition conditions on the changes. Results showed that the shoot dry mass of all six nitrogen nutrition conditions were significantly improved under SCL treatment, by 35.1% at least, and the root dry mass increased greatly except for NO(3-)-N:NH(4+)-N 1:1 combined with nitrogen application level 15 mmol · L(-1) treatment and NO(3-)-N:NH(4+)-N 1:0 combined with nitrogen application level 10 mmol · L(-1) treatment. The relative contents of total phenols and flavonoid of different nitrogen nutrition conditions turned significantly different after treatment with SCL. The relative contents of total phenols and flavonoid were enhanced with the improvement of ammonium nitrogen ratio, while the relative content of anthocyanin increased and then decreased with the improvement of ammonium nitrogen ratio. The lighting treatment reduced the nitrate content of leaf blade of all six nitrogen nutrition conditions remarkably by 23.2% at least. The contents of ascorbic acid, soluble sugar and soluble protein rose significantly under SCL treatments. The study showed that the reduction of nitrate content speeded up with the enhancement of nitrogen application level and ammonium nitrogen ratio, and the advancement of ascorbic acid content slowed down with the increasing nitrogen application level. The soluble sugar improvement speed increased with the increasing ammonium nitrogen ratio, and SCL lifted the dry mass of the lettuce greatly. The results showed that SCL with LED lamps improved significantly the dry matter of lettuce under different nitrogen nutrition conditions, reduced the nitrate content and increased the ascorbic acid, soluble sugar and soluble protein contents greatly. In addition, nitrogen nutrition conditions affected the effectiveness of short-term continuous lighting on quality improvement rate of hydroponic lettuce remarkably.

Evaluation of a Leaf Collection and Street Cleaning Program as a Way to Reduce Nutrients and Organic Carbon in Urban Runoff

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Selbig, W.

2016-12-01

Organic detritus can be major sources of nutrients and organic carbon in urban stormwater, especially in areas with dense overhead tree canopy. In order to meet impending regulation to reduce nutrient loads, many cities will require information on structural and non-structural stormwater control measures that target organic detritus. Most cities already conduct some level of leaf collection and existing street cleaning programs; however, few studies have quantified their water-quality benefits. The U.S Geological Survey measured the water-quality benefits of a municipal leaf collection program coupled with street cleaning in Madison, WI, USA during the months of October through November of 2014 and 2015. The calibration phase of the study (2014) characterized nutrient and organic carbon concentrations and loads in runoff from two paired basins without leaf collection or street cleaning. During the treatment phase (2015), leaf collection and street cleaning was done in the test basin by city personnel on a weekly basis. Additionally, prior to each precipitation event, USGS personnel removed as much organic debris from the street surface as reasonably possible. The control remained without street cleaning or leaf collection for the entire monitoring period. During the fall, leaf collection and street cleaning was able to remove the increased amount of organic debris from the curb and street surface which resulted in statistically significant (p<0.05) reductions in loads of phosphorus, nitrogen and organic carbon. Total and dissolved phosphorus loads were reduced by 84 and 83 percent, respectively. Similarly, total and dissolved organic carbon was reduced by 81 and 86 percent, and total and dissolved nitrogen was reduced by 74 and 71 percent, respectively. In the control basin, 60 percent of the annual phosphorus load occurred in fall (winter excluded), the majority of which was dissolved as orthophosphorus, compared to only 16 percent in the test basin. While the leaf collection practices adopted during this study may surpass those used by most municipal programs, results from this study suggest a significant reduction of nutrient and organic carbon loads in urban stormwater is feasible when leaves and other organic detritus are removed from streets prior to precipitation events.

Remote estimation of nitrogen and chlorophyll contents in maize at leaf and canopy levels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schlemmer, M.; Gitelson, A.; Schepers, J.; Ferguson, R.; Peng, Y.; Shanahan, J.; Rundquist, D.

2013-12-01

Leaf and canopy nitrogen (N) status relates strongly to leaf and canopy chlorophyll (Chl) content. Remote sensing is a tool that has the potential to assess N content at leaf, plant, field, regional and global scales. In this study, remote sensing techniques were applied to estimate N and Chl contents of irrigated maize (Zea mays L.) fertilized at five N rates. Leaf N and Chl contents were determined using the red-edge chlorophyll index with R2 of 0.74 and 0.94, respectively. Results showed that at the canopy level, Chl and N contents can be accurately retrieved using green and red-edge Chl indices using near infrared (780-800 nm) and either green (540-560 nm) or red-edge (730-750 nm) spectral bands. Spectral bands that were found optimal for Chl and N estimations coincide well with the red-edge band of the MSI sensor onboard the near future Sentinel-2 satellite. The coefficient of determination for the relationships between the red-edge chlorophyll index, simulated in Sentinel-2 bands, and Chl and N content was 0.90 and 0.87, respectively.

Leaf gas exchange and nutrient use efficiency help explain the distribution of two Neotropical mangroves under contrasting flooding and salinity

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cardona-Olarte, Pablo; Krauss, Ken W.; Twilley, Robert R.

2013-01-01

Rhizophora mangle and Laguncularia racemosa co-occur along many intertidal floodplains in the Neotropics. Their patterns of dominance shift along various gradients, coincident with salinity, soil fertility, and tidal flooding. We used leaf gas exchange metrics to investigate the strategies of these two species in mixed culture to simulate competition under different salinity concentrations and hydroperiods. Semidiurnal tidal and permanent flooding hydroperiods at two constant salinity regimes (10 g L−1 and 40 g L−1) were simulated over 10 months. Assimilation (A), stomatal conductance (gw), intercellular CO2 concentration (Ci), instantaneous photosynthetic water use efficiency (PWUE), and photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE) were determined at the leaf level for both species over two time periods. Rhizophora mangle had significantly higher PWUE than did L. racemosa seedlings at low salinities; however, L. racemosa had higher PNUE and stomatal conductance and gw, accordingly, had greater intercellular CO2 (calculated) during measurements. Both species maintained similar capacities for assimilation at 10 and 40 g L−1 salinity and during both permanent and tidal hydroperiod treatments. Hydroperiod alone had no detectable effect on leaf gas exchange. However, PWUE increased and PNUE decreased for both species at 40 g L−1 salinity compared to 10 g L−1. At 40 g L−1 salinity, PNUE was higher for L. racemosa than R. mangle with tidal flooding. These treatments indicated that salinity influences gas exchange efficiency, might affect how gases are apportioned intercellularly, and accentuates different strategies for distributing leaf nitrogen to photosynthesis for these two species while growing competitively.

Legume species differ in the responses of their functional traits to plant diversity.

PubMed

Roscher, Christiane; Schmid, Bernhard; Buchmann, Nina; Weigelt, Alexandra; Schulze, Ernst-Detlef

2011-02-01

Plants can respond to environmental impacts by variation in functional traits, thereby increasing their performance relative to neighbors. We hypothesized that trait adjustment should also occur in response to influences of the biotic environment, in particular different plant diversity of the community. We used 12 legume species as a model and assessed their variation in morphological, physiological, life-history and performance traits in experimental grasslands of different plant species (1, 2, 4, 8, 16 and 60) and functional group (1-4) numbers. Mean trait values and their variation in response to plant diversity varied among legume species and from trait to trait. The tall-growing Onobrychis viciifolia showed little trait variation in response to increasing plant diversity, whereas the species with shorter statures responded in apparently adaptive ways. The formation of longer shoots with elongated internodes, increased biomass allocation to supporting tissue at the cost of leaf mass, reduced branching, higher specific leaf areas and lower foliar δ(13)C values indicated increasing efforts for light acquisition in more diverse communities. Although leaf nitrogen concentrations and shoot biomass:nitrogen ratios were not affected by increasing plant diversity, foliar δ(15)N values of most legumes decreased and the application of the (15)N natural abundance method suggested that they became more reliant on symbiotic N(2) fixation. Some species formed fewer inflorescences and delayed flowering with increasing community diversity. The observed variation in functional traits generally indicated strategies of legumes to optimize light and nutrient capturing, but they were largely species-dependent and only partly attributable to increasing canopy height and community biomass with increasing plant diversity. Thus, the analysis of individual plant species and their adjustment to growth conditions in communities of increasing plant diversity is essential to get a deeper insight into the mechanisms behind biodiversity-ecosystem functioning relationships.

Leaf miner-induced morphological, physiological and molecular changes in mangrove plant Avicennia marina (Forsk.) Vierh.

PubMed

Chen, Juan; Shen, Zhi-Jun; Lu, Wei-Zhi; Liu, Xiang; Wu, Fei-Hua; Gao, Gui-Feng; Liu, Yi-Ling; Wu, Chun-Sheng; Yan, Chong-Ling; Fan, Hang-Qing; Zhang, Yi-Hui; Zheng, Hai-Lei; Tsai, Chung-Jui

2017-01-31

Avicennia marina (Forsk.) Vierh is a widespread mangrove species along the southeast coasts of China. Recently, the outbreak of herbivorous insect, Phyllocnistis citrella Stainton, a leaf miner, have impacted on the growth of A. marina. Little is reported about the responses of A. marina to leaf miner infection at the biochemical, physiological and molecular levels. Here, we reported the responses of A. marina to leaf miner infection from the aspects of leaf structure, photosynthesis, and antioxidant system and miner responsive genes expression. A. marina leaves attacked by the leaf miner exhibited significant decreases in chlorophyll, carbon and nitrogen contents, as well as a decreased photosynthetic rate. Scanning and transmission electron microscopic observations revealed that the leaf miner only invaded the upper epidermis and destroyed the epidermal cell, which lead to the exposure of salt glands. In addition, the chloroplasts of mined leaves (ML) were swollen and the thylakoids degraded. The maximal net photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance (Gs), carboxylation efficiency (CE), dark respiration (Rd), light respiration (Rp) and quantum yields (AQE) significantly decreased in the ML, whereas the light saturation point (Lsp), light compensation point (Lcp), water loss and CO2 compensation point (Г) increased in the ML. Moreover, chlorophyll fluorescence features also had been changed by leaf miner attacks. Interestingly, higher generation rate of O2ˉ· and lower antioxidant enzyme expression in the mined portion (MP) were found; on the contrary, higher H2O2 level and higher antioxidant enzyme expression in the non-mined portion (NMP) were revealed, implying that the NMP may be able to sense that the leaf miner attacks had happened in the MP of the A. marina leaf via H2O2 signaling. Besides, the protein expression of glutathione S-transferase (GST) and the glutathione (GSH) content were increased in the ML. In addition, insect resistance-related gene expression such as chitinase 3, RAR1, topless and PIF3 had significantly increased in the ML. Taken together, our data suggest that leaf miners could significantly affect leaf structure, photosynthesis, the antioxidant system and miner responsive gene expression in A. marina leaves.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hansen, E.; Netzer, D.; Ostry, M.

Tree plantations at several sites have numerous clones with heights greater than 45 feet and diameters of 6+ inches in eight years. The fastest growth rates have been attained in a plantation on a wet site at Milaca, MN, a plantation at Granite Falls, WI, and a plantation at Mondovi, WI, where the largest trees are up to 8 inches DBH at age 8. Mean annual production ranges from 4 to 5+ dry tons per acre in the best clonal blocks, and up to 8.1 tons per acre for the best new hybrids. Reduced growth at some sites was relatedmore » primarily to insufficient soil water during the growing season, and susceptibility to the disease Septoria musiva. Most tree mortality (36 percent) occurred during the establishment year with only an additional 2 percent mortality over the next 7 years. Leaf tissue nitrogen (N) levels decreased as trees aged and approached the hypothesized 3 percent critical level as trees reached 5- and 6-years old. Fertilization at 75 and 150 lbs/acre N resulted in significant increases in leaf tissue. However, no significant increase in tree growth has been detected. There are significant clonal differences in leaf tissue nitrogen. Hybrid poplar plantations planted on agricultural fields produce significant increases in soil carbon, although there may be carbon loss during the early years of plantation establishment. Septoria musiva is the major pathogen affecting survival and growth of hybrid poplar plantations. A collection of 859 Septoria musiva and Septoria populicola isolates has shown considerably variability in the microorganism. Tissue culture techniques are being used to increase resistance to Septoria in clone NE-308. Over 200 generation 2 plants are ready for field testing in 1995.« less

Functional traits of the understory plant community of a pyrogenic longleaf pine forest across environmental gradients.

PubMed

Ames, Gregory M; Anderson, Steven M; Ungberg, Eric A; Wright, Justin P

2017-08-01

Understanding and predicting the response of plant communities to environmental changes and disturbances such as fire requires an understanding of the functional traits present in the system, including within and across species variability, and their dynamics over time. These data are difficult to obtain as few studies provide comprehensive information for more than a few traits or species, rarely cover more than a single growing season, and usually present only summary statistics of trait values. As part of a larger study seeking to understand the dynamics of plant communities in response to different prescribed fire regimes, we measured the functional traits of the understory plant communities located in over 140 permanent plots spanning strong gradients in soil moisture in a pyrogenic longleaf pine forest in North Carolina, USA, over a four-year period from 2011 and 2014. We present over 120,000 individual trait measurements from over 130 plant species representing 91 genera from 47 families. We include data on the following 18 traits: specific leaf area, leaf dry matter content, leaf area, leaf length, leaf width, leaf perimeter, plant height, leaf nitrogen, leaf carbon, leaf carbon to nitrogen ratio, water use efficiency, time to ignition, maximum flame height, maximum burn temperature, mass-specific burn time, mass-specific smolder time, branching architecture, and the ratio of leaf matter consumed by fire. We also include information on locations, soil moisture, relative elevation, soil bulk density, and fire histories for each site. © 2017 by the Ecological Society of America.

Influence of vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizae and leaf age on net gas exchange of citrus leaves.

PubMed

Syvertsen, J P; Graham, J H

1990-11-01

The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizal (VAM) fungi affect net assimilation of CO(2) (A) of different-aged citrus leaves independent of mineral nutrition effects of mycorrhizae. Citrus aurantium L., sour orange plants were grown for 6 months in a sandy soil low in phosphorus that was either infested with the VAM fungus, Glomus intraradices Schenck & Smith, or fertilized with additional phosphorus and left nonmycorrhizal (NM). Net CO(2) assimilation, stomatal conductance, water use efficiency, and mineral nutrient status for expanding, recently expanded, and mature leaves were evaluated as well as plant size and relative growth rate of leaves. Nutrient status and net gas exchange varied with leaf age. G. intraradices-inoculated plants had well-established colonization (79% of root length) and were comparable in relative growth rate and size at final harvest with NM plants. Leaf mineral concentrations were generally the same for VAM and NM plants except for nitrogen. Although leaf nitrogen was apparently sufficient for high rates of A, VAM plants did have higher nitrogen concentrations than NM at the time of gas exchange measurements. G. intraradices had no effect on A, stomatal conductance, or water use efficiency, irrespective of leaf age. These results show that well-established VAM colonization does not affect net gas exchange of citrus plants that are comparable in size, growth rate, and nutritional status with NM plants.

Assessing plant nitrogen concentration in winter oilseed rape using hyperspectral measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Lu; Liu, Shishi; Wang, Shanqing; Lu, Jianwei; Li, Lantao; Ma, Yi; Ming, Jin

2016-07-01

This study aims to find the optimal vegetation indices (VIs) to remotely estimate plant nitrogen concentration (PNC) in winter oilseed rape across different growth stages. Since remote sensing cannot "sense" N in live leaves, remote estimation of PNC should be based on understanding the relationships between PNC and chlorophyll (Chl), carotenoid concentration (Car), Car/Chl, dry mass (DM), and leaf area index (LAI). The experiments with eight nitrogen fertilization treatments were conducted in 2014 to 2015 and 2015 to 2016, and measurements were acquired at six-leaf, eight-leaf, and ten-leaf stages. We found that at each stage, Chl, Car, DM, and LAI were all strongly related to PNC. However, across different growth stages, semipartial correlation and linear regression analysis showed that Chl and Car had consistently significant relationships with PNC, whereas LAI and DM were either weakly or barely correlated with PNC. Therefore, the most suitable VIs should be sensitive to the change in Chl and Car while insensitive to the change in DM. We found that anthocyanin reflectance index and the simple ratio of the red band to blue band fit the requirements. The validation with the 2015 to 2016 dataset showed that the selected VIs could provide accurate estimates of PNC in winter oilseed rape.

Increased Needle Nitrogen Contents Did Not Improve Shoot Photosynthetic Performance of Mature Nitrogen-Poor Scots Pine Trees.

PubMed

Tarvainen, Lasse; Lutz, Martina; Räntfors, Mats; Näsholm, Torgny; Wallin, Göran

2016-01-01

Numerous studies have shown that temperate and boreal forests are limited by nitrogen (N) availability. However, few studies have provided a detailed account of how carbon (C) acquisition of such forests reacts to increasing N supply. We combined measurements of needle-scale biochemical photosynthetic capacities and continuous observations of shoot-scale photosynthetic performance from several canopy positions with simple mechanistic modeling to evaluate the photosynthetic responses of mature N-poor boreal Pinus sylvestris to N fertilization. The measurements were carried out in August 2013 on 90-year-old pine trees growing at Rosinedalsheden research site in northern Sweden. In spite of a nearly doubling of needle N content in response to the fertilization, no effect on the long-term shoot-scale C uptake was recorded. This lack of N-effect was due to strong light limitation of photosynthesis in all investigated canopy positions. The effect of greater N availability on needle photosynthetic capacities was also constrained by development of foliar phosphorus (P) deficiency following N addition. Thus, P deficiency and accumulation of N in arginine appeared to contribute toward lower shoot-scale nitrogen-use efficiency in the fertilized trees, thereby additionally constraining tree-scale responses to increasing N availability. On the whole our study suggests that the C uptake response of the studied N-poor boreal P. sylvestris stand to enhanced N availability is constrained by the efficiency with which the additional N is utilized. This efficiency, in turn, depends on the ability of the trees to use the greater N availability for additional light capture. For stands that have not reached canopy closure, increase in leaf area following N fertilization would be the most effective way for improving light capture and C uptake while for mature stands an increased leaf area may have a rather limited effect on light capture owing to increased self-shading. This raises the question if N limitation in boreal forests acts primarily by constraining growth of young stands while the commonly recorded increase in stem growth of mature stands following N addition is primarily the result of altered allocation and only to a limited extent the result of increased stand C-capture.

Leaf aging of Amazonian canopy trees as revealed by spectral and physiochemical measurements.

PubMed

Chavana-Bryant, Cecilia; Malhi, Yadvinder; Wu, Jin; Asner, Gregory P; Anastasiou, Athanasios; Enquist, Brian J; Cosio Caravasi, Eric G; Doughty, Christopher E; Saleska, Scott R; Martin, Roberta E; Gerard, France F

2017-05-01

Leaf aging is a fundamental driver of changes in leaf traits, thereby regulating ecosystem processes and remotely sensed canopy dynamics. We explore leaf reflectance as a tool to monitor leaf age and develop a spectra-based partial least squares regression (PLSR) model to predict age using data from a phenological study of 1099 leaves from 12 lowland Amazonian canopy trees in southern Peru. Results demonstrated monotonic decreases in leaf water (LWC) and phosphorus (P mass ) contents and an increase in leaf mass per unit area (LMA) with age across trees; leaf nitrogen (N mass ) and carbon (C mass ) contents showed monotonic but tree-specific age responses. We observed large age-related variation in leaf spectra across trees. A spectra-based model was more accurate in predicting leaf age (R 2  = 0.86; percent root mean square error (%RMSE) = 33) compared with trait-based models using single (R 2  = 0.07-0.73; %RMSE = 7-38) and multiple (R 2  = 0.76; %RMSE = 28) predictors. Spectra- and trait-based models established a physiochemical basis for the spectral age model. Vegetation indices (VIs) including the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), enhanced vegetation index 2 (EVI2), normalized difference water index (NDWI) and photosynthetic reflectance index (PRI) were all age-dependent. This study highlights the importance of leaf age as a mediator of leaf traits, provides evidence of age-related leaf reflectance changes that have important impacts on VIs used to monitor canopy dynamics and productivity and proposes a new approach to predicting and monitoring leaf age with important implications for remote sensing. © 2016 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2016 New Phytologist Trust.

Rational Water and Nitrogen Management Improves Root Growth, Increases Yield and Maintains Water Use Efficiency of Cotton under Mulch Drip Irrigation

PubMed Central

Zhang, Hongzhi; Khan, Aziz; Tan, Daniel K. Y.; Luo, Honghai

2017-01-01

There is a need to optimize water-nitrogen (N) applications to increase seed cotton yield and water use efficiency (WUE) under a mulch drip irrigation system. This study evaluated the effects of four water regimes [moderate drip irrigation from the third-leaf to the boll-opening stage (W1), deficit drip irrigation from the third-leaf to the flowering stage and sufficient drip irrigation thereafter (W2), pre-sowing and moderate drip irrigation from the third-leaf to the boll-opening stage (W3), pre-sowing and deficit drip irrigation from the third-leaf to the flowering stage and sufficient drip irrigation thereafter (W4)] and N fertilizer at a rate of 520 kg ha-1 in two dressing ratios [7:3 (N1), 2:8 (N2)] on cotton root morpho-physiological attributes, yield, WUE and the relationship between root distribution and dry matter production. Previous investigations have shown a strong correlation between root activity and water consumption in the 40–120 cm soil layer. The W3 and especially W4 treatments significantly increased root length density (RLD), root volume density (RVD), root mass density (RMD), and root activity in the 40–120 cm soil layer. Cotton RLD, RVD, RMD was decreased by 13.1, 13.3, and 20.8%, respectively, in N2 compared with N1 at 70 days after planting (DAP) in the 0–40 cm soil layer. However, root activity in the 40–120 cm soil layer at 140 DAP was 31.6% higher in N2 than that in N1. Total RMD, RLD and root activity in the 40–120 cm soil were significantly and positively correlated with shoot dry weight. RLD and root activity in the 40–120 cm soil layer was highest in the W4N2 treatments. Therefore increased water consumption in the deep soil layers resulted in increased shoot dry weight, seed cotton yield and WUE. Our data can be used to develop a water-N management strategy for optimal cotton yield and high WUE. PMID:28611817

Effects of agricultural intensification on ability of natural enemies to control aphids

PubMed Central

Zhao, Zi-Hua; Hui, Cang; He, Da-Han; Li, Bai-Lian

2015-01-01

Agricultural intensification through increasing fertilization input and cropland expansion has caused rapid loss of semi-natural habitats and the subsequent loss of natural enemies of agricultural pests. It is however extremely difficult to disentangle the effects of agricultural intensification on arthropod communities at multiple spatial scales. Based on a two-year study of seventeen 1500 m-radius sites, we analyzed the relative importance of nitrogen input and cropland expansion on cereal aphids and their natural enemies. Both the input of nitrogen fertilizer and cropland expansion benefited cereal aphids more than primary parasitoids and leaf-dwelling predators, while suppressing ground-dwelling predators, leading to an disturbance of the interspecific relationship. The responses of natural enemies to cropland expansion were asymmetric and species-specific, with an increase of primary parasitism but a decline of predator/pest ratio with the increasing nitrogen input. As such, agricultural intensification (increasing nitrogen fertilizer and cropland expansion) can destabilize the interspecific relationship and lead to biodiversity loss. To this end, sustainable pest management needs to balance the benefit and cost of agricultural intensification and restore biocontrol service through proliferating the role of natural enemies at multiple scales. PMID:25620737

Leaf nitrogen remobilisation for plant development and grain filling.

PubMed

Masclaux-Daubresse, C; Reisdorf-Cren, M; Orsel, M

2008-09-01

A major challenge of modern agriculture is to reduce the excessive input of fertilisers and, at the same time, to improve grain quality without affecting yield. One way to achieve this goal is to improve plant nitrogen economy through manipulating nitrogen recycling, and especially nitrogen remobilisation, from senescing plant organs. In this review, the contribution of nitrogen remobilisation efficiency (NRE) to global nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), and tools dedicated to the determination of NRE are described. An overall examination of the physiological, metabolic and genetic aspects of nitrogen remobilisation is presented.

Blue light dose–responses of leaf photosynthesis, morphology, and chemical composition of Cucumis sativus grown under different combinations of red and blue light

PubMed Central

Hogewoning, Sander W.; Trouwborst, Govert; Maljaars, Hans; Poorter, Hendrik; van Ieperen, Wim; Harbinson, Jeremy

2010-01-01

The blue part of the light spectrum has been associated with leaf characteristics which also develop under high irradiances. In this study blue light dose–response curves were made for the photosynthetic properties and related developmental characteristics of cucumber leaves that were grown at an equal irradiance under seven different combinations of red and blue light provided by light-emitting diodes. Only the leaves developed under red light alone (0% blue) displayed dysfunctional photosynthetic operation, characterized by a suboptimal and heterogeneously distributed dark-adapted Fv/Fm, a stomatal conductance unresponsive to irradiance, and a relatively low light-limited quantum yield for CO2 fixation. Only 7% blue light was sufficient to prevent any overt dysfunctional photosynthesis, which can be considered a qualitatively blue light effect. The photosynthetic capacity (Amax) was twice as high for leaves grown at 7% blue compared with 0% blue, and continued to increase with increasing blue percentage during growth measured up to 50% blue. At 100% blue, Amax was lower but photosynthetic functioning was normal. The increase in Amax with blue percentage (0–50%) was associated with an increase in leaf mass per unit leaf area (LMA), nitrogen (N) content per area, chlorophyll (Chl) content per area, and stomatal conductance. Above 15% blue, the parameters Amax, LMA, Chl content, photosynthetic N use efficiency, and the Chl:N ratio had a comparable relationship as reported for leaf responses to irradiance intensity. It is concluded that blue light during growth is qualitatively required for normal photosynthetic functioning and quantitatively mediates leaf responses resembling those to irradiance intensity. PMID:20504875

Growth habit and leaf economics determine gas exchange responses to high elevation in an evergreen tree, a deciduous shrub and a herbaceous annual

PubMed Central

Shi, Zuomin; Haworth, Matthew; Feng, Qiuhong; Cheng, Ruimei; Centritto, Mauro

2015-01-01

Plant growth at high elevations necessitates physiological and morphological plasticity to enable photosynthesis (A) under conditions of reduced temperature, increased radiation and the lower partial pressure of atmospheric gases, in particular carbon dioxide (pCO2). Previous studies have observed a wide range of responses to elevation in plant species depending on their adaptation to temperature, elevational range and growth habit. Here, we investigated the effect of an increase in elevation from 2500 to 3500 m above sea level (a.s.l.) on three montane species with contrasting growth habits and leaf economic strategies. While all of the species showed identical increases in foliar δ13C, dark respiration and nitrogen concentration with elevation, contrasting leaf gas exchange and photosynthetic responses were observed between species with different leaf economic strategies. The deciduous shrub Salix atopantha and annual herb Rumex dentatus exhibited increased stomatal (Gs) and mesophyll (Gm) conductance and enhanced photosynthetic capacity at the higher elevation. However, evergreen Quercus spinosa displayed reduced conductance to CO2 that coincided with lower levels of photosynthetic carbon fixation at 3500 m a.s.l. The lower Gs and Gm values of evergreen species at higher elevations currently constrains their rates of A. Future rises in the atmospheric concentration of CO2 ([CO2]) will likely predominantly affect evergreen species with lower specific leaf areas (SLAs) and levels of Gm rather than deciduous species with higher SLA and Gm values. We argue that climate change may affect plant species that compose high-elevation ecosystems differently depending on phenotypic plasticity and adaptive traits affecting leaf economics, as rising [CO2] is likely to benefit evergreen species with thick sclerophyllous leaves. PMID:26433706

Leaf Morphology, Photosynthetic Performance, Chlorophyll Fluorescence, Stomatal Development of Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) Exposed to Different Ratios of Red Light to Blue Light.

PubMed

Wang, Jun; Lu, Wei; Tong, Yuxin; Yang, Qichang

2016-01-01

Red and blue light are both vital factors for plant growth and development. We examined how different ratios of red light to blue light (R/B) provided by light-emitting diodes affected photosynthetic performance by investigating parameters related to photosynthesis, including leaf morphology, photosynthetic rate, chlorophyll fluorescence, stomatal development, light response curve, and nitrogen content. In this study, lettuce plants (Lactuca sativa L.) were exposed to 200 μmol⋅m(-2)⋅s(-1) irradiance for a 16 h⋅d(-1) photoperiod under the following six treatments: monochromatic red light (R), monochromatic blue light (B) and the mixture of R and B with different R/B ratios of 12, 8, 4, and 1. Leaf photosynthetic capacity (A max) and photosynthetic rate (P n) increased with decreasing R/B ratio until 1, associated with increased stomatal conductance, along with significant increase in stomatal density and slight decrease in stomatal size. P n and A max under B treatment had 7.6 and 11.8% reduction in comparison with those under R/B = 1 treatment, respectively. The effective quantum yield of PSII and the efficiency of excitation captured by open PSII center were also significantly lower under B treatment than those under the other treatments. However, shoot dry weight increased with increasing R/B ratio with the greatest value under R/B = 12 treatment. The increase of shoot dry weight was mainly caused by increasing leaf area and leaf number, but no significant difference was observed between R and R/B = 12 treatments. Based on the above results, we conclude that quantitative B could promote photosynthetic performance or growth by stimulating morphological and physiological responses, yet there was no positive correlation between P n and shoot dry weight accumulation.

Leaf Morphology, Photosynthetic Performance, Chlorophyll Fluorescence, Stomatal Development of Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) Exposed to Different Ratios of Red Light to Blue Light

PubMed Central

Wang, Jun; Lu, Wei; Tong, Yuxin; Yang, Qichang

2016-01-01

Red and blue light are both vital factors for plant growth and development. We examined how different ratios of red light to blue light (R/B) provided by light-emitting diodes affected photosynthetic performance by investigating parameters related to photosynthesis, including leaf morphology, photosynthetic rate, chlorophyll fluorescence, stomatal development, light response curve, and nitrogen content. In this study, lettuce plants (Lactuca sativa L.) were exposed to 200 μmol⋅m−2⋅s−1 irradiance for a 16 h⋅d−1 photoperiod under the following six treatments: monochromatic red light (R), monochromatic blue light (B) and the mixture of R and B with different R/B ratios of 12, 8, 4, and 1. Leaf photosynthetic capacity (Amax) and photosynthetic rate (Pn) increased with decreasing R/B ratio until 1, associated with increased stomatal conductance, along with significant increase in stomatal density and slight decrease in stomatal size. Pn and Amax under B treatment had 7.6 and 11.8% reduction in comparison with those under R/B = 1 treatment, respectively. The effective quantum yield of PSII and the efficiency of excitation captured by open PSII center were also significantly lower under B treatment than those under the other treatments. However, shoot dry weight increased with increasing R/B ratio with the greatest value under R/B = 12 treatment. The increase of shoot dry weight was mainly caused by increasing leaf area and leaf number, but no significant difference was observed between R and R/B = 12 treatments. Based on the above results, we conclude that quantitative B could promote photosynthetic performance or growth by stimulating morphological and physiological responses, yet there was no positive correlation between Pn and shoot dry weight accumulation. PMID:27014285

Competition for nitrogen between European beech and sycamore maple shifts in favour of beech with decreasing light availability.

PubMed

Simon, Judy; Li, Xiuyuan; Rennenberg, Heinz

2014-01-01

Plant species use different strategies for maximizing growth and fitness under changing environmental conditions. At the ecosystem level, seedlings in particular compete with other vegetation components for light and nitrogen (N), which often constitute growth-limiting resources. In this study, we investigated the effect of light availability on the competition for N between seedlings of European beech and sycamore maple and analysed the consequences of this competition for the composition of N metabolites in fine roots. Our results show different strategies in N acquisition between beech and sycamore maple. Both species responded to reduced light availability by adapting their morphological and physiological traits with a decrease in biomass and net assimilation rate and an increase in specific leaf area and leaf area ratio. For beech seedlings, competition with sycamore maple led to a reduction in organic N uptake capacity. Reduced light availability led to a decrease in ammonium, but an increase in glutamine-N uptake capacity in sycamore maple. However, this response was stronger compared with that of beech and was accompanied by reduced growth. Thus, our results suggest better adaptation of N acquisition to reduced light availability in beech compared with sycamore maple seedlings.

The QQS orphan gene of Arabidopsis modulates carbon and nitrogen allocation in soybean

PubMed Central

Li, Ling; Wurtele, Eve Syrkin

2015-01-01

The genome of each species contains as high as 8% of genes that are uniquely present in that species. Little is known about the functional significance of these so-called species specific or orphan genes. The Arabidopsis thaliana gene Qua-Quine Starch (QQS) is species specific. Here, we show that altering QQS expression in Arabidopsis affects carbon partitioning to both starch and protein. We hypothesized QQS may be conserved in a feature other than primary sequence, and as such could function to impact composition in another species. To test the potential of QQS in affecting composition in an ectopic species, we introduced QQS into soybean. Soybean T1 lines expressing QQS have up to 80% decreased leaf starch and up to 60% increased leaf protein; T4 generation seeds from field-grown plants contain up to 13% less oil, while protein is increased by up to 18%. These data broaden the concept of QQS as a modulator of carbon and nitrogen allocation, and demonstrate that this species-specific gene can affect the seed composition of an agronomic species thought to have diverged from Arabidopsis 100 million years ago. PMID:25146936

Differences in functional traits between invasive and native Amaranthus species under different forms of N deposition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Congyan; Zhou, Jiawei; Liu, Jun; Jiang, Kun

2017-08-01

Differences in functional traits between invasive and native plant species are believed to determine the invasion success of the former. Increasing amounts of anthropogenic nitrogen (N) are continually deposited into natural ecosystems, which may change the relative occurrence of the different N deposition forms (such as NH4-N, NO3-N, and CO(NH2)2-N) naturally deposited. Under high N deposition scenarios, some invasive species may grow faster, gaining advantage over native species. In a greenhouse experiment, we grew invasive and native Amaranthus species from seed both alone and in competition under simulated N enriched environments with different forms of N over 3 months. Then, we measured different leaf traits (i.e., plant height, leaf length, leaf width, leaf shape index, specific leaf area (SLA), and leaf chlorophyll and N concentrations). Results showed that the competition intensity between A. retroflexus and A. tricolor decreased under N deposition. This may be due to the large functional divergence between A. retroflexus and A. tricolor under simulated N deposition. Phenotypic plasticity of SLA and leaf chlorophyll concentration of A. retroflexus were significantly lower than in A. tricolor. The lower range of phenotypic plasticity of SLA and leaf chlorophyll concentration of A. retroflexus may indicate a fitness cost for plastic functional traits under adverse environments. The restricted phenotypic plasticity of SLA and leaf chlorophyll concentration of A. retroflexus may also stabilize leaf construction costs and the growth rate. Meanwhile, the two Amaranthus species possessed greater plasticity in leaf N concentration under NO3-N fertilization, which enhanced their competitiveness.

Differences in functional traits between invasive and native Amaranthus species under different forms of N deposition.

PubMed

Wang, Congyan; Zhou, Jiawei; Liu, Jun; Jiang, Kun

2017-08-01

Differences in functional traits between invasive and native plant species are believed to determine the invasion success of the former. Increasing amounts of anthropogenic nitrogen (N) are continually deposited into natural ecosystems, which may change the relative occurrence of the different N deposition forms (such as NH 4 -N, NO 3 -N, and CO(NH 2 ) 2 -N) naturally deposited. Under high N deposition scenarios, some invasive species may grow faster, gaining advantage over native species. In a greenhouse experiment, we grew invasive and native Amaranthus species from seed both alone and in competition under simulated N enriched environments with different forms of N over 3 months. Then, we measured different leaf traits (i.e., plant height, leaf length, leaf width, leaf shape index, specific leaf area (SLA), and leaf chlorophyll and N concentrations). Results showed that the competition intensity between A. retroflexus and A. tricolor decreased under N deposition. This may be due to the large functional divergence between A. retroflexus and A. tricolor under simulated N deposition. Phenotypic plasticity of SLA and leaf chlorophyll concentration of A. retroflexus were significantly lower than in A. tricolor. The lower range of phenotypic plasticity of SLA and leaf chlorophyll concentration of A. retroflexus may indicate a fitness cost for plastic functional traits under adverse environments. The restricted phenotypic plasticity of SLA and leaf chlorophyll concentration of A. retroflexus may also stabilize leaf construction costs and the growth rate. Meanwhile, the two Amaranthus species possessed greater plasticity in leaf N concentration under NO 3 -N fertilization, which enhanced their competitiveness.

Nutrient dynamics and decomposition of riparian Arundinaria gigantea (Walt.)Muhl. leaves in southern Illinois

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Leaf litter quality and quantity can influence soil nutrient dynamics and stream productivity through decomposition and serving as allochthonous stream inputs. Leaf deposition, nitrogen (N)-resorption efficiency and proficiency, and decomposition rates were analyzed in riparian stands of Arundinaria...

[Effects of nitrogen and sulfur combined application on nutritional components and active components of Isatis indigotica at seedling stage].

PubMed

Miao, Yu-Jing; Guan, Jia-Li; Zeng, Jia-le; Xu, Jing; Tang, Xiao-Qing

2018-04-01

Using split plot design, a pot experiment with sand culture was conducted to investigate the effects ofnitrogen and sulfur combined application on nutritional components and active component of Isatis indigotica at seedling stage under different N (5，15，25 mmol·L⁻¹)and S(0.00，1.25，2.50，5.00，7.50 mmol·L⁻¹) levels. The results showed thatthe two elements had obvious effects and the leaf and root dry weights of I. indigotica seedlings increased greatly at N₂ level. Under the same nitrogen concentration, the leaf and root dry weights increased firstly and decreased with the rising of sulfur concentrations in which S₂ was conducive to the growth and biomass accumulation. Soluble sugar, soluble protein, soluble amino acids contents were the highest in N₁, N₂ and N₃ treatments, respectively. The influence of sulfur concentrations on nutritional components was same as biomass, but the peak of different nutritional components was diversity in different nitrogen levels. The effects on secondary metabolites (total flavones, indigo, indriubin, epigotrin contents) were not obvious significantly, in which these indexes by N₁S₃，N₁S₂，N₃S₀，N₃S₁were the highest, respectively. In conclusion, the combination of nitrogen and sulfur of N₂S₂(N 15 mmol·L⁻¹ and S 2.5 mmol·L⁻¹) was beneficial to the growth and secondary metabolites accumulation of I. indigotica. These results could provide a theoretical basis for rational fertilization and cultivation of I. indigotica seedling. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

Long-term exposure to slightly elevated air temperature alleviates the negative impacts of short term waterlogging stress by altering nitrogen metabolism in cotton leaves.

PubMed

Wang, Haimiao; Chen, Yinglong; Xu, Bingjie; Hu, Wei; Snider, John L; Meng, Yali; Chen, Binglin; Wang, Youhua; Zhao, Wenqing; Wang, Shanshan; Zhou, Zhiguo

2018-02-01

Short-term waterlogging and chronic elevated temperature occur frequently in the Yangtze River Valley, yet the effects of these co-occurring environments on nitrogen metabolism of the subtending leaf (a major source leaf for boll development) have received little attention. In this study, plants were exposed to two temperature regimes (31.6/26.5 °C and 34.1/29.0 °C) and waterlogging events (0 d, 3 d, 6 d) during flowering and boll development. The results showed that the effects of waterlogging stress and elevated temperature in isolation on nitrogen metabolism were quite different. Waterlogging stress not only limited NR (EC 1.6.6.1) and GS (EC 6.3.1.2) activities through the down-regulation of GhNR and GhGS expression for amino acid synthesis, but also promoted protein degradation by enhanced protease activity and peptidase activity, leading to lower organ and total biomass (reduced by 12.01%-27.63%), whereas elevated temperature inhibited protein degradation by limited protease activity and peptidase activity, promoting plant biomass accumulation. Furthermore, 2-3 °C chronic elevated temperature alleviated the negative impacts of a brief (3 d) waterlogging stress on cotton leaves, with the expression of GhNiR up-regulated, the activities of NR, GS and GOGAT (EC 1.4.7.1) increased and the activities of protease and peptidase decreased, leading to higher protein concentration and enhanced leaf biomass for EW 3 relative to AW 3 . The results of the study suggested that exposure to slightly elevated air temperature improves the cotton plants' ability to recover from short-term (3 d) waterlogging stress by sustaining processes associated with nitrogen assimilation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Consistent differences between tropical forest and savanna nitrogen cycling characteristics as inferred by leaf and soil 15N/14N ratios across three continents

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schrodt, Franziska

2017-04-01

The ratio of 15N:14N can act as important indicator of ecosystem Nitrogen cycling and thus essential key ecosystem processes. Although evidence for general patterns accumulates across the globe, such as foliar δ15N decreasing with increasing mean annual precipitation and decreasing mean annual temperature, as well as forests generally having a more open Nitrogen cycle, a comprehensive understanding of the Nitrogen cycle in tropical ecosystems is still lacking. We present data on foliar and soil δ15N from 62 permanent sampling plots in tropical zones of transition - area where forest and savanna coexists under similar macro climatic conditions - across South America, Africa and Australia. After controlling for phylogeny and location, we show that δ15N relationships in tropical forests and Savannah are consistent irrespective of precipitation.

Plant size and leaf area influence phenological and reproductive responses to warming in semiarid Mediterranean species.

PubMed

Valencia, Enrique; Méndez, Marcos; Saavedra, Noelia; Maestre, Fernando T

2016-08-01

Changes in vegetative and reproductive phenology rank among the most obvious plant responses to climate change. These responses vary broadly among species, but it is largely unknown whether they are mediated by functional attributes, such as size or foliar traits. Using a manipulative experiment conducted over two growing seasons, we evaluated the responses in reproductive phenology and output of 14 Mediterranean semiarid species belonging to three functional groups (grasses, nitrogen-fixing legumes and forbs) to a ~3°C increase in temperature, and assessed how leaf and size traits influenced them. Overall, warming advanced flowering and fruiting phenology, extended the duration of flowering and reduced the production of flowers and fruits. The observed reduction in flower and fruit production with warming was likely related to the decrease in soil moisture promoted by this treatment. Phenological responses to warming did not vary among functional groups, albeit forbs had an earlier reproductive phenology than legumes and grasses. Larger species with high leaf area, as well as those with small specific leaf area, had an earlier flowering and a longer flowering duration. The effects of warming on plant size and leaf traits were related to those on reproductive phenology and reproductive output. Species that decreased their leaf area under warming advanced more the onset of flowering, while those that increased their vegetative height produced more flowers. Our results advance our understanding of the phenological responses to warming of Mediterranean semiarid species, and highlight the key role of traits such as plant size and leaf area as determinants of such responses.

Experimental manipulations of snow-depth: Effects on nutrient content of caribou forage

USGS Publications Warehouse

Walsh, Noreen E.; McCabe, Thomas R.; Welker, J.M.; Parsons, A.N.

1997-01-01

We investigated the potential effects of global climate change on arctic tundra vegetation used as caribou forage. A total of 96 experimental plots was established at six sites on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, in 1993 and 1994. We erected snow-fences to increase the amount of snow deposition, and therefore delay the date of the snowmelt on 48 plots (referred to as increased snow/late melting plots). We used black mesh netting on the surface of the snow to increase the rate of melting on 24 plots; the remaining 24 plots served as controls. In July 1994, we collected green leaves from Eriophorum vaginatum, Salix planifolia, and Betula nana and analysed these samples for total carbon and total nitrogen content. Ratios of carbon to nitrogen differed among treatments for all three species. Generally, C:N ratios for B. nana and E. vaginatum on increased snow/late melting plots were lower than on control plots. C:N ratios for S. planifolia on increased snow/late melting plots did not differ from controls, but were lower than on plots which started to melt early. These results may be due to the timing of nitrogen translocation from leaf and stem tissue into storage organs, or due to an increase in available nitrogen input to the system. Further sampling is needed to adequately determine the mechanism responsible for increased nitrogen content of caribou forage in areas with increased amount of snow and delayed snowmelt. ?? 1997 Blackwell Science Ltd.

Use of an inexpensive chlorophyll meter to predict Nitrogen levels in leaf tissues of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Tissue nitrogen is also an important indicator of plant health and can be a useful predictor of plant vigor and susceptibility to disease and pests. Hence, knowing nitrogen content may aid in determining establishment success of plants used in restoration programs, including those destined for aqua...

Acclimation of leaf hydraulic conductance and stomatal conductance of Pinus taeda (loblolly pine) to long-term growth in elevated CO2 (free-air CO2 enrichment) and N-fertilizationpce

Treesearch

Jean-Christophe Domec; Sari Palmroth; Eric Ward; Chris Maier; M. Therezien; Ram Oren

2009-01-01

We investigated how leaf hydraulic conductance (Kleaf) of loblolly pine trees is influenced by soil nitrogen amendment (N) in stands subjected to ambient or elevated CO2 concentrations CO2 a and CO2 e, respectively). We also examined how Kleaf varies with changes in reference leaf water potential (...

Low investment in sexual reproduction threatens plants adapted to phosphorus limitation.

PubMed

Fujita, Yuki; Venterink, Harry Olde; van Bodegom, Peter M; Douma, Jacob C; Heil, Gerrit W; Hölzel, Norbert; Jabłońska, Ewa; Kotowski, Wiktor; Okruszko, Tomasz; Pawlikowski, Paweł; de Ruiter, Peter C; Wassen, Martin J

2014-01-02

Plant species diversity in Eurasian wetlands and grasslands depends not only on productivity but also on the relative availability of nutrients, particularly of nitrogen and phosphorus. Here we show that the impacts of nitrogen:phosphorus stoichiometry on plant species richness can be explained by selected plant life-history traits, notably by plant investments in growth versus reproduction. In 599 Eurasian sites with herbaceous vegetation we examined the relationship between the local nutrient conditions and community-mean life-history traits. We found that compared with plants in nitrogen-limited communities, plants in phosphorus-limited communities invest little in sexual reproduction (for example, less investment in seed, shorter flowering period, longer lifespan) and have conservative leaf economy traits (that is, a low specific leaf area and a high leaf dry-matter content). Endangered species were more frequent in phosphorus-limited ecosystems and they too invested little in sexual reproduction. The results provide new insight into how plant adaptations to nutrient conditions can drive the distribution of plant species in natural ecosystems and can account for the vulnerability of endangered species.

Low investment in sexual reproduction threatens plants adapted to phosphorus limitation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fujita, Yuki; Venterink, Harry Olde; van Bodegom, Peter M.; Douma, Jacob C.; Heil, Gerrit W.; Hölzel, Norbert; Jabłońska, Ewa; Kotowski, Wiktor; Okruszko, Tomasz; Pawlikowski, Paweł; de Ruiter, Peter C.; Wassen, Martin J.

2014-01-01

Plant species diversity in Eurasian wetlands and grasslands depends not only on productivity but also on the relative availability of nutrients, particularly of nitrogen and phosphorus. Here we show that the impacts of nitrogen:phosphorus stoichiometry on plant species richness can be explained by selected plant life-history traits, notably by plant investments in growth versus reproduction. In 599 Eurasian sites with herbaceous vegetation we examined the relationship between the local nutrient conditions and community-mean life-history traits. We found that compared with plants in nitrogen-limited communities, plants in phosphorus-limited communities invest little in sexual reproduction (for example, less investment in seed, shorter flowering period, longer lifespan) and have conservative leaf economy traits (that is, a low specific leaf area and a high leaf dry-matter content). Endangered species were more frequent in phosphorus-limited ecosystems and they too invested little in sexual reproduction. The results provide new insight into how plant adaptations to nutrient conditions can drive the distribution of plant species in natural ecosystems and can account for the vulnerability of endangered species.

Scaling leaf respiration with nitrogen and phosphorus in tropical forests across two continents.

PubMed

Rowland, Lucy; Zaragoza-Castells, Joana; Bloomfield, Keith J; Turnbull, Matthew H; Bonal, Damien; Burban, Benoit; Salinas, Norma; Cosio, Eric; Metcalfe, Daniel J; Ford, Andrew; Phillips, Oliver L; Atkin, Owen K; Meir, Patrick

2017-05-01

Leaf dark respiration (R dark ) represents an important component controlling the carbon balance in tropical forests. Here, we test how nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) affect R dark and its relationship with photosynthesis using three widely separated tropical forests which differ in soil fertility. R dark was measured on 431 rainforest canopy trees, from 182 species, in French Guiana, Peru and Australia. The variation in R dark was examined in relation to leaf N and P content, leaf structure and maximum photosynthetic rates at ambient and saturating atmospheric CO 2 concentration. We found that the site with the lowest fertility (French Guiana) exhibited greater rates of R dark per unit leaf N, P and photosynthesis. The data from Australia, for which there were no phylogenetic overlaps with the samples from the South American sites, yielded the most distinct relationships of R dark with the measured leaf traits. Our data indicate that no single universal scaling relationship accounts for variation in R dark across this large biogeographical space. Variability between sites in the absolute rates of R dark and the R dark  : photosynthesis ratio were driven by variations in N- and P-use efficiency, which were related to both taxonomic and environmental variability. © 2016 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2016 New Phytologist Trust.

Warming delays autumn declines in photosynthetic capacity in a boreal conifer, Norway spruce (Picea abies).

PubMed

Stinziano, Joseph R; Hüner, Norman P A; Way, Danielle A

2015-12-01

Climate change, via warmer springs and autumns, may lengthen the carbon uptake period of boreal tree species, increasing the potential for carbon sequestration in boreal forests, which could help slow climate change. However, if other seasonal cues such as photoperiod dictate when photosynthetic capacity declines, warmer autumn temperatures may have little effect on when carbon uptake capacity decreases in these species. We investigated whether autumn warming would delay photosynthetic decline in Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.) by growing seedlings under declining weekly photoperiods and weekly temperatures either at ambient temperature or a warming treatment 4 °C above ambient. Photosynthetic capacity was relatively constant in both treatments when weekly temperatures were >8 °C, but declined rapidly at lower temperatures, leading to a delay in the autumn decline in photosynthetic capacity in the warming treatment. The decline in photosynthetic capacity was not related to changes in leaf nitrogen or chlorophyll concentrations, but was correlated with a decrease in the apparent fraction of leaf nitrogen invested in Rubisco, implicating a shift in nitrogen allocation away from the Calvin cycle at low autumn growing temperatures. Our data suggest that as the climate warms, the period of net carbon uptake will be extended in the autumn for boreal forests dominated by Norway spruce, which could increase total carbon uptake in these forests. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Different leaf cost-benefit strategies of ferns distributed in contrasting light habitats of sub-tropical forests.

PubMed

Zhu, Shi-Dan; Li, Rong-Hua; Song, Juan; He, Peng-Cheng; Liu, Hui; Berninger, Frank; Ye, Qing

2016-03-01

Ferns are abundant in sub-tropical forests in southern China, with some species being restricted to shaded understorey of natural forests, while others are widespread in disturbed, open habitats. To explain this distribution pattern, we hypothesize that ferns that occur in disturbed forests (FDF) have a different leaf cost-benefit strategy compared with ferns that occur in natural forests (FNF), with a quicker return on carbon investment in disturbed habitats compared with old-growth forests. We chose 16 fern species from contrasting light habitats (eight FDF and eight FNF) and studied leaf functional traits, including leaf life span (LLS), specific leaf area (SLA), leaf nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations (N and P), maximum net photosynthetic rates (A), leaf construction cost (CC) and payback time (PBT), to conduct a leaf cost-benefit analysis for the two fern groups. The two groups, FDF and FNF, did not differ significantly in SLA, leaf N and P, and CC, but FDF had significantly higher A, greater photosynthetic nitrogen- and phosphorus-use efficiencies (PNUE and PPUE), and shorter PBT and LLS compared with FNF. Further, across the 16 fern species, LLS was significantly correlated with A, PNUE, PPUE and PBT, but not with SLA and CC. Our results demonstrate that leaf cost-benefit analysis contributes to understanding the distribution pattern of ferns in contrasting light habitats of sub-tropical forests: FDF employing a quick-return strategy can pre-empt resources and rapidly grow in the high-resource environment of open habitats; while a slow-return strategy in FNF allows their persistence in the shaded understorey of old-growth forests. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Annals of Botany Company. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Different leaf cost–benefit strategies of ferns distributed in contrasting light habitats of sub-tropical forests

PubMed Central

Zhu, Shi-Dan; Li, Rong-Hua; Song, Juan; He, Peng-Cheng; Liu, Hui; Berninger, Frank; Ye, Qing

2016-01-01

Background and Aims Ferns are abundant in sub-tropical forests in southern China, with some species being restricted to shaded understorey of natural forests, while others are widespread in disturbed, open habitats. To explain this distribution pattern, we hypothesize that ferns that occur in disturbed forests (FDF) have a different leaf cost–benefit strategy compared with ferns that occur in natural forests (FNF), with a quicker return on carbon investment in disturbed habitats compared with old-growth forests. Methods We chose 16 fern species from contrasting light habitats (eight FDF and eight FNF) and studied leaf functional traits, including leaf life span (LLS), specific leaf area (SLA), leaf nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations (N and P), maximum net photosynthetic rates (A), leaf construction cost (CC) and payback time (PBT), to conduct a leaf cost–benefit analysis for the two fern groups. Key Results The two groups, FDF and FNF, did not differ significantly in SLA, leaf N and P, and CC, but FDF had significantly higher A, greater photosynthetic nitrogen- and phosphorus-use efficiencies (PNUE and PPUE), and shorter PBT and LLS compared with FNF. Further, across the 16 fern species, LLS was significantly correlated with A, PNUE, PPUE and PBT, but not with SLA and CC. Conclusions Our results demonstrate that leaf cost–benefit analysis contributes to understanding the distribution pattern of ferns in contrasting light habitats of sub-tropical forests: FDF employing a quick-return strategy can pre-empt resources and rapidly grow in the high-resource environment of open habitats; while a slow-return strategy in FNF allows their persistence in the shaded understorey of old-growth forests. PMID:26684751

A mechanistic, globally-applicable model of plant nitrogen uptake, retranslocation and fixation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fisher, J. B.; Tan, S.; Malhi, Y.; Fisher, R. A.; Sitch, S.; Huntingford, C.

2008-12-01

Nitrogen is one of the nutrients that can most limit plant growth, and nitrogen availability may be a controlling factor on biosphere responses to climate change. We developed a plant nitrogen assimilation model based on a) advective transport through the transpiration stream, b) retranslocation whereby carbon is expended to resorb nitrogen from leaves, c) active uptake whereby carbon is expended to acquire soil nitrogen, and d) biological nitrogen fixation whereby carbon is expended for symbiotic nitrogen fixers. The model relies on 9 inputs: 1) net primary productivity (NPP), 2) plant C:N ratio, 3) available soil nitrogen, 4) root biomass, 5) transpiration rate, 6) saturated soil depth,7) leaf nitrogen before senescence, 8) soil temperature, and 9) ability to fix nitrogen. A carbon cost of retranslocation is estimated based on leaf nitrogen and compared to an active uptake carbon cost based on root biomass and available soil nitrogen; for nitrogen fixers both costs are compared to a carbon cost of fixation dependent on soil temperature. The NPP is then allocated to optimize growth while maintaining the C:N ratio. The model outputs are total plant nitrogen uptake, remaining NPP available for growth, carbon respired to the soil and updated available soil nitrogen content. We test and validate the model (called FUN: Fixation and Uptake of Nitrogen) against data from the UK, Germany and Peru, and run the model under simplified scenarios of primary succession and climate change. FUN is suitable for incorporation into a land surface scheme of a General Circulation Model and will be coupled with a soil model and dynamic global vegetation model as part of a land surface model (JULES).

Possible Roles of Strigolactones during Leaf Senescence

PubMed Central

Yamada, Yusuke; Umehara, Mikihisa

2015-01-01

Leaf senescence is a complicated developmental process that involves degenerative changes and nutrient recycling. The progress of leaf senescence is controlled by various environmental cues and plant hormones, including ethylene, jasmonic acid, salicylic acid, abscisic acid, cytokinins, and strigolactones. The production of strigolactones is induced in response to nitrogen and phosphorous deficiency. Strigolactones also accelerate leaf senescence and regulate shoot branching and root architecture. Leaf senescence is actively promoted in a nutrient-poor soil environment, and nutrients are transported from old leaves to young tissues and seeds. Strigolactones might act as important signals in response to nutrient levels in the rhizosphere. In this review, we discuss the possible roles of strigolactones during leaf senescence. PMID:27135345

Resource use and efficiency, and stomatal responses to environmental drivers of oak and pine species in an Atlantic Coastal Plain forest.

PubMed

Renninger, Heidi J; Carlo, Nicholas J; Clark, Kenneth L; Schäfer, Karina V R

2015-01-01

Pine-oak ecosystems are globally distributed even though differences in anatomy and leaf habit between many co-occurring oaks and pines suggest different strategies for resource use, efficiency and stomatal behavior. The New Jersey Pinelands contain sandy soils with low water- and nutrient-holding capacity providing an opportunity to examine trade-offs in resource uptake and efficiency. Therefore, we compared resource use in terms of transpiration rates and leaf nitrogen content and resource-use efficiency including water-use efficiency (WUE) via gas exchange and leaf carbon isotopes and photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency (PNUE) between oaks (Quercus alba, Q. prinus, Q. velutina) and pines (Pinus rigida, P. echinata). We also determined environmental drivers [vapor pressure deficit (VPD), soil moisture, solar radiation] of canopy stomatal conductance (GS) estimated via sap flow and stomatal sensitivity to light and soil moisture. Net assimilation rates were similar between genera, but oak leaves used about 10% more water and pine foliage contained about 20% more N per unit leaf area. Therefore, oaks exhibited greater PNUE while pines had higher WUE based on gas exchange, although WUE from carbon isotopes was not significantly different. For the environmental drivers of GS, oaks had about 10% lower stomatal sensitivity to VPD normalized by reference stomatal conductance compared with pines. Pines exhibited a significant positive relationship between shallow soil moisture and GS, but only GS in Q. velutina was positively related to soil moisture. In contrast, stomatal sensitivity to VPD was significantly related to solar radiation in all oak species but only pines at one site. Therefore, oaks rely more heavily on groundwater resources but have lower WUE, while pines have larger leaf areas and nitrogen acquisition but lower PNUE demonstrating a trade-off between using water and nitrogen efficiently in a resource-limited ecosystem.

Resource use and efficiency, and stomatal responses to environmental drivers of oak and pine species in an Atlantic Coastal Plain forest

PubMed Central

Renninger, Heidi J.; Carlo, Nicholas J.; Clark, Kenneth L.; Schäfer, Karina V. R.

2015-01-01

Pine-oak ecosystems are globally distributed even though differences in anatomy and leaf habit between many co-occurring oaks and pines suggest different strategies for resource use, efficiency and stomatal behavior. The New Jersey Pinelands contain sandy soils with low water- and nutrient-holding capacity providing an opportunity to examine trade-offs in resource uptake and efficiency. Therefore, we compared resource use in terms of transpiration rates and leaf nitrogen content and resource-use efficiency including water-use efficiency (WUE) via gas exchange and leaf carbon isotopes and photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency (PNUE) between oaks (Quercus alba, Q. prinus, Q. velutina) and pines (Pinus rigida, P. echinata). We also determined environmental drivers [vapor pressure deficit (VPD), soil moisture, solar radiation] of canopy stomatal conductance (GS) estimated via sap flow and stomatal sensitivity to light and soil moisture. Net assimilation rates were similar between genera, but oak leaves used about 10% more water and pine foliage contained about 20% more N per unit leaf area. Therefore, oaks exhibited greater PNUE while pines had higher WUE based on gas exchange, although WUE from carbon isotopes was not significantly different. For the environmental drivers of GS, oaks had about 10% lower stomatal sensitivity to VPD normalized by reference stomatal conductance compared with pines. Pines exhibited a significant positive relationship between shallow soil moisture and GS, but only GS in Q. velutina was positively related to soil moisture. In contrast, stomatal sensitivity to VPD was significantly related to solar radiation in all oak species but only pines at one site. Therefore, oaks rely more heavily on groundwater resources but have lower WUE, while pines have larger leaf areas and nitrogen acquisition but lower PNUE demonstrating a trade-off between using water and nitrogen efficiently in a resource-limited ecosystem. PMID:25999966

Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera (Insecta) Abundance, Diversity and Role in Leaf Litter Breakdown in Tropical Headwater River

PubMed Central

Ab Hamid, Suhaila; Md Rawi, Che Salmah

2017-01-01

Leaf litter decomposition in a tropical stream was examined in two types of leaf packs; single species leaf packs of Pometia pinnata and two species leaf packs of equal combination of Pometia pinnata and Dolichandrone spathacea leaves. Both leaf packs were immersed in a river and weekly examined for remains of decomposed leaves and presence of EPT. In the control leaf packs, leaves in the two species leaf packs treatments decomposed within 35 days, faster than in single species leaf packs which decomposed after 42 days. In the presence of EPT, the leaf breakdown took 28 days in two species and 35 days for single species leaf packs. Higher abundance of EPT was observed in single species leaf packs but its diversity was higher in two species leaf packs. Litter breakdown in the stream was faster in the presence of EPT and softer leaves of D. spathacea with higher nitrogen content underwent faster decomposition and sustained higher numbers of EPT. PMID:28890763

Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera (Insecta) Abundance, Diversity and Role in Leaf Litter Breakdown in Tropical Headwater River.

PubMed

Ab Hamid, Suhaila; Md Rawi, Che Salmah

2017-07-01

Leaf litter decomposition in a tropical stream was examined in two types of leaf packs; single species leaf packs of Pometia pinnata and two species leaf packs of equal combination of Pometia pinnata and Dolichandrone spathacea leaves. Both leaf packs were immersed in a river and weekly examined for remains of decomposed leaves and presence of EPT. In the control leaf packs, leaves in the two species leaf packs treatments decomposed within 35 days, faster than in single species leaf packs which decomposed after 42 days. In the presence of EPT, the leaf breakdown took 28 days in two species and 35 days for single species leaf packs. Higher abundance of EPT was observed in single species leaf packs but its diversity was higher in two species leaf packs. Litter breakdown in the stream was faster in the presence of EPT and softer leaves of D. spathacea with higher nitrogen content underwent faster decomposition and sustained higher numbers of EPT.

Evidence for shifts to faster growth strategies in the new ranges of invasive alien plants

PubMed Central

Leishman, Michelle R; Cooke, Julia; Richardson, David M; Newman, Jonathan

2014-01-01

Summary Understanding the processes underlying the transition from introduction to naturalization and spread is an important goal of invasion ecology. Release from pests and pathogens in association with capacity for rapid growth is thought to confer an advantage for species in novel regions. We assessed leaf herbivory and leaf-level traits associated with growth strategy in the native and exotic ranges of 13 invasive plant species from 256 populations. Species were native to either the Western Cape region of South Africa, south-western Australia or south-eastern Australia and had been introduced to at least one of the other regions or to New Zealand. We tested for evidence of herbivore release and shifts in leaf traits between native and exotic ranges of the 13 species. Across all species, leaf herbivory, specific leaf area and leaf area were significantly different between native and exotic ranges while there were no significant differences across the 13 species found for leaf mass, assimilation rate, dark respiration or foliar nitrogen. Analysis at the species- and region-level showed that eight out of 13 species had reduced leaf herbivory in at least one exotic region compared to its native range. Six out of 13 species had significantly larger specific leaf area (SLA) in at least one exotic range region and five of those six species experienced reduced leaf herbivory. Increases in SLA were underpinned by increases in leaf area rather than reductions in leaf mass. No species showed differences in the direction of trait shifts from the native range between different exotic regions. This suggests that the driver of selection on these traits in the exotic range is consistent across regions and hence is most likely to be associated with factors linked with introduction to a novel environment, such as release from leaf herbivory, rather than with particular environmental conditions. Synthesis. These results provide evidence that introduction of a plant species into a novel environment commonly results in a reduction in the top-down constraint imposed by herbivores on growth, allowing plants to shift towards a faster growth strategy which may result in an increase in population size and spread and consequently to invasive success. PMID:25558090

Biogeographic variation in evergreen conifer needle longevity and impacts on boreal forest carbon cycle projections

PubMed Central

Reich, Peter B.; Rich, Roy L.; Lu, Xingjie; Wang, Ying-Ping; Oleksyn, Jacek

2014-01-01

Leaf life span is an important plant trait associated with interspecific variation in leaf, organismal, and ecosystem processes. We hypothesized that intraspecific variation in gymnosperm needle traits with latitude reflects both selection and acclimation for traits adaptive to the associated temperature and moisture gradient. This hypothesis was supported, because across 127 sites along a 2,160-km gradient in North America individuals of Picea glauca, Picea mariana, Pinus banksiana, and Abies balsamea had longer needle life span and lower tissue nitrogen concentration with decreasing mean annual temperature. Similar patterns were noted for Pinus sylvestris across a north–south gradient in Europe. These differences highlight needle longevity as an adaptive feature important to ecological success of boreal conifers across broad climatic ranges. Additionally, differences in leaf life span directly affect annual foliage turnover rate, which along with needle physiology partially regulates carbon cycling through effects on gross primary production and net canopy carbon export. However, most, if not all, global land surface models parameterize needle longevity of boreal evergreen forests as if it were a constant. We incorporated temperature-dependent needle longevity and %nitrogen, and biomass allocation, into a land surface model, Community Atmosphere Biosphere Land Exchange, to assess their impacts on carbon cycling processes. Incorporating realistic parameterization of these variables improved predictions of canopy leaf area index and gross primary production compared with observations from flux sites. Finally, increasingly low foliage turnover and biomass fraction toward the cold far north indicate that a surprisingly small fraction of new biomass is allocated to foliage under such conditions. PMID:25225397

Ubiquitin ligase ATL31 functions in leaf senescence in response to the balance between atmospheric CO2 and nitrogen availability in Arabidopsis.

PubMed

Aoyama, Shoki; Huarancca Reyes, Thais; Guglielminetti, Lorenzo; Lu, Yu; Morita, Yoshie; Sato, Takeo; Yamaguchi, Junji

2014-02-01

Carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) are essential elements for metabolism, and their availability, called the C/N balance, must be tightly coordinated for optimal growth in plants. Previously, we have identified the ubiquitin ligase CNI1/ATL31 as a novel C/N regulator by screening plants grown on C/N stress medium containing excess sugar and limited N. To elucidate further the effect of C/N balance on plant growth and to determine the physiological function of ATL31, we performed C/N response analysis using an atmospheric CO2 manipulation system. Under conditions of elevated CO2 and sufficient N, plant biomass and total sugar and starch dramatically increased. In contrast, elevated CO2 with limited N did not increase plant biomass but promoted leaf chlorosis, with anthocyanin accumulation and increased senescence-associated gene expression. Similar results were obtained with plants grown in medium containing excess sugar and limited N, suggesting that disruption of the C/N balance affects senescence progression. In ATL31-overexpressing plants, promotion of senescence under disrupted CO2/N conditions was repressed, whereas in the loss-of-function mutant it was enhanced. The ATL31 gene was transcriptionally up-regulated under N deficiency and in senescent leaves, and ATL31 expression was highly correlated with WRKY53 expression, a key regulator of senescence. Furthermore, transient protoplast analysis implicated the direct activation of ATL31 expression by WRKY53, which was in accordance with the results of WRKY53 overexpression experiments. Together, these results demonstrate the importance of C/N balance in leaf senescence and the involvement of ubiquitin ligase ATL31 in the process of senescence in Arabidopsis.

Enhancement of lettuce yield by manipulation of light and nitrogen nutrition

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Knight, S. L.; Mitchell, C. A.

1983-01-01

Several levels of photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) were tested for effects on growth of 4 cultivars of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) under controlled-environment conditions. Growth of 'Salad Bowl', 'Bibb', and 'Ruby' was greater at 932 micromoles s-1 m-2 than at < or = 644 micromoles s-1 m-2 under a 16-hour photoperiod. Thirty mM NO3- or 5 mM NH4+ + 25 mM NO3- increased leaf dry weight while reducing leaf chlorosis in 'Salad Bowl' and 'Grand Rapids' relative to that with 15 mM NO3-, and reduced leaf purpling in 'Bibb' and 'Ruby' with little or no effect on yield. Continuous illumination with 455 or 918 micromoles s-1 m-2 stimulated yield of 'Salad Bowl' and 'Bibb' when 30 mM N as NH4+ + NO3- was used relative to that with 15 mM NO3-.

How do leaf veins influence the worldwide leaf economic spectrum? Review and synthesis.

PubMed

Sack, Lawren; Scoffoni, Christine; John, Grace P; Poorter, Hendrik; Mason, Chase M; Mendez-Alonzo, Rodrigo; Donovan, Lisa A

2013-10-01

Leaf vein traits are implicated in the determination of gas exchange rates and plant performance. These traits are increasingly considered as causal factors affecting the 'leaf economic spectrum' (LES), which includes the light-saturated rate of photosynthesis, dark respiration, foliar nitrogen concentration, leaf dry mass per area (LMA) and leaf longevity. This article reviews the support for two contrasting hypotheses regarding a key vein trait, vein length per unit leaf area (VLA). Recently, Blonder et al. (2011, 2013) proposed that vein traits, including VLA, can be described as the 'origin' of the LES by structurally determining LMA and leaf thickness, and thereby vein traits would predict LES traits according to specific equations. Careful re-examination of leaf anatomy, published datasets, and a newly compiled global database for diverse species did not support the 'vein origin' hypothesis, and moreover showed that the apparent power of those equations to predict LES traits arose from circularity. This review provides a 'flux trait network' hypothesis for the effects of vein traits on the LES and on plant performance, based on a synthesis of the previous literature. According to this hypothesis, VLA, while virtually independent of LMA, strongly influences hydraulic conductance, and thus stomatal conductance and photosynthetic rate. We also review (i) the specific physiological roles of VLA; (ii) the role of leaf major veins in influencing LES traits; and (iii) the role of VLA in determining photosynthetic rate per leaf dry mass and plant relative growth rate. A clear understanding of leaf vein traits provides a new perspective on plant function independently of the LES and can enhance the ability to explain and predict whole plant performance under dynamic conditions, with applications towards breeding improved crop varieties.

Accumulated Expression Level of Cytosolic Glutamine Synthetase 1 Gene (OsGS1;1 or OsGS1;2) Alter Plant Development and the Carbon-Nitrogen Metabolic Status in Rice

PubMed Central

Bao, Aili; Zhao, Zhuqing; Ding, Guangda; Shi, Lei; Xu, Fangsen; Cai, Hongmei

2014-01-01

Maintaining an appropriate balance of carbon to nitrogen metabolism is essential for rice growth and yield. Glutamine synthetase is a key enzyme for ammonium assimilation. In this study, we systematically analyzed the growth phenotype, carbon-nitrogen metabolic status and gene expression profiles in GS1;1-, GS1;2-overexpressing rice and wildtype plants. Our results revealed that the GS1;1-, GS1;2-overexpressing plants exhibited a poor plant growth phenotype and yield and decreased carbon/nitrogen ratio in the stem caused by the accumulation of nitrogen in the stem. In addition, the leaf SPAD value and photosynthetic parameters, soluble proteins and carbohydrates varied greatly in the GS1;1-, GS1;2-overexpressing plants. Furthermore, metabolite profile and gene expression analysis demonstrated significant changes in individual sugars, organic acids and free amino acids, and gene expression patterns in GS1;1-, GS1;2-overexpressing plants, which also indicated the distinct roles that these two GS1 genes played in rice nitrogen metabolism, particularly when sufficient nitrogen was applied in the environment. Thus, the unbalanced carbon-nitrogen metabolic status and poor ability of nitrogen transportation from stem to leaf in GS1;1-, GS1;2-overexpressing plants may explain the poor growth and yield. PMID:24743556

Differential Allocation to Photosynthetic and Non-Photosynthetic Nitrogen Fractions among Native and Invasive Species

PubMed Central

Funk, Jennifer L.; Glenwinkel, Lori A.; Sack, Lawren

2013-01-01

Invasive species are expected to cluster on the “high-return” end of the leaf economic spectrum, displaying leaf traits consistent with higher carbon assimilation relative to native species. Intra-leaf nitrogen (N) allocation should support these physiological differences; however, N biochemistry has not been examined in more than a few invasive species. We measured 34 leaf traits including seven leaf N pools for five native and five invasive species from Hawaii under low irradiance to mimic the forest understory environment. We found several trait differences between native and invasive species. In particular, invasive species showed preferential N allocation to metabolism (amino acids) rather than photosynthetic light reactions (membrane-bound protein) by comparison with native species. The soluble protein concentration did not vary between groups. Under these low irradiance conditions, native species had higher light-saturated photosynthetic rates, possibly as a consequence of a greater investment in membrane-bound protein. Invasive species may succeed by employing a wide range of N allocation mechanisms, including higher amino acid production for fast growth under high irradiance or storage of N in leaves as soluble protein or amino acids. PMID:23700483

Adsorption of Pb(II) and Cu(II) by Ginkgo-Leaf-Derived Biochar Produced under Various Carbonization Temperatures and Times.

PubMed

Lee, Myoung-Eun; Park, Jin Hee; Chung, Jae Woo

2017-12-07

Ginkgo trees are common street trees in Korea, and the large amounts of leaves that fall onto the streets annually need to be cleaned and treated. Therefore, fallen gingko leaves have been used as a raw material to produce biochar for the removal of heavy metals from solutions. Gingko-leaf-derived biochar was produced under various carbonization temperatures and times. This study evaluated the physicochemical properties and adsorption characteristics of gingko-leaf-derived biochar samples produced under different carbonization conditions regarding Pb(II) and Cu(II). The biochar samples that were produced at 800 °C for 90 and 120 min contained the highest oxygen- and nitrogen-substituted carbons, which might contribute to a high metal-adsorption rate. The intensity of the phosphate bond was increased with the increasing of the carbonization temperature up to 800 °C and after 90 min of carbonization. The Pb(II) and Cu(II) adsorption capacities were the highest when the gingko-leaf-derived biochar was produced at 800 °C, and the removal rates were 99.2% and 34.2%, respectively. The highest removal rate was achieved when the intensity of the phosphate functional group in the biochar was the highest. Therefore, the gingko-leaf-derived biochar produced at 800 °C for 90 min can be used as an effective bio-adsorbent in the removal of metals from solutions.

BOREAS TE-10 Photosynthetic Response Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Forrest G. (Editor); Papagno, Andrea (Editor); Middleton, Elizabeth; Sullivan, Joseph

2000-01-01

The Boreal Ecosystem-Atmospheric Study (BOREAS) TE-10 (Terrestrial Ecology) team collected several data sets in support of its efforts to characterize and interpret information on the gas exchange, reflectance, transmittance, chlorophyll content, carbon content, hydrogen content, nitrogen content, and photosynthetic response of boreal vegetation. This data set contains measurements of quantitative parameters and leaf photosynthetic response to increases in light conducted in the SSA during the growing seasons of 1994 and 1996 using an oxygen electrode system. Leaf photosynthetic responses were not collected in 1996. The data are stored in tabular ASCII files. The data files are available on a CD-ROM (see document number 20010000884), or from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) Distributed Active Archive Center (DAAC).

Elm leaf beetle performance on ozone-fumigated elm

Treesearch

Jack H. Barger; Richard W. Hall; Alden M. Townsend; Alden M. Townsend

1992-01-01

Leaves (1986) from elm hybrids ('Pioneer', 'Homestead', '970') previously fumigated in open-top chambers with ozone or with charcoal-filtered air (CFA) were evaluated for water and nitrogen content or were fed to adult elm leaf beetles (ELB), Xanthogaleruca = (Pyrrhallta) luteola (Muller), to determine host suitability for beetle fecundity...

EFFECTS OF CARBON DIOXIDE AND OZONE ON NITROGEN RETRANSLOCATION IN PONDEROSA PINE NEEDLES

EPA Science Inventory

Changes in leaf N concentration can be an important response to air pollutants in trees, with implications both for tree growth and N cycling through forest ecosystems. Ozone causes premature leaf senescence, which may be associated with a shift in N from the senescing leaves to...

California black oak response to nitrogen amendment at a high O3, nitrogen-saturated site

Treesearch

Nancy Grulke; W. Dobrowolski; P. Mingus; M.E. Fenn

2005-01-01

In a nitrogen (N) saturated forest downwind from Los Angeles, California, the cumulative response to long-term background-N and N-amendment on black oak (Quercus kelloggii) was described in a below-average and average precipitation year. Monthly measurements of leaf and branch growth, gas exchange, and canopy health attributes were conducted. The...

Direct estimation of aboveground forest productivity through hyperspectral remote sensing of canopy nitrogen

Treesearch

Marie-Louise Smith; Scott V. Ollinger; Mary E. Martin; John D. Aber; Richard A. Hallett; Christine L. Goodale

2002-01-01

The concentration of nitrogen in foliage has been related to rates of net photosynthesis across a wide range of plant species and functional groups and thus represents a simple and biologically meaningful link between terrestrial cycles of carbon and nitrogen. Although foliar N is used by ecosystem models to predict rates of leaf-level photosynthesis, it has rarely...

A 115-year δ15N record of cumulative nitrogen pollution in California serpentine grasslands

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vallano, D.; Zavaleta, E. S.

2010-12-01

Until the 1980s, California’s biodiverse serpentine grasslands were threatened primarily by development and protected by reserve creation. However, nitrogen (N) fertilization due to increasing fossil fuel emissions in the expanding Bay Area is thought to be contributing to rapid, recent invasion of these ecosystems by exotic annual grasses that are displacing rare and endemic serpentine species. Documenting the cumulative effects of N deposition in this ecosystem can direct policy and management actions to mitigate the role of N deposition in its transformation. Natural abundance stable isotopes of N in vegetation have been increasingly used as bio-indicators of N deposition patterns and subsequent changes to plant N cycling and assimilation. However, the long-term record of atmospheric reactive N enrichment and the resulting changes in ecosystem N dynamics have yet to be adequately reconstructed in many ecosystems. Museum archives of vascular plant tissue are valuable sources of materials to reconstruct temporal and spatial isotopic patterns of N inputs to ecosystems. Here, we present N stable isotope data from archived and current specimens of an endemic California serpentine grassland species, leather oak (Quercus durata), since 1895 across the greater San Francisco Bay region. We measured spatial and temporal trends in stable isotope composition (δ15N and δ13C) and concentration (%N and %C) of historical and current samples of leather oak leaves from sites within the Bay Area, impacted by increasing development, and sites northeast of the Bay Area, with significantly lower rates of urbanization and industrialization. Specifically, we sampled dry museum and fresh leaf specimens from serpentine sites within Lake (n=27) and Santa Clara (n=30) counties dating from 1895 to 2010. Leaf δ15N values were stable from 1895 to the 1950s and then decreased strongly throughout the last 50 years as fossil fuel emissions rapidly increased in the Bay Area, indicating that N pollution is being retained in serpentine grassland ecosystems. Leaf δ15N values in the high-deposition region declined at a rate of -0.041‰ yr-1, while leaf δ15N values in the low-deposition region did not show a strong pattern. In both regions, leaf δ13C values declined through time as atmospheric CO2 concentrations increased in response to fossil fuel combustion (the Suess effect). Leaf %N and %C values did not present any clear patterns at sites within or outside of the Bay Area. We conclude that using natural abundance stable isotope values in leaves can indicate variation in N pollution inputs across wide spatial and temporal scales and that archived plant samples can provide valuable baselines against which to assess changes in regional N cycling and subsequent ecological impacts on vegetation.

Co-optimal distribution of leaf nitrogen and hydraulic conductance in plant canopies.

PubMed

Peltoniemi, Mikko S; Duursma, Remko A; Medlyn, Belinda E

2012-05-01

Leaf properties vary significantly within plant canopies, due to the strong gradient in light availability through the canopy, and the need for plants to use resources efficiently. At high light, photosynthesis is maximized when leaves have a high nitrogen content and water supply, whereas at low light leaves have a lower requirement for both nitrogen and water. Studies of the distribution of leaf nitrogen (N) within canopies have shown that, if water supply is ignored, the optimal distribution is that where N is proportional to light, but that the gradient of N in real canopies is shallower than the optimal distribution. We extend this work by considering the optimal co-allocation of nitrogen and water supply within plant canopies. We developed a simple 'toy' two-leaf canopy model and optimized the distribution of N and hydraulic conductance (K) between the two leaves. We asked whether hydraulic constraints to water supply can explain shallow N gradients in canopies. We found that the optimal N distribution within plant canopies is proportional to the light distribution only if hydraulic conductance, K, is also optimally distributed. The optimal distribution of K is that where K and N are both proportional to incident light, such that optimal K is highest to the upper canopy. If the plant is constrained in its ability to construct higher K to sun-exposed leaves, the optimal N distribution does not follow the gradient in light within canopies, but instead follows a shallower gradient. We therefore hypothesize that measured deviations from the predicted optimal distribution of N could be explained by constraints on the distribution of K within canopies. Further empirical research is required on the extent to which plants can construct optimal K distributions, and whether shallow within-canopy N distributions can be explained by sub-optimal K distributions.

Cumulative release characteristics of controlled-release nitrogen and potassium fertilizers and their effects on soil fertility, and cotton growth

PubMed Central

Yang, Xiuyi; Geng, Jibiao; Li, Chengliang; Zhang, Min; Tian, Xiaofei

2016-01-01

To investigate the interacting effects of polymer coated urea (PCU) and polymer coated potassium chloride (PCPC) on cotton growth, an experiment was conducted with containerized plants in 2014 and 2015. There were two kinds of nitrogen fertilizer, PCU and urea, which were combined with PCPC at three application rates (40, 80 and 120 kg ha−1). The kinds of nitrogen fertilizer formed the main plot, while individual rates of PCPC were the subplots. The results suggested N and K release patterns for PCU and PCPC in the soil were closely matched to the N and K requirements by cotton. Soil inorganic nitrogen contents significantly increased by using PCU instead of urea, and the same trend was observed with soil available potassium contents, which also had increased rates. Meanwhile, the number of bolls and lint yields of cotton in the PCU treatments were 4.9–35.3% and 2.9–40.7% higher than from urea treatments. Lint yields also increased by 9.1–12.7% with PCPC80 and PCPC120 treatments compared with PCPC40 treatment at the same nitrogen type. Hence, application of PCU combined with 80 kg ha−1 of PCPC fertilizer on cotton increased the yields and fertilizer use efficiencies in addition to improving fiber quality and delaying leaf senescence. PMID:27966638

Photosynthetic capacity and leaf nitrogen decline along a controlled climate gradient in provenances of two widely distributed Eucalyptus species.

PubMed

Crous, Kristine Y; Drake, John E; Aspinwall, Michael J; Sharwood, Robert E; Tjoelker, Mark G; Ghannoum, Oula

2018-05-27

Climate is an important factor limiting tree distributions and adaptation to different thermal environments may influence how tree populations respond to climate warming. Given the current rate of warming, it has been hypothesized that tree populations in warmer, more thermally stable climates may have limited capacity to respond physiologically to warming compared to populations from cooler, more seasonal climates. We determined in a controlled environment how several provenances of widely distributed Eucalyptus tereticornis and E. grandis adjusted their photosynthetic capacity to +3.5°C warming along their native distribution range (~16-38°S) and whether climate of seed origin of the provenances influenced their response to different growth temperatures. We also tested how temperature optima (T opt ) of photosynthesis and J max responded to higher growth temperatures. Our results showed increased photosynthesis rates at a standardized temperature with warming in temperate provenances, while rates in tropical provenances were reduced by about 40% compared to their temperate counterparts. Temperature optima of photosynthesis increased as provenances were exposed to warmer growth temperatures. Both species had ~30% reduced photosynthetic capacity in tropical and subtropical provenances related to reduced leaf nitrogen and leaf Rubisco content compared to temperate provenances. Tropical provenances operated closer to their thermal optimum and came within 3% of the T opt of J max during the daily temperature maxima. Hence, further warming may negatively affect C uptake and tree growth in warmer climates, whereas eucalypts in cooler climates may benefit from moderate warming. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Constrained parameterisation of photosynthetic capacity causes significant increase of modelled tropical vegetation surface temperature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kattge, J.; Knorr, W.; Raddatz, T.; Wirth, C.

2009-04-01

Photosynthetic capacity is one of the most sensitive parameters of terrestrial biosphere models whose representation in global scale simulations has been severely hampered by a lack of systematic analyses using a sufficiently broad database. Due to its coupling to stomatal conductance changes in the parameterisation of photosynthetic capacity may potentially influence transpiration rates and vegetation surface temperature. Here, we provide a constrained parameterisation of photosynthetic capacity for different plant functional types in the context of the photosynthesis model proposed by Farquhar et al. (1980), based on a comprehensive compilation of leaf photosynthesis rates and leaf nitrogen content. Mean values of photosynthetic capacity were implemented into the coupled climate-vegetation model ECHAM5/JSBACH and modelled gross primary production (GPP) is compared to a compilation of independent observations on stand scale. Compared to the current standard parameterisation the root-mean-squared difference between modelled and observed GPP is substantially reduced for almost all PFTs by the new parameterisation of photosynthetic capacity. We find a systematic depression of NUE (photosynthetic capacity divided by leaf nitrogen content) on certain tropical soils that are known to be deficient in phosphorus. Photosynthetic capacity of tropical trees derived by this study is substantially lower than standard estimates currently used in terrestrial biosphere models. This causes a decrease of modelled GPP while it significantly increases modelled tropical vegetation surface temperatures, up to 0.8°C. These results emphasise the importance of a constrained parameterisation of photosynthetic capacity not only for the carbon cycle, but also for the climate system.

Chronic nitrogen deposition influences the chemical dynamics ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Atmospheric nitrogen deposition induces a forest carbon sink across broad parts of the Northern Hemisphere; this carbon sink may partly result from slower litter decomposition. Although microbial responses to experimental nitrogen deposition have been well-studied, evidence linking these microbial responses to changes in the degradation of specific compounds in decaying litter is sparse. We used wet chemistry and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) methodologies to study the effects of chronic simulated nitrogen deposition on leaf litter and fine root chemistry during a three-year decomposition experiment at four northern hardwood forests in the north-central USA. Leaf litter and fine roots were highly different in initial chemistry such as concentrations of acid-insoluble fraction (AIF, or Klason lignin) and condensed tannins (CTs). These initial differences persisted over the course of decomposition. Results from gravimetrically-defined AIF and lignin/carbohydrate reference IR peak ratios both provide evidence that lignin in fine roots was selectively preserved under simulated nitrogen deposition. Lignin/carbohydrate peak ratios were strongly correlated with AIF, suggesting that AIF is a good predictor of lignin. Because AIF is abundant in fine roots, slower AIF degradation was the major driver of the slower fine root decomposition under nitrogen enrichment, explaining 73.9 % of the additional root mass retention. Nitrogen enrichment also slowed the

Leaf chemical changes induced in Populus trichocarpa by enhanced UV-B radiation and concomitant effects on herbivory by Chrysomela scripta (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae).

PubMed

Warren, Jeffrey M; Bassman, John H; Eigenbrode, Sanford

2002-11-01

To assess the potential impact of enhanced ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation over two trophic levels, we monitored key leaf chemical constituents and related changes in their concentration to dietary preference and performance of a specialist insect herbivore. Ramets of Populus trichocarpa Torr. & Gray (black cottonwood) were subjected to near zero (0X), ambient (1X) or twice ambient (2X) doses of biologically effective UV-B radiation (UV-B(BE)) in a randomized block design using either a square-wave (greenhouse) or a modulated (field) lamp system. After a 3-month treatment period, apparent photosynthesis was determined in situ and plants were harvested for biomass determination. Leaf subsamples were analyzed for nitrogen, sulfur, chlorophylls, UV-absorbing compounds and protein-precipitable tannins. Effects of changes in these constituents on feeding by Chrysomela scripta Fab. (cottonwood leaf beetle) were determined by (1) adult feeding preference trials and (2) larval growth rate trials. Enhanced UV-B(BE) radiation had minimal effects on photosynthesis, growth, leaf area and biomass distribution. In the greenhouse study, concentrations of foliar nitrogen and chlorophylls increased, but tannins decreased slightly in young leaves exposed to enhanced UV-B(BE) radiation. There were no significant effects on these parameters in the field study. The concentration of methanol-extractable foliar phenolics increased in plants grown with enhanced UV-B(BE) radiation in both the greenhouse and field studies. In feeding preference trials, adult C. scripta chose 2X-treated tissue almost twice as often as 1X-treated tissue in both greenhouse and field studies, but differences were not statistically significant (P = 0.12). In the field study, first instar larvae grown to adult eclosion on 2X-treated leaves had a significant (P < 0.001) reduction in consumption efficiency compared with larvae grown on 1X-treated leaves. We conclude that effects of enhanced UV-B(BE) radiation at the molecular-photochemical level can elicit significant responses at higher trophic levels that may ultimately affect forest canopy structure, plant competitive interactions and ecosystem-level processes.

The effects of elevated CO2 and nitrogen fertilization on stomatal conductance estimated from 11 years of scaled sap flux measurements at Duke FACE.

PubMed

Ward, Eric J; Oren, Ram; Bell, David M; Clark, James S; McCarthy, Heather R; Kim, Hyun-Seok; Domec, Jean-Christophe

2013-02-01

In this study, we employ a network of thermal dissipation probes (TDPs) monitoring sap flux density to estimate leaf-specific transpiration (E(L)) and stomatal conductance (G(S)) in Pinus taeda (L.) and Liquidambar styraciflua L. exposed to +200 ppm atmospheric CO(2) levels (eCO(2)) and nitrogen fertilization. Scaling half-hourly measurements from hundreds of sensors over 11 years, we found that P. taeda in eCO(2) intermittently (49% of monthly values) decreased stomatal conductance (G(S)) relative to the control, with a mean reduction of 13% in both total E(L) and mean daytime G(S). This intermittent response was related to changes in a hydraulic allometry index (A(H)), defined as sapwood area per unit leaf area per unit canopy height, which decreased a mean of 15% with eCO(2) over the course of the study, due mostly to a mean 19% increase in leaf area (A(L)). In contrast, L. styraciflua showed a consistent (76% of monthly values) reduction in G(S) with eCO(2) with a total reduction of 32% E(L), 31% G(S) and 23% A(H) (due to increased A(L) per sapwood area). For L. styraciflua, like P. taeda, the relationship between A(H) and G(S) at reference conditions suggested a decrease in G(S) across the range of A(H). Our findings suggest an indirect structural effect of eCO(2) on G(S) in P. taeda and a direct leaf level effect in L. styraciflua. In the initial year of fertilization, P. taeda in both CO(2) treatments, as well as L. styraciflua in eCO(2), exhibited higher G(S) with N(F) than expected from shifts in A(H), suggesting a transient direct effect on G(S). Whether treatment effects on mean leaf-specific G(S) are direct or indirect, this paper highlights that long-term treatment effects on G(S) are generally reflected in A(H) as well.

Overexpressing of OsAMT1-3, a High Affinity Ammonium Transporter Gene, Modifies Rice Growth and Carbon-Nitrogen Metabolic Status

PubMed Central

Bao, Aili; Liang, Zhijun; Zhao, Zhuqing; Cai, Hongmei

2015-01-01

AMT1-3 encodes the high affinity NH4+ transporter in rice roots and is predominantly expressed under nitrogen starvation. In order to evaluate the effect of AMT1-3 gene on rice growth, nitrogen absorption and metabolism, we generated AMT1-3-overexpressing plants and analyzed the growth phenotype, yield, carbon and nitrogen metabolic status, and gene expression profiles. Although AMT1-3 mRNA accumulated in transgenic plants, these plants displayed significant decreases in growth when compared to the wild-type plants. The nitrogen uptake assay using a 15N tracer revealed poor nitrogen uptake ability in AMT1-3-overexpressing plants. We found significant decreases in AMT1-3-overexpressing plant leaf carbon and nitrogen content accompanied with a higher leaf C/N ratio. Significant changes in soluble proteins and carbohydrates were also observed in AMT1-3-overexpressing plants. In addition, metabolite profile analysis demonstrated significant changes in individual sugars, organic acids and free amino acids. Gene expression analysis revealed distinct expression patterns of genes that participate in carbon and nitrogen metabolism. Additionally, the correlation between the metabolites and gene expression patterns was consistent in AMT1-3-overexpressing plants under both low and high nitrogen growth conditions. Therefore, we hypothesized that the carbon and nitrogen metabolic imbalance caused by AMT1-3 overexpressing attributed to the poor growth and yield of transgenic plants. PMID:25915023

Variation in leaf litter production and resorption of nutrients in abundant tree species in Nyungwe tropical montane rainforest in Rwanda

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nyirambangutse, Brigitte; Mirindi Dusenge, Eric; Nsabimana, Donat; Bizuru, Elias; Pleijel, Håkan; Uddling, Johan; Wallin, Göran

2014-05-01

African tropical rainforests play many roles from local to global scale as providers of resources and ecosystem services. Although covering 30% of the global rainforest, only few studies aiming to better understand the storage and fluxes of carbon and nutrients in these forests have been conducted. To answer questions related to these issues, we have established 15 permanent 0.5 ha plots where we compare carbon and nutrient fluxes of primary and secondary forest tree communities in a tropical montane forest in central Africa. The studies are conducted in Nyungwe montane tropical rain forest gazetted as a National Park to protect its extensive floral and faunal diversity covering an area of 970 km2. Nyungwe is located in Southwest Rwanda (2o17'-2o50'S, 29o07'-29o26A'E). The forest is ranging between 1600-2950 m.a.s.l. and is one of the most biologically important rainforest in Albertine Rift region in terms of Biodiversity. Nyungwe consists of a mixture of primary and secondary forest communities supporting a richness of plant and animal life. More than 260 species of trees and shrubs have been found in Nyungwe, including species endemic to the Albertine Rift. The forest has a climate with a mean annual temperature of 15.5oC and annual rainfall of ca 1850 mm yr-1, with July and August being the only months when rainfall drops. A part of this study is focusing on the dynamics of nutrients through leaf turnover. This turnover of leaves is regulated to maximize the carbon gain through canopy photosynthesis and resource-use efficiency of the plant. It is known that about half of leaf nitrogen is invested in photosynthetic apparatus and that there normally is a strong correlation between the photosynthetic capacity and leaf nitrogen per unit area. Hence leaf nitrogen is an important factor for canopy photosynthesis. However, leaves are produced, senesce and fall. Some nitrogen in the leaf is lost when leaves senesce but other is resorbed. The resorption of nitrogen, phosphorus and other nutrients is being studied to analyse the nutrient saving efficiency of different species within the primary and secondary forest communities. This is made by analyzing the nutrient content within fresh and fallen leaves of most abundant pioneer and climax species. Results from litterfall patterns as well as foliar, litter and soil carbon and nutrients are currently being compiled and will be reported.

Resource allocation in an annual herb: Effects of light, mycorrhizal fungi, and defoliation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aguilar-Chama, Ana; Guevara, Roger

2016-02-01

Concurrent interactions and the availability of resources (e.g., light) affect the cost/benefit balance during mutualistic and antagonistic interactions, as well as plant resource allocation patterns. Mycorrhizal interactions and herbivory concur in most plants, where mycorrhizae can enhance the uptake of soil nutrients by plants as well as consuming a large fraction of the plant's carbon, and defoliation usually reduces light interception and photosynthesis, thereby causing direct losses to the hosts of mycorrhizal fungi. Both types of interactions affect the carbon budget of their host plants and thus we predict that the relative costs of herbivory and mycorrhizal colonization will increase when photosynthesis is reduced, for instance in light limited environments. We conducted a greenhouse experiment using Datura stramonium to investigate the effects of defoliation and mycorrhizal inoculation on the resource allocation patterns in two different light environments. Defoliated plants overcompensated in terms of leaf mass in both light environments, but total seed mass per fruit was negatively affected by defoliation in both light environments. Mycorrhizal inoculation had a positive effect on vegetative growth and the leaf nitrogen content, but defoliation negates the benefit of mycorrhizal interactions in terms of the leaf nitrogen content. In general, D. stramonium compensated for the relative costs of concurrent mycorrhizal interactions and defoliation; plants that lacked both interactions exhibited the same performance as plants with both types of interactions.

Are trait-growth models transferable? Predicting multi-species growth trajectories between ecosystems using plant functional traits

PubMed Central

Vesk, Peter A.

2017-01-01

Plant functional traits are increasingly used to generalize across species, however few examples exist of predictions from trait-based models being evaluated in new species or new places. Can we use functional traits to predict growth of unknown species in different areas? We used three independently collected datasets, each containing data on heights of individuals from non-resprouting species over a chronosquence of time-since-fire sites from three ecosystems in south-eastern Australia. We examined the influence of specific leaf area, woody density, seed size and leaf nitrogen content on three aspects of plant growth; maximum relative growth rate, age at maximum growth and asymptotic height. We tested our capacity to perform out-of-sample prediction of growth trajectories between ecosystems using species functional traits. We found strong trait-growth relationships in one of the datasets; whereby species with low SLA achieved the greatest asymptotic heights, species with high leaf-nitrogen content achieved relatively fast growth rates, and species with low seed mass reached their time of maximum growth early. However these same growth-trait relationships did not hold across the two other datasets, making accurate prediction from one dataset to another unachievable. We believe there is evidence to suggest that growth trajectories themselves may be fundamentally different between ecosystems and that trait-height-growth relationships may change over environmental gradients. PMID:28486535

Stomatal Conductance, Plant Hydraulics, and Multilayer Canopies: A New Paradigm for Earth System Models or Unnecessary Uncertainty

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bonan, G. B.

2016-12-01

Soil moisture stress is a key regulator of canopy transpiration, the surface energy budget, and land-atmosphere coupling. Many land surface models used in Earth system models have an ad-hoc parameterization of soil moisture stress that decreases stomatal conductance with soil drying. Parameterization of soil moisture stress from more fundamental principles of plant hydrodynamics is a key research frontier for land surface models. While the biophysical and physiological foundations of such parameterizations are well-known, their best implementation in land surface models is less clear. Land surface models utilize a big-leaf canopy parameterization (or two big-leaves to represent the sunlit and shaded canopy) without vertical gradients in the canopy. However, there are strong biometeorological and physiological gradients in plant canopies. Are these gradients necessary to resolve? Here, I describe a vertically-resolved, multilayer canopy model that calculates leaf temperature and energy fluxes, photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, and leaf water potential at each level in the canopy. In this model, midday leaf water stress manifests in the upper canopy layers, which receive high amounts of solar radiation, have high leaf nitrogen and photosynthetic capacity, and have high stomatal conductance and transpiration rates (in the absence of leaf water stress). Lower levels in the canopy become water stressed in response to longer-term soil moisture drying. I examine the role of vertical gradients in the canopy microclimate (solar radiation, air temperature, vapor pressure, wind speed), structure (leaf area density), and physiology (leaf nitrogen, photosynthetic capacity, stomatal conductance) in determining above canopy fluxes and gradients of transpiration and leaf water potential within the canopy.

Gas exchange and leaf aging in an evergreen oak: causes and consequences for leaf carbon balance and canopy respiration.

PubMed

Rodríguez-Calcerrada, Jesús; Limousin, Jean-Marc; Martin-StPaul, Nicolas K; Jaeger, Carsten; Rambal, Serge

2012-04-01

Leaves of Mediterranean evergreens experience large variations in gas exchange rates over their life span due to aging and seasonally changing environmental conditions. Accounting for the changing respiratory physiology of leaves over time will help improve estimations of leaf and whole-plant carbon balances. Here we examined seasonal variations in light-saturated net CO(2) assimilation (A(max)), dark respiration (R(d)) and the proportional change in R(d) per 10 °C change in temperature (Q(10) of R(d)) in previous-year (PY) and current-year (CY) leaves of the broadleaved evergreen tree Quercus ilex L. A(max) and R(d) were lower in PY than in CY leaves. Differences in nitrogen between cohorts only partly explained such differences, and rates of A(max) and R(d) expressed per unit of leaf nitrogen were still significantly different between cohorts. The decline in A(max) in PY leaves did not result in the depletion of total non-structural carbohydrates, whose concentration was in fact higher in PY than CY leaves. Leaf-level carbon balance modeled from gas exchange data was positive at all ages. Q(10) of R(d) did not differ significantly between leaf cohorts; however, failure to account for distinct R(d) between cohorts misestimated canopy leaf respiration by 13% across dates when scaling up leaf measurements to the canopy. In conclusion, the decline in A(max) in old leaves that are close to or exceed their mean life span does not limit the availability of carbohydrates, which are probably needed to sustain new growth, as well as R(d) and nutrient resorption during senescence. Accounting for leaf age as a source of variation of R(d) improves the estimation of foliar respiratory carbon release at the stand scale.

Leaf optical properties shed light on foliar trait variability at individual to global scales

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shiklomanov, A. N.; Serbin, S.; Dietze, M.

2016-12-01

Recent syntheses of large trait databases have contributed immensely to our understanding of drivers of plant function at the global scale. However, the global trade-offs revealed by such syntheses, such as the trade-off between leaf productivity and resilience (i.e. "leaf economics spectrum"), are often absent at smaller scales and fail to correlate with actual functional limitations. An improved understanding of how traits vary within communities, species, and individuals is critical to accurate representations of vegetation ecophysiology and ecological dynamics in ecosystem models. Spectral data from both field observations and remote sensing platforms present a potentially rich and widely available source of information on plant traits. In particular, the inversion of physically-based radiative transfer models (RTMs) is an effective and general method for estimating plant traits from spectral measurements. Here, we apply Bayesian inversion of the PROSPECT leaf RTM to a large database of field spectra and plant traits spanning tropical, temperate, and boreal forests, agricultural plots, arid shrublands, and tundra to identify dominant sources of variability and characterize trade-offs in plant functional traits. By leveraging such a large and diverse dataset, we re-calibrate the empirical absorption coefficients underlying the PROSPECT model and expand its scope to include additional leaf biochemical components, namely leaf nitrogen content. Our work provides a key methodological contribution as a physically-based retrieval of leaf nitrogen from remote sensing observations, and provides substantial insights about trait trade-offs related to plant acclimation, adaptation, and community assembly.

Responses of beech and spruce foliage to elevated carbon dioxide, increased nitrogen deposition and soil type

PubMed Central

Günthardt-Goerg, Madeleine Silvia; Vollenweider, Pierre

2015-01-01

Although enhanced carbon fixation by forest trees may contribute significantly to mitigating an increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2), capacities for this vary greatly among different tree species and locations. This study compared reactions in the foliage of a deciduous and a coniferous tree species (important central European trees, beech and spruce) to an elevated supply of CO2 and evaluated the importance of the soil type and increased nitrogen deposition on foliar nutrient concentrations and cellular stress reactions. During a period of 4 years, beech (represented by trees from four different regions) and spruce saplings (eight regions), planted together on either acidic or calcareous forest soil in the experimental model ecosystem chambers, were exposed to single and combined treatments consisting of elevated carbon dioxide (+CO2, 590 versus 374 μL L−1) and elevated wet nitrogen deposition (+ND, 50 versus 5 kg ha−1 a−1). Leaf size and foliage mass of spruce were increased by +CO2 on both soil types, but those of beech by +ND on the calcareous soil only. The magnitude of the effects varied among the tree origins in both species. Moreover, the concentration of secondary compounds (proanthocyanidins) and the leaf mass per area, as a consequence of cell wall thickening, were also increased and formed important carbon sinks within the foliage. Although the species elemental concentrations differed in their response to CO2 fertilization, the +CO2 treatment effect was weakened by an acceleration of cell senescence in both species, as shown by a decrease in photosynthetic pigment and nitrogen concentration, discolouration and stress symptoms at the cell level; the latter were stronger in beech than spruce. Hence, young trees belonging to a species with different ecological niches can show contrasting responses in their foliage size, but similar responses at the cell level, upon exposure to elevated levels of CO2. The soil type and its nutrient supply largely determined the fertilization gain, especially in the case of beech trees with a narrow ecological amplitude. PMID:26092041

Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation in the Fungus Gardens of Leaf-Cutter Ants

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Bacteria-mediated acquisition of atmospheric dinitrogen by plants serves as a critical nitrogen source in terrestrial ecosystems, and through its key role in agriculture, this phenomenon has shaped the development of human civilizations. Here we show that, paralleling human agriculture, cultivation ...

Leaf economics and hydraulic traits are decoupled in five species-rich tropical-subtropical forests.

PubMed

Li, Le; McCormack, M Luke; Ma, Chengen; Kong, Deliang; Zhang, Qian; Chen, Xiaoyong; Zeng, Hui; Niinemets, Ülo; Guo, Dali

2015-09-01

Leaf economics and hydraulic traits are critical to leaf photosynthesis, yet it is debated whether these two sets of traits vary in a fully coordinated manner or there is room for independent variation. Here, we tested the relationship between leaf economics traits, including leaf nitrogen concentration and leaf dry mass per area, and leaf hydraulic traits including stomatal density and vein density in five tropical-subtropical forests. Surprisingly, these two suites of traits were statistically decoupled. This decoupling suggests that independent trait dimensions exist within a leaf, with leaf economics dimension corresponding to light capture and tissue longevity, and the hydraulic dimension to water-use and leaf temperature maintenance. Clearly, leaf economics and hydraulic traits can vary independently, thus allowing for more possible plant trait combinations. Compared with a single trait dimension, multiple trait dimensions may better enable species adaptations to multifarious niche dimensions, promote diverse plant strategies and facilitate species coexistence. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd/CNRS.

Effects of Nitrogen Fertilization on Potato Leafhopper (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) and Maple Spider Mite (Acari: Tetranychidae) on Nursery-Grown Maples.

PubMed

Prado, Julia; Quesada, Carlos; Gosney, Michael; Mickelbart, Michael V; Sadof, Clifford

2015-06-01

Although leaf nitrogen (N) has been shown to increase the suitability of hosts to herbivorous arthropods, the responses of these pests to N fertilization on susceptible and resistant host plants are not well characterized. This study determined how different rates of N fertilization affected injury caused by the potato leafhopper (Empoasca fabae Harris) and the abundance of maple spider mite (Oligonychus aceris (Shimer)) on 'Red Sunset' red maple (Acer rubrum) and 'Autumn Blaze' Freeman maple (Acer×freemanii) during two years in Indiana. N fertilization increased leaf N concentration in both maple cultivars, albeit to a lesser extent during the second year of the study. Overall, Red Sunset maples were more susceptible to E. fabae injury than Autumn Blaze, whereas Autumn Blaze maples supported higher populations of O. aceris. Differences in populations of O. aceris were attributed to differences between communities of stigmaeid and phytoseiid mites on each cultivar. Injury caused by E. fabae increased with N fertilization in a dose-dependent manner in both cultivars. Although N fertilization increased the abundance of O. aceris on both maple cultivars, there was no difference between the 20 and 40 g rates. We suggest the capacity of N fertilization to increase O. aceris on maples could be limited at higher trophic levels by the community of predatory mites. © The Authors 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

BOREAS TE-9 PAR and Leaf Nitrogen Data for NSA Species

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Forrest G. (Editor); Curd, Shelaine (Editor); Dang, Qinglai; Margolis, Hank; Coyea, Marie

2000-01-01

The Boreal Ecosystem-Atmospheric Study (BOREAS) TE-9 (Terrestrial Ecology) team collected several data sets related to chemical and photosynthetic properties of leaves in boreal forest tree species. This data set describes the relationship between photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) levels and foliage nitrogen in samples from six sites in the BOREAS Northern Study Area (NSA) collected during the three 1994 intensive field campaigns (IFCs). This information is useful for modeling the vertical distribution of carbon fixation for these different forest types in the boreal forest. The data were collected to quantify the relationship between PAR and leaf nitrogen of black spruce, jack pine, and aspen. The data are available in tabular ASCII files. The data files are available on a CD-ROM (see document number 20010000884), or from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) Distributed Active Archive Center (DAAC).

Niche and Neutral Processes Together Determine Diversity Loss in Response to Fertilization in an Alpine Meadow Community

PubMed Central

Li, Wei; Cheng, Ji-Min; Yu, Kai-Liang; Epstein, Howard E.; Du, Guo-Zhen

2015-01-01

Fertilization via nutrient deposition and agricultural inputs is one of the most important factors driving decreases in plant diversity. However, we still do not fully understand which processes (niche process or neutral process) are more important in leading to decreases in plant diversity caused by fertilization. A hypothesis-based approach was used to test the relative importance of niche versus neutral processes along a fertilization gradient in an alpine meadow community on the eastern Tibetan plateau, China. Niche overlap values were calculated for species biomass, and the null model was used to generate the values of niche overlap expected at random. A linear regression modeling was used to evaluate the relationship between functional traits (specific leaf area, leaf dry matter content, and leaf total nitrogen concentration) and species relative abundance. Our results demonstrated that observed niche overlap for species biomass was significantly higher than expected at lower fertilization gradients. Moreover, we also found a significantly negative correlation between species relative abundance and specific leaf area and leaf dry matter content, but a significantly positive correlation between relative abundance and leaf nitrogen concentration at lower fertilization gradients. However, these relationships were not significant at higher fertilization gradients. We concluded that community assembly is dynamic progression along the environmental gradients, and niche and neutral processes may together determine species diversity loss in response to fertilization. PMID:26280919

Coupled hydrological and biogeochemical processes controlling variability of nitrogen species in streamflow during autumn in an upland forest

Treesearch

Stephen D. Sebestyen; James B. Shanley; Elizabeth W. Boyer; Carol Kendall; Daniel H. Doctor

2014-01-01

Autumn is a season of dynamic change in forest streams of the northeastern United States due to effects of leaf fall on both hydrology and biogeochemistry. Few studies have explored how interactions of biogeochemical transformations, various nitrogen sources, and catchment flow paths affect stream nitrogen variation during autumn. To provide more information on this...

Genotypic variation in traits linked to climate and aboveground productivity in a widespread C₄ grass: evidence for a functional trait syndrome.

PubMed

Aspinwall, Michael J; Lowry, David B; Taylor, Samuel H; Juenger, Thomas E; Hawkes, Christine V; Johnson, Mari-Vaughn V; Kiniry, James R; Fay, Philip A

2013-09-01

Examining intraspecific variation in growth and function in relation to climate may provide insight into physiological evolution and adaptation, and is important for predicting species responses to climate change. Under common garden conditions, we grew nine genotypes of the C₄ species Panicum virgatum originating from different temperature and precipitation environments. We hypothesized that genotype productivity, morphology and physiological traits would be correlated with climate of origin, and a suite of adaptive traits would show high broad-sense heritability (H(2)). Genotype productivity and flowering time increased and decreased, respectively, with home-climate temperature, and home-climate temperature was correlated with genotypic differences in a syndrome of morphological and physiological traits. Genotype leaf and tiller size, leaf lamina thickness, leaf mass per area (LMA) and C : N ratios increased with home-climate temperature, whereas leaf nitrogen per unit mass (Nm ) and chlorophyll (Chl) decreased with home-climate temperature. Trait variation was largely explained by genotypic differences (H(2) = 0.33-0.85). Our results provide new insight into the role of climate in driving functional trait coordination, local adaptation and genetic divergence within species. These results emphasize the importance of considering intraspecific variation in future climate change scenarios. © 2013 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2013 New Phytologist Trust.

More of the same? In situ leaf and root decomposition rates do not vary between 80 native and nonnative deciduous forest species.

PubMed

Jo, Insu; Fridley, Jason D; Frank, Douglas A

2016-01-01

Invaders often have greater rates of production and produce more labile litter than natives. The increased litter quantity and quality of invaders should increase nutrient cycling through faster litter decomposition. However, the limited number of invasive species that have been included in decomposition studies has hindered the ability to generalize their impacts on decomposition rates. Further, previous decomposition studies have neglected roots. We measured litter traits and decomposition rates of leaves for 42 native and 36 nonnative woody species, and those of fine roots for 23 native and 25 nonnative species that occur in temperate deciduous forests throughout the Eastern USA. Among the leaf and root traits that differed between native and invasive species, only leaf nitrogen was significantly associated with decomposition rate. However, native and nonnative species did not differ systematically in leaf and root decomposition rates. We found that among the parameters measured, litter decomposer activity was driven by litter chemical quality rather than tissue density and structure. Our results indicate that litter decomposition rate per se is not a pathway by which forest woody invasive species affect North American temperate forest soil carbon and nutrient processes. © 2015 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2015 New Phytologist Trust.

A worldwide analysis of within-canopy variations in leaf structural, chemical and physiological traits across plant functional types

PubMed Central

Niinemets, Ülo; Keenan, Trevor F.; Hallik, Lea

2018-01-01

Summary Extensive within-canopy light gradients importantly affect photosynthetic productivity of leaves in different canopy positions and lead to light-dependent increases in foliage photosynthetic capacity per area (AA). However, the controls on AA variations by changes in underlying traits are poorly known. We constructed an unprecedented worldwide database including 831 within-canopy gradients with standardized light estimates for 304 species belonging to major vascular plant functional types, and analyzed within-canopy variations in 12 key foliage structural, chemical and physiological traits by quantitatively separating the contributions of different traits to photosynthetic acclimation. Although the light-dependent increase in AA is surprisingly similar in different plant functional types, they fundamentally differ in the share of the controls on AA by constituent traits. Species with high rates of canopy development and leaf turnover exhibiting highly dynamic light environments, actively change AA by nitrogen reallocation among and partitioning within leaves. In contrast, species with slow leaf turnover exhibit a passive AA acclimation response primarily determined by acclimation of leaf structure to growth light. This review emphasizes that different combinations of traits are responsible for within-canopy photosynthetic acclimation in different plant functional types and solves an old enigma of the role of mass- vs. area-based traits in vegetation acclimation. PMID:25318596

Co-regulation of photosynthetic capacity by nitrogen, phosphorus and magnesium in a subtropical Karst forest in China.

PubMed

Wang, Jing; Wen, Xuefa; Zhang, Xinyu; Li, Shenggong; Zhang, Da-Yong

2018-05-09

Leaf photosynthetic capacity is mainly constrained by nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). Little attention has been given to the photosynthetic capacity of mature forests with high calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) in the Karst critical zone. We measured light-saturated net photosynthesis (A sat ), photosynthetic capacity (maximum carboxylation rate [V cmax ], and maximum electron transport rate [J max ]) as well as leaf nutrient contents (N, P, Ca, Mg, potassium [K], and sodium [Na]), leaf mass per area (LMA), and leaf thickness (LT) in 63 dominant plants in a mature subtropical forest in the Karst critical zone in southwestern China. Compared with global data, plants showed higher A sat for a given level of P. V cmax and J max were mainly co-regulated by N, P, Mg, and LT. The ratios of V cmax to N or P, and J max to N or P were significantly positively related to Mg. We speculate that the photosynthetic capacity of Karst plants can be modified by Mg because Mg can enhance photosynthetic N and P use efficiency.

Fiber optic spectrophotometry monitoring of plant nutrient deficiency under hydroponic culture conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liew, Oi Wah; Boey, William S. L.; Asundi, Anand K.; Chen, Jun-Wei; He, Duo-Min

1999-05-01

In this paper, fiber optic spectrophotometry (FOSpectr) was adapted to provide early detection of plant nutrient deficiency by measuring leaf spectral reflectance variation resulting from nutrient stress. Leaf reflectance data were obtained form a local vegetable crop, Brassica chinensis var parachinensis (Bailey), grown in nitrate-nitrogen (N)- and calcium (Ca)- deficient hydroponics nutrient solution. FOSpectr analysis showed significant differences in leaf reflectance within the first four days after subjecting plants to nutrient-deficient media. Recovery of the nutrient-stressed plants could also be detected after transferring them back to complete nutrient solution. In contrast to FOSpectr, plant response to nitrogen and calcium deficiency in terms of reduced growth and tissue elemental levels was slower and less pronounced. Thus, this study demonstrated the feasibility of using FOSpectr methodology as a non-destructive alternative to augment current methods of plant nutrient analysis.

Estimating cotton nitrogen nutrition status using leaf greenness and ground cover information

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Assessing nitrogen (N) status is important from economic and environmental standpoints. To date, many spectral indices to estimate cotton chlorophyll or N content have been purely developed using statistical analysis approach where they are often subject to site-specific problems. This study describ...

The proteomics of nitrogen remobilization in poplar bark

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Seasonal nitrogen (N) cycling in temperate deciduous trees involves the accumulation of bark storage proteins (BSPs), a class of vegetative storage proteins in phloem parenchyma and xylem ray cells. BSPs are anabolized using recycled N in the form of amino acids after autumn leaf senescence and lat...

Stearoyl-Acyl Carrier Protein Desaturase Mutations Uncover an Impact of Stearic Acid in Leaf and Nodule Structure.

PubMed

Lakhssassi, Naoufal; Colantonio, Vincent; Flowers, Nicholas D; Zhou, Zhou; Henry, Jason; Liu, Shiming; Meksem, Khalid

2017-07-01

Stearoyl-acyl carrier protein desaturase (SACPD-C) has been reported to control the accumulation of seed stearic acid; however, no study has previously reported its involvement in leaf stearic acid content and impact on leaf structure and morphology. A subset of an ethyl methanesulfonate mutagenized population of soybean ( Glycine max ) 'Forrest' was screened to identify mutants within the GmSACPD-C gene. Using a forward genetics approach, one nonsense and four missense Gmsacpd-c mutants were identified to have high levels of seed, nodule, and leaf stearic acid content. Homology modeling and in silico analysis of the GmSACPD-C enzyme revealed that most of these mutations were localized near or at conserved residues essential for diiron ion coordination. Soybeans carrying Gmsacpd-c mutations at conserved residues showed the highest stearic acid content, and these mutations were found to have deleterious effects on nodule development and function. Interestingly, mutations at nonconserved residues show an increase in stearic acid content yet retain healthy nodules. Thus, random mutagenesis and mutational analysis allows for the achievement of high seed stearic acid content with no associated negative agronomic characteristics. Additionally, expression analysis demonstrates that nodule leghemoglobin transcripts were significantly more abundant in soybeans with deleterious mutations at conserved residues of GmSACPD-C. Finally, we report that Gmsacpd-c mutations cause an increase in leaf stearic acid content and an alteration of leaf structure and morphology in addition to differences in nitrogen-fixing nodule structure. © 2017 American Society of Plant Biologists. All Rights Reserved.

Herbivore-mediated material fluxes in a northern deciduous forest under elevated carbon dioxide and ozone concentrations.

PubMed

Meehan, Timothy D; Couture, John J; Bennett, Alison E; Lindroth, Richard L

2014-10-01

Anthropogenic changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2 ) and ozone (O3 ) are known to alter tree physiology and growth, but the cascading effects on herbivore communities and herbivore-mediated nutrient cycling are poorly understood. We sampled herbivore frass, herbivore-mediated greenfall, and leaf-litter deposition in temperate forest stands under elevated CO2 (c. 560 ppm) and O3 (c. 1.5× ambient), analyzed substrate chemical composition, and compared the quality and quantity of fluxes under multiple atmospheric treatments. Leaf-chewing herbivores fluxed 6.2 g m(-2)  yr(-1) of frass and greenfall from the canopy to the forest floor, with a carbon : nitrogen (C : N) ratio 32% lower than that of leaf litter. Herbivore fluxes of dry matter, C, condensed tannins, and N increased under elevated CO2 (35, 32, 63 and 39%, respectively), while fluxes of N decreased (18%) under elevated O3 . Herbivore-mediated dry matter inputs scaled across atmospheric treatments as a constant proportion of leaf-litter inputs. Increased fluxes under elevated CO2 were consistent with increased herbivore consumption and abundance, and with increased plant growth and soil respiration, previously reported for this experimental site. Results suggest that insect herbivory will reinforce other factors, such as photosynthetic rate and fine-root production, impacting C sequestration by forests in future environments. © 2014 The Authors New Phytologist © 2014 New Phytologist Trust.

Ecological and evolutionary variation in community nitrogen use traits during tropical dry forest secondary succession.

PubMed

Bhaskar, Radika; Porder, Stephen; Balvanera, Patricia; Edwards, Erika J

2016-05-01

We assessed the role of ecological and evolutionary processes in driving variation in leaf and litter traits related to nitrogen (N) use among tropical dry forest trees in old-growth and secondary stands in western Mexico. Our expectation was that legumes (Fabaceae), a dominant component of the regional flora, would have consistently high leaf N and therefore structure phylogenetic variation in N-related traits. We also expected ecological selection during succession for differences in nitrogen use strategies, and corresponding shifts in legume abundance. We used phylogenetic analyses to test for trait conservatism in foliar and litter N, C:N, and N resorption. We also evaluated differences in N-related traits between old-growth and secondary forests. We found a weak phylogenetic signal for all traits, partly explained by wide variation within legumes. Across taxa we observed a positive relationship between leaf and litter N, but no shift in resorption strategies along the successional gradient. Despite species turnover, N-resorption, and N-related traits showed little change across succession, suggesting that, at least for these traits, secondary forests rapidly recover ecosystem function. Collectively, our results also suggest that legumes should not be considered a single functional group from a biogeochemical perspective.

Assimilation of Remotely Sensed Leaf Area Index into the Community Land Model with Explicit Carbon and Nitrogen Components using Data Assimilation Research Testbed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ling, X.; Fu, C.; Yang, Z. L.; Guo, W.

2017-12-01

Information of the spatial and temporal patterns of leaf area index (LAI) is crucial to understand the exchanges of momentum, carbon, energy, and water between the terrestrial ecosystem and the atmosphere, while both in-situ observation and model simulation usually show distinct deficiency in terms of LAI coverage and value. Land data assimilation, combined with observation and simulation together, is a promising way to provide variable estimation. The Data Assimilation Research Testbed (DART) developed and maintained by the National Centre for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) provides a powerful tool to facilitate the combination of assimilation algorithms, models, and real (as well as synthetic) observations to better understanding of all three. Here we systematically investigated the effects of data assimilation on improving LAI simulation based on NCAR Community Land Model with the prognostic carbon-nitrogen option (CLM4CN) linked with DART using the deterministic Ensemble Adjustment Kalman Filter (EAKF). Random 40-member atmospheric forcing was used to drive the CLM4CN with or without LAI assimilation. The Global Land Surface Satellite LAI data (GLASS LAI) LAI is assimilated into the CLM4CN at a frequency of 8 days, and LAI (and leaf carbon / nitrogen) are adjusted at each time step. The results show that assimilating remotely sensed LAI into the CLM4CN is an effective method for improving model performance. In detail, the CLM4-CN simulated LAI systematically overestimates global LAI, especially in low latitude with the largest bias of 5 m2/m2. While if updating both LAI and leaf carbon and leaf nitrogen simultaneously during assimilation, the analyzed LAI can be corrected, especially in low latitude regions with the bias controlled around ±1 m2/m2. Analyzed LAI could also represent the seasonal variation except for the Southern Temperate (23°S-90°S). The obviously improved regions located in the center of Africa, Amazon, the South of Eurasia, the northeast of China, and the west of Europe, where were mainly covered by evergreen/deciduous forests and mixed forests. In addition, the best method for LAI assimilation should include the EAKF method, the accepted percentage of all observation, as well as the carbon-nitrogen control.

Nitrogen deposition but not climate warming promotes Deyeuxia angustifolia encroachment in alpine tundra of the Changbai Mountains, Northeast China.

PubMed

Zong, Shengwei; Jin, Yinghua; Xu, Jiawei; Wu, Zhengfang; He, Hongshi; Du, Haibo; Wang, Lei

2016-02-15

Vegetation in the alpine tundra area of the Changbai Mountains, one of two alpine tundra areas in China, has undergone great changes in recent decades. The aggressive herb species Deyeuxia angustifolia (Komarov) Y. L. Chang, a narrow-leaf small reed, was currently encroaching upon the alpine landscape and threatening tundra biota. The alpine tundra of the Changbai Mountains has been experiencing a warmer climate and receiving a high load of atmospheric nitrogen deposition. In this study, we aimed to assess the respective roles of climate warming and atmospheric nitrogen deposition in promoting the upward encroachment of D. angustifolia. We conducted experiments for three years to examine the response of D. angustifolia and a native alpine shrub, Rhododendron chrysanthum, to the conditions in which temperature and nitrogen were increased. Treatments consisting of temperature increase, nitrogen addition, temperature increase combined with nitrogen addition, and controls were conducted on the D. angustifolia communities with three encroachment levels (low, medium, and high levels). Results showed that 1) D. angustifolia grew in response to added nutrients but did not grow well when temperature increased. R. chrysanthum showed negligible responses to the simulated environmental changes. 2) Compared to R. chrysanthum, D. angustifolia could effectively occupy the above-ground space by increasing tillers and growing rapidly by efficiently using nitrogen. The difference in nitrogen uptake abilities between the two species contributed to expansion of D. angustifolia. 3) D. angustifolia encroachment could deeply change the biodiversity of tundra vegetation and may eventually result in the replacement of native biota, especially with nitrogen addition. Our research indicated that nutrient perturbation may be more important than temperature perturbation in promoting D. angustifolia encroachment upon the nutrient- and species-poor alpine tundra ecosystem in the Changbai Mountains. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Viral pathogen production in a wild grass host driven by host growth and soil nitrogen.

PubMed

Whitaker, Briana K; Rúa, Megan A; Mitchell, Charles E

2015-08-01

Nutrient limitation is a basic ecological constraint that has received little attention in studies on virus production and disease dynamics. Nutrient availability could directly limit the production of viral nucleic acids and proteins, or alternatively limit host growth and thus indirectly limit metabolic pathways necessary for viral replication. In order to compare direct and indirect effects of nutrient limitation on virus production within hosts, we manipulated soil nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) availability in a glasshouse for the wild grass host Bromus hordeaceus and the viral pathogen Barley yellow dwarf virus-PAV. We found that soil N additions increased viral concentrations within host tissues, and the effect was mediated by host growth. Specifically, in statistical models evaluating the roles of host biomass production, leaf N and leaf P, viral production depended most strongly on host biomass, rather than the concentration of either nutrient. Furthermore, at low soil N, larger plants supported greater viral concentrations than smaller ones, whereas at high N, smaller plants supported greater viral concentrations. Our results suggest that enhanced viral productivity under N enrichment is an indirect consequence of nutrient stimulation to host growth rate. Heightened pathogen production in plants has important implications for a world facing increasing rates of nutrient deposition. © 2015 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2015 New Phytologist Trust.

Coupled hydrological and biogeochemical processes controlling variability of nitrogen species in streamflow during autumn in an upland forest

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sebestyen, Stephen D.; Shanley, James B.; Boyer, Elizabeth W.; Kendall, Carol; Doctor, Daniel H.

2014-01-01

Autumn is a season of dynamic change in forest streams of the northeastern United States due to effects of leaf fall on both hydrology and biogeochemistry. Few studies have explored how interactions of biogeochemical transformations, various nitrogen sources, and catchment flow paths affect stream nitrogen variation during autumn. To provide more information on this critical period, we studied (1) the timing, duration, and magnitude of changes to stream nitrate, dissolved organic nitrogen (DON), and ammonium concentrations; (2) changes in nitrate sources and cycling; and (3) source areas of the landscape that most influence stream nitrogen. We collected samples at higher temporal resolution for a longer duration than typical studies of stream nitrogen during autumn. This sampling scheme encompassed the patterns and extremes that occurred during base flow and stormflow events of autumn. Base flow nitrate concentrations decreased by an order of magnitude from 5.4 to 0.7 µmol L−1 during the week when most leaves fell from deciduous trees. Changes to rates of biogeochemical transformations during autumn base flow explained the low nitrate concentrations; in-stream transformations retained up to 72% of the nitrate that entered a stream reach. A decrease of in-stream nitrification coupled with heterotrophic nitrate cycling were primary factors in the seasonal nitrate decline. The period of low nitrate concentrations ended with a storm event in which stream nitrate concentrations increased by 25-fold. In the ensuing weeks, peak stormflow nitrate concentrations progressively decreased over closely spaced, yet similarly sized events. Most stormflow nitrate originated from nitrification in near-stream areas with occasional, large inputs of unprocessed atmospheric nitrate, which has rarely been reported for nonsnowmelt events. A maximum input of 33% unprocessed atmospheric nitrate to the stream occurred during one event. Large inputs of unprocessed atmospheric nitrate show direct and rapid effects on forest streams that may be widespread, although undocumented, throughout nitrogen-polluted temperate forests. In contrast to a week-long nitrate decline during peak autumn litterfall, base flow DON concentrations increased after leaf fall and remained high for 2 months. Dissolved organic nitrogen was hydrologically flushed to the stream from riparian soils during stormflow. In contrast to distinct seasonal changes in base flow nitrate and DON concentrations, ammonium concentrations were typically at or below the detection limit, similar to the rest of the year. Our findings reveal couplings among catchment flow paths, nutrient sources, and transformations that control seasonal extremes of stream nitrogen in forested landscapes.

Effects of structural complexity on within-canopy light environments and leaf traits in a northern mixed deciduous forest

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fotis, A. T.; Curtis, P.

2016-12-01

Canopy structure influences forest productivity through its effects on the distribution of radiation and the light-induced changes in leaf physiological traits. Due to the difficulty of accessing and measuring forest canopies, few field-based studies have quantitatively linked these divergent scales of canopy functioning. The objective of our study was to investigate how canopy structure affects light profiles within a forest canopy and whether leaves of mature trees adjust morphologically and biochemically to the light environments characteristic of canopies with different structural complexity. We used a combination of light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data and hemispherical photographs to quantify canopy structure and light environments, respectively, and a telescoping pole to sample leaves. Leaf mass per area (LMA), nitrogen on an area basis (Narea) and chlorophyll on a mass basis (Chlmass) were measured in four co-dominant species (Acer rubrum, Fagus grandifolia, Pinus strobus and Quercus rubra) at different heights in plots with similar leaf area index (LAI) but contrasting canopy complexity (rugosity). We found that more complex canopies had greater porosity and reduced light variability in the midcanopy while total light interception was unchanged relative to less complex canopies. Leaves of F. grandifolia, Q. rubra, and P. strobus shifted towards sun-acclimation phenotypes with increasing canopy complexity while leaves of A. rubrum became more shade-acclimated (lower LMA) in the upper canopy of more complex stands, despite no differences in total light interception. Broadleaf species showed further acclimation by increasing Narea and reducing Chlmass as LMA increased, while P. strobus showed no change in Narea and Chlmass with increasing LMA. Our results provide new insight on how light distribution and leaf acclimation in mature trees might be altered when natural and anthropogenic disturbances cause structural changes in the canopy.

Leaf Litter Chemistry Drives the Structure and Composition of Soil Testate Amoeba Communities in a Tropical Montane Rainforest of the Ecuadorian Andes.

PubMed

Krashevska, Valentyna; Sandmann, Dorothee; Marian, Franca; Maraun, Mark; Scheu, Stefan

2017-10-01

We investigated the role of leaf litter chemistry and richness in affecting testate amoeba communities of tropical rainforest in the Ecuadorian Andes. Litterbags containing leaf litter from four dominating tree species (Clusia sp., Myrcia pubescens, Graffenrieda emarginata, and Cecropia andina) with richness 1, 2, and 4 species were established and exposed in the field for 12 months at 2000 m a.s.l. Chemical elements and compounds of leaf litter were analyzed before exposure. At the end of exposure, microbial biomass and litter mass loss were measured, and living testate amoeba species number, density, biomass, and community composition were determined. In total, 125 testate amoeba species colonized the litter in litterbags. The results suggest that high litter nitrogen and low lignin concentrations are indicators of high litter quality for testate amoebae density and species richness. Their species number and density significantly declined in the order 1 > 4 > 2 leaf litter species and varied with leaf litter chemistry being at a maximum in high-quality single leaf litter species and low in low-quality leaf litter. Further, the addition of litter of high-quality to low-quality litter increased testate amoebae biomass and density; however, the values did not exceed the ones in single high-quality litter treatments. Moreover, the structure of testate amoeba communities varied with litter chemistry, with Fe, Na, lignin, and litter C-to-N ratio being of major importance, and indicating that litter chemistry reflects habitat quality for testate amoebae. Overall, the data show that leaf litter chemistry overrides leaf litter richness in structuring testate amoeba communities.

[Effects of nitrogen and irrigation water application on yield, water and nitrogen utilization and soil nitrate nitrogen accumulation in summer cotton].

PubMed

Si, Zhuan Yun; Gao, Yang; Shen, Xiao Jun; Liu, Hao; Gong, Xue Wen; Duan, Ai Wang

2017-12-01

A field experiment was carried out to study the effects of nitrogen and irrigation water application on growth, yield, and water and nitrogen use efficiency of summer cotton, and to develop the optimal water and nitrogen management model for suitable yield and less nitrogen loss in summer cotton field in the Huang-Huai region. Two experimental factors were arranged in a split plot design. The main plots were used for arranging nitrogen factor which consisted of five nitrogen fertilizer le-vels(0, 60, 120, 180, 240 kg·hm -2 , referred as N 0 , N 1 , N 2 , N 3 , N 4 ), and the subplots for irrigation factor which consisted of three irrigation quota levels (30, 22.5, 15 mm, referred as I 1 , I 2 , I 3 ). There were 15 treatments with three replications. Water was applied with drip irrigation system. Experimental results showed that both irrigation and nitrogen fertilization promoted cotton growth and yield obviously, but nitrogen fertilizer showed more important effects than irrigation and was the main factor of regulating growth and yield of summer cotton in the experimental region. With the increase of nitrogen fertilization rate and irrigation amount, the dry mater accumulation of reproductive organs, the above-ground biomass at the flowering-bolling stage and seed cotton yield increased gradually, reached peak values at nitrogen fertilization rate of 180 kg·hm -2 and decreased slowly with the nitrogen fertilization rate further increased. The maximum yield of 4016 kg·hm -2 was observed in the treatment of N 3 I 1 . Increasing nitrogen fertilizer amount would improve significantly total N absorption of shoots and N content of stem and leaf, but decrease nitrogen partial factor productivity. The maximum irrigation-water use efficiency of 5.40 kg·m -3 and field water use efficiency of 1.24 kg·m -3 were found in the treatments of N 3 I 3 and N 3 I 1 , respectively. With increasing nitrogen fertilization amount, soil NO 3 - -N content increased and the main soil NO 3 - -N accumulation layer moved downward. By comprehensively considering above-ground biomass, seed cotton yield, water and nitrogen uptake and utilization, and soil NO 3 - -N accumulation in the soil profile, the treatment N 3 I 1 could be recommended as the optimal water and nitrogen application pattern for summer cotton production in the experimental region.

Increased Needle Nitrogen Contents Did Not Improve Shoot Photosynthetic Performance of Mature Nitrogen-Poor Scots Pine Trees

PubMed Central

Tarvainen, Lasse; Lutz, Martina; Räntfors, Mats; Näsholm, Torgny; Wallin, Göran

2016-01-01

Numerous studies have shown that temperate and boreal forests are limited by nitrogen (N) availability. However, few studies have provided a detailed account of how carbon (C) acquisition of such forests reacts to increasing N supply. We combined measurements of needle-scale biochemical photosynthetic capacities and continuous observations of shoot-scale photosynthetic performance from several canopy positions with simple mechanistic modeling to evaluate the photosynthetic responses of mature N-poor boreal Pinus sylvestris to N fertilization. The measurements were carried out in August 2013 on 90-year-old pine trees growing at Rosinedalsheden research site in northern Sweden. In spite of a nearly doubling of needle N content in response to the fertilization, no effect on the long-term shoot-scale C uptake was recorded. This lack of N-effect was due to strong light limitation of photosynthesis in all investigated canopy positions. The effect of greater N availability on needle photosynthetic capacities was also constrained by development of foliar phosphorus (P) deficiency following N addition. Thus, P deficiency and accumulation of N in arginine appeared to contribute toward lower shoot-scale nitrogen-use efficiency in the fertilized trees, thereby additionally constraining tree-scale responses to increasing N availability. On the whole our study suggests that the C uptake response of the studied N-poor boreal P. sylvestris stand to enhanced N availability is constrained by the efficiency with which the additional N is utilized. This efficiency, in turn, depends on the ability of the trees to use the greater N availability for additional light capture. For stands that have not reached canopy closure, increase in leaf area following N fertilization would be the most effective way for improving light capture and C uptake while for mature stands an increased leaf area may have a rather limited effect on light capture owing to increased self-shading. This raises the question if N limitation in boreal forests acts primarily by constraining growth of young stands while the commonly recorded increase in stem growth of mature stands following N addition is primarily the result of altered allocation and only to a limited extent the result of increased stand C-capture. PMID:27489553

Construction Costs and Physico-chemical Properties of the Assimilatory Organs of Nepenthes Species in Northern Borneo

PubMed Central

Osunkoya, Olusegun O.; Daud, Siti Dayanawati; Di-Giusto, Bruno; Wimmer, Franz L.; Holige, Thippeswamy M.

2007-01-01

Background and Aims Species of the Nepenthaceae family are under-represented in studies of leaf traits and the consequent view of mineral nutrition and limitation in carnivorous plants. This study is aimed to complement existing data on leaf traits of carnivorous plants. Methods Physico-chemical properties, including construction costs (CC), of the assimilatory organs (leaf and pitcher) of a guild of lowland Nepenthes species inhabiting heath and/or peat swamp forests of Brunei, Northern Borneo were determined. Key Results Stoichiometry analyses indicate that Nepenthes species are nitrogen limited. Most traits vary appreciably across species, but greater variations exist between the assimilatory organs. Organ mass per unit area, dry matter tissue concentration (density), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), carbon, heat of combustion (Hc) and CC values were higher in the leaf relative to the pitcher, while organ thickness, potassium (K) and ash showed the opposite trend. Cross-species correlations indicate that joint rather than individual consideration of the leaf and the pitcher give better predictive relationships between variables, signalling tight coupling and functional interdependence of the two assimilatory organs. Across species, mass-based CC did not vary with N or P, but increases significantly with tissue density, carbon and Hc, and decreases with K and ash contents. Area-based CC gave the same trends (though weaker in strength) in addition to a significant positive correlation with tissue mass per unit area. Conclusions The lower CC value for the pitcher is in agreement with the concept of low marginal cost for carnivory relative to conventional autotrophy. The poor explanatory power of N, P or N : P ratio with CC suggests that factors other than production of expensive photosynthetic machinery (which calls for a high N input), including concentrations of lignin, wax/lipids or osmoregulatory ions like K+, may give a better explanation of the CC variation across Nepenthes species. PMID:17452380

Seasonal differences in leaf-level physiology give lianas a competitive advantage over trees in a tropical seasonal forest.

PubMed

Cai, Zhi-Quan; Schnitzer, Stefan A; Bongers, Frans

2009-08-01

Lianas are an important component of most tropical forests, where they vary in abundance from high in seasonal forests to low in seasonal forests. We tested the hypothesis that the physiological ability of lianas to fix carbon (and thus grow) during seasonal drought may confer a distinct advantage in seasonal tropical forests, which may explain pan-tropical liana distributions. We compared a range of leaf-level physiological attributes of 18 co-occurring liana and 16 tree species during the wet and dry seasons in a tropical seasonal forest in Xishuangbanna, China. We found that, during the wet season, lianas had significantly higher CO(2) assimilation per unit mass (A(mass)), nitrogen concentration (N(mass)), and delta(13)C values, and lower leaf mass per unit area (LMA) than trees, indicating that lianas have higher assimilation rates per unit leaf mass and higher integrated water-use efficiency (WUE), but lower leaf structural investments. Seasonal variation in CO(2) assimilation per unit area (A(area)), phosphorus concentration per unit mass (P(mass)), and photosynthetic N-use efficiency (PNUE), however, was significantly lower in lianas than in trees. For instance, mean tree A(area) decreased by 30.1% from wet to dry season, compared with only 12.8% for lianas. In contrast, from the wet to dry season mean liana delta(13)C increased four times more than tree delta(13)C, with no reduction in PNUE, whereas trees had a significant reduction in PNUE. Lianas had higher A(mass) than trees throughout the year, regardless of season. Collectively, our findings indicate that lianas fix more carbon and use water and nitrogen more efficiently than trees, particularly during seasonal drought, which may confer a competitive advantage to lianas during the dry season, and thus may explain their high relative abundance in seasonal tropical forests.

Leaf traits in relation to crown development, light interception and growth of elite families of loblolly and slash pine.

PubMed

Chmura, Daniel J; Tjoelker, Mark G

2008-05-01

Crown architecture and size influence leaf area distribution within tree crowns and have large effects on the light environment in forest canopies. The use of selected genotypes in combination with silvicultural treatments that optimize site conditions in forest plantations provide both a challenge and an opportunity to study the biological and environmental determinants of forest growth. We investigated tree growth, crown development and leaf traits of two elite families of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) and one family of slash pine (P. elliottii Mill.) at canopy closure. Two contrasting silvicultural treatments -- repeated fertilization and control of competing vegetation (MI treatment), and a single fertilization and control of competing vegetation treatment (C treatment) -- were applied at two experimental sites in the West Gulf Coastal Plain in Texas and Louisiana. At a common tree size (diameter at breast height), loblolly pine trees had longer and wider crowns, and at the plot-level, intercepted a greater fraction of photosynthetic photon flux than slash pine trees. Leaf-level, light-saturated assimilation rates (A(max)) and both mass- and area-based leaf nitrogen (N) decreased, and specific leaf area (SLA) increased with increasing canopy depth. Leaf-trait gradients were steeper in crowns of loblolly pine trees than of slash pine trees for SLA and leaf N, but not for A(max). There were no species differences in A(max), except in mass-based photosynthesis in upper crowns, but the effect of silvicultural treatment on A(max) differed between sites. Across all crown positions, A(max) was correlated with leaf N, but the relationship differed between sites and treatments. Observed patterns of variation in leaf properties within crowns reflected acclimation to developing light gradients in stands with closing canopies. Tree growth was not directly related to A(max), but there was a strong correlation between tree growth and plot-level light interception in both species. Growth efficiency was unaffected by silvicultural treatment. Thus, when coupled with leaf area and light interception at the crown and canopy levels, A(max) provides insight into family and silvicultural effects on tree growth.

Proteomic Investigations of Proteases Involved in Cotyledon Senescence: A Model to Explore the Genotypic Variability of Proteolysis Machinery Associated with Nitrogen Remobilization Efficiency during the Leaf Senescence of Oilseed Rape.

PubMed

Poret, Marine; Chandrasekar, Balakumaran; van der Hoorn, Renier A L; Coquet, Laurent; Jouenne, Thierry; Avice, Jean-Christophe

2017-11-02

Oilseed rape is characterized by a low nitrogen remobilization efficiency during leaf senescence, mainly due to a lack of proteolysis. Because cotyledons are subjected to senescence, it was hypothesized that contrasting protease activities between genotypes may be distinguishable early in the senescence of cotyledons. To verify this assumption, our goals were to (i) characterize protease activities in cotyledons between two genotypes with contrasting nitrogen remobilization efficiency (Ténor and Samouraï) under limiting or ample nitrate supply; and (ii) test the role of salicylic acid (SA) and abscisic acid (ABA) in proteolysis regulation. Protease activities were measured and identified by a proteomics approach combining activity-based protein profiling with LC-MS/MS. As in senescing leaves, chlorophyll and protein contents decrease in senescing cotyledons and are correlated with an increase in serine and cysteine protease activities. Two RD21-like and SAG-12 proteases previously associated with an efficient proteolysis in senescing leaves of Ténor are also detected in senescing cotyledons. The infiltration of ABA and SA provokes the induction of senescence and several cysteine and serine protease activities. The study of protease activities during the senescence of cotyledons seems to be a promising experimental model to investigate the regulation and genotypic variability of proteolysis associated with efficient N remobilization.

Suppression of plant growth by nitrogen dioxide.

PubMed

Taylor, O C; Eaton, F M

1966-01-01

Nicotiana glutinosa and pinto bean seedlings (Phaseolus vulgaris) were exposed for short periods (3 days or less) to high concentrations of NO(2) (4.11-20.53 mg/m(3) to compare the resulting leaf lesions with ozone damage produced at concentrations of 0.43 to 0.86 mg/m(3). Although the same physiological age leaf tissue was damaged by both toxicants, damage caused by NO(2) was unlike that caused by ozone. Pinto bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) and Pearson improved tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) seedlings were continuously exposed for 10 to 22 days, to low concentrations of NO(2) (less than 1.03 mg/m(3)). These exposures caused significant growth suppression, increase in green color (total chlorophyll content), and distortion of leaves.

Responses of leaf structure and photosynthetic properties to intra-canopy light gradients: a common garden test with four broadleaf deciduous angiosperm and seven evergreen conifer tree species.

PubMed

Wyka, Tomasz P; Oleksyn, J; Zytkowiak, R; Karolewski, P; Jagodziński, A M; Reich, P B

2012-09-01

Spectra of leaf traits in northern temperate forest canopies reflect major differences in leaf longevity between evergreen conifers and deciduous broadleaf angiosperms, as well as plastic modifications caused by within-crown shading. We investigated (1) whether long-lived conifer leaves exhibit similar intra-canopy plasticity as short-lived broadleaves, and (2) whether global interspecific relationships between photosynthesis, nitrogen, and leaf structure identified for sun leaves adequately describe leaves differentiated in response to light gradients. We studied structural and photosynthetic properties of intra-tree sun and shade foliage in adult trees of seven conifer and four broadleaf angiosperm species in a common garden in Poland. Shade leaves exhibited lower leaf mass-per-area (LMA) than sun leaves; however, the relative difference was smaller in conifers than in broadleaves. In broadleaves, LMA was correlated with lamina thickness and tissue density, while in conifers, it was correlated with thickness but not density. In broadleaves, but not in conifers, reduction of lamina thickness was correlated with a thinner palisade layer. The more conservative adjustment of conifer leaves could result from a combination of phylogenetic constraints, contrasting leaf anatomies and shoot geometries, but also from functional requirements of long-lived foliage. Mass-based nitrogen concentration (N(mass)) was similar between sun and shade leaves, and was lower in conifers than in deciduous broadleaved species. Given this, the smaller LMA in shade corresponded with a lower area-based N concentration (N(area)). In evergreen conifers, LMA and N(area) were less powerful predictors of area-based photosynthetic rate (A (max(area))) in comparison with deciduous broadleaved angiosperms. Multiple regression for sun and shade leaves showed that, in each group, A (max(mass)) was related to N(mass) but not to LMA, whereas LMA became a significant codeterminant of A (max(mass)) in analysis combining both groups. Thus, a fundamental mass-based relationship between photosynthesis, nitrogen, and leaf structure reported previously also exists in a dataset combining within-crown and across-functional type variation.

Structural Changes in Senescing Oilseed Rape Leaves at Tissue and Subcellular Levels Monitored by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Relaxometry through Water Status

PubMed Central

Musse, Maja; De Franceschi, Loriane; Cambert, Mireille; Sorin, Clément; Le Caherec, Françoise; Burel, Agnès; Bouchereau, Alain; Mariette, François; Leport, Laurent

2013-01-01

Nitrogen use efficiency is relatively low in oilseed rape (Brassica napus) due to weak nitrogen remobilization during leaf senescence. Monitoring the kinetics of water distribution associated with the reorganization of cell structures, therefore, would be valuable to improve the characterization of nutrient recycling in leaf tissues and the associated senescence processes. In this study, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) relaxometry was used to describe water distribution and status at the cellular level in different leaf ranks of well-watered plants. It was shown to be able to detect slight variations in the evolution of senescence. The NMR results were linked to physiological characterization of the leaves and to light and electron micrographs. A relationship between cell hydration and leaf senescence was revealed and associated with changes in the NMR signal. The relative intensities and the transverse relaxation times of the NMR signal components associated with vacuole water were positively correlated with senescence, describing water uptake and vacuole and cell enlargement. Moreover, the relative intensity of the NMR signal that we assigned to the chloroplast water decreased during the senescence process, in agreement with the decrease in relative chloroplast volume estimated from micrographs. The results are discussed on the basis of water flux occurring at the cellular level during senescence. One of the main applications of this study would be for plant phenotyping, especially for plants under environmental stress such as nitrogen starvation. PMID:23903438

Ecological effects of aphid abundance, genotypic variation, and contemporary evolution on plants.

PubMed

Turley, Nash E; Johnson, Marc T J

2015-07-01

Genetic variation and contemporary evolution within populations can shape the strength and nature of species interactions, but the relative importance of these forces compared to other ecological factors is unclear. We conducted a field experiment testing the effects of genotypic variation, abundance, and presence/absence of green peach aphids (Myzus persicae) on the growth, leaf nitrogen, and carbon of two plant species (Brassica napus and Solanum nigrum). Aphid genotype affected B. napus but not S. nigrum biomass explaining 20 and 7% of the total variation, respectively. Averaging across both plant species, the presence/absence of aphids had a 1.6× larger effect size (Cohen's d) than aphid genotype, and aphid abundance had the strongest negative effects on plant biomass explaining 29% of the total variation. On B. napus, aphid genotypes had different effects on leaf nitrogen depending on their abundance. Aphids did not influence leaf nitrogen in S. nigrum nor leaf carbon in either species. We conducted a second experiment in the field to test whether contemporary evolution could affect plant performance. Aphid populations evolved in as little as five generations, but the rate and direction of this evolution did not consistently vary between plant species. On one host species (B. napus), faster evolving populations had greater negative effects on host plant biomass, with aphid evolutionary rate explaining 23% of the variation in host plant biomass. Together, these results show that genetic variation and evolution in an insect herbivore can play important roles in shaping host plant ecology.

Effects of prolonged drought stress on Scots pine seedling carbon allocation.

PubMed

Aaltonen, Heidi; Lindén, Aki; Heinonsalo, Jussi; Biasi, Christina; Pumpanen, Jukka

2017-04-01

As the number of drought occurrences has been predicted to increase with increasing temperatures, it is believed that boreal forests will become particularly vulnerable to decreased growth and increased tree mortality caused by the hydraulic failure, carbon starvation and vulnerability to pests following these. Although drought-affected trees are known to have stunted growth, as well as increased allocation of carbon to roots, still not enough is known about the ways in which trees can acclimate to drought. We studied how drought stress affects belowground and aboveground carbon dynamics, as well as nitrogen uptake, in Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) seedlings exposed to prolonged drought. Overall 40 Scots pine seedlings were divided into control and drought treatments over two growing seasons. Seedlings were pulse-labelled with 13CO2 and litter bags containing 15N-labelled root biomass, and these were used to follow nutrient uptake of trees. We determined photosynthesis, biomass distribution, root and rhizosphere respiration, water potential, leaf osmolalities and carbon and nitrogen assimilation patterns in both treatments. The photosynthetic rate of the drought-induced seedlings did not decrease compared to the control group, the maximum leaf specific photosynthetic rate being 0.058 and 0.045 µmol g-1 s-1 for the drought and control treatments, respectively. The effects of drought were, however, observed as lower water potentials, increased osmolalities as well as decreased growth and greater fine root-to-shoot ratio in the drought-treated seedlings. We also observed improved uptake of labelled nitrogen from soil to needles in the drought-treated seedlings. The results indicate acclimation of seedlings to long-term drought by aiming to retain sufficient water uptake with adequate allocation to roots and root-associated mycorrhizal fungi. The plants seem to control water potential with osmolysis, for which sufficient photosynthetic capability is needed. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Responses of tree and insect herbivores to elevated nitrogen inputs: A meta-analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Furong; Dudley, Tom L.; Chen, Baoming; Chang, Xiaoyu; Liang, Liyin; Peng, Shaolin

2016-11-01

Increasing atmospheric nitrogen (N) inputs have the potential to alter terrestrial ecosystem function through impacts on plant-herbivore interactions. The goal of our study is to search for a general pattern in responses of tree characteristics important for herbivores and insect herbivorous performance to elevated N inputs. We conducted a meta-analysis based on 109 papers describing impacts of nitrogen inputs on tree characteristics and 16 papers on insect performance. The differences in plant characteristics and insect performance between broadleaves and conifers were also explored. Tree aboveground biomass, leaf biomass and leaf N concentration significantly increased under elevated N inputs. Elevated N inputs had no significantly overall effect on concentrations of phenolic compounds and lignin but adversely affected tannin, as defensive chemicals for insect herbivores. Additionally, the overall effect of insect herbivore performance (including development time, insect biomass, relative growth rate, and so on) was significantly increased by elevated N inputs. According to the inconsistent responses between broadleaves and conifers, broadleaves would be more likely to increase growth by light interception and photosynthesis rather than producing more defensive chemicals to elevated N inputs by comparison with conifers. Moreover, the overall carbohydrate concentration was significantly reduced by 13.12% in broadleaves while increased slightly in conifers. The overall tannin concentration decreased significantly by 39.21% in broadleaves but a 5.8% decrease in conifers was not significant. The results of the analysis indicated that elevated N inputs would provide more food sources and ameliorate tree palatability for insects, while the resistance of trees against their insect herbivores was weakened, especially for broadleaves. Thus, global forest insect pest problems would be aggravated by elevated N inputs. As N inputs continue to rise in the future, forest ecosystem management should pay more attention to insect pest, especially in the regions dominated by broadleaves.

Nitrate Increased Cucumber Tolerance to Fusarium Wilt by Regulating Fungal Toxin Production and Distribution.

PubMed

Zhou, Jinyan; Wang, Min; Sun, Yuming; Gu, Zechen; Wang, Ruirui; Saydin, Asanjan; Shen, Qirong; Guo, Shiwei

2017-03-11

Cucumber Fusarium wilt, induced by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cucumerinum (FOC), causes severe losses in cucumber yield and quality. Nitrogen (N), as the most important mineral nutrient for plants, plays a critical role in plant-pathogen interactions. Hydroponic assays were conducted to investigate the effects of different N forms (NH₄⁺ vs. NO₃ ‒ ) and supply levels (low, 1 mM; high, 5 mM) on cucumber Fusarium wilt. The NO₃ ‒ -fed cucumber plants were more tolerant to Fusarium wilt compared with NH₄⁺-fed plants, and accompanied by lower leaf temperature after FOC infection. The disease index decreased as the NO₃ ‒ supply increased but increased with the NH₄⁺ level supplied. Although the FOC grew better under high NO₃ - in vitro, FOC colonization and fusaric acid (FA) production decreased in cucumber plants under high NO₃ - supply, associated with lower leaf membrane injury. There was a positive correlation between the FA content and the FOC number or relative membrane injury. After the exogenous application of FA, less FA accumulated in the leaves under NO₃ - feeding, accompanied with a lower leaf membrane injury. In conclusion, higher NO₃ - supply protected cucumber plants against Fusarium wilt by suppressing FOC colonization and FA production in plants, and increasing the plant tolerance to FA.

Differences between winter oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.) cultivars in nitrogen starvation-induced leaf senescence are governed by leaf-inherent rather than root-derived signals

PubMed Central

Koeslin-Findeklee, Fabian; Becker, Martin A.; van der Graaff, Eric; Roitsch, Thomas; Horst, Walter J.

2015-01-01

Nitrogen (N) efficiency of winter oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.) line-cultivars (cvs.), defined as high grain yield under N limitation, has been primarily attributed to maintained N uptake during reproductive growth (N uptake efficiency) in combination with delayed senescence of the older leaves accompanied with maintained photosynthetic capacity (functional stay-green). However, it is not clear whether genotypic variation in N starvation-induced leaf senescence is due to leaf-inherent factors and/or governed by root-mediated signals. Therefore, the N-efficient and stay-green cvs. NPZ-1 and Apex were reciprocally grafted with the N-inefficient and early-senescing cvs. NPZ-2 and Capitol, respectively and grown in hydroponics. The senescence status of older leaves after 12 days of N starvation assessed by SPAD, photosynthesis and the expression of the senescence-specific cysteine protease gene SAG12-1 revealed that the stay-green phenotype of the cvs. NPZ-1 and Apex under N starvation was primarily under the control of leaf-inherent factors. The same four cultivars were submitted to N starvation for up to 12 days in a time-course experiment. The specific leaf contents of biologically active and inactive cytokinins (CKs) and the expression of genes involved in CK homeostasis revealed that under N starvation leaves of early-senescing cultivars were characterized by inactivation of biologically active CKs, whereas in stay-green cultivars synthesis, activation, binding of and response to biologically active CKs were favoured. These results suggest that the homeostasis of biologically active CKs was the predominant leaf-inherent factor for cultivar differences in N starvation-induced leaf senescence and thus N efficiency. PMID:25944925

Global change shifts vegetation and plant-parasite interactions in a boreal mire.

PubMed

Wiedermann, Magdalena M; Nordin, Annika; Gunnarsson, Urban; Nilsson, Mats B; Ericson, Lars

2007-02-01

The aim of this study was to detect vegetation change and to examine trophic interactions in a Sphagnum-dominated mire in response to raised temperature and nitrogen (N) addition. A long-term global-change experiment was established in 1995, with monthly additions of N (30 kg x ha(-1) x yr(-1)) and sulfur (20 kg x ha(-1) x yr(-1)) during the vegetation period. Mean air temperature was raised by 3.6 degrees C with warming chambers. Vegetation responses were negligible for all treatments for the first four years, and no sulfur effect was seen during the course of the experiment. However, after eight years of continuous treatments, the closed Sphagnum carpet was drastically reduced from 100% in 1995 down to 41%, averaged over all N-treated plots. Over the same period, total vascular plant cover (of the graminoid Eriophorum vaginatum and the two dwarf-shrubs Andromeda polifolia and Vaccinium oxycoccos) increased from 24% to an average of 70% in the N plots. Nitrogen addition caused leaf N concentrations to rise in the two dwarf-shrubs, while for E. vaginatum, leaf N remained unchanged, indicating that the graminoid to a larger extent than the dwarf-shrubs allocated supplemented N to growth. Concurrent with foliar N accumulation of the two dwarf-shrubs, we observed increased disease incidences caused by parasitic fungi, with three species out of 16 showing a significant increase. Warming caused a significant decrease in occurrence of three parasitic fungal species. In general, decreased disease incidences were found in temperature treatments for A. polifolia and in plots without N addition for V. oxycoccos. The study demonstrates that both bryophytes and vascular plants at boreal mires, only receiving background levels of nitrogen of about 2 kg x ha(-1) x yr(-1), exhibit a time lag of more than five years in response to nitrogen and temperature rise, emphasizing the need for long-term experiments. Moreover, it shows that trophic interactions are likely to differ markedly in response to climate change and increased N deposition, and that these interactions might play an important role in controlling the change in mire vegetation composition, with implications for both carbon sequestration and methane emission.

Phylloremediation of Air Pollutants: Exploiting the Potential of Plant Leaves and Leaf-Associated Microbes

PubMed Central

Wei, Xiangying; Lyu, Shiheng; Yu, Ying; Wang, Zonghua; Liu, Hong; Pan, Dongming; Chen, Jianjun

2017-01-01

Air pollution is air contaminated by anthropogenic or naturally occurring substances in high concentrations for a prolonged time, resulting in adverse effects on human comfort and health as well as on ecosystems. Major air pollutants include particulate matters (PMs), ground-level ozone (O3), sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxides (NO2), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). During the last three decades, air has become increasingly polluted in countries like China and India due to rapid economic growth accompanied by increased energy consumption. Various policies, regulations, and technologies have been brought together for remediation of air pollution, but the air still remains polluted. In this review, we direct attention to bioremediation of air pollutants by exploiting the potentials of plant leaves and leaf-associated microbes. The aerial surfaces of plants, particularly leaves, are estimated to sum up to 4 × 108 km2 on the earth and are also home for up to 1026 bacterial cells. Plant leaves are able to adsorb or absorb air pollutants, and habituated microbes on leaf surface and in leaves (endophytes) are reported to be able to biodegrade or transform pollutants into less or nontoxic molecules, but their potentials for air remediation has been largely unexplored. With advances in omics technologies, molecular mechanisms underlying plant leaves and leaf associated microbes in reduction of air pollutants will be deeply examined, which will provide theoretical bases for developing leaf-based remediation technologies or phylloremediation for mitigating pollutants in the air. PMID:28804491

Phylloremediation of Air Pollutants: Exploiting the Potential of Plant Leaves and Leaf-Associated Microbes.

PubMed

Wei, Xiangying; Lyu, Shiheng; Yu, Ying; Wang, Zonghua; Liu, Hong; Pan, Dongming; Chen, Jianjun

2017-01-01

Air pollution is air contaminated by anthropogenic or naturally occurring substances in high concentrations for a prolonged time, resulting in adverse effects on human comfort and health as well as on ecosystems. Major air pollutants include particulate matters (PMs), ground-level ozone (O 3 ), sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ), nitrogen dioxides (NO 2 ), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). During the last three decades, air has become increasingly polluted in countries like China and India due to rapid economic growth accompanied by increased energy consumption. Various policies, regulations, and technologies have been brought together for remediation of air pollution, but the air still remains polluted. In this review, we direct attention to bioremediation of air pollutants by exploiting the potentials of plant leaves and leaf-associated microbes. The aerial surfaces of plants, particularly leaves, are estimated to sum up to 4 × 10 8 km 2 on the earth and are also home for up to 10 26 bacterial cells. Plant leaves are able to adsorb or absorb air pollutants, and habituated microbes on leaf surface and in leaves (endophytes) are reported to be able to biodegrade or transform pollutants into less or nontoxic molecules, but their potentials for air remediation has been largely unexplored. With advances in omics technologies, molecular mechanisms underlying plant leaves and leaf associated microbes in reduction of air pollutants will be deeply examined, which will provide theoretical bases for developing leaf-based remediation technologies or phylloremediation for mitigating pollutants in the air.

Global variability in leaf respiration in relation to climate, plant functional types and leaf traits.

PubMed

Atkin, Owen K; Bloomfield, Keith J; Reich, Peter B; Tjoelker, Mark G; Asner, Gregory P; Bonal, Damien; Bönisch, Gerhard; Bradford, Matt G; Cernusak, Lucas A; Cosio, Eric G; Creek, Danielle; Crous, Kristine Y; Domingues, Tomas F; Dukes, Jeffrey S; Egerton, John J G; Evans, John R; Farquhar, Graham D; Fyllas, Nikolaos M; Gauthier, Paul P G; Gloor, Emanuel; Gimeno, Teresa E; Griffin, Kevin L; Guerrieri, Rossella; Heskel, Mary A; Huntingford, Chris; Ishida, Françoise Yoko; Kattge, Jens; Lambers, Hans; Liddell, Michael J; Lloyd, Jon; Lusk, Christopher H; Martin, Roberta E; Maksimov, Ayal P; Maximov, Trofim C; Malhi, Yadvinder; Medlyn, Belinda E; Meir, Patrick; Mercado, Lina M; Mirotchnick, Nicholas; Ng, Desmond; Niinemets, Ülo; O'Sullivan, Odhran S; Phillips, Oliver L; Poorter, Lourens; Poot, Pieter; Prentice, I Colin; Salinas, Norma; Rowland, Lucy M; Ryan, Michael G; Sitch, Stephen; Slot, Martijn; Smith, Nicholas G; Turnbull, Matthew H; VanderWel, Mark C; Valladares, Fernando; Veneklaas, Erik J; Weerasinghe, Lasantha K; Wirth, Christian; Wright, Ian J; Wythers, Kirk R; Xiang, Jen; Xiang, Shuang; Zaragoza-Castells, Joana

2015-04-01

Leaf dark respiration (Rdark ) is an important yet poorly quantified component of the global carbon cycle. Given this, we analyzed a new global database of Rdark and associated leaf traits. Data for 899 species were compiled from 100 sites (from the Arctic to the tropics). Several woody and nonwoody plant functional types (PFTs) were represented. Mixed-effects models were used to disentangle sources of variation in Rdark . Area-based Rdark at the prevailing average daily growth temperature (T) of each site increased only twofold from the Arctic to the tropics, despite a 20°C increase in growing T (8-28°C). By contrast, Rdark at a standard T (25°C, Rdark (25) ) was threefold higher in the Arctic than in the tropics, and twofold higher at arid than at mesic sites. Species and PFTs at cold sites exhibited higher Rdark (25) at a given photosynthetic capacity (Vcmax (25) ) or leaf nitrogen concentration ([N]) than species at warmer sites. Rdark (25) values at any given Vcmax (25) or [N] were higher in herbs than in woody plants. The results highlight variation in Rdark among species and across global gradients in T and aridity. In addition to their ecological significance, the results provide a framework for improving representation of Rdark in terrestrial biosphere models (TBMs) and associated land-surface components of Earth system models (ESMs). © 2015 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2015 New Phytologist Trust.

Growth response of Douglas-fir seedlings to nitrogen fertilization: importance of Rubisco activation state and respiration rates.

PubMed

Manter, Daniel K; Kavanagh, Kathleen L; Rose, Cathy L

2005-08-01

High foliar nitrogen concentration ([N]) is associated with high rates of photosynthesis and thus high tree productivity; however, at excessive [N], tree productivity is reduced. Reports of excessive [N] in the Douglas-fir forests of the Oregon Coast Range prompted this investigation of growth and needle physiological responses to increasing foliar N concentrations in 1-year-old Douglas-fir seedlings. After 1 year of N fertilization, total seedling biomass increased with each successive increase in N fertilizer concentration, except in the highest N fertilization treatment. Of the many physiological responses that were analyzed, only photosynthetic capacity (i.e., Vcmax), respiration rates and leaf specific conductance (KL) differed significantly between N treatments. Photosynthetic capacity showed a curvilinear relationship with foliar [N], reaching an apparent maximum rate when needle N concentrations exceeded about 12 mg g(-1). In vitro measurements of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase (Rubisco) activity suggested that photosynthetic capacity was best related to activated, not total, Rubisco content. Rubisco activation state declined as foliar [N] increased, and based on its significant correlation (r2= 0.63) with foliar Mn:Mg ratios, it may be related to Mn inactivation of Rubisco. Respiration rates increased linearly as foliar N concentration increased (r2= 0.84). The value of K(L) also increased as foliar [N] increased, reaching a maximum when foliar [N] exceeded about 10 mg g(-1). Changes in K(L) were unrelated to changes in leaf area or sapwood area because leaf area to sapwood area ratios remained constant. Cumulative effects of the observed physiological responses to N fertilization were analyzed by modeling annual net CO2 assimilation (Anet) based on treatment specific values of Vcmax, dark respiration (Rdark) and KL. Estimates of Anet were highly correlated with measured total seedling biomass (r2= 0.992), suggesting that long-term, cumulative effects of maximum Rubisco carboxylation, Rdark and KL responses to N fertilization may limit seedling production when foliar N exceeds about 13 mg g(-1) or is reduced to less than about 11 mg g(-1).

Soil carbon and nitrogen stocks in forests along an altitudinal gradient in the eastern Himalayas and a meta-analysis of global data.

PubMed

Tashi, Sonam; Singh, Balwant; Keitel, Claudia; Adams, Mark

2016-06-01

High-altitude soils potentially store a large pool of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N). The assessment of total C and N stocks in soils is vital to understanding the C and N dynamics in terrestrial ecosystems. In this study, we examined effects of altitude and forest composition on soil C and N along a transect from 317 to 3300 m a.s.l. in the eastern Himalayas. We used meta-analysis to establish the context for our results on the effects of altitude on soil C, including variation with depth. Total C and N contents of soils significantly increased with altitude, but decreased with soil depth. Carbon and N were similarly correlated with altitude and temperature, and temperature was seemingly the main driver of soil C along the altitudinal gradient. Altitude accounted for 73% of the variation in C and 47% of the variation in N stocks. Soil pH and cation exchange capacity were correlated with both soil C and N stocks. Increases in soil C and N stocks were related to forest composition, forest basal area as well as quantity of leaf litter that were in turn influenced by altitude and temperature. Concentrations of C in foliage increased by 2.1% for every 1000 m rise in altitude, while that in leaf litter increased by 2.3%. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

[Vermicomposting of different organic materials and three-dimensional excitation emission matrix fluorescence spectroscopic characterization of their dissolved organic matter].

PubMed

Yang, Wei; Wang, Dong-sheng; Liu, Man-qiang; Hu, Feng; Li, Hui-xin; Huang, Zhong-yang; Chang, Yi-jun; Jiao, Jia-guo

2015-10-01

In this experiment, different proportions of the cattle manure, tea-leaf, herb and mushroom residues, were used as food for earthworm (Eisenia fetida) to study the growth of the earth-worm. Then the characteristics and transformation of nutrient content and three-dimensional excitation emission matrix fluorescence (3DEEM) of dissolved organic matter (DOM) during vermistabilization were investigated by means of chemical and spectroscopic methods. The result showed that the mixture of different ratios of cattle manure with herb residue, and cattle manure with tea-leaf were conducive to the growth of earthworm, while the materials compounded with mushroom residue inhibited the growth of earthworm. With the increasing time of verimcomposting, the pH in vermicompost tended to be circumneutral and weakly acidic, and there were increases in electrical conductivity, and the contents of total nitrogen, total phosphorus, available nitrogen, and available phosphorus, while the total potassium and available potassium increased first and then decreased, and the organic matter content decreased. 3DEEM and fluorescence regional integration results indicated that, the fluorescence of protein-like fluorescence peaks declined significantly, while the intensity of humic-like fluorescence peak increased significantly in DOM. Vermicomposting process might change the compositions of DOM with elevated concentrations of humic acid and fulvic acid in the organics. In all, this study suggested the suitability of 3DEEM for monitoring the organics transformation and assessing the maturity in the vermicomposting.

Nitrogen balance for wheat canopies (Triticum aestivum cv. Veery 10) grown under elevated and ambient CO2 concentrations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smart, D. R.; Ritchie, K.; Bloom, A. J.; Bugbee, B. B.

1998-01-01

We examined the hypothesis that elevated CO2 concentration would increase NO3- absorption and assimilation using intact wheat canopies (Triticum aestivum cv. Veery 10). Nitrate consumption, the sum of plant absorption and nitrogen loss, was continuously monitored for 23 d following germination under two CO2 concentrations (360 and 1000 micromol mol-1 CO2) and two root zone NO3- concentrations (100 and 1000 mmol m3 NO3-). The plants were grown at high density (1780 m-2) in a 28 m3 controlled environment chamber using solution culture techniques. Wheat responded to 1000 micromol mol-1 CO2 by increasing carbon allocation to root biomass production. Elevated CO2 also increased root zone NO3- consumption, but most of this increase did not result in higher biomass nitrogen. Rather, nitrogen loss accounted for the greatest part of the difference in NO3- consumption between the elevated and ambient [CO2] treatments. The total amount of NO3(-)-N absorbed by roots or the amount of NO3(-)-N assimilated per unit area did not significantly differ between elevated and ambient [CO2] treatments. Instead, specific leaf organic nitrogen content declined, and NO3- accumulated in canopies growing under 1000 micromol mol-1 CO2. Our results indicated that 1000 micromol mol-1 CO2 diminished NO3- assimilation. If NO3- assimilation were impaired by high [CO2], then this offers an explanation for why organic nitrogen contents are often observed to decline in elevated [CO2] environments.

Seasonal variations in carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations and C:N:P stoichiometry in different organs of a Larix principis-rupprechtii Mayr. plantation in the Qinling Mountains, China

PubMed Central

Li, Hailiang; C. Crabbe, M. James; Wang, Weiling; Ma, Lihui; Niu, Ruilong; Gao, Xing; Li, Xingxing; Zhang, Pei; Ma, Xin; Chen, Haikui

2017-01-01

Understanding how concentrations of elements and their stoichiometry change with plant growth and age is critical for predicting plant community responses to environmental change. We used long-term field experiments to explore how the leaf, stem and root carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) concentrations and their stoichiometry changed with growth and stand age in a L. principis-rupprechtii Mayr. plantation from 2012–2015 in the Qinling Mountains, China. Our results showed that the C, N and P concentrations and stoichiometric ratios in different tissues of larch stands were affected by stand age, organ type and sampling month and displayed multiple correlations with increased stand age in different growing seasons. Generally, leaf C and N concentrations were greatest in the fast-growing season, but leaf P concentrations were greatest in the early growing season. However, no clear seasonal tendencies in the stem and root C, N and P concentrations were observed with growth. In contrast to N and P, few differences were found in organ-specific C concentrations. Leaf N:P was greatest in the fast-growing season, while C:N and C:P were greatest in the late-growing season. No clear variations were observed in stem and root C:N, C:P and N:P throughout the entire growing season, but leaf N:P was less than 14, suggesting that the growth of larch stands was limited by N in our study region. Compared to global plant element concentrations and stoichiometry, the leaves of larch stands had higher C, P, C:N and C:P but lower N and N:P, and the roots had greater P and C:N but lower N, C:P and N:P. Our study provides baseline information for describing the changes in nutritional elements with plant growth, which will facilitates plantation forest management and restoration, and makes a valuable contribution to the global data pool on leaf nutrition and stoichiometry. PMID:28938020

SELECTION ON LEAF ECOPHYSIOLOGICAL TRAITS IN A DESERT HYBRID HELIANTHUS SPECIES AND EARLY-GENERATION HYBRIDS

PubMed Central

Ludwig, Fulco; Rosenthal, David M.; Johnston, Jill A.; Kane, Nolan; Gross, Briana L.; Lexer, Christian; Dudley, Susan A.; Rieseberg, Loren H.; Donovan, Lisa A.

2008-01-01

Leaf ecophysiological traits related to carbon gain and resource use are expected to be under strong selection in desert annuals. We used comparative and phenotypic selection approaches to investigate the importance of leaf ecophysiological traits for Helianthus anomalus, a diploid annual sunflower species of hybrid origin that is endemic to active desert dunes. Comparisons were made within and among five genotypic classes: H. anomalus, its ancestral parent species (H. annuus and H. petiolaris), and two backcrossed populations of the parental species (designated BC2ann and BC2pet) representing putative ancestors of H. anomalus. Seedlings were transplanted into H. anomalus habitat at Little Sahara Dunes, Utah, and followed through a summer growing season for leaf ecophysiological traits, phenology, and fitness estimated as vegetative biomass. Helianthus anomalus had a unique combination of traits when compared to its ancestral parent species, suggesting that lower leaf nitrogen and greater leaf succulence might be adaptive. However, selection on leaf traits in H. anomalus favored larger leaf area and greater nitrogen, which was not consistent with the extreme traits of H. anomalus relative to its ancestral parents. Also contrary to expectation, current selection on the leaf traits in the backcross populations was not consistently similar to, or resulting in evolution toward, the current H. anomalus phenotype. Only the selection for greater leaf succulence in BC2ann and greater water-use efficiency in BC2pet would result in evolution toward the current H. anomalus phenotype. It was surprising that the action of phenotypic selection depended greatly on the genotypic class for these closely related sunflower hybrids grown in a common environment. We speculate that this may be due to either phenotypic correlations between measured and unmeasured but functionally related traits or due to the three genotypic classes experiencing the environment differently as a result of their differing morphology. PMID:15696747

Reading the Leaves’ Palm: Leaf Traits and Herbivory along the Microclimatic Gradient of Forest Layers

PubMed Central

Entling, Martin H.; Mantilla-Contreras, Jasmin

2017-01-01

Microclimate in different positions on a host plant has strong direct effects on herbivores. But little is known about indirect effects due to changes of leaf traits. We hypothesized that herbivory increases from upper canopy to lower canopy and understory due to a combination of direct and indirect pathways. Furthermore, we hypothesized that herbivory in the understory differs between tree species in accordance with their leaf traits. We investigated herbivory by leaf chewing insects along the vertical gradient of mixed deciduous forest stands on the broad-leaved tree species Fagus sylvatica L. (European beech) with study sites located along a 140 km long transect. Additionally, we studied juvenile Acer pseudoplatanus L. (sycamore maple) and Carpinus betulus L. (hornbeam) individuals within the understory as a reference of leaf traits in the same microclimate. Lowest levels of herbivory were observed in upper canopies, where temperatures were highest. Temperature was the best predictor for insect herbivory across forest layers in our study. However, the direction was opposite to the generally known positive relationship. Herbivory also varied between the three tree species with lowest levels for F. sylvatica. Leaf carbon content was highest for F. sylvatica and probably indicates higher amounts of phenolic defense compounds. We conclude that the effect of temperature must have been indirect, whereby the expected higher herbivory was suppressed due to unfavorable leaf traits (lower nitrogen content, higher toughness and carbon content) of upper canopy leaves compared to the understory. PMID:28099483

Effects of elevated CO2 and shade on the decomposition of senesced tree foliage: impacts on microbial activity

Treesearch

Michael G. Kaufman; R. Malcolm Strand; Mark E. Kubiske; William J. Mattson; Daniel A. Herms; Edward D. Walker; Kurt S. Pregitzer; Richard W. Merritt

1996-01-01

We examined microbial respiration and carbon/nitrogen content of decomposing leaf material in microcosms used for growth studies of the treehole mosquito, Aedes triseriatus. Leaf material originated from birch and oak trees exposed to conditions of shade/sun and elevated/ambient levels of CO2. Microbial respiration as measured...

Leaf chemical composition of twenty-one Populus hybrid clones grown under intensive culture

Treesearch

Richard E. Dickson; Philip R. Larson

1976-01-01

Leaf material from 21 nursery-grown Populus hybrid clones was analyzed for three nitrogen fractions (total N, soluble protein, and soluble amino acids) and three carbhydrate fractions (reducing sugars, total soluble sugars, and total nonstructural carbohydrates-TNC). In addition, nursery-grown green ash and silver maple, field-grown bigtooth and trembling aspen, and...

Daily light use efficiency in a cornfield can be related to the canopy red/far-red fluorescence ratio and leaf light use efficiency across a growing season

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

In multiple years (2008-2013), we collected canopy and leaf fluorescence, photosynthesis, hyperspectral reflectance spectra, and biophysical measurements along transects within a USDA/Beltsville experimental cornfield treated with optimal nitrogen application (100%N) and which has an eddy covariance...

Microalgae biofilm in soil: Greenhouse gas emissions, ammonia volatilization and plant growth.

PubMed

Castro, Jackeline de Siqueira; Calijuri, Maria Lúcia; Assemany, Paula Peixoto; Cecon, Paulo Roberto; de Assis, Igor Rodrigues; Ribeiro, Vinícius José

2017-01-01

Microalgal biofilm in soils represents an alternative fertilization method for agricultural sustainability. In the present study, greenhouse gas emission, soil ammonia volatilization, and the growth of Pennisetum glaucum were evaluated under the effect of a microalgal biofilm, commercial urea, and a control (without application of a nitrogen source). CH 4 emissions were equal for the three treatments (p>0.05). CO 2 emissions significantly increased in microalgal biofilm treatment (p<0.01), which was also responsible for the highest N 2 O emissions (p<0.01). The ammonia (NNH 3 ) volatilization losses were 4.63%, 18.98%, and 0.82% for the microalgal biofilm, urea, and control treatments, respectively. The main differences in soil characteristics were an increase in nitrogen and an increase in cation exchange capacity (p<0.01) caused by the algal biomass application to the soil. The soil organic matter content significantly differed (p<0.05) among the three treatments, with the microalgal biofilm treatment having the greatest increase in soil organic matter. Significant differences were observed for shoot dry matter mass and nitrogen content in the plants from both treatments where nitrogen sources were applied. All treatments differed from each other in leaf dry matter mass, with the urea treatment increasing the most. Chlorella vulgaris was the dominant microalgal specie in the soil. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Estimation of biological nitrogen fixation by black locust in short-rotation forests using natural 15N abundance method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Veste, M.; Böhm, C.; Quinckenstein, A.; Freese, D.

2012-04-01

The importance of short rotation forests and agroforestry systems for woody biomass production for bioenergy will increase in Central Europe within the next decades. In this context, black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) has a high growth potential especially at marginal, drought-susceptible sites such as occur in Brandenburg State (Eastern Germany). As a pioneer tree species black locust grows under a wide range of site conditions. The native range of black locust in Northern America is classified by a humid to sub-humid climate with a mean annual precipitation of 1020 to 1830 mm. In Central and Eastern Europe, this species is cultivated in a more continental climate with an annual precipitation often below 600 mm. Therefore, black locust is known to be relatively drought tolerant compared to other temperate, deciduous tree species. Because of its N2-fixation ability black locust plays generally an important role for the improvement of soil fertility. This effect is of particular interest at marginal sites in the post-mining landscapes. In order to estimate the N2-fixation potential of black locust at marginal sites leaf samples were taken from black locust trees in short rotation plantations planted between 1995 and 2007 in post-mining sites south of Cottbus (Brandenburg, NE Germany). The variation of the natural 15N abundance was measured to evaluate the biological nitrogen fixation. The nitrogen derived from the atmosphere can be calculated using a two-pool model from the quotient of the natural 15N abundances of the N2-fixing plant and the plant available soil N. Because representatively determining the plant available soil N is difficult, a non-N2-fixing reference plant growing at the same site with a similar root system and temporal N uptake pattern to the N2-fixing plant is often used. In our case we used red oak (Quercus rubra) as a reference. The average nitrogen content in the leaves of black locust ranged from 3.1% (C/N 14.8) in 15 years old trees to 3.4% (C/N 14.4) in 3 year-old trees, respectively. A higher content of nitrogen was found in leaves of re-sprouted trees with 4.3% (C/N 11.5). The estimated percentage of nitrogen derived from the atmosphere (% NdfA) in black locust was 63% - 83% compared to 56% in seabuckthorn (Hippophaë rhamnoides) and 79% in common broom (Genista scuparia). The annual leaf biomass production of black locust varied between 1325 (2 years old trees) and 2576 kg/ha a (4 years old trees). The estimated leaf nitrogen fixed by Robinia was approx. 30.5 - 59.2 kg/ha a. From the results, we can conclude that the biological nitrogen fixation by Robina is an important factor for the nitrogen balance of short-rotation plantations on nutrient poor-soils.

Nitrogen Availability Dampens the Positive Impacts of CO2 Fertilization on Terrestrial Ecosystem Carbon and Water Cycles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Liming; Chen, Jing M.; Croft, Holly; Gonsamo, Alemu; Luo, Xiangzhong; Liu, Jane; Zheng, Ting; Liu, Ronggao; Liu, Yang

2017-11-01

The magnitude and variability of the terrestrial CO2 sink remain uncertain, partly due to limited global information on ecosystem nitrogen (N) and its cycle. Without N constraint in ecosystem models, the simulated benefits from CO2 fertilization and CO2-induced increases in water use efficiency (WUE) may be overestimated. In this study, satellite observations of a relative measure of chlorophyll content are used as a proxy for leaf photosynthetic N content globally for 2003-2011. Global gross primary productivity (GPP) and evapotranspiration are estimated under elevated CO2 and N-constrained model scenarios. Results suggest that the rate of global GPP increase is overestimated by 85% during 2000-2015 without N limitation. This limitation is found to occur in many tropical and boreal forests, where a negative leaf N trend indicates a reduction in photosynthetic capacity, thereby suppressing the positive vegetation response to enhanced CO2 fertilization. Based on our carbon-water coupled simulations, enhanced CO2 concentration decreased stomatal conductance and hence increased WUE by 10% globally over the 1982 to 2015 time frame. Due to increased anthropogenic N application, GPP in croplands continues to grow and offset the weak negative trend in forests due to N limitation. Our results also show that the improved WUE is unlikely to ease regional droughts in croplands because of increases in evapotranspiration, which are associated with the enhanced GPP. Although the N limitation on GPP increase is large, its associated confidence interval is still wide, suggesting an urgent need for better understanding and quantification of N limitation from satellite observations.

Relative importance of habitat filtering and limiting similarity on species assemblages of alpine and subalpine plant communities.

PubMed

Takahashi, Koichi; Tanaka, Saeka

2016-11-01

This study examined how habitat filtering and limiting similarity affect species assemblages of alpine and subalpine plant communities along a slope gradient on Mt. Norikura in central Japan. Plant traits (plant height, individual leaf area, specific leaf area (SLA), leaf linearity, leaf nitrogen and chlorophyll concentrations) and abiotic environmental factors (elevation, slope inclination, ground surface texture, soil water, soil pH, soil nutrient concentrations of NH 4 -N and NO 3 -N) were examined. The metrics of variance, range, kurtosis and the standard deviation of neighbor distance divided by the range of traits present (SDNDr) were calculated for each plant trait to measure trait distribution patterns. Limiting similarity was detected only for chlorophyll concentration. By contrast, habitat filtering was detected for individual leaf area, SLA, leaf linearity, chlorophyll concentration. Abiotic environmental factors were summarized by the principal component analysis (PCA). The first PCA axis positively correlated with elevation and soil pH, and negatively correlated with sand cover, soil water, NH 4 -N and NO 3 -N concentrations. High values of the first PCA axis represent the wind-exposed upper slope with lower soil moisture and nutrient availabilities. Plant traits changed along the first PCA axis. Leaf area, SLA and chlorophyll concentration decreased, and leaf linearity increased with the first PCA axis. This study showed that the species assemblage of alpine and subalpine plants was determined mainly by habitat filtering, indicating that abiotic environmental factors are more important for species assemblage than interspecific competition. Therefore, only species adapting to abiotic environments can distribute to these environments.

Carbon and Nitrogen dynamics in deciduous and broad leaf trees under drought stress

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Joseph, Jobin; Schaub, Marcus; Arend, Matthias; Saurer, Matthias; siegwolf, Rolf; Weiler, Markus; Gessler, Arthur

2017-04-01

Climate change is projected to lead to an increased frequency and duration of severe drought events in future. Already within the last twenty years, however, drought stress related forest mortality has been increasing across the globe. Tree and forest die off events have multiple adverse effects on ecosystem functioning and might convert previous carbon sinks to act as carbon sources instead and can thus intensify the effect of climate change and global warming. Current predictions of forest's functioning under drought and thus forest mortality under future climatic conditions are constrained by a still incomplete picture of the trees' physiological reactions that allows some trees to survive drought periods while others succumb. Concerning the effects of drought on the carbon balance and on tree hydraulics our picture is getting more complete, but still interactions between abiotic factors and pest and diseases as well as the interaction between carbon and nutrient balances as factors affecting drought induced mortality are not well understood. Reduced carbon allocation from shoots to roots might cause a lack of energy for root nutrient uptake and to a shortage of carbon skeletons for nitrogen assimilation and thus to an impaired nutrient status of trees. To tackle these points, we have performed a drought stress experiment with six different plant species, 3 broad leaf (maple, beech and oak) and 3 deciduous (pine, fir and spruce). Potted two-year-old seedlings were kept inside a greenhouse for 5 months and 3 levels of drought stress (no stress (control), intermediate and intensive drought stress) were applied by controlling water supply. Gas exchange measurements were performed periodically to monitor photosynthesis, transpiration, stomatal conductance. At the pinnacle of drought stress, we applied isotopic pulse labelling: On the one hand we exposed trees to 13CO2 to investigate on carbon dynamics and the allocation of new assimilates within the plant. Moreover, we labelled the soil with 15N nitrate by injecting nitrate solution into the soil without strongly changing the water content for investigating nitrogen uptake and distribution along different compartments of the plant soil continuum. We observed a distinct difference in the carbon and nitrogen dynamics and allocation pattern between broad leaf and conifer seedlings. Broad leaf species showed a lower reduction of CO2 assimilation under drought and still allocated significant amounts of the new assimilates to the roots. Especially in maple and oak the belowground transfer of assimilates was kept at high levels even under severe drought stress, while there was a reduction in assimilation transport in beech. Instead, only small amounts of 13C labelled new assimilates arrived in the roots of conifers in the drought treatments. In the deciduous species 15N taken up the roots was more intensively allocated to aboveground tissues compared to conifers under control conditions, which retained the largest amounts within the fine roots. 15N uptake was reduced in the drought treatments in all species assessed. There was, however, no clear relation of this reduction to changes in 13C allocation to the roots. We thus cannot conclude that the reduction of nitrogen uptake is due to reduced transport of new assimilates belowground. We thus need to assume that carbon storage is sufficient to provide energy and carbon for nitrogen uptake and assimilation at least over the short-term. During longer drought periods, however, depletion of carbon stores might adversely affect the nutrient uptake and balance of trees.

Effects of Salinity on Leaf Spectral Reflectance and Biochemical Parameters of Nitrogen Fixing Soybean Plants (Glycine max L.)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krezhova, Dora D.; Kirova, Elisaveta B.; Yanev, Tony K.; Iliev, Ilko Ts.

2010-01-01

Measurements of physiology and hyperspectral leaf reflectance were used to detect salinity stress in nitrogen fixing soybean plants. Seedlings were inoculated with suspension of Bradyrhizobium japonicum strain 273. Salinity was performed at the stage of 2nd-4th trifoliate expanded leaves by adding of NaCl in the nutrient solution of Helrigel in concentrations 40 mM and 80 mM. A comparative analysis was performed between the changes in the biochemical parameters - stress markers (phenols, proline, malondialdehyde, thiol groups), chlorophyll a and b, hydrogen peroxide, and leaf spectral reflectance in the spectral range 450-850 nm. The spectral measurements were carried out by an USB2000 spectrometer. The reflectance data of the control and treated plants in the red, green, red-edge and the near infrared ranges of the spectrum were subjected to statistical analysis. Statistically significant differences were found through the Student's t-criterion at the two NaCl concentrations in all of the ranges examined with the exception of the near infrared range at 40 mM NaCl concentration. Similar results were obtained through linear discriminant analysis. The tents of the phenols, malondialdehyde and chlorophyll a and b were found to decrease at both salinity treatments. In the spectral data this effect is manifested by decrease of the reflectance values in the green and red ranges. The contents of proline, hydrogen peroxide and thiol groups rose with the NaCl concentration increase. At 80 mM NaCl concentration the values of these markers showed a considerable increase giving evidence that the soybean plants were stressed in comparison with the control. This finding is in agreement with the results from the spectral reflectance analysis.

Oreochromis mossambicus diet supplementation with Psidium guajava leaf extracts enhance growth, immune, antioxidant response and resistance to Aeromonas hydrophila.

PubMed

Gobi, Narayanan; Ramya, Chinnu; Vaseeharan, Baskaralingam; Malaikozhundan, Balasubramanian; Vijayakumar, Sekar; Murugan, Kadarkarai; Benelli, Giovanni

2016-11-01

In this research, we focused on the efficacy of aqueous and ethanol leaf extracts of Psidium guajava L. (guava) based experimental diets on the growth, immune, antioxidant and disease resistance of tilapia, Oreochromis mossambicus following challenge with Aeromonas hydrophila. The experimental diets were prepared by mixing powdered (1, 5 and 10 mg/g) aqueous and ethanol extract of guava leaf with commercial diet. The growth (FW, FCR and SGR), non-specific cellular immune (myeloperoxidase activity, reactive oxygen activity and reactive nitrogen activity) humoral immune (complement activity, antiprotease, alkaline phosphatase activity and lysozyme activity) and antioxidant enzyme responses (SOD, GPX, and CAT) were examined after 30 days of post-feeding. A significant enhancement in the biochemical and immunological parameters of fish were observed fed with experimental diets compared to control. The dietary supplementation of P. guajava leaf extract powder for 30 days significantly reduced the mortality and increased the disease resistance of O. mossambicus following challenge with A. hydrophila at 50 μl (1 × 10 7  cells ml -1 ) compared to control after post-infection. The results suggest that the guava leaf extract could be used as a promising feed additive in aquaculture. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A model using marginal efficiency of investment to analyse carbon and nitrogen interactions in forested ecosystems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thomas, R. Q.; Williams, M.

2014-12-01

Carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycles are coupled in terrestrial ecosystems through multiple processes including photosynthesis, tissue allocation, respiration, N fixation, N uptake, and decomposition of litter and soil organic matter. Capturing the constraint of N on terrestrial C uptake and storage has been a focus of the Earth System modelling community. Here we explore the trade-offs and sensitivities of allocating C and N to different tissues in order to optimize the productivity of plants using a new, simple model of ecosystem C-N cycling and interactions (ACONITE). ACONITE builds on theory related to plant economics in order to predict key ecosystem properties (leaf area index, leaf C:N, N fixation, and plant C use efficiency) based on the optimization of the marginal change in net C or N uptake associated with a change in allocation of C or N to plant tissues. We simulated and evaluated steady-state and transient ecosystem stocks and fluxes in three different forest ecosystems types (tropical evergreen, temperate deciduous, and temperate evergreen). Leaf C:N differed among the three ecosystem types (temperate deciduous < tropical evergreen < temperature evergreen), a result that compared well to observations from a global database describing plant traits. Gross primary productivity (GPP) and net primary productivity (NPP) estimates compared well to observed fluxes at the simulation sites. A sensitivity analysis revealed that parameterization of the relationship between leaf N and leaf respiration had the largest influence on leaf area index and leaf C:N. Also, a widely used linear leaf N-respiration relationship did not yield a realistic leaf C:N, while a more recently reported non-linear relationship simulated leaf C:N that compared better to the global trait database than the linear relationship. Overall, our ability to constrain leaf area index and allow spatially and temporally variable leaf C:N can help address challenges simulating these properties in ecosystem and Earth System models. Furthermore, the simple approach with emergent properties based on coupled C-N dynamics has potential for use in research that uses data-assimilation methods to integrate data on both the C and N cycles to improve C flux forecasts.

Responses of Surface Ozone Air Quality to Anthropogenic Nitrogen Deposition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, L.; Zhao, Y.; Tai, A. P. K.; Chen, Y.; Pan, Y.

2017-12-01

Human activities have substantially increased atmospheric deposition of reactive nitrogen to the Earth's surface, inducing unintentional effects on ecosystems with complex environmental and climate consequences. One consequence remaining unexplored is how surface air quality might respond to the enhanced nitrogen deposition through surface-atmosphere exchange. We combine a chemical transport model (GEOS-Chem) and a global land model (Community Land Model) to address this issue with a focus on ozone pollution in the Northern Hemisphere. We consider three processes that are important for surface ozone and can be perturbed by addition of atmospheric deposited nitrogen: emissions of biogenic volatile organic compounds (VOCs), ozone dry deposition, and soil nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions. We find that present-day anthropogenic nitrogen deposition (65 Tg N a-1 to the land), through enhancing plant growth (represented as increases in vegetation leaf area index (LAI) in the model), could increase surface ozone from increased biogenic VOC emissions, but could also decrease ozone due to higher ozone dry deposition velocities. Meanwhile, deposited anthropogenic nitrogen to soil enhances soil NOx emissions. The overall effect on summer mean surface ozone concentrations show general increases over the globe (up to 1.5-2.3 ppbv over the western US and South Asia), except for some regions with high anthropogenic NOx emissions (0.5-1.0 ppbv decreases over the eastern US, Western Europe, and North China). We compare the surface ozone changes with those driven by the past 20-year climate and historical land use changes. We find that the impacts from anthropogenic nitrogen deposition can be comparable to the climate and land use driven surface ozone changes at regional scales, and partly offset the surface ozone reductions due to land use changes reported in previous studies. Our study emphasizes the complexity of biosphere-atmosphere interactions, which can have important implications for future air quality prediction.

Changes in water, nitrogen and carbon cycling in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) during a mortality event

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Renninger, H. J.; Hornslein, N.; Siegert, C. M.

2017-12-01

Depending on the type of disturbance, the mortality process of an individual tree may occur over an extended period leading to changes in tree and ecosystem functioning throughout this time period and before ultimate tree death is evident. Therefore, the goals of this research were to quantify physiological changes occurring in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) during an extended mortality event. In July 2015, ten trees were girdled to simulate a Southern pine beetle disturbance and trees were monitored until their eventual mortality which occurred from Aug. to Dec. of 2016. Sapflow rates and litterfall were monitored throughout the mortality process and photosynthetic rates and leaf nitrogen concentrations were measured at the height of the 2016 growing season. Girdled pines had significantly higher sapflow compared with control pines in the first month following girdling, then sapflow did not differ significantly for the remainder of the 2015 growing season. From Dec. 2015 to Dec. 2016, control trees had about 25% higher sapflow compared with girdled pines, but both groups maintained a similar relationship between sapflow and soil moisture. Extensive litterfall occurred throughout the 2016 growing season and litter had 50% higher N concentration than the prior growing season. N concentration of fresh leaves collected in 2016 did not differ in girdled vs. control pines but control pines had 64% higher maximum Rubisco-limited carboxylation rates (Vcmax) and 68% higher electron transport-limited carboxylation rates (Jmax) compared to girdled pines. Control pines also had 66% higher foliage densities and 44% larger growth ring widths than girdled pines at the end of the 2016 growing season. Taken together, these results highlight the physiological changes that occur in pines undergoing mortality before needles completely discolor and drop. Compared with control pines, girdled pines exhibited greater changes in carbon and nitrogen compared with water use suggesting that sapflow per unit leaf area was increased to compensate for the losses in total leaf area. These data highlight the importance of physiological measurements taken throughout a mortality event to more accurately quantify the changes in ecosystem-scale water, nitrogen and carbon balance occurring during disturbance episodes.

Photosynthesis, photoinhibition, and nitrogen use efficiency in native and invasive tree ferns in Hawaii.

PubMed

Durand, Leilani Z; Goldstein, Guillermo

2001-02-01

Photosynthetic gas exchange, chlorophyll fluorescence, nitrogen use efficiency, and related leaf traits of native Hawaiian tree ferns in the genus Cibotium were compared with those of the invasive Australian tree fern Sphaeropteris cooperi in an attempt to explain the higher growth rates of S. cooperi in Hawaii. Comparisons were made between mature sporophytes growing in the sun (gap or forest edge) and in shady understories at four sites at three different elevations. The invasive tree fern had 12-13 cm greater height increase per year and approximately 5 times larger total leaf surface area per plant compared to the native tree ferns. The maximum rates of photosynthesis of S. cooperi in the sun and shade were significantly higher than those of the native Cibotium spp (for example, 11.2 and 7.1 µmol m -2  s -1 , and 5.8 and 3.6 µmol m -2  s -1 respectively for the invasive and natives at low elevation). The instantaneous photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency of the invasive tree fern was significantly higher than that of the native tree ferns, but when integrated over the life span of the frond the differences were not significant. The fronds of the invasive tree fern species had a significantly shorter life span than the native tree ferns (approximately 6 months and 12 months, respectively), and significantly higher nitrogen content per unit leaf mass. The native tree ferns growing in both sun and shade exhibited greater photoinhibition than the invasive tree fern after being experimentally subjected to high light levels. The native tree ferns recovered only 78% of their dark-acclimated quantum yield (F v /F m ), while the invasive tree fern recovered 90% and 86% of its dark-acclimated F v /F m when growing in sun and shade, respectively. Overall, the invasive tree fern appears to be more efficient at capturing and utilizing light than the native Cibotium species, particularly in high-light environments such as those associated with high levels of disturbance.

ORCHIDEE-CNP: Site-Scale Evaluation against Observations from a Soil Formation Chronosequence in Hawaii

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goll, D. S.; Vuichard, N.; Maignan, F.; Jornet-Puig, A.; Sardans, J.; Peng, S.; Sun, Y.; Kvakić, M.; Guimberteau, M.; Guenet, B.; Zaehle, S.; Penuelas, J.; Jannssens, I.; Ciais, P.

2017-12-01

Land surface models rarely incorporate the terrestrial phosphorus cycle and its interactions with the carbon cycle, despite the extensive scientific debate about the importance of nitrogen and phosphorus supply for future land carbon uptake. We describe a representation of the terrestrial phosphorus cycle for the land surface model ORCHIDEE, and evaluate it with data from nutrient manipulation experiments along a soil formation chronosequence in Hawaii. ORCHIDEE accounts for influence of nutritional state of vegetation on tissue nutrient concentrations, photosynthesis, plant growth, biomass allocation, biochemical (phosphatase-mediated) mineralization and biological nitrogen fixation. Changes in nutrient content (quality) of litter affect the carbon use efficiency of decomposition and in return the nutrient availability to vegetation. The model explicitly accounts for root zone depletion of phosphorus as a function of root phosphorus uptake and phosphorus transport from soil to the root surface. The model captures the observed differences in the foliage stoichiometry of vegetation between an early (300yr) and a late stage (4.1 Myr) of soil development. The contrasting sensitivities of net primary productivity to the addition of either nitrogen, phosphorus or both among sites are in general reproduced by the model. As observed, the model simulates a preferential stimulation of leaf level productivity when nitrogen stress is alleviated, while leaf level productivity and leaf area index are stimulated equally when phosphorus stress is alleviated. The nutrient use efficiencies in the model are lower as observed primarily due to biases in the nutrient content and turnover of woody biomass.

Nitrogen fixation is not the only trait that determines the success of tropical legumes during secondary succession

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gei, Maria G.; Powers, Jennifer S.

2017-04-01

Legumes trees are well represented throughout the entire precipitation gradient of tropical forests. Many of these species are able to fix atmospheric dinitrogen through symbiosis and offer a mechanism to overcome nitrogen limitation typical of initial stages of secondary forest succession. While it is often assumed the success of legumes is linked to their fixation ability, the variation of other functional traits within this large group has received considerably less attention. Here we assessed legume abundance in secondary forest plots in 42 Neotropical chronosequences (the 2ndFOR network) that span a broad gradient of precipitation regimes and identified those traits that are favored in distinct successional environments. Our main finding is that in young secondary dry forests (5-20 years), legumes that have the potential to fix nitrogen and have small leaflet size become exceptionally abundant (up to 17-99% relative basal area). We suggest that in those species, reduced leaf area could help regulate leaf temperature and minimize water loss, and the cost of reduced total leaf area may be compensated by high photosynthetic rates maximized with nitrogen obtained through fixation. Overall, our study underscores great functional heterogeneity within tropical legumes, which likely translates into diverse biogeochemical cycles. In addition, these results provide a useful framework for active restoration of degraded areas, as it identifies a group of species that accumulate carbon at fast rates under warm and dry environments, conditions that are expected to become more common in the tropics.

Coupled carbon-water exchange of the Amazon rain forest, I. Model description, parameterization and sensitivity analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simon, E.; Meixner, F. X.; Ganzeveld, L.; Kesselmeier, J.

2005-04-01

Detailed one-dimensional multilayer biosphere-atmosphere models, also referred to as CANVEG models, are used for more than a decade to describe coupled water-carbon exchange between the terrestrial vegetation and the lower atmosphere. Within the present study, a modified CANVEG scheme is described. A generic parameterization and characterization of biophysical properties of Amazon rain forest canopies is inferred using available field measurements of canopy structure, in-canopy profiles of horizontal wind speed and radiation, canopy albedo, soil heat flux and soil respiration, photosynthetic capacity and leaf nitrogen as well as leaf level enclosure measurements made on sunlit and shaded branches of several Amazonian tree species during the wet and dry season. The sensitivity of calculated canopy energy and CO2 fluxes to the uncertainty of individual parameter values is assessed. In the companion paper, the predicted seasonal exchange of energy, CO2, ozone and isoprene is compared to observations.

A bi-modal distribution of leaf area density with a total leaf area index of 6 is inferred from several observations in Amazonia. Predicted light attenuation within the canopy agrees reasonably well with observations made at different field sites. A comparison of predicted and observed canopy albedo shows a high model sensitivity to the leaf optical parameters for near-infrared short-wave radiation (NIR). The predictions agree much better with observations when the leaf reflectance and transmission coefficients for NIR are reduced by 25-40%. Available vertical distributions of photosynthetic capacity and leaf nitrogen concentration suggest a low but significant light acclimation of the rain forest canopy that scales nearly linearly with accumulated leaf area.

Evaluation of the biochemical leaf model, using the enclosure measurements, showed that recommended parameter values describing the photosynthetic light response, have to be optimized. Otherwise, predicted net assimilation is overestimated by 30-50%. Two stomatal models have been tested, which apply a well established semi-empirical relationship between stomatal conductance and net assimilation. Both models differ in the way they describe the influence of humidity on stomatal response. However, they show a very similar performance within the range of observed environmental conditions. The agreement between predicted and observed stomatal conductance rates is reasonable. In general, the leaf level data suggests seasonal physiological changes, which can be reproduced reasonably well by assuming increased stomatal conductance rates during the wet season, and decreased assimilation rates during the dry season.

The sensitivity of the predicted canopy fluxes of energy and CO2 to the parameterization of canopy structure, the leaf optical parameters, and the scaling of photosynthetic parameters is relatively low (1-12%), with respect to parameter uncertainty. In contrast, modifying leaf model parameters within their uncertainty range results in much larger changes of the predicted canopy net fluxes (5-35%).

Coupled carbon-water exchange of the Amazon rain forest, I. Model description, parameterization and sensitivity analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simon, E.; Meixner, F. X.; Ganzeveld, L.; Kesselmeier, J.

2005-09-01

Detailed one-dimensional multilayer biosphere-atmosphere models, also referred to as CANVEG models, are used for more than a decade to describe coupled water-carbon exchange between the terrestrial vegetation and the lower atmosphere. Within the present study, a modified CANVEG scheme is described. A generic parameterization and characterization of biophysical properties of Amazon rain forest canopies is inferred using available field measurements of canopy structure, in-canopy profiles of horizontal wind speed and radiation, canopy albedo, soil heat flux and soil respiration, photosynthetic capacity and leaf nitrogen as well as leaf level enclosure measurements made on sunlit and shaded branches of several Amazonian tree species during the wet and dry season. The sensitivity of calculated canopy energy and CO2 fluxes to the uncertainty of individual parameter values is assessed. In the companion paper, the predicted seasonal exchange of energy, CO2, ozone and isoprene is compared to observations.

A bi-modal distribution of leaf area density with a total leaf area index of 6 is inferred from several observations in Amazonia. Predicted light attenuation within the canopy agrees reasonably well with observations made at different field sites. A comparison of predicted and observed canopy albedo shows a high model sensitivity to the leaf optical parameters for near-infrared short-wave radiation (NIR). The predictions agree much better with observations when the leaf reflectance and transmission coefficients for NIR are reduced by 25-40%. Available vertical distributions of photosynthetic capacity and leaf nitrogen concentration suggest a low but significant light acclimation of the rain forest canopy that scales nearly linearly with accumulated leaf area.

Evaluation of the biochemical leaf model, using the enclosure measurements, showed that recommended parameter values describing the photosynthetic light response, have to be optimized. Otherwise, predicted net assimilation is overestimated by 30-50%. Two stomatal models have been tested, which apply a well established semi-empirical relationship between stomatal conductance and net assimilation. Both models differ in the way they describe the influence of humidity on stomatal response. However, they show a very similar performance within the range of observed environmental conditions. The agreement between predicted and observed stomatal conductance rates is reasonable. In general, the leaf level data suggests seasonal physiological changes, which can be reproduced reasonably well by assuming increased stomatal conductance rates during the wet season, and decreased assimilation rates during the dry season.

The sensitivity of the predicted canopy fluxes of energy and CO2 to the parameterization of canopy structure, the leaf optical parameters, and the scaling of photosynthetic parameters is relatively low (1-12%), with respect to parameter uncertainty. In contrast, modifying leaf model parameters within their uncertainty range results in much larger changes of the predicted canopy net fluxes (5-35%).

A representation of the phosphorus cycle for ORCHIDEE (revision 4520)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goll, Daniel S.; Vuichard, Nicolas; Maignan, Fabienne; Jornet-Puig, Albert; Sardans, Jordi; Violette, Aurelie; Peng, Shushi; Sun, Yan; Kvakic, Marko; Guimberteau, Matthieu; Guenet, Bertrand; Zaehle, Soenke; Penuelas, Josep; Janssens, Ivan; Ciais, Philippe

2017-10-01

Land surface models rarely incorporate the terrestrial phosphorus cycle and its interactions with the carbon cycle, despite the extensive scientific debate about the importance of nitrogen and phosphorus supply for future land carbon uptake. We describe a representation of the terrestrial phosphorus cycle for the ORCHIDEE land surface model, and evaluate it with data from nutrient manipulation experiments along a soil formation chronosequence in Hawaii. ORCHIDEE accounts for the influence of the nutritional state of vegetation on tissue nutrient concentrations, photosynthesis, plant growth, biomass allocation, biochemical (phosphatase-mediated) mineralization, and biological nitrogen fixation. Changes in the nutrient content (quality) of litter affect the carbon use efficiency of decomposition and in return the nutrient availability to vegetation. The model explicitly accounts for root zone depletion of phosphorus as a function of root phosphorus uptake and phosphorus transport from the soil to the root surface. The model captures the observed differences in the foliage stoichiometry of vegetation between an early (300-year) and a late (4.1 Myr) stage of soil development. The contrasting sensitivities of net primary productivity to the addition of either nitrogen, phosphorus, or both among sites are in general reproduced by the model. As observed, the model simulates a preferential stimulation of leaf level productivity when nitrogen stress is alleviated, while leaf level productivity and leaf area index are stimulated equally when phosphorus stress is alleviated. The nutrient use efficiencies in the model are lower than observed primarily due to biases in the nutrient content and turnover of woody biomass. We conclude that ORCHIDEE is able to reproduce the shift from nitrogen to phosphorus limited net primary productivity along the soil development chronosequence, as well as the contrasting responses of net primary productivity to nutrient addition.

Slope position and Soil Lithological Effects on Live Leaf Nitrogen Concentration.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Szink, I.; Adams, T. S.; Orr, A. S.; Eissenstat, D. M.

2017-12-01

Soil lithology has been shown to have an effect on plant physiology from the roots to the leaves. Soils at ridgetop positions are typically more shallow and drier than soils at valley floor positions. Additionally, sandy soils tend to have a much lower water holding capacity and can be much harder for plants to draw nutrients from. We hypothesized that leaves from trees in shale derived soil at ridgetop positions will have lower nitrogen concentration than those in valley floor positions, and that this difference will be more pronounced in sandstone derived soils. This is due to the movement of nitrogen through the soil in a catchment, and the holding and exchange capacities of shale and sandstone lithologies. To test this, we collected live leaves using shotgun sampling from two locations in Central Pennsylvania from the Susquehanna Shale Hills Critical Zone Observatory (SSHCZO); one location where soils are underlain by the Rose Hill Shale, and one from where soils are underlain by the Tuscarora Sandstone formation. We then measured, dried, and massed in order to determine specific leaf area (SLA). Afterwards, we powderized the leaves to determined their C:N ratio using a CE Instruments EA 1110 CHNS-O elemental Analyzer based on the "Dumas Method". We found that live leaves of the same species at higher elevations had lower nitrogen concentrations than those at lower elevations, which is consistent with our hypothesis. However, the comparison of leaves from all species in the catchment is not as strong, suggesting that there is a species specific effect on nitrogen concentration within leaves. We are currently processing additional leaves from other shale and sandstone sites. These results highlight the effect of abiotic environments on leaf nutrient concentrations, and the connection between belowground and aboveground tree physiology.

Metabolic Adaptation, a Specialized Leaf Organ Structure and Vascular Responses to Diurnal N2 Fixation by Nostoc azollae Sustain the Astonishing Productivity of Azolla Ferns without Nitrogen Fertilizer.

PubMed

Brouwer, Paul; Bräutigam, Andrea; Buijs, Valerie A; Tazelaar, Anne O E; van der Werf, Adrie; Schlüter, Urte; Reichart, Gert-Jan; Bolger, Anthony; Usadel, Björn; Weber, Andreas P M; Schluepmann, Henriette

2017-01-01

Sustainable agriculture demands reduced input of man-made nitrogen (N) fertilizer, yet N 2 fixation limits the productivity of crops with heterotrophic diazotrophic bacterial symbionts. We investigated floating ferns from the genus Azolla that host phototrophic diazotrophic Nostoc azollae in leaf pockets and belong to the fastest growing plants. Experimental production reported here demonstrated N-fertilizer independent production of nitrogen-rich biomass with an annual yield potential per ha of 1200 kg -1 N fixed and 35 t dry biomass. 15 N 2 fixation peaked at noon, reaching 0.4 mg N g -1 dry weight h -1 . Azolla ferns therefore merit consideration as protein crops in spite of the fact that little is known about the fern's physiology to enable domestication. To gain an understanding of their nitrogen physiology, analyses of fern diel transcript profiles under differing nitrogen fertilizer regimes were combined with microscopic observations. Results established that the ferns adapted to the phototrophic N 2 -fixing symbionts N. azollae by (1) adjusting metabolically to nightly absence of N supply using responses ancestral to ferns and seed plants; (2) developing a specialized xylem-rich vasculature surrounding the leaf-pocket organ; (3) responding to N-supply by controlling transcripts of genes mediating nutrient transport, allocation and vasculature development. Unlike other non-seed plants, the Azolla fern clock is shown to contain both the morning and evening loops; the evening loop is known to control rhythmic gene expression in the vasculature of seed plants and therefore may have evolved along with the vasculature in the ancestor of ferns and seed plants.

Metabolic Adaptation, a Specialized Leaf Organ Structure and Vascular Responses to Diurnal N2 Fixation by Nostoc azollae Sustain the Astonishing Productivity of Azolla Ferns without Nitrogen Fertilizer

PubMed Central

Brouwer, Paul; Bräutigam, Andrea; Buijs, Valerie A.; Tazelaar, Anne O. E.; van der Werf, Adrie; Schlüter, Urte; Reichart, Gert-Jan; Bolger, Anthony; Usadel, Björn; Weber, Andreas P. M.; Schluepmann, Henriette

2017-01-01

Sustainable agriculture demands reduced input of man-made nitrogen (N) fertilizer, yet N2 fixation limits the productivity of crops with heterotrophic diazotrophic bacterial symbionts. We investigated floating ferns from the genus Azolla that host phototrophic diazotrophic Nostoc azollae in leaf pockets and belong to the fastest growing plants. Experimental production reported here demonstrated N-fertilizer independent production of nitrogen-rich biomass with an annual yield potential per ha of 1200 kg−1 N fixed and 35 t dry biomass. 15N2 fixation peaked at noon, reaching 0.4 mg N g−1 dry weight h−1. Azolla ferns therefore merit consideration as protein crops in spite of the fact that little is known about the fern’s physiology to enable domestication. To gain an understanding of their nitrogen physiology, analyses of fern diel transcript profiles under differing nitrogen fertilizer regimes were combined with microscopic observations. Results established that the ferns adapted to the phototrophic N2-fixing symbionts N. azollae by (1) adjusting metabolically to nightly absence of N supply using responses ancestral to ferns and seed plants; (2) developing a specialized xylem-rich vasculature surrounding the leaf-pocket organ; (3) responding to N-supply by controlling transcripts of genes mediating nutrient transport, allocation and vasculature development. Unlike other non-seed plants, the Azolla fern clock is shown to contain both the morning and evening loops; the evening loop is known to control rhythmic gene expression in the vasculature of seed plants and therefore may have evolved along with the vasculature in the ancestor of ferns and seed plants. PMID:28408911

The effects of short- and long-term air pollutants on plant phenology and leaf characteristics.

PubMed

Jochner, Susanne; Markevych, Iana; Beck, Isabelle; Traidl-Hoffmann, Claudia; Heinrich, Joachim; Menzel, Annette

2015-11-01

Pollution adversely affects vegetation; however, its impact on phenology and leaf morphology is not satisfactorily understood yet. We analyzed associations between pollutants and phenological data of birch, hazel and horse chestnut in Munich (2010) along with the suitability of leaf morphological parameters of birch for monitoring air pollution using two datasets: cumulated atmospheric concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and ozone derived from passive sampling (short-term exposure) and pollutant information derived from Land Use Regression models (long-term exposure). Partial correlations and stepwise regressions revealed that increased ozone (birch, horse chestnut), NO2, NOx and PM levels (hazel) were significantly related to delays in phenology. Correlations were especially high when rural sites were excluded suggesting a better estimation of long-term within-city pollution. In situ measurements of foliar characteristics of birch were not suitable for bio-monitoring pollution. Inconsistencies between long- and short-term exposure effects suggest some caution when interpreting short-term data collected within field studies. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Model-experiment synthesis at two FACE sites in the southeastern US. Forest ecosystem responses to elevated CO[2]. (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Walker, A. P.; Zaehle, S.; De Kauwe, M. G.; Medlyn, B. E.; Dietze, M.; Hickler, T.; Iversen, C. M.; Jain, A. K.; Luo, Y.; McCarthy, H. R.; Parton, W. J.; Prentice, C.; Thornton, P. E.; Wang, S.; Wang, Y.; Warlind, D.; Warren, J.; Weng, E.; Hanson, P. J.; Oren, R.; Norby, R. J.

2013-12-01

Ecosystem observations from two long-term Free-Air CO[2] Enrichment (FACE) experiments (Duke forest and Oak Ridge forest) were used to evaluate the assumptions of 11 terrestrial ecosystem models and the consequences of those assumptions for the responses of ecosystem water, carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) fluxes to elevated CO[2] (eCO[2]). Nitrogen dynamics were the main constraint on simulated productivity responses to eCO[2]. At Oak Ridge some models reproduced the declining response of C and N fluxes, while at Duke none of the models were able to maintain the observed sustained responses. C and N cycles are coupled through a number of complex interactions, which causes uncertainty in model simulations in multiple ways. Nonetheless, the major difference between models and experiments was a larger than observed increase in N-use efficiency and lower than observed response of N uptake. The results indicate that at Duke there were mechanisms by which trees accessed additional N in response to eCO[2] that were not represented in the ecosystem models, and which did not operate with the same efficiency at Oak Ridge. Sequestration of the additional productivity under eCO[2] into forest biomass depended largely on C allocation. Allocation assumptions were classified into three main categories--fixed partitioning coefficients, functional relationships and a partial (leaf allocation only) optimisation. The assumption which best constrained model results was a functional relationship between leaf area and sapwood area (pipe-model) and increased root allocation when nitrogen or water were limiting. Both, productivity and allocation responses to eCO[2] determined the ecosystem-level response of LAI, which together with the response of stomatal conductance (and hence water-use efficiency; WUE) determined the ecosystem response of transpiration. Differences in the WUE response across models were related to the representation of the relationship of stomatal conductance to CO[2] and the relative importance of the combined boundary and aerodynamic resistances in the total resistance to leaf-atmosphere water transport.

Leaf-trait responses to irrigation of the endemic fog-oasis tree Myrcianthes ferreyrae: can a fog specialist benefit from regular watering?

PubMed

Ramírez, David A; Balaguer, Luis; Mancilla, Rosa; González, Virginia; Coaguila, Daniel; Talavera, Carmelo; Villegas, Luis; Ortega, Aldo; Jiménez, Percy; Moreno, José M

2012-01-01

Myrcianthes ferreyrae is an endemic, endangered species, with a small number of individuals located only in hyperarid, fog-oases known as lomas along the Peruvian desert in southern Peru, where fog is the main source of water. Following centuries of severe deforestation, reforestation with this native species was conducted in the Atiquipa lomas, Arequipa-Perú. On five slopes, five 2-year-old seedlings were irrigated monthly with water trapped by raschel-mesh fog collectors, supplementing natural rainfall with 0, 20, 40, 60 and 80 mm month(-1) from February to August 2008. We measured plant growth, increment in basal diameter, height and five leaf traits: leaf mass area (LMA), leaf carbon isotope composition (δ(13)C), nitrogen per leaf area, total leaf carbon and stomatal density; which are indicative of the physiological changes resulting from increased water supply. Plant growth rates, estimated from the variation of either shoot basal diameter or maximum height, were highly correlated with total biomass. Only LMA and δ(13)C were higher in irrigated than in control plants, but we found no further differences among irrigation treatments. This threshold response suggests an on-off strategy fitted to exploit pulses of fog water, which are always limited in magnitude in comparison with natural rain. The absence of a differential response to increased water supply is in agreement with the low phenotypic plasticity expected in plants from very stressful environments. Our results have practical implications for reforestation projects, since irrigating with 20 mm per month is sufficient to achieve the full growth capacity of this species.

Plant community diversity influences allocation to direct chemical defence in Plantago lanceolata.

PubMed

Mraja, Anne; Unsicker, Sybille B; Reichelt, Michael; Gershenzon, Jonathan; Roscher, Christiane

2011-01-01

Forecasting the consequences of accelerating rates of changes in biodiversity for ecosystem functioning requires a mechanistic understanding of the relationships between the structure of biological communities and variation in plant functional characteristics. So far, experimental data of how plant species diversity influences the investment of individual plants in direct chemical defences against herbivores and pathogens is lacking. We used Plantago lanceolata as a model species in experimental grasslands differing in species richness and composition (Jena Experiment) to investigate foliar concentrations of the iridoid glycosides (IG), catalpol and its biosynthetic precursor aucubin. Total IG and aucubin concentrations decreased, while catalpol concentrations increased with increasing plant diversity in terms of species or functional group richness. Negative plant diversity effects on total IG and aucubin concentrations correlated with increasing specific leaf area of P. lanceolata, suggesting that greater allocation to light acquisition reduced the investment into these carbon-based defence components. In contrast, increasing leaf nitrogen concentrations best explained increasing concentrations of the biosynthetically more advanced IG, catalpol. Observed levels of leaf damage explained a significant proportion of variation in total IG and aucubin concentrations, but did not account for variance in catalpol concentrations. Our results clearly show that plants growing in communities of varying species richness and composition differ in their defensive chemistry, which may modulate plant susceptibility to enemy attack and consequently their interactions with higher trophic level organisms.

How should leaf area, sapwood area and stomatal conductance vary with tree height to maximize growth?

PubMed

Buckley, Thomas N; Roberts, David W

2006-02-01

Conventional wisdom holds that the ratio of leaf area to sapwood area (L/S) should decline during height (H) growth to maintain hydraulic homeostasis and prevent stomatal conductance (g(s)) from declining. We contend that L/S should increase with H based on a numerical simulation, a mathematical analysis and a conceptual argument: (1) numerical simulation--a tree growth model, DESPOT (Deducing Emergent Structure and Physiology Of Trees), in which carbon (C) allocation is regulated to maximize C gain, predicts L/S should increase during most of H growth; (2) mathematical analysis--the formal criterion for optimal C allocation, applied to a simplified analytical model of whole tree carbon-water balance, predicts L/S should increase with H if leaf-level gas exchange parameters including g(s) are conserved; and (3) conceptual argument--photosynthesis is limited by several substitutable resources (chiefly nitrogen (N), water and light) and H growth increases the C cost of water transport but not necessarily of N and light capture, so if the goal is to maximize C gain or growth, allocation should shift in favor of increasing photosynthetic capacity and irradiance, rather than sustaining g(s). Although many data are consistent with the prediction that L/S should decline with H, many others are not, and we discuss possible reasons for these discrepancies.

Plant traits and trait-based vegetation modeling in the Arctic

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, C.; Sevanto, S.; Iversen, C. M.; Salmon, V. G.; Rogers, A.; Wullschleger, S.; Wilson, C. J.

2017-12-01

Arctic tundra environments are characterized by extremely cold temperatures, strong winds, short growing season and thin, nutrient-poor soil layer impacted by permafrost. To survive in this environment vascular plants have developed traits that simultaneously promote high productivity under favorable environments, and survival in harsh conditions. To improve representation of Arctic tundra vegetation in Earth System Models we surveyed plant trait data bases for key trait parameters that influence modeled ecosystem carbon balance, and compared the traits within plant families occurring in the boreal, temperate and arctic zones. The parameters include photosynthetic carbon uptake efficiency (Vcmax and Jmax), root:shoot ratio, and root and leaf nitrogen content, and we focused on woody shrubs. Our results suggest that root nitrogen content in non-nitrogen fixing tundra shrubs is lower than in representatives of the same families in the boreal or temperate zone. High tissue nitrogen concentrations have been related to high vulnerability to drought. The low root nitrogen concentrations in tundra shrubs may thus be an indication of acclimation to shallow soils, and frequent freezing that has a similar impact on the plant conductive tissue as drought. With current nitrogen availability, nitrogen limitation reduces the benefits of increased temperatures and longer growing seasons to the tundra ecosystem carbon balance. Thawing of permafrost will increase nitrogen availability, and promote plant growth and carbon uptake, but it could also make the shrubs more vulnerable to freeze-thaw cycles, with the overall result of reduced shrub coverage. The final outcome of warming temperatures and thawing of permafrost on tundra shrubs will thus depend on the relative speed of warming and plant acclimation.

Predicting tropical plant physiology from leaf and canopy spectroscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Doughty, C.; Asner, G. P.; Martin, R.

2009-12-01

A broad understanding of tropical forest leaf photosynthesis has long been a goal for tropical forest ecologists, but elusive, due to difficult canopy access and great species diversity. In this paper, we develop an empirical model to predict light saturated sunlit tropical leaf photosynthesis based on leaf and canopy spectra with the goal of developing a high resolution remote sensing technique to measure canopy photosynthesis. To develop this model, we used the partial least squares (PLS) regression technique on three tropical forest datasets (~168 species), two in Hawaii and one in the tropical rainforest module of Biosphere 2 (B2L). For each species, we measured light saturated photosynthesis (A), light and CO2 saturated photosynthesis (Amax), day respiration (R), leaf spectra (400-2500 nm with 1 nm sampling), leaf nitrogen (N), chlorophyll A and B, carotenoids, and specific leaf area (SLA). On a subset of species we measured Jmax and Vcmax based on light and Aci curves. The model best predicted A (r2 = 0.74, root mean square error (RMSE) = 2.85 µmol m-2 s-1), R (r2 of 0.48, RMSE of -0.52 µmol m-2 s-1) followed by Amax (r2 of 0.47, RMSE of 5.1 µmol m-2 s-1), Jmax, (R2 = 0.52, RMSE = 39) and VCmax (R2 = 0.39, RMSE = 36). The PLS weightings, which indicate which wavelengths most contribute to the model, indicated that physiology weightings were most similar to nitrogen weightings, followed by chlorophyll and SLA. We combined leaf-level reflectance and transmittance with a canopy radiative transfer model to simulate top-of-canopy reflectance, and found that canopy spectra are a better predictor of light saturated photosynthesis more strongly (RMSE = 2.4 µmol m-2 s-1) than are leaf spectra (RMSE = 2.85 µmol m-2 s-1). The results suggest that there is potential for this technique to be used with high fidelity imaging spectrometers to remotely sense tropical forest canopy photosynthesis.

Estimating leaf nitrogen accumulation in maize based on canopy hyperspectrum data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gu, Xiaohe; Wang, Lizhi; Song, Xiaoyu; Xu, Xingang

2016-10-01

Leaf nitrogen accumulation (LNA) has important influence on the formation of crop yield and grain protein. Monitoring leaf nitrogen accumulation of crop canopy quantitively and real-timely is helpful for mastering crop nutrition status, diagnosing group growth and managing fertilization precisely. The study aimed to develop a universal method to monitor LNA of maize by hyperspectrum data, which could provide mechanism support for mapping LNA of maize at county scale. The correlations between LNA and hyperspectrum reflectivity and its mathematical transformations were analyzed. Then the feature bands and its transformations were screened to develop the optimal model of estimating LNA based on multiple linear regression method. The in-situ samples were used to evaluate the accuracy of the estimating model. Results showed that the estimating model with one differential logarithmic transformation (lgP') of reflectivity could reach highest correlation coefficient (0.889) with lowest RMSE (0.646 g·m-2), which was considered as the optimal model for estimating LNA in maize. The determination coefficient (R2) of testing samples was 0.831, while the RMSE was 1.901 g·m-2. It indicated that the one differential logarithmic transformation of hyperspectrum had good response with LNA of maize. Based on this transformation, the optimal estimating model of LNA could reach good accuracy with high stability.

Sodium-potassium synergism in Theobroma cacao: stimulation of photosynthesis, water-use efficiency and mineral nutrition.

PubMed

Gattward, James N; Almeida, Alex-Alan F; Souza, José O; Gomes, Fábio P; Kronzucker, Herbert J

2012-11-01

In ecological setting, sodium (Na(+)) can be beneficial or toxic, depending on plant species and the Na(+) level in the soil. While its effects are more frequently studied at high saline levels, Na(+) has also been shown to be of potential benefit to some species at lower levels of supply, especially in C4 species. Here, clonal plants of the major tropical C3 crop Theobroma cacao (cacao) were grown in soil where potassium (K(+)) was partially replaced (at six levels, up to 50% replacement) by Na(+), at two concentrations (2.5 and 4.0 mmol(c) dm(-3)). At both concentrations, net photosynthesis per unit leaf area (A) increased more than twofold with increasing substitution of K(+) by Na(+). Concomitantly, instantaneous (A/E) and intrinsic (A/g(s)) water-use efficiency (WUE) more than doubled. Stomatal conductance (g(s)) and transpiration rate (E) exhibited a decline at 2.5 mmol dm(-3), but remained unchanged at 4 mmol dm(-3). Leaf nitrogen content was not impacted by Na(+) supplementation, whereas sulfur (S), calcium (Ca(2+)), magnesium (Mg(2+)) and zinc (Zn(2+)) contents were maximized at 2.5 mmol dm(-3) and intermediate (30-40%) replacement levels. Leaf K(+) did not decline significantly. In contrast, leaf Na(+) content increased steadily. The resultant elevated Na(+)/K(+) ratios in tissue correlated with increased, not decreased, plant performance. The results show that Na(+) can partially replace K(+) in the nutrition of clonal cacao, with significant beneficial effects on photosynthesis, WUE and mineral nutrition in this major perennial C3 crop. Copyright © Physiologia Plantarum 2012.

A worldwide analysis of within-canopy variations in leaf structural, chemical and physiological traits across plant functional types.

PubMed

Niinemets, Ülo; Keenan, Trevor F; Hallik, Lea

2015-02-01

Extensive within-canopy light gradients importantly affect the photosynthetic productivity of leaves in different canopy positions and lead to light-dependent increases in foliage photosynthetic capacity per area (AA). However, the controls on AA variations by changes in underlying traits are poorly known. We constructed an unprecedented worldwide database including 831 within-canopy gradients with standardized light estimates for 304 species belonging to major vascular plant functional types, and analyzed within-canopy variations in 12 key foliage structural, chemical and physiological traits by quantitative separation of the contributions of different traits to photosynthetic acclimation. Although the light-dependent increase in AA is surprisingly similar in different plant functional types, they differ fundamentally in the share of the controls on AA by constituent traits. Species with high rates of canopy development and leaf turnover, exhibiting highly dynamic light environments, actively change AA by nitrogen reallocation among and partitioning within leaves. By contrast, species with slow leaf turnover exhibit a passive AA acclimation response, primarily determined by the acclimation of leaf structure to growth light. This review emphasizes that different combinations of traits are responsible for within-canopy photosynthetic acclimation in different plant functional types, and solves an old enigma of the role of mass- vs area-based traits in vegetation acclimation. © 2014 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2014 New Phytologist Trust.

Remote sensing of forest canopy and leaf biochemical contents

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Peterson, David L.; Matson, Pamela A.; Card, Don H.; Aber, John D.; Wessman, Carol; Swanberg, Nancy; Spanner, Michael

1988-01-01

Recent research on the remote sensing of forest leaf and canopy biochemical contents suggests that the shortwave IR region contains this information; laboratory analyses of dry ground leaves have yielded reliable predictive relationships between both leaf nitrogen and lignin with near-IR spectra. Attention is given to the application of these laboratory techniques to a limited set of spectra from fresh, whole leaves of conifer species. The analysis of Airborne Imaging Spectrometer data reveals that total water content variations in deciduous forest canopies appear as overall shifts in the brightness of raw spectra.

Scaling up semi-arid grassland biochemical content from the leaf to the canopy level: challenges and opportunities.

PubMed

He, Yuhong; Mui, Amy

2010-01-01

Remote sensing imagery is being used intensively to estimate the biochemical content of vegetation (e.g., chlorophyll, nitrogen, and lignin) at the leaf level. As a result of our need for vegetation biochemical information and our increasing ability to obtain canopy spectral data, a few techniques have been explored to scale leaf-level biochemical content to the canopy level for forests and crops. However, due to the contribution of non-green materials (i.e., standing dead litter, rock, and bare soil) from canopy spectra in semi-arid grasslands, it is difficult to obtain information about grassland biochemical content from remote sensing data at the canopy level. This paper summarizes available methods used to scale biochemical information from the leaf level to the canopy level and groups these methods into three categories: direct extrapolation, canopy-integrated approach, and inversion of physical models. As for semi-arid heterogeneous grasslands, we conclude that all methods are useful, but none are ideal. It is recommended that future research should explore a systematic upscaling framework which combines spatial pattern analysis, canopy-integrated approach, and modeling methods to retrieve vegetation biochemical content at the canopy level.

Transcriptome and metabolite analysis identifies nitrogen utilization genes in tea plant (Camellia sinensis).

PubMed

Li, Wei; Xiang, Fen; Zhong, Micai; Zhou, Lingyun; Liu, Hongyan; Li, Saijun; Wang, Xuewen

2017-05-10

Applied nitrogen (N) fertilizer significantly increases the leaf yield. However, most N is not utilized by the plant, negatively impacting the environment. To date, little is known regarding N utilization genes and mechanisms in the leaf production. To understand this, we investigated transcriptomes using RNA-seq and amino acid levels with N treatment in tea (Camellia sinensis), the most popular beverage crop. We identified 196 and 29 common differentially expressed genes in roots and leaves, respectively, in response to ammonium in two tea varieties. Among those genes, AMT, NRT and AQP for N uptake and GOGAT and GS for N assimilation were the key genes, validated by RT-qPCR, which expressed in a network manner with tissue specificity. Importantly, only AQP and three novel DEGs associated with stress, manganese binding, and gibberellin-regulated transcription factor were common in N responses across all tissues and varieties. A hypothesized gene regulatory network for N was proposed. A strong statistical correlation between key genes' expression and amino acid content was revealed. The key genes and regulatory network improve our understanding of the molecular mechanism of N usage and offer gene targets for plant improvement.

Effects of warming on ectomycorrhizal colonization and nitrogen nutrition of Picea asperata seedlings grown in two contrasting forest ecosystems

PubMed Central

Li, Yuejiao; Sun, Didi; Li, Dandan; Xu, Zhenfeng; Zhao, Chunzhang; Lin, Honghui; Liu, Qing

2015-01-01

Ectomycorrhiza (ECM) plays an important role in plant nitrogen (N) nutrition and regulates plant responded to climate warming. We conducted a field experiment in a natural forest and a plantation in the eastern Tibetan Plateau to estimate the warming effects of open-top chambers (OTC) on ECM and N nutrition of Picea asperata seedlings. Four-year warming significantly decreased ECM colonization, ECM fungal biomass, fine root vigor, and the N concentration of leaf, stem and coarse root, but significantly increased fine root N concentration and N content of leaf, stem, fine root and whole plant in natural forest. Contrarily, warming induced no obvious change in most of these parameters in plantation. Moreover, warming decreased rhizospheric soil inorganic N content in both forests. Our results showed that four-year warming was not beneficial for ECM colonization of P. asperata seedlings in the two forests, and the seedlings in natural forest were more sensitive and flexible to experimental warming than in plantation. The changes of ECM colonization and fine root biomass for effective N uptake would be good for plant growth and remit N leaching under future warming in natural forest. PMID:26655633

Light, temperature, and leaf nitrogen distribution in the tropical rain forest of Biosphere 2 and their importance in the mathematical models for global environmental changes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tohda, Motofumi

1997-01-01

As the environmental changes occur throughout the world in rapid rate, we need to have further understandings for our planet. Since the ecosystems are so complex, it is almost impossible for us to integrate every factor. However, mathematical models are powerful tools which can be used to simulate those ecosystems with limited data. In this project, I collected light intensity, canopy leaf temperature and Air Handler (AHU) temperature, and nitrogen concentration in the leaves for different profiles in the rainforest mesocosm. These data will later be put into mathematical models such as "big-leaf" and "sun/shade" models to determine how these factors will affect CO2 exchange in the rainforest. As rainforests are diminishing from our planet and their existence is very important for all living things on earth, it is necessary for us to learn more about the unique system of rainforests and how we can co-exist rather than destroy.

Divergent trait and environment relationships among parallel radiations in Pelargonium (Geraniaceae): a role for evolutionary legacy?

PubMed

Moore, Timothy E; Schlichting, Carl D; Aiello-Lammens, Matthew E; Mocko, Kerri; Jones, Cynthia S

2018-05-11

Functional traits in closely related lineages are expected to vary similarly along common environmental gradients as a result of shared evolutionary and biogeographic history, or legacy effects, and as a result of biophysical tradeoffs in construction. We test these predictions in Pelargonium, a relatively recent evolutionary radiation. Bayesian phylogenetic mixed effects models assessed, at the subclade level, associations between plant height, leaf area, leaf nitrogen content and leaf mass per area (LMA), and five environmental variables capturing temperature and rainfall gradients across the Greater Cape Floristic Region of South Africa. Trait-trait integration was assessed via pairwise correlations within subclades. Of 20 trait-environment associations, 17 differed among subclades. Signs of regression coefficients diverged for height, leaf area and leaf nitrogen content, but not for LMA. Subclades also differed in trait-trait relationships and these differences were modulated by rainfall seasonality. Leave-one-out cross-validation revealed that whether trait variation was better predicted by environmental predictors or trait-trait integration depended on the clade and trait in question. Legacy signals in trait-environment and trait-trait relationships were apparently lost during the earliest diversification of Pelargonium, but then retained during subsequent subclade evolution. Overall, we demonstrate that global-scale patterns are poor predictors of patterns of trait variation at finer geographic and taxonomic scales. © 2018 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2018 New Phytologist Trust.

Plant allometry, leaf nitrogen and phosphorus stoichiometry, and interspecific trends in annual growth rates.

PubMed

Niklas, Karl J

2006-02-01

Life forms as diverse as unicellular algae, zooplankton, vascular plants, and mammals appear to obey quarter-power scaling rules. Among the most famous of these rules is Kleiber's (i.e. basal metabolic rates scale as the three-quarters power of body mass), which has a botanical analogue (i.e. annual plant growth rates scale as the three-quarters power of total body mass). Numerous theories have tried to explain why these rules exist, but each has been heavily criticized either on conceptual or empirical grounds. N,P-STOICHIOMETRY: Recent models predicting growth rates on the basis of how total cell, tissue, or organism nitrogen and phosphorus are allocated, respectively, to protein and rRNA contents may provide the answer, particularly in light of the observation that annual plant growth rates scale linearly with respect to standing leaf mass and that total leaf mass scales isometrically with respect to nitrogen but as the three-quarters power of leaf phosphorus. For example, when these relationships are juxtaposed with other allometric trends, a simple N,P-stoichiometric model successfully predicts the relative growth rates of 131 diverse C3 and C4 species. The melding of allometric and N,P-stoichiometric theoretical insights provides a robust modelling approach that conceptually links the subcellular 'machinery' of protein/ribosomal metabolism to observed growth rates of uni- and multicellular organisms. Because the operation of this 'machinery' is basic to the biology of all life forms, its allometry may provide a mechanistic explanation for the apparent ubiquity of quarter-power scaling rules.

Effects of submicron ammonium sulfate particles on the growth and yield of komatsuna (Brassica rapa L. var. perviridis)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Motai, Akira; Nakaba, Satoshi; Lenggoro, I. Wuled; Watanabe, Makoto; Wada, Yoshiharu; Izuta, Takeshi

2017-11-01

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of submicron ammonium sulfate (AS) particles on komatsuna (Brassica rapa L. cv. Hakkei) plants. First, we optimized a leaf-washing method to measure the amount of AS particles deposited on the leaf surface of the plants. Then, we used this method to determine the retention time of particles deposited on the leaf surface of the plants. We also investigated the effects of AS particles on the growth and yield of the plants. Almost all the AS particles deposited on the leaf surface were removed within 1 min washing time with ultrapure water, and ion leaching from the leaf was relatively slow but continuous during the leaf-washing procedure. On the basis of these results, we determined that 1 min was a suitable washing time to remove most of the AS particles while minimizing the influence of ion leaching from the leaf. The amount of particulate SO42- deposited on the leaf surface decreased over time, probably because AS particles deposited on the leaf surface deliquesced, allowing ions such as SO42- in the deliquescence solution to be absorbed into the leaf. The plants were grown and exposed to AS particles for 16 days in naturally lit phytotrons. The daily mean increase in the concentration of SO42- in PM2.5 by the exposure to AS particles was 22.5 μg m-3 in the phytotrons. The growth and yield of the plants were significantly reduced by the exposure to AS particles. The exposure to AS particles did not affect the leaf concentrations of nitrogen and chlorophyll, but significantly reduced stomatal conductance. Therefore, stomatal closure is one of the reasons for the AS particle-induced reductions in the growth and yield of komatsuna plants.

[Effects of phosphorus fertilization on yield of winter wheat and utilization of soil nitrogen].

PubMed

Xing, Dan; Li, Shu-wen; Xia, Bo; Wen, Hong-da

2015-02-01

In order to evaluate the threshold of phosphorus (P) application rate and improve the utilization efficiency of fertilizers in Baoding region of Hebei Province, a field experiment was conducted to examine the impacts of P fertilization on wheat yield, soil NO(3-)-N and nitrogen use efficiency. Results showed that, compared with the CK (P0), all treatments with P application (P1, 120 kg · hm(-2); P2, 240 kg · hm(-2) and P3, 480 kg · hm(-2)) increased the plant height, flag leaf areas and total leaf areas per plant of winter wheat, which was conducive to the accumulation of photosynthetic products. In addition, P application increased the spike number, kernels per spike and yield of winter wheat but slightly decreased the grain mass per 1000 seeds. Of the P-fertilized treatments, P2 had the highest wheat yield of 6102 kg · hm(-2), which was similar to P1 but significantly greater than those of P0 and P3. Furthermore, P fertilization reduced the NO(3-)-N content in top soil layer although the total accumulation of NO3- was still rather high. The N grain production efficiencies (GPE(N)) and N uptake efficiencies (UE(N)) of P1 and P2 were similar but greater than the other treatments. The use efficiency (UR(P)) , agronomic efficiency (AE(P)) and partial productivity of P fertilizer (PFP(P)) in P1 were significantly greater than P2 and P3. In conclusion, the P application rate of 120 kg · hm(-2) (P1) in this study could be an appropriate threshold in Baoding, Hebei, from the aspects of wheat yield, nitrogen and phosphate use efficiencies and accumulation of soil NO3-.

Growth form and seasonal variation in leaf gas exchange of Colophospermum mopane savanna trees in northwest Botswana.

PubMed

Veenendaal, Elmar M; Mantlana, Khanyisa B; Pammenter, Norman W; Weber, Piet; Huntsman-Mapila, Phillipa; Lloyd, Jon

2008-03-01

We investigated differences in physiological and morphological traits between the tall and short forms of mopane (Colophospermum mopane (Kirk ex Benth.) Kirk ex J. Léonard) trees growing near Maun, Botswana on a Kalahari sandveld overlying an impermeable calcrete duricrust. We sought to determine if differences between the two physiognomic types are attributable to the way they exploit available soil water. The tall form, which was located on deeper soil than the short form (5.5 versus 1.6 m), had a lower leaf:fine root biomass ratio (1:20 versus 1:6), but a similar leaf area index (0.9-1.0). Leaf nitrogen concentrations varied between 18 and 27 mg g(-1) and were about 20% higher in the tall form than in the short form. Maximum net assimilation rates (A sat) occurred during the rainy seasons (March-April 2000 and January-February 2001) and were similar in the tall and short forms (15-22 micromol m(-2) s(-1)) before declining to less than 10 micromol m(-2) s(-1) at the end of the rainy season in late April. As the dry season progressed, A sat, soil water content, predawn leaf water potential (Psi pd) and leaf nitrogen concentration declined rapidly. Before leaf abscission, Psi pd was more negative in the short form (-3.4 MPa) than in the tall form (-2.7 MPa) despite the greater availability of soil water beneath the short form trees. This difference appeared attributable to differences in root depth and density between the physiognomic types. Stomatal regulation of water use and carbon assimilation differed between years, with the tall form having a consistently more conservative water-use strategy as the dry season progressed than the short form.