Effects of Drought and Rewetting on Growth and Gas Exchange of Minor European Broadleaved Tree Species

Abstract

Widespread and economically important European tree species such as Norway spruce, Scots pine, and European beech are projected to be negatively affected by the increasing intensity and frequency of dry and hot conditions in a future climate. Hence, there is an increasing need to investigate the suitability of presumably more drought tolerant species to ensure future ecological stability, biodiversity, and productivity of forests. Based on their distribution patterns and climatic envelopes, the rare, minor broadleaved tree species Sorbus torminalis ((L.) C RANTZ ), S. domestica (L.), Acer campestre (L.), and A. platanoides (L.) are assumed to be drought tolerant, however, there is only limited experimental basis to support that notion. This study aimed at quantifying growth and gas exchange of seedlings of these species during drought conditions, and their capacity to recover following drought. For that purpose, they were compared to the common companion species Quercus petraea ((M ATTUSCHKA ) L IEBL .) and Fagus sylvatica (L.). Here, potted seedlings of these species were exposed to water limitation followed by rewetting cycles in a greenhouse experiment. Photosynthesis and transpiration rates, stomatal conductance as well as root and shoot growth rates indicated a high drought resistance of A. campestre and A. platanoides. Sorbus domestica showed a marked ability to recover after drought stress. Therefore, we conclude that these minor tree species have the potential to enrich forests on drought-prone sites. Results from this pot experiment need to be complemented by field studies, in which the drought response of the species is not influenced by restrictions to root development.

Assessing future suitability of tree species under climate change by multiple methods: a case study in southern Germany

“…There is still a lack of studies on the growth performance and drought sensitivity of minor Central European broadleaf tree species such Acer, Tilia, Carpinus and Sorbus species (Pyttel et al 2013, Gillner et al 2014. However, our results are in accordance with further dendroecological (Cedro & Cedro 2015, Klemmt et al 2015, Zimmermann et al 2015, Cedro 2016, as well as physiological studies (Tissier et al 2004, Nardini et al 2012, Kunz et al 2016 assessing the drought tolerance of minor tree species. Figure 2 shows that many of the more drought-tolerant species already play a dominant role in the broadleaf stands of the Franconian Plateau according to the NFI, especially Q. petraea and C. betulus.…”

Effects of Drought on the Phenology, Growth, and Morphological Development of Three Urban Tree Species and Cultivars

“…Interpretation of the water-retention curves provided in the literature indicated a soil moisture tension (pF value) of 1.8 (field capacity) between 29 Vol.-% and 33 Vol.-% volumetric soil water content (VWC) and a pF value of 4.2 (permanent witling point; PWP) at 12 Vol.-% and 16 Vol.-% for the moderate sandy loam and the strong loamy sand, respectively [26]. This PWP does not represent the true physiological wilting point for our investigated trees; however, it may instead be regarded as an indicator of severe drought stress [19]. This is because we did not determine PWP for each species and cultivar separately, rather obtained it from literature where it is set for agricultural plants only.…”

“…A recent field study on two linden cultivars [17] showed that trees with compact root systems around the stem tend to develop more fine roots laterally to increase their soil-to-root interface. In the long term, elevated root:shoot ratios can be regarded as an adaptation to dry sites [18] to make trees less susceptible to water shortage [19]. In the short term, however, moderate water stress can shift carbon allocation from growth to storage and resin defense [13], unless drought is severe enough to cause cessation of carbon allocation to all sinks.…”

“…Information about species' and cultivars' responses to stress is mainly derived from knowledge about the environmental conditions in their respective natural habitats [20,21]. Only some experimental urban and forest studies have compared the performance of different tree species and cultivars explicitly under dry growing conditions [19,[22][23][24] and in the available urban studies, with the focus solely being on the above-ground processes. In the urban context, knowledge of below-ground biomass and its distribution as well as the changing patterns of carbon allocation to different tree compartments remains limited.…”

Effect of drought stress treatment towards growth of seedlings of cempaka wasian, nantu, and mahoni

“…Kondisi kekeringan yang diakibatkan oleh adanya perubahan iklim telah mendorong penelitian untuk mengidentifikasi jenis tanaman yang mampu berdaptasi dengan baik. Robinia pseudoacacia merupakan salah satu jenis tanaman yang mampu bertahan pada kondisi cekaman kekeringan di Hungaria (Redei et al., 2012); Acer campestre (L.), dan A. platanoides (L.) adalah jenis tanaman hutan yang memiliki tingkat kemampuan tinggi untuk bertahan dalam kondisi kekeringan di daerah Jerman (Kunz et al., 2016); Cedrela odorata mampu mengalami periode gugur yang lebih pendek dalam uji kekeringan di hutan Bolivia (Poorter & Oliver, 2000); dan Acacia (A. mangium dan A. auriculiformis) termasuk ke dalam jenis toleran terhadap stres kekeringan dibandingakan jenis Eucalyptus (E. camaldulensis, E. urophylla, E. grandis dan E. globulus) di Saporo, Jepang (Novriyanti et al., 2012).…”