Plasticity of shoot and needle morphology and photosynthesis of two Picea species with different site preferences in northern Japan

Abstract

We compared shoot and needle morphology and photosynthesis in Picea glehnii (Friedr. Schmidt) M.T. Mast. and Picea jezoensis (Sieb. et Zucc.) Carr. trees planted on immature volcanic ash and well-developed brown forest soils to investigate whether species differences in morphological and physiological plasticity affected tree growth on different soil types. Height growth of P. glehnii was reduced by about 10% on volcanic ash compared with forest soil, whereas that of P. jezoensis was reduced by more than 60%. Needle morphology of P. glehnii was unaffected by soil type. In contrast, needles of P. jezoensis trees growing on volcanic ash were shorter, narrower and thicker, with less dry mass and area, than those of trees growing on forest soil, and specific needle area was lower, indicating lower foliar light-interception efficiency. In both species, changes in needle morphology with increasing irradiance were similar in trees growing on both soil types, indicating that plasticity of needle morphology was unaffected by soil type. In both species, shoot mass and shoot silhouette area were lower and needle mass per unit shoot mass was higher in trees growing on volcanic ash than in trees growing on forest soil. Trees of both species had more needles per unit shoot length, lower shoot silhouette to projected needle area ratios and lower shoot silhouette areas per unit shoot mass (SAM) on volcanic ash than on forest soil, indicating lower shoot-level light-interception efficiency. For P. glehnii, the response of shoot morphology to increasing irradiance was similar on both soil types, with the exception of SAM, which showed lower plasticity in trees growing on volcanic ash. In contrast, shoot-level morphological plasticity of P. jezoensis was reduced in trees growing on volcanic ash. Light-saturated maximum photosynthetic rate (P(max)) of P. glehnii was unaffected by soil type, whereas mass-based P(max) of P. jezoensis was lower in trees growing on volcanic ash than in trees growing on forest soil. In P. jezoensis trees growing on forest soil, area-based P(max) increased with increasing irradiance, but this response was not observed in trees growing on volcanic ash. As a result, area-based P(max) at the top of the canopy was 39 to 54% lower in trees growing on volcanic ash than in trees growing on forest soil. Our results indicate that constraints on morphological acclimation to high irradiances may contribute to reduced height growth of P. jezoensis on volcanic ash.

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“…In general, conifer shoot lengths and growth rates decline with conditions associated with stressful environments, in particular cold temperatures, short growing seasons, and poor soils (e.g., Schoettle ; Ishii et al. ; Reinhardt et al. ; Körner ).…”

The need for a canopy perspective to understand the importance of phenotypic plasticity for promoting species coexistence and light‐use complementarity in forest ecosystems

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“…In Picea jezoensis, the number of leaves attached to the shoot axis, leaf thickness and number of palisade cells decrease from the upper to lower crown (a). The line represents 1 cm and 1 mm in the left and right panels, respectively (after Ishii et al 2007). In Sequoia sempervirens, the world's tallest tree species, leaf mass per area changes 2.5-fold from tree top to crown base (b).…”

Sub-montane Norway spruce as alternative seed source for a changing climate? A genetic and growth analysis at the fringe of its natural range in Austria

“…Johnsen 1989, Skroppa 1994, or needle morphology and photosynthesis (e.g. Ishii et al 2007 in Picea jezoensis). On the other hand, provenance and progeny specific crown types were also observed (e.g.…”