The Use of Stable Isotopes of Water for Determining Sources of Water for Plant Transpiration

Walker, Glen; Brunel, Jean-Pierre; Dighton, John; Holland, Kate L.; Leaney, Fred; McEwan, Kerryn; Mensforth, Lisa J.; Thorburn, Peter J.; Walker, Colin D.

doi:10.1007/978-94-015-9841-5_4

Cited by 15 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…The Weld sampling techniques used in our study followed those advocated by Walker et al (2001) and are brieXy described here. Data on soil water, groundwater, surface water and xylem water were collected in April 2005, and some supplementary drilling and sampling were conducted in November 2005.…”

Section: Field Sampling and Laboratory Techniquesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Water sources accessed by arid zone riparian trees in highly saline environments, Australia

et al. 2008

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The flow regimes of arid zone rivers are often highly variable, and shallow groundwater in the alluvial aquifers can be very saline, thus constraining the availability and quality of the major water sources available to riparian trees-soil water, shallow groundwater and stream water. We have identified water sources and strategies used by riparian trees in more highly saline and arid conditions than previously studied for riparian trees of arid zone rivers. Our research focused on the riparian species Eucalyptus coolabah, one of the major riparian trees of ephemeral arid zone rivers in Australia. The water sources available to this riparian tree were examined using delta(18)O isotope data from xylem, soil water, groundwater and surface water. Additionally, soil chloride and matric potential data were used to infer zones of water availability for root uptake. Despite the saline conditions, the trees used a mixture of soil water and groundwater sources, but they did not use surface water directly. The study identified three strategies used to cope with typically high groundwater and soil water salinities. Firstly, the trees preferentially grow in zones of most frequent flushing by infiltrating streamflow, such as the bank-tops of channels. Secondly, the trees limit water use by having low transpiration rates. Thirdly, the trees are able to extract water at very low osmotic potentials, with water uptake continuing at chloride concentrations of at least 20,000-30,000 mg L(-1).

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Section: Field Sampling and Laboratory Techniquesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Water sources accessed by arid zone riparian trees in highly saline environments, Australia

et al. 2008

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“…The entire system was evacuated and then the system was isolated from the vacuum. The sample was heated by immersion in boiling water, and the water collection vial was immersed in liquid nitrogen in order to freeze water vapor from the sample for a period of 4 h (Walker et al 2001). After the distillation was completed, extracted water was transferred to 1.5 ml vials with 100 ll conical inserts and sent to the UC Davis Stable Isotope Facility for analysis of deuterium abundance.…”

Section: Water Extractionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tree proximity, soil pathways and common mycorrhizal networks: their influence on the utilization of redistributed water by understory seedlings

et al. 2007

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Hydraulic redistribution (HR) is a process by which water moves through plant roots from moist to dry soils. An experiment was conducted to quantify the influence of common mycorrhizal networks (CMNs) and proximity to mature HR-source trees on the water relations of surrounding seedlings. Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var glauca (Mirb.) Franco) seedlings were planted at four distances (0.5, 1, 2.5, and 5 m) from six mature Douglas-fir trees, either directly into soil (soil plus CMN pathway) or inside 0.5 microm mesh bags (soil-only pathway). Deuterated water was used to irrigate soil beside mature trees in order to identify different HR water pathways to surrounding seedlings. This was followed by measurements of seedling deuterium enrichment, seedling water potential, soil water potential, gravimetric soil water content, and tree root density surrounding the seedlings. There was no significantly detectable difference in the quantity of HR water transferred to seedlings having access to soil and CMN pathways or soil-only pathways of water movement. Water from the irrigation plot contributed up to 1.4% of the water of Douglas-fir seedlings. Based on the assumption that the only pathway through which seedlings could access irrigation water was through the mature trees, we estimate that as much as 21.6% of the seedling water was supplied by the nearby tree. Seedling water potential was not significantly affected either by proximity to mature trees or pathway, suggesting HR may have compensated for increasing tree competitive effects with proximity. It is also possible that the lack of difference was due to a relatively moist summer. Our results suggest that residual mature trees are potentially important for hydraulic redistribution to regenerating seedlings in harvested dry interior Douglas-fir forests.

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“…Measurement of isotope compositions in the water taken up by a plant allows defining the mixing ratio of the source water where the isotopic composition of the water is distinctly different among soil layers. Although this method has been widely employed in ecological research on water uptake pattern or hydraulic lift of tree plants (Dawson et al 1998;Walker et al 2001), it appears that this method has very little use in agronomy.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Since the 1990's, isotopic compositions of water have been recognized as a powerful tool to directly specify water sources of plants (e.g., Thorburn and Walker, 1993;Dawson et al, 1998;Walker et al, 2001). As there is a stable isotope of hydrogen, or deuterium (D), water consists of H 2 O, HDO and D 2 O (heavy water).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stable isotope analysis of water extraction from subsoil in upland rice (Oryza sativa L.) as affected by drought and soil compaction

Araki

Iijima

2005

Plant Soil

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Water extraction from subsoil in upland rice (Oryza sativa L.) was examined as related to topsoil desiccation and subsoil compaction. The water extraction was observed by measurements of heavy water concentrations in transpiring plants. The plants were grown in pots that were filled with sandy soil and vertically compartmented into two columns. Heavy water was applied to the subsoil. Plants exposed to mild topsoil desiccation (−120 kPa in water potential) eventually increased water extraction from the subsoil and maintained photosynthetic rate and stomatal conductance at the wet condition level. The rates of the plants subjected to severely droughted topsoil (−190 kPa) were significantly lowered due to less water uptake from the subsoil. Subsoil compaction at bulk densities of 1.45 and 1.50 Mg m −3 inhibited increase of root length densities. Limited water extraction from the subsoil was insufficient to maintain plant productivity under drought conditions. Daily water uptake per unit of root length in the lower tube did not apparently increase even if water demand on the unit root length increased. When water to topsoil was completely withheld, water extraction from the subsoil gradually increased as the topsoil dried out. Plants that were watered and rewatered took up very little water from the subsoil. The extraction from the subsoil occurred only when water potential of the topsoil was below about −190 kPa.

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The Use of Stable Isotopes of Water for Determining Sources of Water for Plant Transpiration

Cited by 15 publications

References 27 publications

Water sources accessed by arid zone riparian trees in highly saline environments, Australia

Water sources accessed by arid zone riparian trees in highly saline environments, Australia

Tree proximity, soil pathways and common mycorrhizal networks: their influence on the utilization of redistributed water by understory seedlings

Stable isotope analysis of water extraction from subsoil in upland rice (Oryza sativa L.) as affected by drought and soil compaction

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