Abstract
Aims Temporally heterogeneous environments have crucial influences on plant survival and growth, leading to greater variations in plasticity, but direct experimental evidence is rare. Our objective was to investigate how early experience with temporally heterogeneous water conditions may affect the subsequent performance and plasticity of plants in response to water availability.Methods We subjected eight plant species from xeric, mesic or hydric habitats, four exotic and four native to North America, to initial exposure to either an alternating drought and inundation treatment (Ehet, heterogeneous experience) or a consistently moderate water supply (Ehom, homogeneous experience), and to a second round of drought, moderate watering or inundation treatments.Results Compared to Ehom, Ehet increased the final total mass across all species, but did not affect mortality. For species in groups, Ehet relative to Ehom decreased the initial total mass of native species, but increased the mass of exotic species, but natives had greater late growth than exotics after Ehet. Ehet also increased the total mass and late growth of mesic species more than xeric and hydric species.Conclusions Our findings suggest that previous exposure to temporal heterogeneity in water supply may be not beneficial immediately, but can be beneficial for plant late growth and plastic responses under water stress. Species from different habitats, and exotics vs. natives showed contrasting abilities to exploit such benefits from early heterogeneous experience, regardless of their final performance. This revealed the importance of modulating future plastic responses, or “metaplasticity”.
Physiological and transcriptional response to drought stress among bioenergy grass Miscanthus species
