Temporal variation and its drivers in the elemental traits of four boreal plant species

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
I C Richmond ◽  
S J Leroux ◽  
T R Heckford ◽  
E Vander Wal ◽  
M Rizzuto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Temporal Variation ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Linear Models ◽  
Plant Traits ◽  
Growing Degree Days ◽  
Degree Days ◽  
Nitrogen And Phosphorus ◽  
Individual Fitness ◽  
Stoichiometric Traits ◽  
Trait Variability

Abstract Aims Intraspecific variation in plant traits has important consequences for individual fitness and herbivore foraging. For plants, trait variability across spatial dimensions is well documented. However, temporal dimensions of trait variability are less well known, and may be influenced by seasonal differences in growing degree days, temperature, and precipitation. Here, we aim to quantify intraspecific temporal variation in traits and the underlying drivers for four commonly occurring boreal plant species. Methods We sampled the elemental and stoichiometric traits (%C, %N, %P, C:N, C:P, N:P) of four common browse species’ foliage across two years. Using a two-step approach, we first fitted generalized linear models (GzLM, n = 24) to the species’ elemental and stoichiometric traits, and tested if they varied across years. When we observed evidence for temporal variability, we fitted a second set of GzLMs (n = 8) with temperature, productivity, and moisture as explanatory variables. Important Findings We found no evidence of temporal variation for most of the elemental and stoichiometric traits of our four boreal plants, with two exceptions. Year was an important predictor for percent carbon across all four species (R 2 = 0.47 to 0.67) and for multiple elemental and stoichiometric traits in balsam fir (5/8, R 2 = 0.29 to 0.67). Thus, variation in percent carbon was related to interannual differences, more so than nitrogen and phosphorus, which are limiting nutrients in the boreal forest. These results also indicate that year may explain more variation in conifers’ stoichiometry than for deciduous plants due to life history differences. Growing degree days (GDD) was the most frequently occurring variable in the second round of models (8/8 times, R 2 = 0.21 to 0.41), suggesting that temperature is an important driver of temporal variation in these traits.

scholarly journals When do apples stop growing, and why does it matter?

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria D Christodoulou ◽  
Alastair Culham
Keyword(s):  
Linear Models ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
Apple Fruit ◽  
Maximum Length ◽  
Maximum Diameter ◽  
Growing Degree Days ◽  
Degree Days ◽  
Growing Seasons ◽  
Regular Time ◽  
Log Linear

AbstractBackgroundApples in the commercial food chain are harvested up to two weeks before maturity. We explore apple fruit development through the growing season to establish the point at which the features differentiating those cultivars become evident. This is relevant both for the understanding of the growing process and to ensure that any identification and classification tools can be used both on ripened-on-tree and stored fruit. Current literature presents some contradictory findings on apple development, we explored the size development of 12 apple cultivars in the Brogdale National Fruit Collection, UK over two growing seasons.MethodsFruit were sampled at regular time points throughout the growing season and four morphometrics (maximum length, maximum diameter, weight, and centroid size) were collected. These were regressed against growing degree days in order to appropriately describe the growth pattern observed.ResultsAll four morphometrics were adequately described using log-log linear regressions, with adjusted R2 estimates ranging from 78.3% (maximum length) to 86.7% (weight). For all four morphometrics, a 10% increase in growing degree days was associated with a 1% increase in the morphometric measurement.DiscussionOur findings refine previous work presenting rapid early growth followed by a plateau in later stages of development and are in disagreement with published expo-linear models. We established that apples harvested for commercial storage purposes, two weeks prior to maturity, showed only a modest decrease in size, demonstrating that size morphometric approaches are appropriate for classification of apples, both ripened-on-tree and stored.

scholarly journals Global imprint of mycorrhizal fungi on whole-plant nutrient economics

2019 ◽  
Vol 116 (46) ◽  
pp. 23163-23168 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colin Averill ◽  
Jennifer M. Bhatnagar ◽  
Michael C. Dietze ◽  
William D. Pearse ◽  
Stephanie N. Kivlin
Keyword(s):  
Nitrogen Fixation ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Mycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Plant Traits ◽  
Species Traits ◽  
Plant Nutrient ◽  
Economic Traits ◽  
Nitrogen And Phosphorus ◽  
Plant Nitrogen ◽  
Mycorrhizal Association

Mycorrhizal fungi are critical members of the plant microbiome, forming a symbiosis with the roots of most plants on Earth. Most plant species partner with either arbuscular or ectomycorrhizal fungi, and these symbioses are thought to represent plant adaptations to fast and slow soil nutrient cycling rates. This generates a second hypothesis, that arbuscular and ectomycorrhizal plant species traits complement and reinforce these fungal strategies, resulting in nutrient acquisitive vs. conservative plant trait profiles. Here we analyzed 17,764 species level trait observations from 2,940 woody plant species to show that mycorrhizal plants differ systematically in nitrogen and phosphorus economic traits. Differences were clearest in temperate latitudes, where ectomycorrhizal plant species are more nitrogen use- and phosphorus use-conservative than arbuscular mycorrhizal species. This difference is reflected in both aboveground and belowground plant traits and is robust to controlling for evolutionary history, nitrogen fixation ability, deciduousness, latitude, and species climate niche. Furthermore, mycorrhizal effects are large and frequently similar to or greater in magnitude than the influence of plant nitrogen fixation ability or deciduous vs. evergreen leaf habit. Ectomycorrhizal plants are also more nitrogen conservative than arbuscular plants in boreal and tropical ecosystems, although differences in phosphorus use are less apparent outside temperate latitudes. Our findings bolster current theories of ecosystems rooted in mycorrhizal ecology and support the hypothesis that plant mycorrhizal association is linked to the evolution of plant nutrient economic strategies.

scholarly journals When do apples stop growing, and why does it matter?

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. e0252288
Author(s):  
Maria D. Christodoulou ◽  
Alastair Culham
Keyword(s):  
Linear Models ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
Apple Fruit ◽  
Maximum Length ◽  
Maximum Diameter ◽  
Growing Degree Days ◽  
Degree Days ◽  
Regular Time ◽  
Log Linear ◽  
Physical Features

Apples in the commercial food chain are harvested up to two weeks before maturity. We explore apple fruit development through the growing season to establish the point at which physical features differentiating those cultivars become evident. This is relevant both for the understanding of the growing process and to ensure that any identification and classification tools can be used both on ripened-on-tree and stored fruit. Current literature presents some contradictory findings on apple growth, we studied 12 apple cultivars in the Brogdale National Fruit Collection, UK over two seasons to establish patterns of growth. Fruit were sampled at regular time points throughout the growing season and four morphometrics (maximum length, maximum diameter, weight, and centroid size) were collected. These were regressed against growing degree days in order to appropriately describe the growth pattern observed. All four morphometrics were adequately described using log-log linear regressions, with adjusted R2 estimates ranging from 78.3% (maximum length) to 86.7% (weight). For all four morphometrics, a 10% increase in growing degree days was associated with a 1% increase in the morphometric. Our findings refine previous work presenting rapid early growth followed by a plateau in later stages of development and contrast with published expo-linear models. We established that apples harvested for commercial storage purposes, two weeks prior to maturity, showed only a modest decrease in size compared with ripened-on-tree fruit, demonstrating that size morphometric approaches are appropriate for classification of apple fruit at point of harvest.

scholarly journals Present and future responses of growing degree days for Crete Island in Greece

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Spyridon Paparrizos ◽  
Andreas Matzarakis
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Spatial Interpolation ◽  
Agricultural Science ◽  
Growing Degree Days ◽  
Degree Days ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Crete Island ◽  
The Future ◽  
Flower Phenology

Abstract. Climate affects practically all the physiological processes that determine plant life (IPCC, 2014). A major challenge and objective of the agricultural science is to predict the occurrences of specific physical or biological events. For this reason, flower phenology has been widely used to study the flowering in plant species of economic interest, and in this concept, temperature and heat units have been widely accepted as the most important factors affecting processes leading to flowering. The determination of heat requirements in the first developing phases of plants has been expressed as Growing Degree Days (GDD). Determination of GDD is useful for achieving a better understanding of the flowering season development in several plant species, and for forecasting when flowering will occur (Paparrizos and Matzarakis, 2017). Temperature and GDD represent two important spatially-dynamic climatic variables, as they both play vital roles in influencing forest development by directly affecting plant functions such as evapotranspiration, photosynthesis and plant transpiration. Understanding the spatial distribution of GDD is crucial to the practice of sustainable agricultural and forest management, as GDD relates to the integration of growth and provides precise point estimates (Hasan et al., 2007; Matzarakis et al., 2007). The aim of the current study was to estimate and map through downscaling spatial interpolation and multi-linear regression techniques, the future variation of GDD for the periods 2021–2050 and 2071–2100, under the A1B and B1 IPCC emission scenarios in relation with the reference periods for Crete Island in Greece. Future temperature data were obtained, validated and analysed from the ENSEMBLES European project. A combination of dynamical and statistical approach was conducted in order to downscale and perform the spatial interpolation of GDD through ArcGIS 10.2.1. The results indicated that in the future, GDD will be increased and the existing cultivations can reach maturity sooner. Nevertheless, rough topography will act as an inhibitor towards the expansion of the existing cultivations in higher altitudes.

Evaluation of Finger Millet Varieties under Rainfed Condition of Eastern India

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (03) ◽  
Author(s):  
M. K. Singh ◽  
VINOD KUMAR ◽  
SHAMBHU PRASAD
Keyword(s):  
Field Experiment ◽  
Finger Millet ◽  
Yield Potential ◽  
Growing Degree Days ◽  
Eastern India ◽  
Degree Days ◽  
Rainfed Condition ◽  
Net Returns ◽  
Humid Environment ◽  
Use Efficiency

A field experiment was carried out during the kharif of 2014 and 2015 to evaluate the yield potential, economics and thermal utilization in eleven finger millet varieties under the rainfed condition of the sub-humid environment of South Bihar of Eastern India. Results revealed that the significantly higher grain yield (20.41 q ha-1), net returns (Rs 25301) and B: C ratio (1.51) was with the finger millet variety ‘GPU 67’ but was being at par to ‘GPU28’and ‘RAU-8’, and significantly superior over remaining varieties. The highest heat units (1535.1oC day), helio-thermal units (7519.7oC day hours), phenothermal index (19.4 oC days day-1) were recorded with variety ‘GPU 67’ followed by ‘RAU 8’ and ‘GPU 28’ and lowest in ‘VL 149’ at 50 % anthesis stage. Similarly, the highest growing degree days (2100 oC day), helio-thermal units (11035.8 oC day hours) were noted with ‘GPU 67’ followed by ‘RAU 8’ and ‘GPU 28’ at maturity. The highest heat use efficiency (0.97 kg ha-1 oC day) and helio-thermal use efficiency (0.19 kg ha-1 oC day hour) were in ‘GPU 67’ followed by ‘VL 315’.

scholarly journals The SN2 reaction and its relationship with the Walden inversion, the Finkelstein and Menshutkin reactions together with theoretical calculations for the Finkelstein reaction

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ibon Alkorta ◽  
José Elguero
Keyword(s):  
Linear Models ◽  
Theoretical Calculations ◽  
Computational Method ◽  
Basis Set ◽  
Free Energies ◽  
Nitrogen And Phosphorus ◽  
Atom Pairs ◽  
Leaving Groups ◽  
First Time ◽  
Nitrogen Phosphorus

AbstractThis communication gives an overview of the relationships between four reactions that although related were not always perceived as such: SN2, Walden, Finkelstein, and Menshutkin. Binary interactions (SN2 & Walden, SN2 & Menshutkin, SN2 & Finkelstein, Walden & Menshutkin, Walden & Finkelstein, Menshutkin & Finkelstein) were reported. Carbon, silicon, nitrogen, and phosphorus as central atoms and fluorides, chlorides, bromides, and iodides as lateral atoms were considered. Theoretical calculations provide Gibbs free energies that were analyzed with linear models to obtain the halide contributions. The M06-2x DFT computational method and the 6-311++G(d,p) basis set have been used for all atoms except for iodine where the effective core potential def2-TZVP basis set was used. Concerning the central atom pairs, carbon/silicon vs. nitrogen/phosphorus, we reported here for the first time that the effect of valence expansion was known for Si but not for P. Concerning the lateral halogen atoms, some empirical models including the interaction between F and I as entering and leaving groups explain the Gibbs free energies.

scholarly journals Determining the critical period for weed control in high-yielding cotton using common sunflower as a mimic weed

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 800-807 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham W. Charles ◽  
Brian M. Sindel ◽  
Annette L. Cowie ◽  
Oliver G. G. Knox
Keyword(s):  
Weed Control ◽  
Critical Period ◽  
Yield Loss ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
Growing Degree Days ◽  
Degree Days ◽  
Weed Density ◽  
High Level ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Planting Season

AbstractField studies were conducted over six seasons to determine the critical period for weed control (CPWC) in high-yielding cotton, using common sunflower as a mimic weed. Common sunflower was planted with or after cotton emergence at densities of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, and 50 plants m−2. Common sunflower was added and removed at approximately 0, 150, 300, 450, 600, 750, and 900 growing degree days (GDD) after planting. Season-long interference resulted in no harvestable cotton at densities of five or more common sunflower plants m−2. High levels of intraspecific and interspecific competition occurred at the highest weed densities, with increases in weed biomass and reductions in crop yield not proportional to the changes in weed density. Using a 5% yield-loss threshold, the CPWC extended from 43 to 615 GDD, and 20 to 1,512 GDD for one and 50 common sunflower plants m−2, respectively. These results highlight the high level of weed control required in high-yielding cotton to ensure crop losses do not exceed the cost of control.

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