The interplay between irrigation and fruiting on branch growth and mortality, gas exchange and water relations of coffee trees

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wellington L Almeida ◽  
Rodrigo T Ávila ◽  
Junior P Pérez-Molina ◽  
Marcela L Barbosa ◽  
Dinorah M S Marçal ◽  
...  

Abstract The overall coordination between gas exchanges and plant hydraulics may be affected by soil water availability and source-to-sink relationships. Here we evaluated how branch growth and mortality, leaf gas exchange and metabolism are affected in coffee (Coffea arabica L.) trees by drought and fruiting. Field-grown plants were irrigated or not, and maintained with full or no fruit load. Under mild water deficit, irrigation per se did not significantly impact growth but markedly reduced branch mortality in fruiting trees, despite similar leaf assimilate pools and water status. Fruiting increased net photosynthetic rate in parallel with an enhanced stomatal conductance, particularly in irrigated plants. Mesophyll conductance and maximum RuBisCO carboxylation rate remained unchanged across treatments. The increased stomatal conductance in fruiting trees over nonfruiting ones was unrelated to internal CO2 concentration, foliar abscisic acid (ABA) levels or differential ABA sensitivity. However, stomatal conductance was associated with higher stomatal density, lower stomatal sensitivity to vapor pressure deficit, and higher leaf hydraulic conductance and capacitance. Increased leaf transpiration rate in fruiting trees was supported by coordinated alterations in plant hydraulics, which explained the maintenance of plant water status. Finally, by preventing branch mortality, irrigation can mitigate biennial production fluctuations and improve the sustainability of coffee plantations.

Plants ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 663
Author(s):  
James Bunce

Attempts to identify crop genetic material with larger growth stimulation at projected elevated atmospheric CO2 concentrations are becoming more common. The probability of reductions in photosynthesis and yield caused by short-term variation in CO2 concentration within elevated CO2 treatments in the free-air CO2 enrichment plots raises the question of whether similar effects occur in glasshouse or indoor chamber experiments. These experiments were designed to test whether even the normal, modest, cyclic variation in CO2 concentration typical of indoor exposure systems have persistent impacts on photosynthesis and growth, and to explore mechanisms underlying the responses observed. Wheat, cotton, soybeans, and rice were grown from seed in indoor chambers at a mean CO2 concentration of 560 μmol mol−1, with “triangular” cyclic variation with standard deviations of either 4.5 or 18.0 μmol mol−1 measured with 0.1 s sampling periods with an open path analyzer. Photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, and above ground biomass at 20 to 23 days were reduced in all four species by the larger variation in CO2 concentration. Tests of rates of stomatal opening and closing with step changes in light and CO2, and tests of responses to square-wave cycling of CO2 were also conducted on individual leaves of these and three other species, using a leaf gas exchange system. Reduced stomatal conductance due to larger amplitude cycling of CO2 during growth occurred even in soybeans and rice, which had equal rates of opening and closing in response to step changes in CO2. The gas exchange results further indicated that reduced mean stomatal conductance was not the only cause of reduced photosynthesis in variable CO2 conditions.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karla Gasparini ◽  
Ana Carolina R. Souto ◽  
Mateus F. da Silva ◽  
Lucas C. Costa ◽  
Cássia Regina Fernandes Figueiredo ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTBackground and aimsTrichomes are epidermal structures with an enormous variety of ecological functions and economic applications. Glandular trichomes produce a rich repertoire of secondary metabolites, whereas non-glandular trichomes create a physical barrier against biotic and abiotic stressors. Intense research is underway to understand trichome development and function and enable breeding of more resilient crops. However, little is known on how enhanced trichome density would impinge on leaf photosynthesis, gas exchange and energy balance.MethodsPrevious work has compared multiple species differing in trichome density, instead here we analyzed monogenic trichome mutants in a single tomato genetic background (cv. Micro-Tom). We determined growth parameters, leaf spectral properties, gas exchange and leaf temperature in the hairs absent (h), Lanata (Ln) and Woolly (Wo) trichome mutants.Key resultsShoot dry mass, leaf area, leaf spectral properties and cuticular conductance were not affected by the mutations. However, the Ln mutant showed increased carbon assimilation (A) possibly associated with higher stomatal conductance (gs), since there were no differences in stomatal density or stomatal index between genotypes. Leaf temperature was furthermore reduced in Ln in the early hours of the afternoon.ConclusionsWe show that a single monogenic mutation can increase glandular trichome density, a desirable trait for crop breeding, whilst concomitantly improving leaf gas exchange and reducing leaf temperature.HIGHLIGHTA monogenic mutation in tomato increases trichome density and optimizes gas exchange and leaf temperature


OENO One ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vivian Zufferey ◽  
Jean-Laurent Spring ◽  
Thibaut Verdenal ◽  
Agnès Dienes ◽  
Sandrine Belcher ◽  
...  

<p><strong>Aims : </strong>The aims of this study were to investigate the physiological behavior (plant hydraulics, gas exchange) of the cultivar Pinot Noir in the field under progressively increasing conditions of water stress and analyze the effects of drought on grape and wine quality.</p><p><strong>Methods and results : </strong>Grapevines of the variety <em>Vitis vinifera</em> L. cv. Pinot Noir (clone 9-18, grafted onto 5BB) were subjected to different water regimes (irrigation treatments) over the growing season. Physiological indicators were used to monitor plant water status (leaf and stem water potentials and relative carbon isotope composition (d<sup>13</sup>C) in must sugars). Leaf gas exchange (net photosynthesis A and transpiration E), leaf stomatal conductance (gs), specific hydraulic conductivity in petioles (K<sub>petiole</sub>), yield components, berry composition at harvest, and organoleptic quality of wines were analyzed over a 7-year period, between 2009 and 2015, under relatively dry conditions in the canton of Wallis, Switzerland. A progressively increasing water deficit, observed throughout the season, reduced the leaf gas exchange (A and E) and gs in non-irrigated vines. The intrinsic water use efficiency (WUE<sub>i</sub>, A/gs) increased during the growing season and was greater in water-stressed vines than in well-watered vines (irrigated vines). This rise in WUE<sub>i</sub> was correlated with an increase in d<sup>13</sup>C in must sugars at harvest. Drought led to decreases in K<sub>petiole</sub>, E and sap flow in stems. A decrease in vine plant vigor was observed in vines that had been subjected to water deficits year after year. Moderate water stress during ripening favored sugar accumulation in berries and caused a reduction in total acidic and malic contents in must and available nitrogen content (YAN). Wines produced from water-stressed vines had a deeper color and were richer in anthocyanins and phenol compounds compared with wines from well-watered vines with no water stress. The vine water status greatly influenced the organoleptic quality of the resulting wines. Wines made from non-irrigated vines with a water deficit presented more structure and higher-quality tannins. They were also judged to be more full-bodied and with blended tannins than those made from irrigated vines.</p><p><strong>Conclusions : </strong>Grape ripening and resulting Pinot Noir wines were found to be largely dependent on the water supply conditions of the vines during the growing season, which influenced gas exchange and plant hydraulics.</p><p><strong>Significance and impact of the study : </strong>Plant water status constitutes a key factor in leaf gas exchange, canopy water use efficiency, berry composition and wine quality.</p>


2010 ◽  
Vol 113-116 ◽  
pp. 14-17
Author(s):  
Meng Hu ◽  
Shao Zhong Kang ◽  
Tai Sheng Du ◽  
Ling Tong

A reflection function was established, based on leaf gas exchange process and tested with experimental data of eight kinds of plants, i.e. tomato, muskmelon, capsicum, maize, grape, onion, Haloxylon Ammodendron Bunge and Caragana Karshiskii Kom, with multifarious biological characteristic, water and growing status. The function indicated that the leaf stomatal conductance could be linearly reflected by the ratio of humidity and CO2 concentration at leaf surface, and the behaviour of its slope could be recognized as an indicator of leaf gas exchange efficiency, which had a negative relationship with leaf water use efficiency (WUE). The results maybe increase our understanding of potential influences of leaf stomatal conductance on photosynthetic and transpiration gas exchange and leaf WUE.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 791-797
Author(s):  
Mansha Gul ◽  
F. A. Khan ◽  
Shafiq A Wani ◽  
S. A. Bhat ◽  
S. A. Mir ◽  
...  

Considering the rich nutritional status and possibility of broccoli in improving the profitable yield, and wide role of Mel in regulating the plant physiological process, an investigation was carried out at the division of Basic Sciences and Humanities during 2017 to investigate the effect of foliar application of Mel on leaf photosynthetic and biochemical attributes broccoli. Thirty days old and uniform seedlings of broccoli cv. Palam Samridhi were transplanted in the field at a spacing of 45 × 45cm. Different concentrations of Mel, viz. 0, 20, 40, 60 and 80 ppm were sprayed on the plant foliage at 15 days after transplanting (DAT) replicating each treatment four times. Leaf gas exchange and biochemical attributes were tested following the standard procedures. The Results showed the lowest stipulated rate of photosynthesis (10.87 µmole.m-2.sec-1), stomatal conductance (301.44 mole H2O.m-2ses-1) and leaf transpiration (1. 14 mole H2O.m-2ses-1) in untreated plants.  Different doses of Mel significantly increased the values of these attributes and the highest values of photosynthesis (18.63 µmole.m-2.sec-1), stomatal conductance (324.37 mmole.m-2.ses-1) and leaf transpiration (3.23 mmole.m-2.ses-1) with Mel 60 ppm were recorded. The alterations in different biochemical attributes were also evident due to foliar application of Mel and maximum leaf sugar (77.0 and 85.9µg/g), protein (56.9 and 77.3 µg/g), total phenols (260.1 and 339.9 mg/100g), antioxidants (142.8 and 159.9 mg GAE /100g DW) and MSI (94.89 and 97.43 percent) values with Mel 60ppm at 30 and 60DAT, respectively. Therefore, the present study signifies the useful effects of Mel in regulating the physio-biochemical properties of broccoli.


2005 ◽  
Vol 85 (4) ◽  
pp. 919-927 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. M. Glass ◽  
D. C. Percival ◽  
J. T.A. Proctor

A 2-yr field study examining the effect of soil moisture on plant water status, photosynthesis and gas exchange parameters in lowbush blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium Ait.) was conducted at the Nova Scotia Wild Blueberry Institute (NSWBI), Debert, NS. Drought and irrigation treatments were applied over two years in either or both the vegetative and cropping years of production. Midday stem water potential values indicated that all treatments resulted in drought stress. Mean stem water potential values ranged from -1.41 to -1.45 MPa. Predawn stem water potentials in the vegetative growth season indicated that although some recharging and recovery of water loss occurred overnight, the drought-stressed plants did not fully return to pre-stress levels under the moisture-limiting conditions. Higher chlorophyll a and b levels were observed in the single-season drought treatment. Leaves of irrigated plants in both sprout and crop years had the highest stomatal density. There were no differences in photosynthetic rate (Pn) among treatments despite the lower stomatal conductance resulting from limited soil moisture. Key words: Photosynthesis, stomate, stem water potential


Plants ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 1358
Author(s):  
Kyungdahm Yun ◽  
Dennis Timlin ◽  
Soo-Hyung Kim

Plant simulation models are abstractions of plant physiological processes that are useful for investigating the responses of plants to changes in the environment. Because photosynthesis and transpiration are fundamental processes that drive plant growth and water relations, a leaf gas-exchange model that couples their interdependent relationship through stomatal control is a prerequisite for explanatory plant simulation models. Here, we present a coupled gas-exchange model for C4 leaves incorporating two widely used stomatal conductance submodels: Ball–Berry and Medlyn models. The output variables of the model includes steady-state values of CO2 assimilation rate, transpiration rate, stomatal conductance, leaf temperature, internal CO2 concentrations, and other leaf gas-exchange attributes in response to light, temperature, CO2, humidity, leaf nitrogen, and leaf water status. We test the model behavior and sensitivity, and discuss its applications and limitations. The model was implemented in Julia programming language using a novel modeling framework. Our testing and analyses indicate that the model behavior is reasonably sensitive and reliable in a wide range of environmental conditions. The behavior of the two model variants differing in stomatal conductance submodels deviated substantially from each other in low humidity conditions. The model was capable of replicating the behavior of transgenic C4 leaves under moderate temperatures as found in the literature. The coupled model, however, underestimated stomatal conductance in very high temperatures. This is likely an inherent limitation of the coupling approaches using Ball–Berry type models in which photosynthesis and stomatal conductance are recursively linked as an input of the other.


HortScience ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 540a-540
Author(s):  
K.J. Prevete ◽  
R.T. Fernandez

Three species of herbaceous perennials were tested on their ability to withstand and recover from drought stress periods of 2, 4, and 6 days. Eupatorium rugosum and Boltonia asteroides `Snowbank' were chosen because of their reported drought intolerance, while Rudbeckia triloba was chosen based on its reported drought tolerance. Drought stress began on 19 Sept. 1997. Plants were transplanted into the field the day following the end of each stress period. The effects of drought on transpiration rate, stomatal conductance, and net photosynthetic rate were measured during the stress and throughout recovery using an infrared gas analysis system. Leaf gas exchange measurements were taken through recovery until there were no differences between the stressed plants and the control plants. Transpiration, stomatal conductance, and photosynthesis of Rudbeckia and Boltonia were not affected until 4 days after the start of stress. Transpiration of Eupatorium decreased after 3 days of stress. After rewatering, leaf gas exchange of Boltonia and Rudbeckia returned to non-stressed levels quicker than Eupatorium. Growth measurements were taken every other day during stress, and then weekly following transplanting. Measurements were taken until a killing frost that occurred on 3 Nov. There were no differences in the growth between the stressed and non-stressed plants in any of the species. Plants will be monitored throughout the winter, spring, and summer to determine the effects of drought on overwintering capability and regrowth.


2000 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 451 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark J. Hovenden ◽  
Tim Brodribb

Gas exchange measurements were made on saplings of Southern Beech, Nothofagus cunninghamii (Hook.) Oerst. collected from three altitudes (350, 780 and 1100 m above sea level) and grown in a common glasshouse trial. Plants were grown from cuttings taken 2 years earlier from a number of plants at each altitude in Mt Field National Park, Tasmania. Stomatal density increased with increasing altitude of origin, and stomatal con-ductance and carbon assimilation rate were linearly related across all samples. The altitude of origin influenced thestomatal conductance and therefore carbon assimilation rate, with plants from 780 m having a greater photosynthetic rate than those from 350 m. The intercellular concentration of CO2 as a ratio of external CO2 concentration (ci/ca) was similar in all plants despite the large variation in maximum stomatal conductance. Carboxylation efficiency was greater in plants from 780 m than in plants from 350 m. Altitude of origin has a strong influence on the photo-synthetic performance of N. cunninghamii plants even when grown under controlled conditions, and this influence is expressed in both leaf biochemistry (carboxylation efficiency) and leaf morphology (stomatal density).


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. e43952870
Author(s):  
Magnólia Martins Alves ◽  
Manoel Bandeira de Albuquerque ◽  
Renata Ranielly Pedroza Cruz ◽  
Mário Luiz Farias Cavalcanti

The availability of light is one of the factors that most limits the photosynthesis of juvenile trees in the understory of the forest. The study was carried out in the Mata do Pau-Ferro State Park, located in the city of Areia, PB. The objective of this study was to evaluate how gas exchanges occur in individuals of Psychotria colorata (Willd. Ex Roem & Schult.), Senna georgica Irwin & Barneby, Himatanthus phagedaenicus (Mart.) Woodson, Solanum swartzianum Roem. & Schult, Psychotria carthagenensis Jacq.e Psychotria hoffmannseggiana (Willd. ex Schult.) in the understory of a remnant of Mata Atlântica. The rate of photosynthesis (A), transpiration (E), stomatal conductance (Gs), internal CO2 concentration (Ci) leaf temperature-air temperature (°C), and internal carbon (Ci), instantaneous efficiency of water use (EUA) (A/E), Intrinsic efficiency of water use (EiUC) (A/Gs) and the intrinsic efficiency of carboxylation (ratio A/Ci). The rates of maximum photosynthesis (A), photosynthesis (E) and stomatal conductance (Gs) were shown to be influenced by the time of day, as there was no interference of external factors in the diurnal patterns of gas exchange, variations are due to endogenous factors, probably due to the circadian rhythm. The parameter of the gas exchange of sub-forest species responds differently, in the small variations in the luminosity levels of the forest understory


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