The effects of variation of day/night temperature regime on the diurnal patterns of CO2 assimilation of pineapple plants were examined using single leaf and field enclosure methods.
At day temperatures of 30°C, increasing night temperatures from 20 to 35°C reduced the total assimilation of CO2 per daily light/dark cycle from 6.5 to 1.3 g CO2 m-2 (leaf area) day-1, and also reduced the proportion of total CO2 assimilation that occurred at night from c. 90% to c. 40%.
Decreasing day temperatures (30 to 10°C) had little effect on total daily CO2 assimilation in warm (25°C) nights, but reduced it in cooler (15°C) nights. At day temperatures of <152C, CO2 assimilation took place predominantly (60-100%) in the photoperiod. In cool (10°C) days, the normal inverted stomatal rhythm of CAM plants was reversed; leaf conductance was high (c. 1.0 mm s-1) throughout the photoperiod and a large CO2 efflux was observed, lasting c. 2 h, at the beginning of the dark period.
Leaf conductance of pineapples, by day and by night, is strongly influenced by ambient temperatures, with cool conditions favouring stomatal opening.
Leaf Conductance in Relation to Rate of CO2 Assimilation
