Hydraulic traits are coordinated with maximum plant height at the global scale

Water must be transported long distances in tall plants, resulting in increasing hydraulic resistance, which may place limitations on the maximum plant height (Hmax) in a given habitat. However, the coordination of hydraulic traits with Hmax and habitat aridity remains poorly understood. To explore whether Hmax modifies the trade-off between hydraulic efficiency and safety or how water availability might influence the relationship between Hmax and other hydraulic traits, we compiled a dataset including Hmax and 11 hydraulic traits for 1281 woody species from 369 sites worldwide. We found that taller species from wet habitats exhibited greater xylem efficiency and lower hydraulic safety, wider conduits, lower conduit density, and lower sapwood density, which were all associated with habitat water availability. Plant height and hydraulic functioning appear to represent a single, coordinated axis of variation, aligned primarily with water availability, thus suggesting an important role for this axis in species sorting processes.

Download Full-text

Patterns and ecological determinants of woody plant height in eastern Eurasia and its relation to primary productivity

Journal of Plant Ecology ◽

10.1093/jpe/rtz025 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 12 (5) ◽

pp. 791-803 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Zhiheng Wang ◽

Yaoqi Li ◽

Xiangyan Su ◽

Shengli Tao ◽

Xiao Feng ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Plant Height ◽

Primary Productivity ◽

Water Availability ◽

Woody Species ◽

Life Forms ◽

Geographical Patterns ◽

Historical Climate ◽

Geographic Patterns ◽

Taxonomic Groups

Abstract Aims Plant height is a key functional trait related to aboveground biomass, leaf photosynthesis and plant fitness. However, large-scale geographical patterns in community-average plant height (CAPH) of woody species and drivers of these patterns across different life forms remain hotly debated. Moreover, whether CAPH could be used as a predictor of ecosystem primary productivity is unknown. Methods We compiled mature height and distributions of 11 422 woody species in eastern Eurasia, and estimated geographic patterns in CAPH for different taxonomic groups and life forms. Then we evaluated the effects of environmental (including current climate and historical climate change since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM)) and evolutionary factors on CAPH. Lastly, we compared the predictive power of CAPH on primary productivity with that of LiDAR-derived canopy-height data from a global survey. Important Findings Geographic patterns of CAPH and their drivers differed among taxonomic groups and life forms. The strongest predictor for CAPH of all woody species combined, angiosperms, all dicots and deciduous dicots was actual evapotranspiration, while temperature was the strongest predictor for CAPH of monocots and tree, shrub and evergreen dicots, and water availability for gymnosperms. Historical climate change since the LGM had only weak effects on CAPH. No phylogenetic signal was detected in family-wise average height, which was also unrelated to the tested environmental factors. Finally, we found a strong correlation between CAPH and ecosystem primary productivity. Primary productivity showed a weaker relationship with CAPH of the tallest species within a grid cell and no relationship with LiDAR-derived canopy height reported in the global survey. Our findings suggest that current climate rather than historical climate change and evolutionary history determine the geographical patterns in CAPH. However, the relative effects of climatic factors representing environmental energy and water availability on spatial variations of CAPH vary among plant life forms. Moreover, our results also suggest that CAPH can be used as a good predictor of ecosystem primary productivity.

Download Full-text

The roles of conduit redundancy and connectivity in xylem hydraulic functions

10.31219/osf.io/b5egv ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Assaad Mrad ◽

Daniel M Johnson ◽

David M Love ◽

Jean-Christophe Domec

Keyword(s):

Graph Theory ◽

Water Potential ◽

Percolation Theory ◽

Water Movement ◽

Xylem Sap ◽

Woody Species ◽

Flowering Plants ◽

Hydraulic Efficiency ◽

Trade Off ◽

Network Characteristics

Wood anatomical traits shape a xylem segment's hydraulic efficiency and embolism spread resistance due to declining water potential. Because xylem sap is in a metastable state, gas embolisms might spread within the sapwood conduits as water potential declines, inhibiting water movement. It has been known for decades that variations in conduit connectivity play a role in altering xylem hydraulics. However, evaluating the precise effect of conduit connectivity on hydraulic efficiency and embolism spread resistance has been elusive. Using graph theory, percolation theory, and computational modeling, we show that increases in conduit connectivity improves resistance to embolism spread in certain flowering plants without compromising hydraulic efficiency. The influence of conduit connectivity might explain in part why the hypothesis of the 'safety-efficiency' trade-off is weak among woody species with different xylem network characteristics. Overall, knowing how xylem network measures influence segment hydraulics is necessary to generalize trends linking anatomy and hydraulic function among woody species.

Download Full-text

The triangular space of abiotic stress tolerance in woody species: a unified trade-off model

10.32942/osf.io/ur4ps ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

GIACOMO PUGLIELLI ◽

Michael J. Hutchings ◽

Lauri Laanisto

Keyword(s):

Abiotic Stress ◽

Stress Tolerance ◽

Woody Plants ◽

Shade Tolerance ◽

Abiotic Stress Tolerance ◽

Woody Species ◽

Trade Off ◽

Considerable Uncertainty ◽

Trade Offs ◽

The Relationship

Tolerance of abiotic stress in woody plants is known to be constrained by biological trade-offs between different forms of stress, shade and drought in particular. However, there is still considerable uncertainty about the relationship between tolerances, and the limits on tolerance combinations. Using the most extensive database available on tolerance of shade, drought, waterlogging and cold in woody species, we demonstrate that stress tolerance combinations can be summarized by two PCA dimensions defining a triangular stress tolerance space (STS). The first dimension reflects segregation between drought- and waterlogging-tolerant species. The second reflects shade tolerance, which is independent of the other tolerances. The shape of the STS was compared with theoretical surfaces generated from several prominent theories that assume different interdependence relationships between stress tolerances. This allowed us to define the limits of shade, drought, waterlogging and cold tolerance combinations across the 799 woody species in the database. The STS reconciles all major theories about trade-offs between abiotic stress tolerances. It provides a unified trade-off model and a set of coordinates that can be used to examine how other aspects of plant biology, such as plant functional traits, change within the limits of abiotic stress tolerance.

Download Full-text

Trade-off between leaf size and number in current-year twigs of deciduous broad-leaved woody species at different altitudes on Qingliang Mountain, southeastern China

Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology ◽

10.3724/sp.j.1258.2012.00281 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 36 (4) ◽

pp. 281-291

Author(s):

Dong-Mei YANG ◽

Feng ZHAN ◽

Hong-Wei ZHANG

Keyword(s):

Woody Species ◽

Leaf Size ◽

Southeastern China ◽

Trade Off ◽

Different Altitudes

Download Full-text

Hybrid Intensification of Plant Height in Cotton and the Relationship of Node Number and Internodal Length to the Phenomenon 1

Agronomy Journal ◽

10.2134/agronj1930.00021962002200090006x ◽

1930 ◽

Vol 22 (9) ◽

pp. 787-801 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

J. O. Ware

Keyword(s):

Plant Height ◽

Internodal Length ◽

Node Number ◽

Relationship Of ◽

The Relationship

Download Full-text

Noni fruit’s water spot appearance on the second day of harvest: a trade-off between resistance and energy

Chemical and Biological Technologies in Agriculture ◽

10.1186/s40538-020-00207-2 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Tian Wu ◽

Danyan Hu ◽

Qingfen Wang

Keyword(s):

Statistical Analysis ◽

Molecular Level ◽

Morinda Citrifolia ◽

Transcriptome Data ◽

Trade Off ◽

Kegg Pathways ◽

Available Energy ◽

Climacteric Fruit ◽

The Relationship ◽

Insight Into

Abstract Background Noni (Morinda citrifolia Linn.) is a tropical tree that bears climacteric fruit. Previous observations and research have shown that the second day (2 d) after harvest is the most important demarcation point when the fruit has the same appearance as the freshly picked fruit (0 d); however, they are beginning to become water spot appearance. We performed a conjoint analysis of metabolome and transcriptome data for noni fruit of 0 d and 2 d to reveal what happened to the fruit at the molecular level. Genes and metabolites were annotated to KEGG pathways and the co-annotated KEGG pathways were used as a statistical analysis. Results We found 25 pathways that were significantly altered at both metabolic and transcriptional levels, including a total of 285 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 11 differential metabolites through an integrative analysis of transcriptomics and metabolomics. The energy metabolism and pathways originating from phenylalanine were disturbed the most. The upregulated resistance metabolites and genes implied the increase of resistance and energy consumption in the postharvest noni fruit. Most genes involved in glycolysis were downregulated, further limiting the available energy. This lack of energy led noni fruit to water spot appearance, a prelude to softening. The metabolites and genes related to the resistance and energy interacted and restricted each other to keep noni fruit seemingly hard within two days after harvest, but actually the softening was already unstoppable. Conclusions This study provides a new insight into the relationship between the metabolites and genes of noni fruit, as well as a foundation for further clarification of the post-ripening mechanism in noni fruit.

Download Full-text

A clear trade‐off between leaf hydraulic efficiency and safety in an aridland shrub during regrowth

Plant Cell & Environment ◽

10.1111/pce.14156 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Guang‐Qian Yao ◽

Zheng‐Fei Nie ◽

Yuan‐Yuan Zeng ◽

Muhammad Waseem ◽

Md. Mahadi Hasan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hydraulic Efficiency ◽

Trade Off

Download Full-text

Diagnosing the transition layer at extratropical latitudes using MLS O<sub>3</sub> and MOPITT CO analyses

Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics ◽

10.5194/acp-13-7225-2013 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 13 (14) ◽

pp. 7225-7240 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

J. Barré ◽

L. El Amraoui ◽

P. Ricaud ◽

W. A. Lahoz ◽

J.-L. Attié ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Data Assimilation ◽

Transition Region ◽

Transition Layer ◽

Transport Model ◽

Global Scale ◽

British Isles ◽

Chemistry Transport Model ◽

Free Model ◽

The Relationship

Abstract. The behavior of the extratropical transition layer (ExTL) is investigated using a chemistry transport model (CTM) and analyses derived from assimilation of MLS (Microwave Limb Sounder) O3 and MOPITT (Measurements Of Pollution In The Troposphere) CO data. We firstly focus on a stratosphere–troposphere exchange (STE) case study that occurred on 15 August 2007 over the British Isles (50° N, 10° W). We evaluate the effect of data assimilation on the O3–CO correlations. It is shown that data assimilation disrupts the relationship in the transition region. When MLS O3 is assimilated, CO and O3 values are not consistent between each other, leading to unphysical correlations at the STE location. When MLS O3 and MOPITT CO assimilated fields are taken into account in the diagnostics the relationship happens to be more physical. We then use O3–CO correlations to quantify the effect of data assimilation on the height and depth of the ExTL. When the free-model run O3 and CO fields are used in the diagnostics, the ExTL distribution is found 1.1 km above the thermal tropopause and is 2.6 km wide (2σ). MOPITT CO analyses only slightly sharpen (by −0.02 km) and lower (by −0.2 km) the ExTL distribution. MLS O3 analyses provide an expansion (by +0.9 km) of the ExTL distribution, suggesting a more intense O3 mixing. However, the MLS O3 analyses ExTL distribution shows a maximum close to the thermal tropopause and a mean location closer to the thermal tropopause (+0.45 km). When MLS O3 and MOPITT CO analyses are used together, the ExTL shows a mean location that is the closest to the thermal tropopause (+0.16 km). We also extend the study at the global scale on 15 August 2007 and for the month of August 2007. MOPITT CO analyses still show a narrower chemical transition between stratosphere and troposphere than the free-model run. MLS O3 analyses move the ExTL toward the troposphere and broaden it. When MLS O3 analyses and MOPITT CO analyses are used together, the ExTL matches the thermal tropopause poleward of 50°.

Download Full-text