J. Cavender-bares et Fa. Bazzaz, Changes in drought response strategies with ontogeny in Quercus rubra: implications for scaling from seedlings to mature trees, OECOLOGIA, 124(1), 2000, pp. 8-18
We investigated scaling of physiological parameters between age classes of
Quercus rubra by combining in situ field measurements with an experimental
approach. In the in situ field study, we investigated changes in drought re
sponse with age in seedlings, juveniles, and mature trees of Q. rubra. Thro
ughout the particularly dry summer of 1995 and the unusually wet summer of
1996 in New England, we measured water potential of leaves (Psi(Leaf)) and
gas exchange of plants at three sites at the Harvard Forest in Petersham, M
assachusetts. In order to determine what fraction of the measured differenc
es in gas exchange between seedlings and mature trees was due to environmen
t versus ontogeny, an experiment was conducted in which seedlings were grow
n under light and soil moisture regimes simulating the environment of matur
e trees. The photosynthetic capacity of mature trees was three-fold greater
than that of seedlings during the wet year, and six-fold greater during th
e drought year. The seedling experiment demonstrated that the difference in
photosynthetic capacity between seedlings and mature trees is comprised eq
ually of an environmental component (50%) and an ontogenetic component (50%
) in the absence of water limitation. Photosynthesis was depressed more sev
erely in seedlings than in mature trees in the drought year relative to the
wet year, while juveniles showed an intermediate response. Throughout the
drought, the predawn leaf water potential (Psi(PD)) of seedlings became inc
reasingly negative (-0.4 to -1.6 MPa), while that of mature trees became on
ly slightly more negative (-0.2 to -0.5 MPa). Again, juveniles showed an in
termediate response (-0.25 to -0.8 MPa). During the wet summer of 1996, how
ever, there was no difference in Psi(PD) between seedlings, juveniles and m
ature trees. During the dry summer of 1995, seedlings were more responsive
to a major rain event than mature trees in terms of Psi(Leaf), suggesting t
hat the two age classes depend on different water sources. In all age class
es, instantaneous measurements of intrinsic water use efficiency (WUEi), de
fined as C assimilation rate divided by stomatal conductance, increased as
the drought progressed, and all age classes halt higher WUEi during the dro
ught year than in the wet year. Mature trees, however, showed a greater abi
lity to increase their WUEi in response to drought. Integrated measurements
of WUE from C isotope discrimination (Delta) of leaves indicated higher WU
E in mature trees than juveniles and seedlings. Differences between years,
however, could not be distinguished, probably due to the strong bias in C i
sotope fractionation at the time of leaf production, which occurred prior t
o the onset of drought conditions in 1995. From this study, we arrive at tw
o main conclusions:
1. Different age classes of Q. rubra use different strategies for respondin
g to drought. Seedlings resist drought by closing stomata early in the day
at the expense of C uptake; mature trees avoid drought conditions by access
ing deeper water reserves and adjusting WUE.
2. Only through studies which separate environmental differences from ontog
enetic differences can parameters measured on seedlings be scaled to mature
trees.