TY  - JOUR
A1  - Kumar, Manish
A1  - Waite, Pierre-André
A1  - Paligi, Sharath Shyamappa
A1  - Schuldt, Bernhard
T1  - Influence of juvenile growth on xylem safety and efficiency in three temperate tree species
JF  - Forests
N2  - The evolution of the internal water transport system was a prerequisite for high plant productivity. In times of climate change, understanding the dependency of juvenile growth on xylem hydraulic physiology is therefore of high importance. Here, we explored various wood anatomical, hydraulic, and leaf morphological traits related to hydraulic safety and efficiency in three temperate broadleaved tree species (Acer pseudoplatanus, Betula pendula, and Sorbus aucuparia). We took advantage of a severe natural heat wave that resulted in different climatic growing conditions for even-aged plants from the same seed source growing inside a greenhouse and outside. Inside the greenhouse, the daily maximum vapour pressure deficit was on average 36% higher than outside during the growing seasons. Because of the higher atmospheric moisture stress, the biomass production differed up to 5.6-fold between both groups. Except for one species, a high productivity was associated with a high hydraulic efficiency caused by large xylem vessels and a large, supported leaf area. Although no safety-efficiency trade-off was observed, productivity was significantly related to P\(_{50}\) in two of the tree species but without revealing any clear pattern. A considerable plasticity in given traits was observed between both groups, with safety-related traits being more static while efficiency-related traits revealed a higher intra-specific plasticity. This was associated with other wood anatomical and leaf morphological adjustments. We confirm that a high hydraulic efficiency seems to be a prerequisite for a high biomass production, while our controversial results on the growth–xylem safety relationship confirm that safety-efficiency traits are decoupled and that their relationship with juvenile growth and water regime is species-specific.
KW  - hydraulic efficiency
KW  - biomass
KW  - growth rate
KW  - hydraulic variability
KW  - phenotypic plasticity
KW  - safety-efficiency trade-off
KW  - vulnerability curve
Y1  - 2022
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-278889
SN  - 1999-4907
VL  - 13
IS  - 6
ER  -