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Rapid root responses of seedlings exposed to a postdrought water pulse
- Source :
- American journal of botany. 104(12)
- Publication Year :
- 2017
-
Abstract
- PREMISE OF THE STUDY Mediterranean-type climate ecosystems experience significant variability in precipitation within and across years and may be characterized by periods of extreme drought followed by a brief, high-intensity precipitation pulse. Rapid root growth could be a key factor in effective utilization of precipitation pulses, leading to higher rates of seedling establishment. Changes in root growth rate are rarely studied, however, and patterns in seedling root traits are not well explored. We investigated the influence of an extreme postdrought precipitation event on seedlings that occur in southern California coastal sage scrub. METHODS We measured root elongation rate, root tip appearance rate, new leaf appearance rate, and canopy growth rate on 18 mediterranean species from three growth forms. KEY RESULTS Root elongation rate responded more strongly to the precipitation pulse than did root tip appearance rate and either metric of aboveground growth. The majority of species exhibited a significant change in root growth rate within 1 week of the pulse. Responses varied in rapidity and magnitude across species, however, and were not generally predictable based on growth form. CONCLUSIONS While the majority of species exhibited shifts in belowground growth following the pulse, the direction and magnitude of these morphological responses were highly variable within growth form. Understanding the implications of these different response strategies for plant fitness is a crucial next step to forecasting community dynamics within ecosystems characterized by resource pulses.
- Subjects :
- 0106 biological sciences
Canopy
Mediterranean climate
Plant Science
010603 evolutionary biology
01 natural sciences
Plant Roots
Magnoliopsida
Species Specificity
Genetics
Ecosystem
Growth rate
Precipitation
Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
biology
Coastal sage scrub
Water
15. Life on land
biology.organism_classification
Agronomy
Seedling
Seedlings
Elongation
Introduced Species
010606 plant biology & botany
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 15372197
- Volume :
- 104
- Issue :
- 12
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- American journal of botany
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....a582d012a45824633d2b64aa430e63b8