Direct and Indirect Effects of Environmental Limitations on White Spruce Xylem Anatomy at Treeline
Treeline ecosystems are of great scientific interest to study the effects of limiting environmental conditions on tree growth. However, tree growth is multidimensional, with complex interactions between height and radial growth. In this study, we aimed to disentangle effects of height and climate on...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2021-10-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Plant Science |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2021.748055/full |
| _version_ | 1819003216892788736 |
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| author | Timo Pampuch Alba Anadon-Rosell Alba Anadon-Rosell Mario Trouillier Jelena Lange Jelena Lange Martin Wilmking |
| author_facet | Timo Pampuch Alba Anadon-Rosell Alba Anadon-Rosell Mario Trouillier Jelena Lange Jelena Lange Martin Wilmking |
| author_sort | Timo Pampuch |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Treeline ecosystems are of great scientific interest to study the effects of limiting environmental conditions on tree growth. However, tree growth is multidimensional, with complex interactions between height and radial growth. In this study, we aimed to disentangle effects of height and climate on xylem anatomy of white spruce [Picea glauca (Moench) Voss] at three treeline sites in Alaska; i.e., one warm and drought-limited, and two cold, temperature-limited. To analyze general growth differences between trees from different sites, we used data on annual ring width, diameter at breast height (DBH), and tree height. A representative subset of the samples was used to investigate xylem anatomical traits. We then used linear mixed-effects models to estimate the effects of height and climatic variables on our study traits. Our study showed that xylem anatomical traits in white spruce can be directly and indirectly controlled by environmental conditions: hydraulic-related traits seem to be mainly influenced by tree height, especially in the earlywood. Thus, they are indirectly driven by environmental conditions, through the environment’s effects on tree height. Traits related to mechanical support show a direct response to environmental conditions, mainly temperature, especially in the latewood. These results highlight the importance of assessing tree growth in a multidimensional way by considering both direct and indirect effects of environmental forcing to better understand the complexity of tree growth responses to the environment. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-20T23:17:29Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-37776a8dba3840d79840f71d7df8e406 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-462X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-20T23:17:29Z |
| publishDate | 2021-10-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Plant Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-37776a8dba3840d79840f71d7df8e4062022-12-21T19:23:36ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Plant Science1664-462X2021-10-011210.3389/fpls.2021.748055748055Direct and Indirect Effects of Environmental Limitations on White Spruce Xylem Anatomy at TreelineTimo Pampuch0Alba Anadon-Rosell1Alba Anadon-Rosell2Mario Trouillier3Jelena Lange4Jelena Lange5Martin Wilmking6Institute of Botany and Landscape Ecology, University Greifswald, Greifswald, GermanyInstitute of Botany and Landscape Ecology, University Greifswald, Greifswald, GermanyCREAF – Centre for Research on Ecology and Forestry Applications, Barcelona, SpainInstitute of Botany and Landscape Ecology, University Greifswald, Greifswald, GermanyInstitute of Botany and Landscape Ecology, University Greifswald, Greifswald, GermanyDepartment of Physical Geography and Geoecology, Charles University in Prague, Prague, CzechiaInstitute of Botany and Landscape Ecology, University Greifswald, Greifswald, GermanyTreeline ecosystems are of great scientific interest to study the effects of limiting environmental conditions on tree growth. However, tree growth is multidimensional, with complex interactions between height and radial growth. In this study, we aimed to disentangle effects of height and climate on xylem anatomy of white spruce [Picea glauca (Moench) Voss] at three treeline sites in Alaska; i.e., one warm and drought-limited, and two cold, temperature-limited. To analyze general growth differences between trees from different sites, we used data on annual ring width, diameter at breast height (DBH), and tree height. A representative subset of the samples was used to investigate xylem anatomical traits. We then used linear mixed-effects models to estimate the effects of height and climatic variables on our study traits. Our study showed that xylem anatomical traits in white spruce can be directly and indirectly controlled by environmental conditions: hydraulic-related traits seem to be mainly influenced by tree height, especially in the earlywood. Thus, they are indirectly driven by environmental conditions, through the environment’s effects on tree height. Traits related to mechanical support show a direct response to environmental conditions, mainly temperature, especially in the latewood. These results highlight the importance of assessing tree growth in a multidimensional way by considering both direct and indirect effects of environmental forcing to better understand the complexity of tree growth responses to the environment.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2021.748055/fullboreal forestconduit reinforcementdrought limitationhydraulic stabilityPicea glaucatemperature limitation |
| spellingShingle | Timo Pampuch Alba Anadon-Rosell Alba Anadon-Rosell Mario Trouillier Jelena Lange Jelena Lange Martin Wilmking Direct and Indirect Effects of Environmental Limitations on White Spruce Xylem Anatomy at Treeline Frontiers in Plant Science boreal forest conduit reinforcement drought limitation hydraulic stability Picea glauca temperature limitation |
| title | Direct and Indirect Effects of Environmental Limitations on White Spruce Xylem Anatomy at Treeline |
| title_full | Direct and Indirect Effects of Environmental Limitations on White Spruce Xylem Anatomy at Treeline |
| title_fullStr | Direct and Indirect Effects of Environmental Limitations on White Spruce Xylem Anatomy at Treeline |
| title_full_unstemmed | Direct and Indirect Effects of Environmental Limitations on White Spruce Xylem Anatomy at Treeline |
| title_short | Direct and Indirect Effects of Environmental Limitations on White Spruce Xylem Anatomy at Treeline |
| title_sort | direct and indirect effects of environmental limitations on white spruce xylem anatomy at treeline |
| topic | boreal forest conduit reinforcement drought limitation hydraulic stability Picea glauca temperature limitation |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2021.748055/full |
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