Return on carbon investment for plant water transport tissues: functional life span matters

Abstract

Trees invest carbon in stem growth every year, and allocate the carbon to build xylem vessels, varying in length and diameter, which serve as a path for the transport of water and nutrients from the soil to the leaves. To assess the cost and benefits of carbon investment into xylem and the resulting hydraulic conductivity, we used a combination of two methods. The first was a novel method of measuring hydraulic conductivity under suction using a syringe pump. The second used dye and cryo-microscopy to determine the ratio and dimensions of conducting vessels in individual year rings. Using these methods, we were able to determine that for Fagus sylvatica , larger vessels did not have lower carbon costs per conductivity due to the shorter functional lifespan, whereas the hydraulic conductivity per cross-sectional area was not larger than smaller vessels. In fact, we found a greater wood density for samples with larger median vessel diameter, implying that larger vessels need more carbon for structural support. Here we present these findings and discuss the potential application of the methods to understand how plants adapt their xylem carbon allocation across species and environmental conditions.

Plant phenotyping relevance

植物の木部水輸送特性を測定する新規手法と染色・低温顕微鏡法が研究の中心であり、植物生理形質の取得方法を扱っているため。

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