Water relations of baobab trees (Adansonia spp. L.) during the rainy season: does stem water buffer daily water deficits? - PubMed

Water relations of baobab trees (Adansonia spp. L.) during the rainy season: does stem water buffer daily water deficits?

Saharah Moon Chapotin et al. Plant Cell Environ. 2006 Jun.

Free article

Abstract

Baobab trees are often cited in the literature as water-storing trees, yet few studies have examined this assumption. We assessed the role of stored water in buffering daily water deficits in two species of baobabs (Adansonia rubrostipa Jum. and H. Perrier and Adansonia za Baill.) in a tropical dry forest in Madagascar. We found no lag in the daily onset of sap flow between the base and the crown of the tree. Some night-time sap flow occurred, but this was more consistent with a pattern of seasonal stem water replenishment than with diurnal usage. Intrinsic capacitance of both leaf and stem tissue (0.07-0.08 and 1.1-1.43 MPa(-1), respectively) was high, yet the amount of water that could be withdrawn before turgor loss was small because midday leaf and stem water potentials (WPs) were near the turgor-loss points. Stomatal conductance was high in the daytime but then declined rapidly, suggesting an embolism-avoidance strategy. Although the xylem of distal branches was relatively vulnerable to cavitation (P50: 1.1-1.7 MPa), tight stomatal control and minimum WPs near--1.0 MPa maintained native embolism levels at 30-65%. Stem morphology and anatomy restrict water movement between storage tissues and the conductive pathway, making stored-water usage more appropriate to longer-term water deficits than as a buffer against daily water deficits.

Similar articles

• Baobab trees (Adansonia) in Madagascar use stored water to flush new leaves but not to support stomatal opening before the rainy season.

  Chapotin SM, Razanameharizaka JH, Holbrook NM. Chapotin SM, et al. New Phytol. 2006;169(3):549-59. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2005.01618.x. New Phytol. 2006. PMID: 16411957

• Water relations in tree physiology: where to from here?

  Landsberg J, Waring R, Ryan M. Landsberg J, et al. Tree Physiol. 2017 Jan 31;37(1):18-32. doi: 10.1093/treephys/tpw102. Tree Physiol. 2017. PMID: 28173481 Review.

• Hydraulic differences along the water transport system of South American Nothofagus species: do leaves protect the stem functionality?

  Bucci SJ, Scholz FG, Campanello PI, Montti L, Jimenez-Castillo M, Rockwell FA, Manna LL, Guerra P, Bernal PL, Troncoso O, Enricci J, Holbrook MN, Goldstein G. Bucci SJ, et al. Tree Physiol. 2012 Jul;32(7):880-93. doi: 10.1093/treephys/tps054. Epub 2012 Jun 8. Tree Physiol. 2012. PMID: 22684354

• Seasonal patterns of leaf gas exchange and water relations in dry rain forest trees of contrasting leaf phenology.

  Choat B, Ball MC, Luly JG, Donnelly CF, Holtum JA. Choat B, et al. Tree Physiol. 2006 May;26(5):657-64. doi: 10.1093/treephys/26.5.657. Tree Physiol. 2006. PMID: 16452079

• Searching for the oldest baobab of Madagascar: radiocarbon investigation of large Adansonia rubrostipa trees.

  Patrut A, von Reden KF, Danthu P, Pock-Tsy JM, Patrut RT, Lowy DA. Patrut A, et al. PLoS One. 2015 Mar 25;10(3):e0121170. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0121170. eCollection 2015. PLoS One. 2015. PMID: 25806967 Free PMC article.

Cited by

• Photosynthetic thermotolerance of woody savanna species in China is correlated with leaf life span.

  Zhang JL, Poorter L, Hao GY, Cao KF. Zhang JL, et al. Ann Bot. 2012 Oct;110(5):1027-33. doi: 10.1093/aob/mcs172. Epub 2012 Aug 7. Ann Bot. 2012. PMID: 22875810 Free PMC article.

• Rhizophoraceae Mangrove Saplings Use Hypocotyl and Leaf Water Storage Capacity to Cope with Soil Water Salinity Changes.

  Lechthaler S, Robert EM, Tonné N, Prusova A, Gerkema E, Van As H, Koedam N, Windt CW. Lechthaler S, et al. Front Plant Sci. 2016 Jun 27;7:895. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2016.00895. eCollection 2016. Front Plant Sci. 2016. PMID: 27446125 Free PMC article.

• Patterns of deep fine root and water utilization amongst trees, shrubs and herbs in subtropical pine plantations with seasonal droughts.

  Jiang P, Yan J, Liu R, Zhang X, Fan S. Jiang P, et al. Front Plant Sci. 2023 Sep 20;14:1275464. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1275464. eCollection 2023. Front Plant Sci. 2023. PMID: 37799557 Free PMC article.

• The Role of Hydraulic Failure in a Massive Mangrove Die-Off Event.

  Gauthey A, Backes D, Balland J, Alam I, Maher DT, Cernusak LA, Duke NC, Medlyn BE, Tissue DT, Choat B. Gauthey A, et al. Front Plant Sci. 2022 Apr 27;13:822136. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.822136. eCollection 2022. Front Plant Sci. 2022. PMID: 35574083 Free PMC article.

• Not All Trees Sleep the Same-High Temporal Resolution Terrestrial Laser Scanning Shows Differences in Nocturnal Plant Movement.

  Zlinszky A, Molnár B, Barfod AS. Zlinszky A, et al. Front Plant Sci. 2017 Oct 20;8:1814. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2017.01814. eCollection 2017. Front Plant Sci. 2017. PMID: 29104583 Free PMC article.

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

LinkOut - more resources

• Full Text Sources

  • Wiley

• Research Materials

  • NCI CPTC Antibody Characterization Program

• Miscellaneous

  • NCI CPTAC Assay Portal