Water use trade-offs and optimal adaptations to pulse-driven arid ecosystems : Water use trade-offs in pulse-driven ecosystems

A series of experiments is presented investigating short term and long term changes of the nature of the response of rate of CO2 assimilation to intercellular p(CO2). The relationships between CO2 assimilation rate and biochemical components of leaf photosynthesis, such as ribulose-bisphosphate (RuP2) carboxylase-oxygenase activity and electron transport capacity are examined and related to current theory of CO2 assimilation in leaves of C3 species. It was found that the response of the rate of CO2 assimilation to irradiance, partial pressure of O2, p(O2), and temperature was different at low and high intercellular p(CO2), suggesting that CO2 assimilation rate is governed by different processes at low and high intercellular p(CO2). In longer term changes in CO2 assimilation rate, induced by different growth conditions, the initial slope of the response of CO2 assimilation rate to intercellular p(CO2) could be correlated to in vitro measurements of RuP2 carboxylase activity. Also, CO2 assimilation rate at high p(CO2) could be correlated to in vitro measurements of electron transport rate. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that CO2 assimilation rate is limited by the RuP2 saturated rate of the RuP2 carboxylase-oxygenase at low intercellular p(CO2) and by the rate allowed by RuP2 regeneration capacity at high intercellular p(CO2).

Understanding and predicting ecosystem functioning (e.g., carbon and water fluxes) and the role of soils in carbon storage requires an accurate assessment of plant rooting distributions. Here, in a comprehensive literature synthesis, we analyze rooting patterns for terrestrial biomes and compare distributions for various plant functional groups. We compiled a database of 250 root studies, subdividing suitable results into 11 biomes, and fitted the depth coefficient β to the data for each biome (Gale and Grigal 1987). β is a simple numerical index of rooting distribution based on the asymptotic equation Y=1-βd, where d = depth and Y = the proportion of roots from the surface to depth d. High values of β correspond to a greater proportion of roots with depth. Tundra, boreal forest, and temperate grasslands showed the shallowest rooting profiles (β=0.913, 0.943, and 0.943, respectively), with 80-90% of roots in the top 30 cm of soil; deserts and temperate coniferous forests showed the deepest profiles (β=0.975 and 0.976, respectively) and had only 50% of their roots in the upper 30 cm. Standing root biomass varied by over an order of magnitude across biomes, from approximately 0.2 to 5 kg m-2. Tropical evergreen forests had the highest root biomass (5 kg m-2), but other forest biomes and sclerophyllous shrublands were of similar magnitude. Root biomass for croplands, deserts, tundra and grasslands was below 1.5 kg m-2. Root/shoot (R/S) ratios were highest for tundra, grasslands, and cold deserts (ranging from 4 to 7); forest ecosystems and croplands had the lowest R/S ratios (approximately 0.1 to 0.5). Comparing data across biomes for plant functional groups, grasses had 44% of their roots in the top 10 cm of soil. (β=0.952), while shrubs had only 21% in the same depth increment (β=0.978). The rooting distribution of all temperate and tropical trees was β=0.970 with 26% of roots in the top 10 cm and 60% in the top 30 cm. Overall, the globally averaged root distribution for all ecosystems was β=0.966 (r 2=0.89) with approximately 30%, 50%, and 75% of roots in the top 10 cm, 20 cm, and 40 cm, respectively. We discuss the merits and possible shortcomings of our analysis in the context of root biomass and root functioning.