Summary
The influence of cold soil and snowcover on photosynthesis and conductance of Picea engelmannii and Pinus contorta was investigated early in the growing season in the Medicine Bow Mountains, Wyoming, USA. Trees of both species growing in cold soil (<1°C) associated with snowpack had 25–40% lower leaf photosynthesis than trees in warm soils (>10°C). In cold soils leaf conductance of both species was lower, but more so in Pinus, leading to lower intercellular CO2 concentrations and greater stomatal limitation of photosynthesis. Soil temperature had no effect on predawn and midday shoot water potentials of Pinus and Picea and lower photosynthesis and conductance did not appear to be a result of lower bulk shoot water potential. Predawn, as well as midday, water potentials of Pinus were consistently higher than Picea suggesting that Pinus may have deeper roots, although trenching experiments indicated young Picea trees have more extensive lateral root systems than similar sized Pinus trees. Young Picea trees (<2 m in height) in snowbanks were capable of utilizing warmer soil 4 m from their base. Under similar conditions Pinus in snowbanks had lower photosynthesis and conductance than controls and Pinus did not appear capable of utilizing warmer soils nearby. Under full sunlight, PPFD reflected from the snow surface was 400–1400 μmol m-2 s-1 higher than from snow-free surfaces. This reflected light resulted in a 10%–20% increase in photosynthesis of Picea. The beneficial effect of reflected light was apparent whether or not photosynthesis was reduced by low soil temperatures.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Andersen CP, Sucoff EI, Dixon RK (1986) Effects of root zone temperature on root initiation and elongation in red pine seedlings. Can J For Res 16:696–700
Ashton MJ, Lawlor DW (1979) The relationship between transpiration, root water uptake, and leaf water potential. J Exp Bot 30:169–181
Babalola O, Boersma L, Youngberg CT (1968) Phytosynthesis and transpiration of Monterey pine seedlings as a function of soil water suction and soil temperature. Plant Physiol 43:515–521
Bates LM, Hall AE (1981) Stomatal closure with soil water depletion not associated with changes in bulk leaf water status. Oecologia (Berlin) 50:62–65
Beadle CL, Jarvis PG, Talbot H, Neilson RE (1985) Stomatal conductance and photosynthesis in a mature scots pine forest. II. Dependence on environmental variables of single shoots. J Appl Ecol 22:573–586
Billings WD (1969) Vegetational pattern near timberline as affected by fire-snow drift interactions. Vegetatio 19:192–207
Blackman PG, Davies WJ (1985) Root to shoot communication in maize plants of the effects of soil drying. J Exp Bot 36:39–48
Bowen GD (1970) Effects of soil temperature on root growth and on phosphate uptake along Pinus radiata roots. Aust J Soil Res 8:31–42
Caemerer S von, Farquhar GD (1981) Some relationships between the biochemistry of photosynthesis and the gas exchange of leaves. Planta 153:376–387
Carter GA, Smith WK (1985) Influence of shoot structure on light interception and photosynthesis in conifers. Plant Physiol 79:1038–1043
Carter GA, Smith WK, Hadley JL (1988) Stomatal conductance in three conifer species at different elevations during summer in Wyoming. Can J For Res 18:242–246
Coutts MP (1980) Control of water loss by actively growing Sitka spruce seedlings after transplanting. J Exp Bot 31:1587–1597
Davies WJ, Metcalfe J, Lodge TA, daCosta AR (1986) Plant growth substances and the regulation of growth under drought. Aust J Plant Physiol 13:105–125
DeLucia EH (1986) Effect of low root temperature on net photosynthesis, stomatal conductance and carbohydrate concentration in Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmannii Parry ex Engelm.) seedlings. Tree Physiol 2:143–154
DeLucia EH (1987) The effect of freezing nights on photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, and internal CO2 concentration in seedlings of Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmannii Parry). Plant, Cell Environ 10:333–338
DeLucia EH, Smith WK (1987) Air and soil temperature limitations on photosynthesis in Engelmann spruce during summer. Can J For Res 17:527–533
Farquhar GD, Sharkey TD (1982) Stomatal conductance and photosynthesis. Annu Rev Plant Physiol 33:317–345
Fowells HA (1965) Silvics of forest trees of the United States. USDA Handbook No 271. Washington, DC
Grier CC, Vogt KA, Keyes MR, Edmonds RL (1981) Biomass distribution and above- and below-ground production in young and mature Abies amabilis zone ecosystems of the Washington Cascades. Can J For Res 11:155–167
Herold A (1980) Regulation of photosynthesis by sink activity —the missing link. New Phytol 86:133–144
Hinckley TM, Goldstein GH, Meinzer F, Teskey RO (1985) Environmental constraints at arctic, temperate-maritime and tropical treelines. In: Turner H, Tranquillini W (eds) Establishment and tending of subalpine forest: Research and Management. Proc 3rd IUFRO Workshop Eidg Anst Forstl Versuchswes, pp 21–30
Jurik TW, Briggs GM, Gates DM (1988) Springtime recovery of photosynthetic activity of white pine in Michigan. Can J Bot 66:138–141
Kaufmann MR (1975) Leaf water stress in Engelmann Spruce. Influence of the root and shoot environments. Plant Physiol 56:841–844
Kaufmann MR (1977) Soil temperature and drying cycle effects on water relations of Pinus radiata. Can J Bot 55:2413–2418
Knapp AK, Smith WK (1981) Water relations and succession in subalpine conifers in southeastern Wyoming. Bot Gaz 142:502–511
Kramer PJ (1942) Species differences with respect to water absorption at low soil temperatures. Am J Bot 29:828–832
Kramer PJ (1983) Water relations of plants. Academic Press, Orlando, FL, pp 489
Kuppers M, Hall AE, Schulze E-D (1982) Effects of day-to-day changes in root temperature on leaf conductance to water vapour and CO2 assimilation rates of Vigna unguiculata L. Walp. Oecologia (Berlin) 52:116–120
Lopushinsky W, Kaufmann MR (1984) Effects of cold soil on water relations and spring growth of Douglas-fir seedlings. For Sci 30:628–634
Oosting HF, Reid JF (1952) Virgin spruce-fir of the Medicine Bow Mountains, Wyoming. Ecol Monogr 22:69–91
Oquist G (1983) Effects of low temperature on photosynthesis. Plant, Cell Environ 6:281–300
Powles SB (1984) Photoinhibition of photosynthesis induced by visible light. Annu Rev Plant Physiol 35:15–44
Rosenberg NJ, Blad BL, Verma SB (1983) Microclimate. The biological environment. Wiley and Sons, New York, pp 495
Running SW, Reid CP (1980) Soil temperature influences on root resistance of Pinus contorta seedlings. Plant Physiol 65:635–640
Schulze E-D (1986) Carbon dioxide and water vapor exchange in response to drought in the atmosphere and in the soil. Annu Rev Plant Physiol 37:247–274
Smith WK (1985) Environmental limitations on leaf conductance in Central Rocky Mountain conifers, USA. In: Turner H, Tranquillini W (eds) Establishment and tending of subalpine forest: Research and Management. Proc 3rd IUFRO Workshop, Eidg Anst Forstl Versuchswes, pp 95–101
Smith WK, Carter GA (1988) Shoot structural effects on needle temperatures and photosynthesis in conifers. Am J Bot 75:496–500
Smith WK, Young DR, Carter GA, Hadley JL, McNaughton GM (1984) Autumn stomatal closure in six conifer species of the Central Rocky Mountains. Oecologia (Berlin) 63:237–242
Szawiawski RD, Wierzbicki B (1978) Net photosynthetic rate of some coniferous species at diffuse high irradiance. Photosynthetica 12:412–417
Teskey RO, Hinckley TM, Grier CC (1984) Temperature-induced change in the water relations of Abies amabilis (Dougl.) Forbes. Plant Physiol 74:77–80
Teskey RO, Grier CC, Hinckley TM (1985) Relation between root system size and water inflow capacity of Abies amabilis growing in a subalpine forest. Can J For Res 15:669–672
Turner NC (1986) Adaptation to water deficits: A changing perspective. Aust J Plant Physiol 13:175–190
Turner NC, Jarvis PG (1975) Photosynthesis in Sitaka spruce (Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr.). IV. Response to soil temperature. J Appl Ecol 12:561–576
Waggoner PE, Miller PM, DeRoo HC (1960) Plastic mulching-principles and benefits. Bull No 634. Conn Agric Exp Stn, New Haven
Watts WR, Neilson RE, Jarvis PG (1976) Photosynthesis in Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr.). VII. Measurement of stomatal conductance and 14CO2 uptake in a forest canopy. J Appl Ecol 13:623–638
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Day, T.A., DeLucia, E.H. & Smith, W.K. Influence of cold soil and snowcover on photosynthesis and leaf conductance in two Rocky Mountain conifers. Oecologia 80, 546–552 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00380080
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00380080