Effects of elevated CO(2) concentration and nutrition on net photosynthesis, stomatal conductance and needle respiration of field-grown Norway spruce trees.

To study the effects of elevated CO(2) on gas exchange, nonstructural carbohydrate and nutrient concentrations in current-year foliage of 30-year-old Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) trees, branches were enclosed in ventilated, transparent plastic bags and flushed with ambient air (mean 370 &mgr;mol CO(2) mol(-1); control) or ambient air + 340 &mgr;mol CO(2) mol(-1) (elevated CO(2)) during two growing seasons. One branch bag was installed on each of 24 selected trees from control and fertilized plots. To reduce the effect of variation among trees, results from each treated branch were compared with those from a control branch on the same whorl of the same tree. Elevated CO(2) increased rates of light-saturated photosynthesis on average by 55% when measured at the treatment CO(2) concentration. The increase was larger in shoots with high needle nitrogen concentrations than in shoots with low needle nitrogen concentrations. However, shoots grown in elevated CO(2) showed a decrease in photosynthetic capacity compared with shoots grown in ambient CO(2). When measured at the internal CO(2) concentration of 200 &mgr;mol CO(2) mol(-1), photosynthetic rates of branches in the elevated CO(2) treatments were reduced by 8 to 32%. The elevated CO(2) treatment caused a 9 to 20% reduction in carboxylation efficiency and an 18% increase in respiration rates. In response to elevated CO(2), starch, fructose and glucose concentrations in the needles increased on average 33%, whereas concentrations of potassium, nitrogen, phosphorus, magnesium and boron decreased. Needle nitrogen concentrations explained 50-60% of the variation in photosynthesis and CO(2) acclimation was greater at low nitrogen concentrations than at high nitrogen concentrations. We conclude that the enhanced photosynthetic rates found in shoots exposed to elevated CO(2) increased carbohydrate concentrations, which may have a negative feedback on the photosynthetic apparatus and stimulate cyanide-resistant respiration. We also infer that the decrease in nutrient concentrations of needles exposed to elevated CO(2) was the result of retranslocation of nutrients to other parts of the branch or tree.

[1]  G. Watts,et al.  Climate Change 1995 , 1998 .

[2]  S. Linder,et al.  The effect of nutrition on the seasonal course of needle respiration in Norway spruce stands , 1998, Trees.

[3]  Peter S. Curtis,et al.  A meta‐analysis of leaf gas exchange and nitrogen in trees grown under elevated carbon dioxide , 1996 .

[4]  R. Moss,et al.  Climate change 1995 - impacts, adaptations and mitigation of climate change : scientific-technical analyses , 1997 .

[5]  S. Liu,et al.  Responses of foliar gas exchange to long-term elevated CO(2) concentrations in mature loblolly pine trees. , 1995, Tree physiology.

[6]  C. Körner,et al.  CO2 responsiveness of plants: a possible link to phloem loading , 1995 .

[7]  E. Laitat,et al.  Comparative Response on Gas Exchange of Picea Spp. Exposed to Increased Atmospheric CO 2 in Open Top Chambers at Two Test Sites , 1995 .

[8]  S. Linder.  Foliar analysis for detecting and correcting nutrient imbalances in Norway spruce , 1995 .

[9]  D. Hollinger,et al.  External and internal factors regulating photosynthesis , 1995 .

[10]  Reinhart Ceulemans,et al.  Tansley Review No. 71 Effects of elevated atmospheric CO2on woody plants , 1994 .

[11]  Stan D. Wullschleger,et al.  Respiratory responses of higher plants to atmospheric CO2 enrichment , 1994 .

[12]  P. Jarvis,et al.  A branch bag and CO2 control system for long-term CO2 enrichment of mature Sitka spruce [Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr.] , 1993 .

[13]  D. Tissue,et al.  Long‐term effects of elevated CO2 and nutrients on photosynthesis and rubisco in loblolly pine seedlings , 1993 .

[14]  Leon Hartwell Allen,et al.  Field techniques for exposure of plants and ecosystems to elevated CO2 and other trace gases , 1992 .

[15]  B. Drake.  The impact of rising CO2 on ecosystem production , 1992 .

[16]  B. Saugier,et al.  The Direct Effect of Increased CO2 on Gas Exchange and Growth of Forest Tree Species , 1992 .

[17]  S. Linder,et al.  Environmental and Physiological Constraints to Forest Yield , 1992 .

[18]  Hendrik Poorter,et al.  A Quantitative-Analysis of Dark Respiration and Carbon Content as Factors in the Growth-Response of Plants to Elevated CO2 , 1992 .

[19]  M. Stitt.  Rising Co2 Levels and Their Potential Significance for Carbon Flow in Photosynthetic Cells , 1991 .

[20]  A. O. Lawanson,et al.  Boron Stress and Mitochondrial Quinone Accumulation in Zea mays Seedlings , 1991 .

[21]  M. Theodorou,et al.  Effects of Phosphorus Limitation on Respiratory Metabolism in the Green Alga Selenastrum minutum. , 1991, Plant physiology.

[22]  M. P. Costella,et al.  A branch exposure chamber for fumigating ponderosa pine to atmospheric pollution , 1991 .

[23]  H. Helmisaari.  Temporal variation in nutrient concentrations of Pinus sylvestris needles , 1990 .

[24]  P. Jarvis,et al.  The Direct Effects of Increase in the Global Atmospheric CO2 Concentration on Natural and Commercial Temperate Trees and Forests , 1989 .

[25]  J. Norman,et al.  CO2 response curves can be measured with a field-portable closed-loop photosynthesis system , 1989 .

[26]  J. Leverenz.  Chlorophyll content and the light response curve of shade‐adapted conifer needles , 1987 .

[27]  R. Walker,et al.  The use of the oxygen electrode and fluorescence probes in simple measurements of photosynthesis , 1987 .

[28]  H. Marschner.  Mineral Nutrition of Higher Plants , 1988 .

[29]  Kjell Larsson,et al.  CARBOHYDRATES IN ROOTS AND RHIZOMES OF PERENNIAL GRASSES , 1986 .

[30]  P. M. Tang,et al.  The transport of indole-3-acetic Acid in boron- and calcium-deficient sunflower hypocotyl segments. , 1986, Plant physiology.

[31]  J. Morison,et al.  Sensitivity of stomata and water use efficiency to high CO2 , 1985 .

[32]  H. Lambers,et al.  Effect of photosynthesis and carbohydrate status on respiratory rates and the involvement of the alternative pathway in leaf respiration. , 1983, Plant physiology.

[33]  E. J. Hewitt,et al.  Principles of plant nutrition , 1979, Nature.

[34]  W. Oechel,et al.  The effect of climate on the photosynthesis of Picea mariana at the subarctic tree line. 1. Field measurements , 1975 .