Current climate projections predict drier and warmer conditions in the Mediterranean basin over the next century. While advanced spring growth due to warming has been described in the literature, few data are available on the effects of drought on phenology. Hence, the phenology and growth of two Mediterranean shrubs, Erica multiflora and Globularia alypum, was studied in a rainfall exclusion field experiment to simulate spring drought in a natural shrubland. We estimated the onset of growth in spring by monitoring the appearance of new stems, and the end of growth in summer by following the elongation of stems. Drought treatment caused earlier onset of the spring growing season in E. multiflora, whereas no advance was observed in G. alypum. However, growth cessation was not affected in E. multiflora. Drought reduced the growth of both shrubs, as reflected in less stem elongation. The results show that a drier climate might affect not only growth but also spring phenology of some Mediterranean species. We suggest that a reduction in the cooling effect of transpiration may have analogous effects to warming and might advance the start of growth in E. multiflora, a species whose phenology has been described as warming‐sensitive. The lengthening of the growing season resulting from advanced growth did not imply higher productivity, as growth was restricted by drought.

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Climate models predict an increase in ultraviolet (UV) radiation and a reduction in precipitation in the Mediterranean region in the coming decades. High levels of UV radiation and water shortage can both cause photo-oxidative stress in plants. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of enhanced UV radiation and its interaction with low water availability on seedling performance, biomass production, and photoprotective mechanisms of the sclerophyllous evergreen species Laurus nobilis L. (laurel). To achieve this goal, one-year-old seedlings of L. nobilis were grown outdoors under three UV conditions (ambient UV, enhanced UV-A, and enhanced UV-A. +. UV-B) and under two watering regimes (watered to field capacity and reduced water supply). The results show that plants produced more biomass when exposed to above ambient levels of UV-A or UV-A. +. UV-B radiation, especially under low water availability. This was probably related to a UV-induced increase in leaf relative water content and in leaf water use efficiency under water shortage. Even though our results suggest that UV-A supplementation may play an important role in the stimulation of biomass production, plants grown under enhanced UV-A plots showed higher levels of energy dissipation as heat (measured as NPQ) and a higher de-epoxidation state of the violaxanthin cycle. This suggests a greater excess of light energy under UV-A supplementation, in accordance with the observed reduction in the foliar content of light-absorbing pigments in these plants. Strikingly, the addition of UV-B radiation mitigated these effects. In conclusion, UV enhancement might benefit water status and growth of L. nobilis seedlings, especially under low water availability. The results also indicate the activation of different plant response mechanisms to UV-A and UV-B radiation, which would interact to produce the overall plant responseThis research was supported by the following projects: CGL2007-64583, CGC2010-17172, Consolider Ingenio Montes (CSD2008-00040) and CGL2011-26977 funded by the Spanish Government and by the SGR 2009-458 project funded by the Catalan Governmen

To assess the effects of UV radiation and its interaction with water availability on Mediterranean plants, we performed an experiment with seedlings of six Mediterranean species (three mesophytes vs three xerophytes) grown in a glasshouse from May to October under three UV conditions (without UV, with UVA and with UVA+UVB) and two irrigation levels (watered to saturation and low watered). Morphological, physiological and biochemical measures were taken. Exposure to UVA+UVB increased the overall leaf mass per area (LMA) and the leaf carotenoids/chlorophyll a + b ratio of plants in relation to plants grown without UV or with UVA, respectively. In contrast, we did not find a general effect of UV on the leaf content of phenols or UVB-absorbing compounds of the studied species. Regarding plant growth, UV inhibited the above-ground biomass production of well-watered plants of Pistacia lentiscus. Conversely, under low irrigation, UVA tended to abolish the reduction in growth experienced by P. lentiscus plants growing in a UV-free environment, in accordance with UVA-enhanced apparent electron transport rate (ETR) values under drought in this species. UVA also induced an overall increase in root biomass when plants of the studied species were grown under a low water supply. In conclusion, while plant exposition to UVA favored root growth under water shortage, UVB addition only gave rise to photoprotective responses, such as the increase in LMA or in the leaf carotenoids/chlorophyll a + b ratio of plants. Species-specific responses to UV were not related with the xerophytic or mesophytic character of the studied species.

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This study examined the effects of the combination of UV radiation and water limitation on the leaf photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, and terpene emissions of four Mediterranean species. 1-year-old seedlings of these Mediterranean species [Daphne gnidium L., Pistacia lentiscus L., Ilex aquifolium L. and Laurus nobilis L.] were grown under one of three UV treatments (without UV, with UVA, or with UVA ? UVB) and two watering regimes (high and low water supply). In general, UV treatments did not affect significantly leaf photosynthesis or stomatal conductance, although UVA and UVB radiation in September led to a reduction in leaf stomatal conductance in D. gnidium. Leaf photosynthesis rates did not differ significantly between the two watering treatments, even though, in three of the species, leaf stomatal conductance was significantly higher among the well-watered plants. The effects of UV on terpene emissions were species-specific; D. gnidium had the highest terpene emission rates when grown under UVA ? UVB radiation, which was also true for L. nobilis in September. Overall, UV treatments did not have a significant effect on total terpene emission rates in I. aquifolium, but UVB and UVA in July and September, respectively, reduced emission rates in P. lentiscus. A limited water supply reduced the terpene emission rates in D. gnidium, increased emissions in L. nobilis, and did not affect the emission rates in the other two species.

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