Phenology, Lignotubers, and Water Relations of <i>Cochlospermum vitifolium</i>, a Pioneer Tropical Dry Forest Tree in Costa Rica

Fallas‐Cedeño, Lottie; Holbrook, N. Michèle; Rocha, Óscar J.; Vásquez, Nelly; Gutiérrez‐Soto, Marco V.

doi:10.1111/j.1744-7429.2009.00539.x

Cited by 20 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 51 publications

(100 reference statements)

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“…Reproductive tissues can be hydrated by stored stem water during dry periods in a wide variety of plants, especially species in dry, tropical forests (Borchert, ; Fallas‐Cedeño et al., ; Franklin, ), but ocotillo appears to be unique among this group in combining stem succulence with documented repetitive drought deciduousness, a non‐CAM, C 3 photosynthetic pathway, and nonxeromorphic leaves. Although it is possible that stored stem water is also capable of contributing to the maintenance of vegetative tissues in ocotillo, consistently hydrating reproductive tissues every year at a time that maximizes pollination and potential germination success appears to be a primary function of this trait.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stem succulence controls flower and fruit production but not stem growth in the desert shrub ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens)

Killingbeck

2019

American J of Botany

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Premise of the Study The C3 desert shrub ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens) completely lacks xeromorphic leaves but is uncommonly both stem succulent and repetitively drought deciduous (documented to have produced many foliation–defoliation cycles during a growing season). Both adaptations conserve water in this xerophyte, but are the roles of succulence and deciduousness merely redundant? The observation that year‐to‐year reproductive effort was relatively consistent while vegetative growth was not offered a critical clue that, coupled with long‐term precipitation data, helped answer this question. Methods At two sites in the Chihuahuan Desert in southern New Mexico, United States, 22 ocotillos were studied annually for more than two decades to explore the relationships among reproductive effort, vegetative stem growth, and patterns of precipitation. Key Results Vegetative stem growth occurred in mid‐ to late summer (July–September), the season of maximum precipitation in the Chihuahuan Desert, and was significantly related to summer precipitation received in the year of growth. Reproductive effort occurred in early to late spring (April–June), which with winter account for minimum precipitation during the year, but was significantly related to summer precipitation received in the previous year, suggesting the importance of stem succulence and stored water. Conclusions While highly variable summer precipitation was responsible for enormous fluctuations in annual ocotillo stem growth, stem succulence insulated reproductive effort from such immense variability. Stem‐stored water allowed the production of flowers and fruits to proceed relatively consistently during the driest years and during the driest time of year in the Chihuahuan Desert.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stem succulence controls flower and fruit production but not stem growth in the desert shrub ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens)

Killingbeck

2019

American J of Botany

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“…(i) Softwood species tend to shed their leaves early in the dry season. Leaf abscission begins shortly after the rains stop, in response to the first signs of soil water shortage (Reich and Borchert, 1984;Borchert, 1994;Machado et al, 1997;Singh and Kushwaha, 2005a;Fallas-Cedeno et al, 2010;Lima and Rodal, 2010). The plants enter a dormant state but maintain a relatively high stem water potential (Borchert and Rivera, 2001).…”

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confidence: 99%

Climatic, ecophysiological, and phenological controls on plant ecohydrological strategies in seasonally dry ecosystems

et al. 2014

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Large areas in the tropics and at mid‐latitudes experience pronounced seasonality and inter‐annual variability in rainfall and hence water availability. Despite the importance of these seasonally dry ecosystems (SDEs) for the global carbon cycling and in providing ecosystem services, a unifying ecohydrological framework to interpret the effects of climatic variability on SDEs is still lacking. A synthesis of existing data about plant functional adaptations in SDEs, covering some 400 species, shows that leaf phenological variations, rather than physiological traits, provide the dominant control on plant‐water‐carbon interactions. Motivated by this result, the combined implications of leaf phenology and climatic variability on plant water use strategies are here explored with a minimalist model of the coupled soil water and plant carbon balances. The analyses are extended to five locations with different hydroclimatic forcing, spanning seasonally dry tropical climates (without temperature seasonality) and Mediterranean climates (exhibiting out of phase seasonal patterns of rainfall and temperature). The most beneficial leaf phenology in terms of carbon uptake depends on the climatic regime: evergreen species are favoured by short dry seasons or access to persistent water stores, whereas high inter‐annual variability of rainy season duration favours the coexistence of multiple drought‐deciduous phenological strategies. We conclude that drought‐deciduousness may provide a competitive advantage in face of predicted declines in rainfall totals, while reduced seasonality and access to deep water stores may favour evergreen species. This article has been contributed to by US Government employees and their work is in the public domain in the USA.

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“…Brachychiton megaphyllus well exemplifies these issues. Our study places it in that group of deciduous woody plants whose phenologies strongly correspond with seasonal patterns of rainfall yet are neither directly driven by severe desiccation (Borchert 1983, Choat et al 2006, Fallas-Cedeno et al 2010) nor strongly responsive to additional sources of moisture (Myers et al 1998, Wright & Cornejo 1990).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

“…The phenomenon of woody plants flowering while leafless during the tropical dry season has long intrigued ecologists (Janzen 1967, Murphy & Lugo 1986, van Schaik et al 1993). These plants shed their leaves early in the dry season before substantial water stress occurs (Choat et al 2006, Fallas-Cedeno et al 2010, Wright & Cornejo 1990) rather than later in the dry season in response to water stress. This leaf shedding triggers an improvement in their water status and there is evidence that this improvement can be a cue to flowering (Borchert 1983, 1994a, b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Leaflessness limits a plant's ability to take up moisture from soil (Worbes et al 2013). However, during the tropical dry season, leafless plants may compensate by transpiration though tap roots (Scholz et al 2008) or by having thickened leaves, stems or roots that permit water to be stored (Borchert 1994a, Bullock & Solis-Magallanes 1990, Fallas-Cedeno et al 2010, Worbes et al 2013). Even in these cases, this raises the question: if water supplies are adequate for flowering and fruiting but not for leaf retention as well, is the availability of water a constraint on the extent of flowering or fruiting and the timing of re-leafing?…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Limited impact of irrigation on the phenology ofBrachychiton megaphyllus: a deciduous shrub that flowers while leafless during the tropical dry season

Bate

Franklin

2015

J. Trop. Ecol.

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Abstract:A suite of woody plants inhabiting the seasonally dry tropics flower while leafless during the dry season, raising intriguing questions about the role of moisture limitation in shaping their phenology. Brachychiton megaphyllus is one such species, a shrub of open forests and savannas in northern Australia. We documented leaf and reproductive phenology of 14 shrubs, and irrigated a further 15, to determine if soil moisture affected leafiness and reproductive activity. Brachychiton megaphyllus showed first flower buds shortly after the cessation of wet-season rains, and budded and flowered throughout the dry season. In some plants, leaf flush occurred prior to the first rains. Rates of fruit set and maturity were very low. Irrigation did not significantly influence leaf shoot or subsequent canopy development. Contrary to expectation, irrigation decreased the production of buds and flowers though it had no impact on the production of fruit, a response for which we suggest a number of hypotheses. Phenological responses to irrigation may have been limited because B. megaphyllus responds primarily to cues other than soil moisture and is buffered against seasonal drought by a large tap root. This suggests mechanisms by which flowering while leafless may occur in a range of species.

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Phenology, Lignotubers, and Water Relations of Cochlospermum vitifolium, a Pioneer Tropical Dry Forest Tree in Costa Rica

Cited by 20 publications

References 51 publications

Stem succulence controls flower and fruit production but not stem growth in the desert shrub ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens)

Stem succulence controls flower and fruit production but not stem growth in the desert shrub ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens)

Climatic, ecophysiological, and phenological controls on plant ecohydrological strategies in seasonally dry ecosystems

Limited impact of irrigation on the phenology ofBrachychiton megaphyllus: a deciduous shrub that flowers while leafless during the tropical dry season

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