Simulated climate warming decreases fruit number but increases seed mass

Abstract

Global surface air temperatures have risen approximately 1°C above pre-industrial levels, and the climate warming is expected to reach 3.3-5.7°C above pre-industrial levels by the end of the 21st century (IPCC, 2021). A growing body of evidence is showing that climate warming changes plant sexual reproduction performance, including flowering phenology and reproductive effort (the proportion of the resources of an organism allocated to reproduction, e.g., flower number) and success (the final outcome of resource investment, e.g., fruit and/or seed number) (

Growth-survival trade-offs and the restoration of non-forested open ecosystems

“…Relative growth rate (cm⋅cm maximum tussock basal diameter instead of maximum absolute diameter because the latter is a highly variable measure that is easily influenced by environmental factors such as wind, which can affect tussock shape. In addition, to evaluate sexual reproductive effort of planted individuals, we counted the number of floral displays on each individual (Zi et al, 2022). Depending on the plant species, a floral display consisted of a single flower (e.g., F. procumbens), a flower head (e.g., L. argentea), or a group of flowers that together formed a recognisable visual unit such as spikes and panicles (e.g., C. arenaria; Hegland and Totland, 2005).…”