Water Absorption by the Aerial Organs of Plants

Vaadia, Yoash; Waisel, Y.

doi:10.1111/j.1399-3054.1963.tb08287.x

Cited by 44 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…However, our shoot immersion experiment showed that the rate of leaf water uptake was not influenced by soil water content. Vaadia and Waisel (1963) conducted a leaf immersion experiment with Helianthus annuus and Pinus halepensis and found water-stressed plants to absorb water even slower than unstressed ones. These results led the authors to suggest that a reduction in leaf conductivity to water under stressed conditions could offset the expected increase in the water flow gradient across the leaf surface.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of soil water availability on foliar water uptake of Araucaria angustifolia

et al. 2015

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Background and aims Foliar water uptake has been reported for different species, including conifers living in drought-prone environments. We conducted three experiments to determine whether leaves might absorb mist water and how this affects the water relations of well-watered and water-stressed young plants of Araucaria angustifolia. Methods Three independent experiments were conducted using well-watered and water-stressed plants: immersion of shoot in water for the quantification of water uptake, the short-term exposure of plants to deuteriumenriched artificial mist, followed by the evaluation of plant water status and δ 2 H of xylem and soil water, and the use of the heat ratio method to measure the sap flow in saplings submitted to artificial mist. Results Foliar water uptake was demonstrated in both groups of plants, but only water-stressed plants showed a significant improvement of shoot water status. Isotope analyses indicated release of mist water in waterstressed plants rhizosphere's, and measurements of sap flow pointed to flow reversals in saplings exposed to mist, after a soil drought period. Conclusions The results confirm the capacity of A. angustifolia for absorbing water deposited in its leaves and demonstrate that leaf-absorbed water can be transported through the xylem to the soil close to the roots and improve plant water status.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of soil water availability on foliar water uptake of Araucaria angustifolia

et al. 2015

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“…The effect was particularly marked in P. jeffrexi and P. ponderosa, and he attributed it to re-saturation of the needle tissues with a concomitant reduction in the amount of water removed from the root system. Waisel (1958) found that the saturation deficits of branches of P. halepensis exposed overnight to dew, were much lower than those of covered branches on the same plant. Later experiments with tritiated water (Vaadia and Waisel, 1963) confirmed the direct entry of water into the needles of seedlings of this species, though at a slower rate than into the leaves of a mesophyte (sunfiower), apparently because of the thicker cuticle.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 82%

CUTICLE STRUCTURE AND WATER RELATIONS OF THE NEEDLES OF PINUS RADIATA (D. DON)

Leyton

Armitage

1968

New Phytologist

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SUMMARYThe fine structure of the cuticle of mature needles of Pinus radiata has been studied from electron micrographs of carbon replicas of the needle surface. The whole of the needle surface appears to be covered by a layer of wax from which, with the exception of the inner surface normally enclosed by the sheath, arise numerous tubular waxy outgrowths similar to those previously observed in P. sylvestris. Unlike P. sylvestris, these outgrowths cover only a portion of the exposed needle surface and the underlying wax layer ranges in appearance from smooth to slightly granular, with no indication of a plate-like structure.When the needles were immersed in water, very little was taken up into the basal region of the needles normally enclosed by the sheath compared with the exposed surfaces; the tips of the needles showed the highest permeability to water. The inner surfaces of the needles were consistently more wettable than the outer surfaces, and the surfaces normally enclosed by the basal sheath, corresponding to the youngest regions of the needle, were much less wettable than the exposed surfaces. The inner enclosed surface was the least wettable of all; this may be due to differences in the chemical composition of the wax, besides the absence of weathering.When young needles were prematurely exposed by removing the basal sheath, tubular, waxy outgrowths appeared, similar to those found on the exposed surfaces of the mature needles; when young needles were bound together to prevent them from parting, an entirely different structure developed consisting of minute granules forming a reticulum over the surface.The significance of the above findings is discussed in relation to the reputed relatively high cuticular transpiration of P. radiata and its ability to absorb water directly into the foliage from precipitation; it appears that this species is well adapted to the moist atmospheric conditions characteristic of its native habitat in the Californian 'fog belt' region.

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“…bromeliads; Benzing et al 1978;Schmitt et al 1989), the flow of surface moisture into leaf tissues from the leaf surface probably has little impact on water budgets for most types of plant (Vaadia & Waisel 1963), Dew may affect plant survival by decreasing evaporative demand to zero during periods of leaf wetness, but it is unlikely to have a large effect on the overall water status of the plant (Vaadia & Waisel 1963). Instead, the physiological importance of leaf surface wetness is more related to photosynthetic gas exchange via stomatal closure (Smith & McClean 1989;Ishibashi & Terashima 1995) or physical blockage of stomatal pores (Kaul 1976;Benzing et al 1978;Brewer & Smith 1995),…”

Section: Duration Frequency and Extent Of Leaf Wetnessmentioning

confidence: 99%

Patterns of leaf surface wetness for montane and subalpine plants

Brewer

Smith

1997

Plant Cell & Environment

166

148

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The frequency and duration of water on leaf surfaces have important consequences for plant growth and photosynthetic gas exchange. The objective of the present study was to compare the frequency and duration of leaf wetness under natural field conditions among species and to identify variation in structural features of leaves that may reduce surface wetness. During June-Septemher 1992 in the central Rocky Mountains (USA), natural leaf wetting due to rain and dewfall was observed on 79 of 89 nights in open meadow habitats compared to only 29 of 89 nights in the understorey. Dew formation occurred at relative humidities that were often well below 100% because of radiational heat exchange with cold night skies and low wind speeds (< 0-5 m s~*). A survey of 50 subalpine/montane species showed that structural characteristics associated with the occurrence and duration of leaf surface wetness differed among species and habitats. Both adaxial and abaxial surfaces accumulated moisture during rain and dewfall events. Leaf surfaces of open-meadow species were less wettable {P = 0-008), and had lower droplet retention (F = 0-015) and more stomata {P = 0-017) than adjacent understorey species. Also, leaf trichomes reduced the area of leaf surface covered by moisture. Ecophysiological importance is suggested by the high frequency of leaf wetting events in open microsites, influences on growth and gas exchange, and correspondence between leaf surface wettability and habitat.

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Water Absorption by the Aerial Organs of Plants

Cited by 44 publications

References 19 publications

Effects of soil water availability on foliar water uptake of Araucaria angustifolia

Effects of soil water availability on foliar water uptake of Araucaria angustifolia

CUTICLE STRUCTURE AND WATER RELATIONS OF THE NEEDLES OF PINUS RADIATA (D. DON)

Patterns of leaf surface wetness for montane and subalpine plants

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