Biomass and nutrient allocation patterns in Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus)

Abstract

The partitioning of dry matter and nutrients into component plant parts was determined for a weedy population of Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus L.). The annual allocation pattern, studied over two growing seasons, was characterized by a relatively large distribution of energy to structural increases in height, leaf number, and lateral spread. Biomass and nutrient allocation to clonal growth (rhizomes and tubers) was much greater than to reproductive organs (flowers and seeds). Reproductive and clonal allocation of nutrients showed a different pattern than allocation of biomass. Plants severely defoliated by hail in 1984 redistributed available nutrients and generated new leaves. Although rhizome and tuber size and number were reduced after the hail storm, the overall strategy of Jerusalem artichoke appears to involve a constancy of nutrient allocation to clonal structures. In contrast with previous reports for cultivated populations of Jerusalem artichoke, we found that the leaves, not the stem, constituted the primary temporary sink for assimilates that were later distributed to developing rhizomes and tubers.