Does the climate of the origin control anatomical characteristics of the vessel elements as well as different foliar traits in Fagus crenata?

Abstract

The relationships between climatic factors and anatomical characteristics of the vessel elements as well as different foliar traits were investigated in Fagus crenata seedlings originating from different provenances. Fagus crenata samples were prepared from Chichibu Research Forest of Tokyo University. In the present study, vessel number per mm<sup>2</sup>, average vessel diameter, vessel area percentage, vessel element length, percentages of perforation plate types, transpiration rate, stomatal conductance, leaf area, leaf thickness, leaf dry mass per unit leaf area, stomatal density and stomatal pore length were measured. Vessel number per mm<sup>2</sup>, vessel area percentage, stomatal conductance, transpiration rate, leaf thickness and leaf dry mass per unit leaf area showed a significant negative correlation with yearly, winter, spring and autumn precipitation. The majority of the studied characteristics were not related to the mean annual and seasonal temperatures of the original provenances. The results suggest that anatomical characteristics of vessel elements and different foliar traits in Fagus crenata are mainly influenced by the precipitation of the origins.