Effects of Elevated CO2 Concentration on the Respiratory Behavior of the Branches of Field-Grown Hinoki Cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa)

Abstract

The effects of elevated atmospheric CO2 concentrations on the nighttime respiration were examined for two sample branches of a hinoki cypress tree (Chamaecyparis obtusa) growing in the field with an open gas exchange system for a one-year period from July 1994 to June 1995. The branches were of a similar size and located at a similar position within the crown. One branch was subjected to an elevated CO2 concentration of 800 μmol mol−1 and the other was subjected to ambient air which had a CO2 concentration of about 370 μmol mol−1. Nighttime respiration rate was higher in elevated CO2 level than in ambient CO2 level. The relationship between nighttime respiration and the corresponding nighttime air temperature was fitted by the exponential function in every month of the year. The segregation of regression lines between the two CO2 treatments increased gradually as the seasons progressed during the treatment period. TheQ10 values for nighttime respiration were lower in elevated CO2 (1.9 ≤Q10 ≤ 3.7) than in ambient CO2 (2.4 ≤Q10 ≤ 4.5) in every month of the year. TheQ10 was inversely related to the monthly mean nighttime air temperature in both elevated and ambient CO2. The estimated daily nighttime respiration rate under both CO2 treatments had a similar seasonal pattern, which almost synchronized with the temperature change. The respiration ratio of elevated CO2 to ambient CO2 increased gradually from 1.1 to 1.6 until the end of the experiment. Our results indicate that the CO2 level and the temperature have a strong interactive effect on respiration and suggest that a potential increase in respiration of branches will occur when ambient CO2 increases.