Evidence of the effects of fire on branching and leaf development in cerrado trees

João Paulo Souza,Ana Lúcia S Albino,Carlos Henrique B A Prado

doi:10.1590/0102-33062017abb0123

João Paulo Souza, Ana Lúcia S Albino + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/0102-33062017abb0123

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Abstract

ABSTRACT We discuss evidence of effects of an accidental fire on shoot growth and leaf development in six cerrado tree species with distinct leaf phenologies. Buds of all six species were marked before shoot and leaf emergence in the dry season. After fire, leaf and shoot growth were monitored weekly and specific leaf area (SLA) was determined. Shoot order was determined in the growing season. Evergreens and semideciduous woody species had rapid leaf and shoot growth and decreased leaf life span (LLS) after fire compared with published data for evergreens in cerrado areas without fire. On the other hand, Kielmeyera variabilis, a deciduous species, showed intense branching and produced two orders of shoots in one growing season. Fires promote rapid leaf and shoot growth in evergreens owing to reserve accumulations that allow survivorship after disturbances. However, the leaves produced by evergreens after fire had high SLAs and were discarded before the next rainy season (short LLS). This leaf cohort was produced with less carbon per leaf, and the decreased LLS prevented herbivory and water loss during the dry season. Fire is an important factor of cerrado environments, influencing leaf production and shoot architecture in cerrado trees.

Highlights

Plant architecture is the compromise between environmental constraints and plant body functionality (Sussex & Kerk 2001; Reinhardt & Kuhlemeier 2002; Meinzer 2003; Barthélémy & Caraglio 2007)
Evergreens and semideciduous woody species had rapid leaf and shoot growth and decreased leaf life span (LLS) after fire compared with published data for evergreens in cerrado areas without fire
When the data set was merged into phenological groups, deciduous species showed the highest LEI (28 days; P < 0.05), evergreens had the highest SEI (38 days; P < 0.05), and semideciduous trees had the highest values of LER (1.9 cm2 days-1) and SER (0.6 cm2 days-1, Table 1)

Summary

Introduction

Plant architecture is the compromise between environmental constraints and plant body functionality (Sussex & Kerk 2001; Reinhardt & Kuhlemeier 2002; Meinzer 2003; Barthélémy & Caraglio 2007). There are few studies regarding plant architecture, and most of them concern shoot growth (Rossato & Franco 2008; Souza et al 2009a; b; Rossato 2009; Rossato et al 2009). Four studies deal with whole crown architecture (Souza et al 2011; Santos et al 2012) or modular growth (Damascos et al 2005; Damascos 2008) of woody cerrado species. Cerrado species with perennial foliage adjust shoot growth to the rainy period, while those with deciduous foliage produces leaves and shoots before the first rains (Damascos et al 2005; Lenza & Klink 2006; Damascos 2008). According to Lenza & Klink (2006) and Silvério & Lenza (2010), evergreens that show intense leaf production only in the rainy period

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