Growth, stomatal resistance, and transpiration of Aloe vera under different soil water potentials

Abstract

Aloe vera (Sábila) is used in folklore medicine and commercial cosmetology products in many countries. Little is known about the plant's physiological, growth, and yield responses under different irrigation regimes. The plant has a crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) that allows water conservation within the tissue, and therefore, resistance to high water stress. A. vera plants were submitted to different irrigation regimes in a greenhouse experiment to evaluate the response of the physiologic processes such as stomatal resistance and transpiration as well as leaf growth and yield. The experiment consisted of three irrigation regimes under a completely randomized design. No initial effect on stomatal resistance or transpiration was exhibited, but as time elapsed changes in these variables were noted. We suggest that the high water content in the parenchyma maintains stomatal opening despite water stress. In a subsequent period, the leaves that were submitted to water stress at the beginning, showed stomatal opening reduction related to low soil water potential. The low soil water potential reduced leaf weight, plant growth rate, and leaf number, mainly in leaf growth during the experiment confirming the sensitivity of new leaves to water stress. The results suggest that the low leaf temperature increases stomatal resistance, decreases plant and leaf growth rates. This behavior is opposite to other CAM species in semiarid condition.