Abstract
Plant species of the Brazilian Caatinga experience seasonal wet and dry extremes, requiring seasonally different leaf characteristics for optimizing water availability. We investigated if Croton blanchetianus Baill exhibits leaf morphoanatomical traits across seasons and positioning in sunlight/natural shade. Leaves of ten 1-3 m tall plants in full sunlight and ten in natural shade were assessed in May, July (wet season), October and December (dry season) 2015 for gas exchange, leaf size, lamina and midrib cross sections (14 parameters), and chloroplast structure (5 parameters). Net photosynthesis was greater during the wet season (21.6 µm−2 s−1) compared to the dry season (5.8 µm−2 s−1) and was strongly correlated with almost all measured parameters (p < 0.01). Shaded leaves in the wet season had higher specific leaf area (19.9 m2 kg−1 in full-sun and 23.1 m2 kg−1 in shade), but in the dry season they did not differ from those in full sun (7.5 m2 kg−1 and 7.2 m2 kg−1). In the wet season, the expansion of the adaxial epidermis and mesophyll lead to larger and thicker photosynthetic area of leaves. Furthermore, chloroplast thickness, length and area were also significantly larger in full sunlight (2.1 μm, 5.1 μm, 15.2 μm2; respectively) and shaded plants (2.0 μm, 5.2 μm, 14.8 μm2; respectively) during wetter months. Croton blanchetianus exhibits seasonal plasticity in leaf structure, presumably to optimize water use efficiency during seasons of water abundance and deficit. These results suggest that the species is adaptable to the increased drought stress projected by climate change scenarios.
Highlights
MethodsTen 1–3 m tall C. blanchetianus plants in full sunlight and ten in natural shade were selected from a preserved fragment of Caatinga forest (8° 52′ 32" S, 36° 22′ 00" W; 716 m asl) in the state of Pernambuco, NE Brazil in 2015
Our results have presented morphoanatomical and ecophysiological mechanism responsible for drought stress tolerance in C. blanchetianus, based on seasonal data
Our results demonstrate that some leaf traits of the C. blanchetianus show a high acclimation, particularly some anatomical traits associated with: (i) maintenance of a positive carbon balance in water deficit conditions, and (ii) midrib traits associated with lower leaf hydraulic conductance and also with greater drought tolerance
Summary
Ten 1–3 m tall C. blanchetianus plants in full sunlight and ten in natural shade were selected from a preserved fragment of Caatinga forest (8° 52′ 32" S, 36° 22′ 00" W; 716 m asl) in the state of Pernambuco, NE Brazil in 2015. Definition of light penetration of only 30%, i.e., 70% of leaf cover, was based on May 2014 conditions, since between April and July 2014 an average precipitation of 148 mm was recorded, with a peak in May 2014 (171.59 mm). We could not always guarantee this 70% of vegetation cover, but light penetration inside the forest in the wet season was much lower than that observed at the edges of the forest fragment where the leaves grown in full sunlight were sampled. Leaves grown in natural shade were sampled inside the forest
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