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Carbon dynamics in the deciduous broadleaf tree Erman's birch ( Betula ermanii ) at the subalpine treeline on Changbai Mountain, Northeast China
Author(s) -
Wang QingWei,
Qi Lin,
Zhou Wangming,
Liu ChengGang,
Yu Dapao,
Dai Limin
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
american journal of botany
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.218
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1537-2197
pISSN - 0002-9122
DOI - 10.1002/ajb2.1006
Subject(s) - deciduous , evergreen , biology , betula platyphylla , growing season , ecology , betula pubescens , elevation (ballistics) , botany , subalpine forest , montane ecology , geometry , mathematics
Premise of the Study The growth limitation hypothesis ( GLH ) and carbon limitation hypothesis ( CLH ) are two dominant explanations for treeline formation. The GLH proposes that low temperature drives the treeline through constraining C sinks more than C sources, and it predicts that non‐structural carbohydrate ( NSC ) levels are static or increase with elevation. Although the GLH has received strong support globally for evergreen treelines, there is still no consensus for deciduous treelines, which experience great asynchrony between supply and demand throughout the year. Methods We investigated growth and the growing‐season C dynamics in a common deciduous species, Erman's birch ( Betula ermanii ), along an elevational gradient from the closed forest to the treeline on Changbai Mountain, Northeast China. Samples were collected from developing organs (leaves and twigs) and main storage organs (stems and roots) for NSC analysis. Key Results Tree growth decreased with increasing elevation, and NSC concentrations differed significantly among elevations, organs, and sampling times. In particular, NSC levels varied slightly during the growing season in leaves, peaked in the middle of the growing season in twigs and stems, and increased continuously throughout the growing season in roots. NSC s also tended to increase or vary slightly in developing organs but decreased significantly in mature organs with increasing elevation. Conclusions The decrease in NSC s with elevation in main storage organs indicates support for the CLH , while the increasing or static trends in new developing organs indicate support for the GLH . Our results suggest that the growth limitation theory may be less applicable to deciduous species' growth than to that of evergreen species.