Premium
Seedling density modifies the growth responses of yellow birch maternal families to elevated carbon dioxide
Author(s) -
WAYNE P.M.,
BAZZAZ F.A.
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
global change biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.146
H-Index - 255
eISSN - 1365-2486
pISSN - 1354-1013
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2486.1995.tb00030.x
Subject(s) - seedling , carbon dioxide , biology , botany , ecology , agronomy
We studied seedling growth responses to ambient and elevated CO 2 (350 and 700 μL L −1 ) of three maternal families of yellow birch ( Betula alleghaniensis) , raised both individually and in high‐density stands. Seedlings in competitive, dense stands exhibited markedly lower average CO 2 ‐induced growth enhancements than individually grown plants (16% vs. 49%). Maternal families differed in their growth responses to elevated CO 2 . However, differences among families were contingent upon density; families which exhibited the greatest CO 2 ‐induced growth at low density exhibited the least CO 2 ‐responsiveness at high density. These data are discussed in two separate contexts; the reliability of estimates of the CO 2 fertilization potential of forest species based solely on individually grown plants, and the potential evolutionary consequences of rising CO 2 on regenerating forest tree populations.