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Low winter temperatures induce a disturbance of water relations in field olive trees

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Low winter temperatures induce an increase in the soil-to-trunk hydraulic resistance of field-grown olive trees resulting in a significant disturbance of their water relations.

Abstract

A disturbance of water relations in response to chilling have long been observed in potted plants growing under controlled conditions, but information is lacking for field plants. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of winter low temperatures on the water relations of mature olive trees. To this end, water potential, sap flux density, soil temperature and meteorological data were monitored in a hedgerow olive orchard near Córdoba, southern Spain, throughout two consecutive winters. Water stress symptoms were found in terms of midday Ψ, despite adequate water supply and low evaporative demand. These effects were associated with changes in the soil-to-trunk hydraulic resistance (R root), which increased by December–January to much higher values than those previously reported in the literature, particularly in the year of higher fruit load. The contribution of viscosity (η) to the observed R root dynamics was almost negligible as deduced from measurements of soil temperature, so the high winter values of R root were likely to have originated from other causes such as reductions in membrane permeability and root growth. The findings of this work raise new major issues that deserve further research such as the impact of the winter water stress on stomatal conductance and photosynthesis rates in mature olive trees.

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Author contribution statement

AL, OG, LT, FO and FJV designed the experiments. AL and OG carried out the fieldwork. AL, OG, LT, FO and FJV analyzed the data and prepared the manuscript.

Acknowledgments

This work was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (MICINN, project AGL-2010-20766) and European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). We thank the Spanish Research Council (CSIC) predoctoral JAE program and the aforementioned project for providing the Ph.D. scholarship granted to the first and second author, respectively. We are grateful both to Ms Julie Newton for helpful assistance with language editing and to Mr Rafael del Río, Mr Ignacio Calatrava and Mr José Luis Vazquez for the excellent technical support provided.

Conflict of interest

None.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Agricultura Sostenible, CSIC, Apartado 4084, 14080, Cordoba, Spain

    Álvaro López-Bernal, Omar García-Tejera, Luca Testi, Francisco Orgaz & Francisco J. Villalobos

  2. Dep. Agronomia, Universidad de Cordoba, Apartado 3048, 14080, Cordoba, Spain

    Francisco J. Villalobos

Authors
  1. Álvaro López-Bernal
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  2. Omar García-Tejera
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  3. Luca Testi
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  4. Francisco Orgaz
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  5. Francisco J. Villalobos
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Álvaro López-Bernal.

Additional information

Communicated by M. Zwienieki.

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López-Bernal, Á., García-Tejera, O., Testi, L. et al. Low winter temperatures induce a disturbance of water relations in field olive trees. Trees 29, 1247–1257 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-015-1204-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-015-1204-5

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