Summary
Rosettes of Heterotheca subaxillaris were grown at four levels of nitrate. Individual leaf volatile mono- and sesquiterpene content, leaf nitrogen content, and root and shoot dry weight were measured on individual leaves every two weeks for 18 weeks. Rosettes with the highest nitrate availability had 2.2-fold greater leaf nitrogen levels compared to plants with the lowest availability. As nitrate availability became increasingly limited, carbon allocation to both volatile leaf terpenes and root growht increased. Leaf mono- and sesquiterpene content was greatest in the young leaves of individuals growing at the lowest nitrate availability conditions. Higher levels of carbon-based herbivore-deterring chemicals in nitrate-limited plants may increase net productivity through retention of nitrogen that would otherwise be lost to herbivory.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Awang MB, Monaco TJ (1978) Germination, growth, development, and control of Camphorweed (Heterotheca subaxillaris). Weed Science 26:51–57
Bradshaw AD, Chadwick MJ, Jowett D, Snaydon RW (1964) Experimental investigations into the mineral nutrition of several grass species. J Ecol 52:665–676
Bryant JP, Chapin FS, Klein DR (1983) Carbon/nutrient balance of boreal plants in relation to vertebrate herbivory. Okios 40:357–368
Chapin FS (1980) The mineral nutrition of wild plants. Ann Rev Ecol Syst 11:233–260
Chew FS, Rodman JE (1979) Plant resources for chemical defense. In: Rosenthal GA, Janzen DH (eds) Herbivores: their interactions with secondary metabolites. Academic Press, New York, pp 271–307
Croteau R, Burbott AJ, Loomis WD (1972) Apparent energy deficiency in mono- and sesqui-terpene biosynthesis in peppermint. Phytochemistry 11:2937–2948
Ehrlich PR, Raven PH (1964) Butterflies and plants: a study in coevolution. Evolution 18:586–608
Feeny PP (1976) Plant apparency and chemical defense. Rec Adv Phytochem 10:1–40
Field C, Mooney HA (1983) Leaf age and seasonal effects on light, water, and nitrogen use efficiency in a California shrub. Oecologia (Berlin) 56:348–355
Flangan PW, Van Cleve K (1983) Nutrient cycling in relation to decomposition and organic-matter quality in taiga ecosystems. Can J For Res 13:795–817
Fluck H (1963) Intrinsic and extrinsic factors affecting the production of natural products. In: Swain T (ed) Chemical Plant Taxonomy. Academic Press, New York, pp 167–186
Fraenkel G (1959) The raison d'etre of secondary plant substances. Science 129:146–170
Gartlan JS, McKey DB, Waterman PG, Mbi CN, Struhsaker TT (1980) A comparative study of the phytochemistry of two African rain forests. Biochem Syst Ecol 8:401–422
Gulmon SL, Chu CC (1981) The effects of light and nitrogen on photosynthesis, leaf characteristics, and dry matter allocation in the chaparral shrub, Diplacus aurantiacus. Oecologia (Berlin) 49:207–212
Janzen DH (1974) Tropical blackwater rivers, animals, and mast fruiting by the Dipterocarpaceae. Biotropica 6:69–103
Lincoln DE, Langenheim JH (1978) Effect of light and temperature on monoterpene yield and composition in Satureja douglasii. Biochem Syst Ecol 6:21–32
Lincoln DE, Langenheim JH (1979) Variation of Satureja douglasii monoterpenoids in relation to light intensity and herbivory. Biochem Syst Ecol 7:289–298
Lincoln DE, Lawrence BM (1984) The volatile constituents of camphorweed, Heterotheca subaxillaris. Phytochemistry 23:933–934
Lincoln DE, Newton TS, Erlich PR, Williams KS (1982) Coevolution of the checkerspot butterfly Euphydryas chalcedona and its larval food plant Diplacus aurantiacus: larval response to protein and leaf resin. Oecologia (Berlin) 52:216–233
Loomis WD, Croteau R (1980) Biochemistry of Terpenoids. In: Stumpf PK, Conn EE (eds) Biochemistry of Plants, Vol 4. Academic Press, New York
Mattson WJ (1980) Herbivory in relation to plant nitrogen content. Ann Rev Ecol Syst 11:119–161
McKey D, Waterman PG, Mbi CN, Gartlan JS, Struhsaker TT (1978) Phenolic content of vegetation in two African rain forests: ecological implications. Science 6:61–64
Mooney HA, Chu C (1974) Seasonal carbon allocation in Heteromeles arbutifolia, a California evergreen shrub. Oecologia (Berlin) 14:295–306
Mooney HA, Gulmon SL (1979) Environmental and evolutionary constraints on the photosynthetic characteristics of higher plants. In: Solbrig OT, Jain S, Johnson GB, Raven PH (eds) Topics in Plant Population Biology. Columbia University New York
Mooney HA, Gulmon SL (1982) Constraints on leaf structure and function in reference to herbivory. Bio Science 32:198–206
Powell RA, Adams RP (1973) Seasonal variation in the volatile terpenoids of Juniperus scopulorum (Cupressaceae). Am J Bot 60:1041–1050
Reuss RW, McNaughton SJ, Coughenour MB (1983) The effects of clipping, nitrogen source and nitrogen concentration on the growth responses and nitrogen uptake of an east africian sedge. Oecologia (Berlin) 59:253–261
Rufty TW, Raper CD Jr, Huber SC (1984) Alterations in internal partitioning of carbon in soybean plants in response to nitrogen stress. Can J Bot 62:501–508
Rundel PW (1982) Nitrogen utilization efficiencies in mediterranean-climate shrubs of California and Chile. Oecologia (Berlin) 55:409–413
Semple JC, Blok VC, Heiman P (1980) Morphological, anatomical, habit, and habitat differences among the goldenaster genera Cryopsis, Heterotheca, and Pityopsis (Compositae-Astereae). Can J Bot 58:147–163
Scriber JM, Slansky F (1981) The nutritional ecology of immature insects. Ann Rev Entomol 26:183–211
Wagenknecht BL (1960) Revision of Heterotheca, Section Heterotheca (Compositae). Rhodora 62:61–76
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Mihaliak, C.A., Lincoln, D.E. Growth pattern and carbon allocation to volatile leaf terpenes under nitrogen-limiting conditions in Heterotheca subaxillaris (Asteraceae). Oecologia 66, 423–426 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00378309
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00378309