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Spatial and age-dependent tree-ring growth responses of Larix gmelinii to climate in northeastern China

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Abstract

Tree-ring width chronologies from 276 Larix gmelinii cores taken in northeastern China were used to analyze spatial and age-dependent growth–climate response relationships. Tree radial growth from five localities showed similar patterns, while exhibiting different tree-ring growth responses to local climate. The rotated principal component analysis (RPCA) indicated that tree age, growing season moisture conditions, and ambient air temperature variations resulted from location differences (e.g., longitude, latitude, and altitude), which could explain the non-stationary spatial climate–growth relations observed. The study tested the fundamental assumption that the climate–growth of L. gmelinii was age independent after the removal of size trends and disturbance signals. The age-related climate–growth relationship might potentially improve the veracity of past climate reconstructions. Bootstrapped correlation function analyses suggested that the response of L. gmelinii radial growth to climate differed between trees ≥150 years old and <150 years old. Mean sensitivity and standard deviation for trees increased with age in the <150 years old tree class; whereas trees ≥150 years old had no significant relationship with age. These results showed that the assumption of age-independent climate–growth relationship is invalid at these sites. Physiological processes and/or hydraulic constraints dependent on tree age, together with detrending techniques could be the possible causal factors of clear age-dependent responses. These results suggested the importance of incorporating trees of all ages into the chronology to recover a detailed climatic signal in a reconstruction of L. gmelinii for this region.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the General and Major Programs of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 30770407 and 30590383, respectively), the Key Project in the National Science and Technology Pillar Program during the Eleventh Five-year Plan Period (No. 2006BAD03A0404), and the Innovative Foundation Project for Outstanding Young Teachers of Northeast Forestry University. We greatly thank the Tree-Ring Laboratory, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences for the assistance of ring-width measurement. We are grateful to Qi-Bin Zhang and Thomas New for their valuable comments and discussion on earlier drafts of this manuscript. We are also appreciative of the field assistance received from the Tahe, Mohe, Mangui, and Huzhong Forestry Bureaus.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Forestry, Northeast Forestry University, 26 Hexing Road, Harbin, 150040, China

    Xiaochun Wang

  2. State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 20 Nanxincun, Xiangshan, Beijing, 100093, China

    Xiaochun Wang

  3. Institute of Forest Ecology, Environment and Protection, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Key Laboratory on Forest Ecology and Environment of State Forestry Administration, Beijing, 100091, China

    Yuandong Zhang

  4. Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service, 1219 Queen St. E., Sault Ste. Marie, ON, P6A 2E5, Canada

    Douglas J. McRae

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  1. Xiaochun Wang
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Correspondence to Xiaochun Wang.

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Communicated by H. Rennenberg.

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Wang, X., Zhang, Y. & McRae, D.J. Spatial and age-dependent tree-ring growth responses of Larix gmelinii to climate in northeastern China. Trees 23, 875–885 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-009-0329-9

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