Abstract
Key message
Nitrate served as an important nitrogen source for dominant deciduous tree species, especially during their leaf expansion period, even in boreal forests, where nitrate availability was assumed to be low.
Abstract
Temporal changes in leaf nitrate assimilation with leaf growth were intensively investigated in boreal tree species to demonstrate the contribution of nitrate as a N source and to determine temporal changes in the contribution of nitrate during leaf ontogeny. Leaf area, mass, nitrate reductase activity (NRA), N concentration, and δ15N were repeatedly measured in developing leaves of naturally grown Alnus crispa, Betula neoalaskana, and Populus tremuloides during their leaf expansion period. Alnus crispa and B. neoalaskana showed distinct peaks in NRA during leaf expansion, whereas P. tremuloides did not. The highest peak in NRA occurred for A. crispa, whereas it had low NRA during the summer. Peak NRA in B. neoalaskana was lower than that of A. crispa (p < 0.01, ANOVA), although it showed higher NRA during summer (p < 0.01, ANOVA). All species showed clear decrease in N concentration through the leaf expansion period, but total N content per leaf increased. Only the N-fixing species A. crispa showed a rapid change in δ15N during the leaf expansion, and the decline indicated the changes in N source during the leaf development. The results indicate leaves of target species assimilated nitrate during the leaf expansion period, consuming immense energy, although leaves were considered a carbon sink during the early leaf expansion period. We suggest the early onset of leaf growth due to climate warming could influence plant nutrition via asynchrony between supply and demand for energy during spring.
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Acknowledgements
The stable isotope assay in the current study was conducted with the support of the Joint-Usage/Research Center: Stable Isotope Laboratory at the Center for Ecological Research, Kyoto University.
Funding
This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number JP21780149 to LAK.
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468_2021_2259_MOESM1_ESM.pdf
Temporal changes in leaf traits regarding N acquisition and growth of Alnus crispa (left; (a), (d), (g), and (j)), Betula neoalaskana (middle; (b), (e), (h), and (k)), and Populus tremuloides (right; (c), (f), (i), and (l)) during the greening season 2010 in comparison with those of summer 2009. (a)-(c) N content per leaf; (d)-(f) NRA(+NO3) (closed square) and NRA(−NO3) (open square) per leaf; (g)-(i) leaf growth rate in area (broken line; left axis), leaf growth rate in mass (solid line; right axis) and LMA (leaf mass per area. cross; right axis); (j)-(l) leaf area (open diamond; left axis) and mass (closed diamond; right axis). Average ± s.d. are shown for five trees. Leaf growth rates were calculated as the difference of estimated leaf area on a day and the following day based on the growth curve. Note that the Y-axes are not identical among species to clearly show the intraspecies temporal changes (PDF 94 KB)
468_2021_2259_MOESM2_ESM.pdf
Relationship between leaf NRA(+NO3) and other leaf traits in individuals of Alnus crispa (left; (a), (d), (g), (j), (m) and (p)), Betula neoalaskana (middle; (b), (e), (h), (k), (n) and (q)), and Populus tremuloides (right; (c), (f), (i), (l), (o) and (r)) during the greening season 2010. (a)-(c) leaf δ15N; (d)-(f) leaf N content per leaf; and (g)-(i) leaf N content per area; (j)-(l) leaf N concentration; (m)-(o) NRA(−NO3) per leaf dry weight and (p)-(r) LMA (leaf mass per area). Different symbols indicate different individuals (PDF 150 KB)
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Koyama, L.A., Kielland, K. Seasonal changes in nitrate assimilation of boreal woody species: importance of the leaf-expansion period. Trees 36, 941–951 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-021-02259-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-021-02259-9