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Pinyon pine (Pinus edulis) mortality and response to water addition across a three million year substrate age gradient in northern Arizona, USA

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Abstract

Background and aims

Pinyon pine (Pinus edulis Engelm.) is an important tree species in the western United States that has experienced large-scale mortality during recent severe drought. The influence of soil conditions on pinyon pine response to water availability is poorly understood. We investigated patterns of tree mortality and response of tree water relations and growth to experimental water addition at four sites across a three million year soil-substrate age gradient.

Methods

We measured recent pinyon mortality at four sites, and tree predawn water potential, leaf carbon isotope signature, and branch, leaf, and stem radial growth on 12 watered and unwatered trees at each site. Watered trees recieved fifty percent more than growing season precipitation for 6 years.

Results

Substrate age generally had a greater effect on tree water stress and growth than water additions. Pinyon mortality was higher on intermediate-aged substrates (50–55%) than on young (15%) and old (17%) substrates, and mortality was positively correlated with pinyon abundance prior to drought.

Conclusions

These results suggest high soil resource availability and consequent high stand densities at intermediate-age substrates predisposes trees to drought-induced mortality in semi-arid regions. The response of tree water relations to water addition was consistent with the inverse texture hypothesis; watering reduced tree water stress most in young, coarsely textured soil, likely because water rapidly penetrated deep in the soil profile where it was protected from evapotranspiration.

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Abbreviations

SAGA:

Substrate Age Gradient of Arizona

Ψpre :

Predawn water potential

δ13C:

Leaf carbon isotope ratio

DRC:

Diameter at root collar

SDI:

Stand density index

BA:

Basal area

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank those who assisted in the watering of the pinyons, notably G.S. Newman, who designed and implemented the watering experiments, but also: D. Guido, M. Luce, S. Jackson, A. Emerson, B. Widner, and S. Kleinman. C.E.L. was partially funded by a Hooper Undergraduate Research Award from the Office of the Vice President for Research at Northern Arizona University. B.W.S was supported by the Mission Research Program at the Northern Arizona University School of Forestry (McIntire-Stennis/AZ Bureau of Forestry) and an NSF IGERT fellowship (DGE-0549505). J.M.K. was supported by a fellowship from the Science Foundation of Arizona. We thank H. Adams for comments that greatly improved the quality of this manuscript.

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  1. Benjamin W. Sullivan

    Present address: College of Forestry and Conservation, The University of Montana, Missoula, MT, 59812, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, 86011, USA

    Christopher E. Looney, Benjamin W. Sullivan, Thomas E. Kolb & Jeffrey M. Kane

  2. School of Natural Sciences & Sierra Nevada Research Institute, University of California, 5200 North Lake Road Merced, Merced, CA, 95343, USA

    Stephen C. Hart

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  1. Christopher E. Looney
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Correspondence to Benjamin W. Sullivan.

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Responsible Editor: Rafael S. Oliveira.

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Looney, C.E., Sullivan, B.W., Kolb, T.E. et al. Pinyon pine (Pinus edulis) mortality and response to water addition across a three million year substrate age gradient in northern Arizona, USA. Plant Soil 357, 89–102 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-012-1150-6

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