Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Water relations of black spruce trees on a peatland during wet and dry years

  • Published:
Wetlands Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Low water tables typically found in peatlands during dry summer periods or in the vicinity of drainage ditches may lead to moisture deficiency in porous surface peats. Episodes of drought stress might compromise the growth benefits brought about by lower ground-water levels. We examined the water relations of black spruce (Picea mariana) trees on a natural peatland during relatively wet (1990) and relatively dry (1991) summers. Seasonal patterns of pre-dawn and mid-day shoot water potentials and stomatal conductance were not related to peat water content or to water-table depth. There was no evidence of water stress or osmotic adjustment in sampled trees during wet and dry growing seasons. Our soil moisture data showed that although water-table levels were as low as −66 cm in 1991, water availability in the root zone remained high. Even with the absence of mid-day water stress during the summer of 1991, a 50% reduction in stomatal conductance as compared with the previous year was found. We suggest that signals from the bulk of the roots located in dry peat top layer contributed to the regulation of stomatal conductance.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Literature Cited

  • Agriculture Canada Expert Committee on Soil Survey. 1987. Canadian System of Soil Classification. 2nd ed. Agriculture Canada Publication 1646.

  • Belleau, P. 1988. Drainage d’une pessière noire à sphaigne et à némopanthe mucroné. M.Sc. Thesis. Université Laval, Sainte-Foy, Québec, Canada.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berry, G. J. and J. K. Jeglum. 1988. Water table profiles of drained, forested and clearcut peatlands in northern Ontario, Canada. Vol. 2, p. 72–79. In International Symposium on Hydrology of Wetlands in Temperate and Cold Climates. Joensuu, Finland.

  • Blake, T. J., E. Bevilacqua, and J. J. Zwiazek. 1991. Effects of repeated stress on turgor pressure and cell elasticity changes in black spruce seedlings. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 21: 1329–1333.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Braekke, F. H. 1983. Water levels at different drainage intensities on deep peat in northern Norway. Forest Ecology and Management 5:169–192.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brand, D. G. 1987. Estimating the surface area of spruce and pine foliage from displaced volume and length. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 17:1305–1308.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cheung, Y. N. S., M. T. Tyree, and J. Dainty. 1975. Water relations parameters on single leaves obtained in a pressure bomb and some ecological interpretations. Canadian Journal of Botany 53:1342–1346.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cheung, Y. N. S., M. T. Tyree, and J. Dainty. 1976. Some possible sources of error in determining bulk elastic moduli and other parameters from pressure-volume curves of shoots and leaves. Canadian Journal of Botany 54:758–765.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Colombo, S. J. 1987. Changes in osmotic potential, cell elasticity, and turgor relationships of 2nd-year black spruce container seedlings. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 17:365–369.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dang, Q. L., and V. J. Lieffers. 1989. Climate and tree ring growth of black spruce in some alberta peatlands. Canadian Journal of Botany 67:1885–1889.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dang, Q. L., V. J. Lieffers, R. L. Rothwell, and S. E. Macdonald. 1991. Diurnal variation and interrelations of ecophysiological parameters in three peatland woody species under different weather and soi moisture conditions. Oecologia 88:317–324.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dang, Q. L., H. A. Margolis, M. R. Coyea, M. Sy, and G. J. Collatz 1997. Regulation of branch-level gas exchange of boreal trees roles of shoot water potential and vapor pressure difference. Tree Physiology 17:521–535

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Davies, W. J., and J. Zhang 1991. Roots signals and the regulation of growth and development of plants in drying soil. Annual Review of Plant Physiology and Plant Molecular Biology 42:55–76.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dumas-Rousseau, M. 1975. Les Régions Agricoles du Québec. Bibliothèque du Québec, Ministère de l’Agriculture du Québec. Quebec, PQ, Canada.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fan, S., T. J. Blake, and E. Blumwald. 1994. The relative contribution of elastic and osmotic adjustments to turgor maintenance of woody species. Physiologia Plantarum 90:408–413.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fuchs, E. E., and N. J. Livingston. 1996. Hydraulic control of stomatal conductance in Douglas fir [Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco] and alder [Alnus rubra (Bong)] seedlings. Plant, Cell and Environment 19:1091–1098.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grossnickle, S. C. 1989. Shoot phenology and water relations of Picea glauca. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 19:1287–1290.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hartung, W., and S. Slovik. 1991. Physiochemical properties of plant growth regulators and plant tissues determine their distribution and redistribution: stomatal regulation by ABA in leaves. New Phytologist 119:361–382.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hillman, G. R. 1992. Some hydrological effects of peatland drainage in Alberta’s boreal forest. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 22:1588–1596.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hinckley, T. M., F. Duhme, A. R. Hinckley, and H. Richter. 1980. Water relations of drought hardy shrubs: osmotic potential and stomatal reactivity. Plant, Cell and Environment 3:131–140.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jones, H. G., and R. A. Sutherland. 1991. Stomatal control of xylem embolism. Plant, Cell and Environment 14:607–612.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kandiko, R. A., R. Timmis, and J. Worral. 1980. Pressure-volume curves of shoots and roots of normal and drought conditioned western hemlock seedlings. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 10:10–16.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kozlowski, T. T. 1982. Water supply and tree growth. Part II. Flooding. Forestry Abstract 43:145–161.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kubiske, M. E., and M. D. Abrams. 1993. Stomatal and nonstomatal limitations of photosynthesis in 19 temperate tree species on contrasting sites during wet and dry years. Plant, Cell and Environment 16:1123–1129.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kubiske, M. E., and M. D. Abrams. 1994. Ecophysiological analysis of woody species in contrasting temperate communities during wet and dry years. Oecologia 98:303–312.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • LI-COR Inc. 1989. LI-1600 steady-state porometer Instruction Manual. Lincoln, NE, USA.

  • Lieffers, V. J., and R. L. Rothwell. 1987. Root of peatland black spruce and tamarack in relation to depth of the water table. Canadian Journal of Botany 65:817–821.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lopushinsky, W., and M. R. Kaufmann. 1984. Effects of cold soil on water relations and spring growth of Douglas-fir seedlings. Forest Science 30:628–634.

    Google Scholar 

  • Macdonald, S. E. and V. J. Lieffers. 1990. Photosynthesis. water relations, and foliar nitrogen of Picea mariana and Larix laricina from drained and undrained peatlands. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 20:995–1000.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Macdonald, S. E. and F. Y. Yin. 1999. Factors influencing size inequality in peatland black spruce and tamarack: evidence from post-drainage release growth. Journal of Ecology 87:404–412.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maier-Maercker, U. 1998. Dynamics of changes in stomatal response and water status of Picea abies during a persistent drought period: a contribution to the traditional view of plant water relations. Tree Physiology 18:211–222.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mannerkoski, H. 1985. Effect of Water Table Fluctuation on the Ecology of Peat Soil. Publications from the Department of Peatland Forestry, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.

    Google Scholar 

  • Monteith, J. L. 1995. Accommodation between transpiring vegetation and the convective boundary layer. Journal of Hydrology 166: 251–263.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Paavilainen, E. and J. Päivänen. 1995. Peatland Forestry. Ecology and Principles. Ecological Studies Series, Vol. 1110. Springer-Verlag, Berlin, Germany.

    Google Scholar 

  • Payandeh, B. 1973. Analyses of a forest drainage experiment in Northern Ontario. 1. Growth analysis. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 3:387–398.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pepin, S., A. P. Plamondon, and J. Stein. 1992. Peat water content measurement using time domain reflectometry. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 22:534–540.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Prévost, M., A. P. Plamondon, and P. Belleau. 1999. Effects of drainage of a forested peatland on water quality and quantity. Journal of Hydrology 214:130–143.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ritchie, G. A. and T. M. Hinckley. 1975. The pressure chamber as an instrument for ecological research. Advances in Ecological Research 9:165–254.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ritchie, G. A. and R. G. Shula. 1984. Seasonal changes of tissue-water relations in shoots and roots systems of Douglas-fir seedlings. Forest Science 30:538–548.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roberts, S. W., B. R. Strain, and K. K. Knoerr. 1981. Seasonal variation of leaf tissue elasticity in four forest tree species. Physiologia Plantarum 52:245–250.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rothwell, R. L., U. Silins, and G. R. Hillman. 1996. The effects of drainage on substrate water content at several forested Alberta peatlands. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 26:53–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saliendra, N. Z., J. S. Sperry, and J. P. Comstock. 1995. Influence of leaf water status on stomatal response to humidity, hydraulic conductance, and soil drought in Betula occidentalis. Planta 196:357–366.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • SAS Institute. 1985. SAS (Statistical Analysis System) User’s guide—Statistics. Version 5. SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schulte, P. J. and T. M. Hinckley. 1985. A comparison of pressurevolume curve data analysis techniques. Journal of Experimental Botany 36:1590–1602.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schurr, U., T. Gollan, and E. D. Schulze. 1992. Stomatal response to drying soil in relation to changes in the xylem sap composition of Helianthus annuus II. Stomatal sensitivity to ABA imported from the xylem sap. Plant, Cell and Environment 15:561–567.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sellin, A. 1999. Does pre-dawn water potential reflect conditions of equilibrium in plant and soil water status? Acta Oecologia 20:51–59.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sperry, J. S., N. N. Alder, and S. E. Eastlack. 1993. The effect of reduced hydraulic conductance on stomatal conductance and xylem cavitation. Journal of Experimental Botany 44:1075–1082.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sperry, J. S. 1995. Limitations on stem water transport and their consequences. p. 105–124. In B. L. Gartner (ed.) Plant Stems: Physiology and Functional Morphology. Academic Press. San Diego, CA, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stewart, J. D., A. Zine El Abidine, and P. Y. Bernier. 1995. Stomatal and mesophyll limitations of photosynthesis in black spruce seedlings during multiple cycles of drought. Tree Physiology 15:57–64.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tan, W., T. J. Blake, and T. J. B. Boyle. 1992. Drought tolerance in faster- and slower-growing black spruce (Picea mariana) provenances: II. Osmotic adjustment and changes of soluble carbohydrates and amino acids under osmotic stress. Physiologia Plantarum 85:645–651.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tardieu, F. and M. J. Davies. 1993. Integration of hydraulic and chemical signalling in the control of stomatal conductance and water status of droughted plants. Plant, Cell and Environment 16: 341–349.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tognetti, R., M. Michelozzi, and A. Giovannelli. 1997. Geographical variation in water relations, hydraulic architecture and terpene composition of Aleppo pine seedlings from Italian provenances. Tree Physiology 17:241–259.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Whitehead, D., N. J. Livingston, F. M. Kelliher, K. P. Hogan, S. Pepin, T. M. McSeveny, and J. N. Byers. 1996. Response of transpiration and photosynthesis to a transient change in illuminated foliage area for a Pinus radiata D. Don tree. Plant. Cell and Environment 19:949–957.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, M., E. B. Rastetter, D. N. Fernandes, M. L. Goulden, S. C. Wofsy, G. R. Shaver, J. M. Melillo, J. W. Munger, S.-M. Fan, and K. J. Nadelhoffer. 1996. Modelling the soil-plant-atmosphere continuum in a Quercus-Acer stand at Harvard Forest: the regulation of stomatal conductance by light, nitrogen and soil/plant hydraulic properties. Plant, Cell and Environment 19:911–927.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, C. V. 1971. The Climate of Quebec. Climatic Atlas: Part One. Meteorological Service of Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zine El Abidine, A., P. Y. Bernier, J. D. Stewart, and A. P. Plamondon. 1994. Water stress preconditioning of black spruce seedlings from lowland and upland sites. Canadian Journal of Botany 72:1511–1518.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zwiazek, J. J. and T. J. Blake. 1989. Effects of preconditioning on subsequent water relations, stomatal sensitivity, and photosynthesis in osmotically stressed black spruces. Canadian Journal of Botany 67:2240–2244.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Author notes

  1. Steeve Pepin

    Present address: Ministère des Ressources naturelles, Forêt-Québec Direction de la recherche forestière, 2700 rue Einstein, G1P 3W8, Sainte-Foy, Québec, Canada

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Botany, University of Basel, Schönbeinstrasse 6, CH-4056, Basel, Switzerland

    Steeve Pepin

  2. Centre de recherche en biologie forestière Département des sciences du bois et de la forêt Faculté de foresterie et de géomatique, Université Laval, G1K 7P4, Sainte-Foy, Québec, Canada

    André P. Plamondon

  3. Service des Eaux et Forêts, B.P. 405, Tanger, Maroc

    Abderraouf Britel

Authors
  1. Steeve Pepin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. André P. Plamondon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Abderraouf Britel
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Steeve Pepin.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Pepin, S., Plamondon, A.P. & Britel, A. Water relations of black spruce trees on a peatland during wet and dry years. Wetlands 22, 225–233 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1672/0277-5212(2002)022[0225:WROBST]2.0.CO;2

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1672/0277-5212(2002)022[0225:WROBST]2.0.CO;2

Key Words

Search

Navigation