Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Simulation of the effect of root distribution on hydraulic redistribution in a desert riparian forest

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Ecological Research

Abstract

Hydraulic redistribution (HR) of roots plays an important role in the water relations of desert riparian plants. In order to estimate the effect of vertical root distribution on the HR process of Populus euphratica Oliv. during the entire growth season, we performed simulation and scenario analyses based on the observed soil water potential and root distribution data. The results showed that our simulation model achieved a good accuracy. The initial value of soil water content could significantly affect the simulated soil water content at soil depths of >90 cm, but had only limited effect on soil water content in the 0- to 90-cm soil layers. Scenario analysis revealed that with increase in root distribution depth, the HR process extended from the upper and middle soil layers downward toward the middle and deeper soil layers: the deeper the root distribution, the more likely it was to trigger the HR process in deep soil layers. However, a deeper rooting system led to a decrease in the total amount of hydraulically redistributed water over the entire soil column. Redistributed water also significantly increased the soil water depletion and the soil water storage. However, the effects of redistributed water (HR vs. without HR) on water depletion and soil water storage were reduced with the deepening of root distribution. These results indicate that HR can obviously affect the moisture of the upper soil layers, while vertical root distribution significantly changes the spatial and quantitative characteristics of HR within soil columns.

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

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Amenu G, Kumar P (2008) A model for hydraulic redistribution incorporating coupled soil-root moisture transport. Hydrol Earth Syst Sci 12:55–74

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • An WZ, Zhu LM, Xie JJ, Zhu XY, Zhan FY, Liu YG (2007) Study on the root distribution pattern and biomass of the cultivated Glycyrrhiza uralensis. Pratacultural Science 24:51–54

    Google Scholar 

  • Brooks JR, Meinzer FC, Warren JM, Domec JC, Coluombem R (2006) Hydraulic redistribution in a Douglas-fir forest: lessons from system manipulations. Plant Cell Environ 29:138–150

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Burgess SSO (2011) Can hydraulic redistribution put bread on our table? Plant Soil 341:25–29. doi:10.1007/s11104-010-0638-1

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Burgess SSO, Adams MA, Turner NC, Ong CK (1998) The redistribution of soil water by tree root systems. Oecologia 115:306–311

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burgess SSO, Adams MA, Turner NC, White DA, Ong CK (2001) Tree roots: conduits for deep recharge of soil water. Oecologia 126:158–165

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chen M (2008) Natural vegetation to change of groundwater table in middle and lower reaches of Tarim River Xinjiang. Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Graduate school, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi

  • Dawson TE (1993) Hydraulic lift and water-use by plants—implications for water-balance, performance and plant–plant interactions. Oecologia 95:565–574

    Google Scholar 

  • Domec JC, Warren M, Meinzer FC, Brooks JR, Coulombe R (2004) Native root xylem embolism and stomatal closure in stands of Douglas-fir and ponderosa pine: mitigation by hydraulic redistribution. Oecologia 141:7–16

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Domec JC, Scholz FG, Bucci SJ, Meinzer FC, Goldstein G, Villalobos-Vega R (2006) Diurnal and seasonal variation in root xylem embolism in neotropical savanna woody species: impact on stomatal control of plant water status. Plant Cell Environ 29:26–35

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Domec JC, King JS, Noormets A, Treasure E, Gavazzi MJ, Sun G, McNulty SG (2010) Hydraulic redistribution of soil water by roots affects whole-stand evapotranspiration and net ecosystem carbon exchange. New Phytol 187:171–183. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8137.2010.03245.x

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Emerman SH, Dawson TE (1996) Hydraulic lift and its influence on the water content of the rhizosphere: an example from sugar maple, Acer saccharum. Oecologia 108:273–278

    Google Scholar 

  • Hao XM, Chen YN, Li WH (2009) Indicating appropriate groundwater tables for desert river-bank forest at the Tarim River, Xinjiang, China. Environ Monit Assess 152:167–177

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hao XM, Chen YN, Li WH, Guo B, Zhao RF (2010a) Hydraulic lift in Populus euphratica Oliv. from the desert riparian vegetation of the Tarim River Basin. J Arid Environ 74:905–911. doi:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2010.01.005

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hao XM, Li WH, Huang X, Zhu CG, Ma JX (2010b) Assessment of the groundwater threshold of desert riparian forest vegetation along the middle and lower reaches of the Tarim River, China. Hydrol Process 24:178–186. doi:10.1002/Hyp.7432

    Google Scholar 

  • Hultine KR, Williams DG, Burgess SSO, Keefer TO (2003) Contrasting patterns of hydraulic redistribution in three desert phreatophytes. Oecologia 135:167–175

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hultine KR, Scott RL, Cable WL, Goodrich DC, Williams DG (2004) Hydraulic redistribution by a dominant, warm-desert phreatophyte: seasonal patterns and response to precipitation pulses. Funct Ecol 18:530–538

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leffler AJ, Peek MS, Ryel RJ, Ivans CY, Caldwell MM (2005) Hydraulic redistribution through the root systems of senesced plants. Ecology 86:633–642

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li XC, Hu SJ, Li YT, Li XM (2008) Study on the root distribution and soil water dynamics under Phragmites arid area. Acta Pratacult Sinica 17:97–101

    Google Scholar 

  • Ludwig F, Dawson TE, de Kroon H, Berendse F, Prins HHT (2003) Hydraulic lift in Acacia tortilis trees on an East African savanna. Oecologia 134:293–300

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • McMichael BL, Lascano RJ (2010) Evaluation of hydraulic lift in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) germplasm. Environ Exp Bot 68:26–30. doi:10.1016/j.envexpbot.2009.10.002

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moroke TS, Schwartz RC, Brown KW, Juo ASR (2011) Water use efficiency of dryland cowpea, sorghum and sunflower under reduced tillage. Soil Tillage Res 112:76–84. doi:10.1016/j.still.2010.11.008

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Munoza MR, Squeo FA, Leon MF, Tracolb Y, Gutierrez JR (2008) Hydraulic lift in three shrub species from the Chilean coastal desert. J Arid Environ 72:624–632

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oliveira RS, Dawson TE, Burgess SSO, Nepstad DC (2005) Hydraulic redistribution in three Amazonian trees. Oecologia 145:354–363

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Prieto I, Armas C, Pugnaire FI (2012) Water release through plant roots: new insights into its consequences at the plant and ecosystem level. New Phytol 193:830–841

    Google Scholar 

  • Querejeta JI, Egerton-Warburton LM, Allen MF (2007) Hydraulic lift may buffer rhizosphere hyphae against the negative effects of severe soil drying in a California Oak savanna. Soil Biol Biochem 39:409–417

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Quijano JC, Kumar P, Drewry DT, Goldstein A, Misson L (2012) Competitive and mutualistic dependencies in multispecies vegetation dynamics enabled by hydraulic redistribution. Water Resour Res 48, Art no. W05518. doi:10.1029/2011WR011416

  • Ryel RJ, Caldwell MM, Yoder CK, Leffler AJ (2002) Hydraulic redistribution in a stand of Artemisia tridentata: evaluation of benefits to transpiration assessed with a simulation model. Oecologia 130:173–184

    Google Scholar 

  • Ryel RJ, Leffler AJ, Peek MS, Ivans CY, Caldwell MM (2004) Water conservation in Artemisia tridentata through redistribution of precipitation. Oecologia 141:335–345

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Warren JM, Meinzer FC, Brooks JR, Domec JC (2005) Vertical stratification of soil water storage and release dynamics in Pacific Northwest coniferous forests. Agric For Meteorol 130:39–58

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Warren JM, Meinzer FC, Brooks JR, Domec JC, Coulombe R (2007) Hydraulic redistribution of soil water in two old-growth coniferous forests: quantifying patterns and controls. New Phytol 173:753–765

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Warren JM, Brooks JR, Dragila MI, Meinzer FC (2011) In situ separation of root hydraulic redistribution of soil water from liquid and vapor transport. Oecologia 166:899–911. doi:10.1007/s00442-011-1953-9

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Xu DH, Li J, Fang XW, Wang G (2007) Changes in soil water content in the rhizosphere of Artemisia ordosica: evidence for hydraulic lift. J Arid Environ 69:545–553

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yang XL, Zhang XM, Li YL, Li SC, Sun HL (2008) Analysis of root architecture and root adaptive strategy in the Taklimakan Desert area of China. J Plant Ecol 32:1268–1276

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhu YH, Chu YQ, Lv HS, Pu JC (2001) A mathematical model predicting water content in desert soil with plant growth. J Glaciol Geocryol 23:264–269

    Google Scholar 

  • Zou CB, Barnes PW, Archer S, McMurtry CR (2005) Soil moisture redistribution as a mechanism of facilitation in savanna tree–shrub clusters. Oecologia 145:32–40

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zu YG, Zhao ZH, Yang FJ, Cao JG (2004) Influences of artificial disturbing degrees on soil conditions and liquorice roots system. Acta Ecol Sinica 24:724–729

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported by the West Light Foundation of the Chinese Academy of Science (Grant No. RCPY200903) and the National Natural Science Foundation of Heihe River Project (Grant No. 91025025). We thank the anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments that helped to improve the paper.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi, 830011, People’s Republic of China

    Xing Ming Hao, Wei Hong Li, Bin Guo & Jian Xin Ma

Authors
  1. Xing Ming Hao
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Wei Hong Li
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Bin Guo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Jian Xin Ma
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Xing Ming Hao.

About this article

Cite this article

Hao, X.M., Li, W.H., Guo, B. et al. Simulation of the effect of root distribution on hydraulic redistribution in a desert riparian forest. Ecol Res 28, 653–662 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11284-013-1058-5

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11284-013-1058-5

Keywords

Search

Navigation