Carbon dynamics in the deciduous broadleaf tree Erman’s birch (Betula ermanii) at the subalpine treeline on Changbai Mountain, Northeast China

• Published in: American journal of botany Vol. 105; no. 1; pp. 42 - 49
• Main Authors: Wang, Qing-Wei, Qi, Lin, Zhou, Wangming, Liu, Cheng-Gang, Yu, Dapao, Dai, Limin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States John Wiley and Sons, Inc 01.01.2018; Botanical Society of America, Inc
• Subjects: Altitude; Betula - growth & development; Betula - metabolism; Betula ermanii; Betulaceae; Birch trees; broadleaved trees; Carbohydrate Metabolism; Carbohydrates; Carbon; Carbon - metabolism; carbon balance; China; Deciduous trees; Elevation; Evergreen trees; forests; Growing season; growth limitation; leaf habit; Leaves; Low temperature; non‐structural carbohydrates; organ dependence; Organs; Plant growth; RESEARCH ARTICLE; Roots; Sampling; seasonal variation; Seasons; Species; Stems; Storage organs; supply balance; Temperature; tree growth; Treeline; treeline formation mechanisms; Trees - growth & development; Trees - metabolism; China; Changbai Mountains; seasonal variation; organ dependence; growth limitation; carbon balance; leaf habit; non-structural carbohydrates; Betulaceae; treeline formation mechanisms
• ISSN: 0002-9122; 1537-2197; 1537-2197
• DOI: 10.1002/ajb2.1006

Premise of the Study The growth limitation hypothesis (GLH) and carbon limitation hypothesis (CLH) are two dominant explanations for treeline formation. The GLH proposes that low temperature drives the treeline through constraining C sinks more than C sources, and it predicts that non‐structural carbohydrate (NSC) levels are static or increase with elevation. Although the GLH has received strong support globally for evergreen treelines, there is still no consensus for deciduous treelines, which experience great asynchrony between supply and demand throughout the year. Methods We investigated growth and the growing‐season C dynamics in a common deciduous species, Erman's birch (Betula ermanii), along an elevational gradient from the closed forest to the treeline on Changbai Mountain, Northeast China. Samples were collected from developing organs (leaves and twigs) and main storage organs (stems and roots) for NSC analysis. Key Results Tree growth decreased with increasing elevation, and NSC concentrations differed significantly among elevations, organs, and sampling times. In particular, NSC levels varied slightly during the growing season in leaves, peaked in the middle of the growing season in twigs and stems, and increased continuously throughout the growing season in roots. NSCs also tended to increase or vary slightly in developing organs but decreased significantly in mature organs with increasing elevation. Conclusions The decrease in NSCs with elevation in main storage organs indicates support for the CLH, while the increasing or static trends in new developing organs indicate support for the GLH. Our results suggest that the growth limitation theory may be less applicable to deciduous species' growth than to that of evergreen species.