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Shoots grafted into the upper crowns of tall Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica D. Don) show foliar gas exchange characteristics similar to those of intact shoots

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Abstract

The lower foliar photosynthetic rates seen in shoots in the upper crowns of tall trees than those in seedlings could be caused by extrinsic factors, such as hydraulic conductance, for shoots or by irreversible intrinsic change in the meristems during tree development. To clarify which is most significant, we compared foliar gas exchange characteristics and water relations among scions of Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica D. Don) grafted into the upper crowns of tall trees, rooted cuttings developed from scions of the same clones, and intact shoots in the upper crowns of the tall trees. Grafted shoots had the same water regime as intact shoots, as confirmed by their similar water potentials at the turgor loss point, which were more negative than those of the rooted cuttings. No significant difference was observed between the grafted and intact shoots in their light-saturated photosynthetic rate (Pmax), stomatal conductance (gs), photosynthetic capacity, carboxylation efficiency, ratio of intercellular to ambient CO2 concentration (Ci/Ca), and carbon isotope composition (δ13C). Compared with the rooted cuttings, the grafted shoots showed significantly lower Pmax, gs, photosynthetic capacity, and carboxylation efficiency (to 49%, 31%, 68%, and 65%, respectively). The Ci/Ca and δ13C indicated significantly stronger instantaneous and long-term stomatal limitation in the grafted shoots than in the rooted cuttings. These indicate that changes in extrinsic factors can reduce foliar photosynthetic rates in shoots in the upper crowns of tall trees as a result of stronger stomatal limitation and reduced photosynthetic activity, without irreversible intrinsic changes in the meristems.

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Acknowledgements

To measure nitrogen contents, we used an elemental analyzer at the Laboratory of Silviculture, Department of Forest Science, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo. We greatly appreciate the help provided by Dr. M. Masumori. We also used an elemental analyzer and the mass spectrometer at the Asian Natural Environmental Science Center, The University of Tokyo. We sincerely thank Dr. H. Sasaki and Dr. K. Kojima for their help in these δ13C measurements. We also thank the staff of the University Forest in Chiba, the University Forests, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, for providing the study sites and help with the experiments. This study was supported by a Grant-in-Aid for Basic Research (No. 13460063) from the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture of Japan.

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  1. The University Forests, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Yayoi 1-1-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8657, Japan

    Jun Matsuzaki, Jun Kodaira, Makoto Suzuki & Takeshi Tange

  2. Asian Natural Environmental Science Center, The University of Tokyo, Yayoi 1-1-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8657, Japan

    Mariko Norisada

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  1. Jun Matsuzaki
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  2. Mariko Norisada
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  3. Jun Kodaira
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  4. Makoto Suzuki
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  5. Takeshi Tange
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Correspondence to Jun Matsuzaki.

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Matsuzaki, J., Norisada, M., Kodaira, J. et al. Shoots grafted into the upper crowns of tall Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica D. Don) show foliar gas exchange characteristics similar to those of intact shoots. Trees 19, 198–203 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-004-0382-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-004-0382-3

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