Influence of slope position and aspect on the vegetation attributes and treewater relations in forests of the central Himalayas

While the need for understanding the effects of topographical factors on forest structure and function is well recognized,comprehensive studies are scarce.This study evaluates the effect of slope aspect and slope position on water relations and forest attributes across six forest types occurring between 400 m and 2600 m altitude in the Central Himalaya(27°-38°N).We found that predawn tree water potential and soil water potential were generally higher on moist north slope aspect(-0.78±0.05 MPa and-3.34±0.18 MPa,respectively)than dry south slope aspect(-0.82±0.18 MPa and-3.77±0.18 MPa,respectively).Across six different forests,these values were higher at hill base(-0.71±0.06 MPa and-2.77±0.19 MPa,tree predawn water potential and soil water potential,respectively)than other topographical positions.The favorable effect of north aspect and hill base was also observed in maintaining soil water and tree water potential during the dry season.Vegetation attributes,such as species richness,unique species and plant density were also generally higher on north slope and hill base than southern aspect and lowest at hill top.Across forest types,the hill base provided shelter to 46 unique species,compared to 16-18 at the other positions,thus emphasizing its importance as refugia for species to survive climate change induced perturbations.The favorable conditions of hill base position not only contribute to increase in alpha diversity,but also to extended species distributional range.

Water Relations on Alhagi sparsifolia in the Southern Fringe of Taklamakan Desert

Water relations of Alhagi sparsifolia Shap. at the transition zone between oases and sandy desert were studied in the southern fringe of Taklamakan Desert. Results showed that A. sparsifolia maintained the positive turgor during the summer. The steady high predawn water potential (psi(P)) indicated A. sparsifolia had sufficient hydration and water supply in growing season. In July, water deficit caused by drought stress had no effect on the transpiration of A. sparsifolia. Therefore, drought stress is not a main factor affecting the survival of plants. The physiological adaptation to drought of A. sparsifolia was shown mainly at the leaf level by significant difference (DeltaII) and relative water content (RWC) between the osmotic pressure at full turgor and at turgor loss, by occurring of osmotic adjustment, by high percentage of dry mass-related water content ( WCsat), by RWC at turgor loss point ( RWCp) in stable level and low RWC of the saturated symplast (RWCsym). However, the morphological features of transpiring surface reduction and deep root system seem to be the main way for the plant to adapt to the extreme drought environment. Result also suggests that one time of irregular irrigation in summer will not be helpful to recover water status of A. sparsifolia in location where the water table is very low.

Stable Isotope Studies of Crop Carbon and Water Relations:A Review

Crop carbon and water relations research is important in the studies of water saving agriculture, breeding program, and energy and material cycles in soil plant atmosphere continuum （SPAC）. The purpose of this paper is to review the current state of knowledge on stable isotopes of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen in the research of crop carbon and water relations, such as carbon isotope discrimination （△^13C） during carbon fixation process by photosynthesis, application of △^13C in crop water use efficiency （WUE） and breeding programs, oxygen isotope enrichment during leaf water transpiration, CO2 fixation by photosynthesis and release by respiration, application of hydrogen isotope composition （619） and oxygen isotope composition （6180） for determination of water source used by a crop, stable isotope coupling Keeling plot for investigating the carbon and water flux in ecosystem, energy and material cycle in SPAC and correlative integrative models on stable isotope. These aspects contain most of the stable isotope researches on crop carbon and water relations which have been widely explored internationally while less referred in China. Based on the reviewed literatures, some needs for future research are suggested.

Generalizing plant–water relations to landscapes

Aims Changing climate and land use patterns make it increasingly important that the hydrology of catchments and ecosystems can be reliably characterized.The aim of this paper is to identify the biophysical factors that determine the rates of water vapor loss from different types of vegetation,and to seek,from an array of currently available satelliteborne sensors,those that might be used to initialize and drive landscape-level hydrologic models.Important Findings Spatial variation in the mean heights,crowd widths,and leaf area indices(LAI)of plant communities are important structural variables that affect the hydrology of landscapes.Canopy stomatal conductance(G)imposes physiological limitation on transpiration by vegetation.The maximum value of G(Gmax)is closely linked to canopy photosynthetic capacity,which can be estimated via remote sensing of foliar chlorophyll or nitrogen contents.Gcan be modeled as a nonlinear multipliable function of:(i)leaf–air vapor pressure deficit,(ii)water potential gradient between soil and leaves,(iii)photosynthetically active radiation absorbed by the canopy,(iv)plant nutrition,(v)temperature and(vi)the CO_(2) concentration of the air.Periodic surveys with Light Detection and Ranging(LiDAR)and interferometric RADAR,along with high-resolution spectral coverage in the visible,near-infrared,and thermal infrared bands,provide,along with meteorological data gathered from weather satellites,the kind of information required to model seasonal and interannual variation in transpiration and evaporation from landscapes with diverse and dynamic vegetation.

Coupling relation between water and salt in irrigation area on a catchments scale

Water resource is the important factor for sustainable development in Weigan River catchments in western China. Based on ecological hydrology principles, the coupling relation between water and salt is monitored and analyzed. The water quality for irrigation in oasis ecosystem has a larger variable range in arid area, which depending on the input water resource and underground water mineralization degree and water chemical component on the catchments scale, the water and salt coupling is decided by the climate condition and soil feature and vegetation characteristics as well as human activity. Meanwhile, temporal and spatial change between water and salt is quite complicated. The environmental management should be paid attention to considering in irrigation area in the catchments.

Protozoan colonization on artificial substrates in relation to water quality in a tropical Indian harbour

A field study was conducted to evaluate the protozoan colonization patterns on artificial substrates in relation to organic pollution within a tropical harbour. The composition of protozoans and their succession rates on artificial substrates(polyurethane foam units) were compared between two field stations(A and B), and their presence were considered with regards to the prevailing water quality conditions at the study sites. Altogether 44 genera of flagellates and ciliates were documented. The common genera of flagellates encountered included Monas, Polytoma, and Chromalina. Among the ciliates, the predominant genera were Tetrahymena, Vorticella, Lagynophyra, and Heloiphyra. These groups exhibited characteristic successional patterns in relation to ambient water quality. At Station A, located close to the sewage outfall, the water quality parameters included poor Secchi disc transparency(0.48m), dissolved oxygen of 1.93 mg/ml, salinity of 18 psu, and temperature 31.3 ℃. Here, the nanoflagellates( spumella ) colonized first, followed by microcilliate( Tetrahymena ) and sessile form( Vorticella ). Station B, located on the seaward side, was characterized by relatively less stressed environmental conditions with transparency 1.85m and dissolved oxygen value of 6 04 mg/ml. Salinity of 27.27 psu, and mean temperature of 30 ℃ were recorded at “B'. At this station, the nanoflagellate Polytoma was first documented to colonize on the substrates, followed by microcilliate( Lagynophrya ) and suctorid( Heliophyra ). These findings support the use of protozoans as indicator species for evaluating the hazards posed by organic pollution to natural estuarine communities.

Effects of water stress on Haloxylon ammodendron seedlings in the desert region of Heihe inland river watershed, Gansu Province, China

The water relation and leaf gas exchange of saxoul (Haloxylon Ammodendron Bge, a C4 shrub) seedlings were studied under water stress in 2001. Saxoul seedlings maintained high transpiration when the soil moisture was above 11%. The seedlings were able to take up water from soil with above 6 % soil water content, which was the threshold level of soil moisture for seedlings. The relationship between transpiration and potential evaporation was linear for well-watered seedlings. The de-crease of soil water availability led to different degrees of down-regulation of stomatal conductance, leaf transpiration and net CO2 assimilation rate. The stomata played a relatively small part in determining the net CO2 assimilation rate for the same seedling. The relationship between net CO2 assimilation rate and transpiration was linear diurnally, and reduction scale of leaf transpiration was much bigger than that of net CO2 assimilation rate by waters tress treatments, therefore intrinsic wa-ter-use-efficiency increased. High evaporative demand increased the leaf transpiration but inhibited net CO2 assimilation rate. Because of the effect of VPD on transpiration in this region, the transpiration of well-watered and mild water stress seedlings becomes responsive to change in stomatal conductance over a wider range.

Stomatal dynamics are regulated by leaf hydraulic traits and guard cell anatomy in nine true mangrove species

Stomatal regulation is critical for mangroves to survive in the hyper-saline intertidal zone where water stress is severe and water availability is highly fluctuant.However,very little is known about the stomatal sensitivity to vapour pressure deficit(VPD)in mangroves,and its co-ordination with stomatal morphology and leaf hydraulic traits.We measured the stomatal response to a step increase in VPD in situ,stomatal anatomy,leaf hydraulic vulnerability and pressure-volume traits in nine true mangrove species of five families and collected the data of genome size.We aimed to answer two questions:(1)Does stomatal morphology influence stomatal dynamics in response to a high VPD in mangroves?with a consideration of possible influence of genome size on stomatal morphology;and(2)do leaf hydraulic traits influence stomatal sensitivity to VPD in mangroves?We found that the stomata of mangrove plants were highly sensitive to a step rise in VPD and the stomatal responses were directly affected by stomatal anatomy and hydraulic traits.Smaller,denser stomata was correlated with faster stomatal closure at high VPD across the species of Rhizophoraceae,and stomata size negatively and vein density positively correlated with genome size.Less negative leaf osmotic pressure at the full turgor(πo)was related to higher operating steady-state stomatal conductance(gs);and a higher leaf capacitance(Cleaf)and more embolism resistant leaf xylem were associated with slower stomatal responses to an increase in VPD.In addition,stomatal responsiveness to VPD was indirectly affected by leaf morphological traits,which were affected by site salinity and consequently leaf water status.Our results demonstrate that mangroves display a unique relationship between genome size,stomatal size and vein packing,and that stomatal responsiveness to VPD is regulated by leaf hydraulic traits and stomatal morphology.Our work provides a quantitative framework to better understand of stomatal regulation in mangroves in an environment with high salinity and dynamic water availability.

Effects of Water Stress on Leaf Water and Chlorophyll Fluorescence Parameters of Sugarcane Seedling

[Objective] The aim was to explore the effects of water stress on leaf water and chlorophyll fluorescence parameters of sugarcane seedling,as well as to provide basis for the study on sugarcane production and evaluation. [Method] Seven different sugarcane varieties were studied at the seedling stage under drought stress,and the changes of leaf water and chlorophyll fluorescence parameters under stress conditions were detected. [Result] leaf water potential,leaf relative water content and soil relative water content showed a certain amount of internal relationship,the sugarcane varieties that had more tolerant to drought had higher utilization rate of soil water; the correlation analysis and factor analysis suggested that the survival rate at seedling stage under drought stress,Fv/Fm,leaf water potential and relative water content could be used as drought resistance evaluation indicators. [Conclusion] As a relatively independent influencing factor,water potential had dominating effect on drought resistance,and the reliability of Fv/Fm as drought resistance evaluation indicator had been verified.

Water status of bare-root seedlings of Chinese fir and Masson pine

Water relation parameters of bare-root seedlings of Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata Hook.) and Masson pine (Pinus massoniana Lamb.) were measured and changes of root growth potential as well as field survival rate of both species were studied after the bare-root seedlings were exposed in a sunny field condition. The results showed that Masson pine had a lower osmotic potential (-2.07Mpa) at turgor loss point and at full turgor (-1.29Mpa), compared with Chinese fir (-1.80Mpa and -1.08Mpa respectively). The parameter Vp/V0 (63.27%) of Masson pine was higher than that of Chinese fir (58.03%). This means that Masson pine has a stronger ability to tolerate desiccation, compared to Chinese fir according to analysis of above water relation parameters. Root growth potential and field survival rate decreased with prolonging duration of exposure. The field survival rate of both species was reduced to less than 40% after the seedling being exposed only two hours. Water poten-tials of 1.60 Mpa and -1.70 Mpa were suggested to be critical values for Chinese fir and Masson pine respectively in successful reforestation.

Effects of Relative Soil Water Content on Antioxidant Enzyme System in Malus sieversii(Lebed.) Roem

By pot experiment under artificially simulated water stress conditions, soluble protein content, MDA content and SOD, POD, CAT and APX activities in Malus sieversfi leaves were determined to reveal the response mechanism of M. sieversii to changes of relative soil water content. According to the results, with the decrease of relative soil water content, MDA content in M. sieversii leaves increased by mem- brane lipid peroxidation. Cells resist water stress-induced membrane lipid peroxidation and clear the increased reactive oxygen species by improving soluble protein content and SOD, POD, CAT and APX activities. However, various enzymes were involved in the response to water stress under different moisture conditions. In addition, the results indicated that M. sieversii had a good adaptability to higher relative soil water contents.

QTL Analysis for Relative Water Content in Rice

Drought tolerance is complex in rice. Under drought stress, leaf water content trait can be used as a indicator for variety evaluation. In this study, ahybrid F2 population was constructed with drought-tolerant indica rice cultivar Luhan No.1 and japonica rice cultivar Nipponbare, to analyze QTLs related with relative water content in rice. According to the results, two QTLs were detected between markers 4-27M and 4-23M and between markers 6-3M and RM276 on chromosomes 4 and 6, with the contribution rate of 4.81% -6.43% to phenotypic variation.

Effect of Nitrogen on Water Content, Sap Flow, and Tolerance of Rice Plants to Brown Planthopper, Nilaparvata lugens

Water content (WC) and sap flow from leaf sheath of rice plants with varying nitrogen levels at different growth stages, and fluctuations in relative water content (RWC) of rice plants being damaged by brown planthoppcr (BPH), Nilaparvata lugens were determined in the laboratory, and the tolerance of rice plants to BPH at different nitrogen regimes was evaluated in the greenhouse at International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), the Philippines. The results indicated that both WC and RWC were increased significantly, as the amount of sap flow from rice plants was reduced statistically, with the increase of nitrogen content in rice plants. RWC in rice plants applied with high nitrogen fertilizer decreased drastically by the injury of BPH nymphs, while the reduced survival duration of rice plants with the increase of nitrogen content was recorded. These may be considered to be one of the important factors in increasing the susceptibility to BPH damage on rice plants applied with nitrogen fertilizer.

Potassium-Induced Regulation of Cellular Antioxidant Defense and Improvement of Physiological Processes in Wheat under Water Deficit Condition

Drought is the most common form of abiotic stress that reduces plant growth and productivity.It causes plant injuries through elevated production of reactive oxygen species(ROS).Potassium(K)is a vital plant nutrient that notably ameliorates the detrimental effect of drought stress in the plant.A pot experiment was conducted at the Laboratory of Plant Stress Responses,Faculty of Agriculture,Kagawa University,Japan,under controlled environment of green house to explore the role of K in mitigating drought severity in wheat(Triticum asevitum L.)seedlings.Three days after germination,seedlings were exposed to three water regimes viz.,100,50,and 20%field capacity(FC)for 21 days.Potassium was adjusted in Hoagland nutrient solution at 0,6 and 12 mM concentration and applied to pot instead of normal water.Results show that,water deficit stress notably reduced plant growth,biomass accumulation,leaf relative water content(RWC)along with reduced photosynthetic pigments.Increased amount of biochemical stress markers viz.,malondialdehyde(MDA),hydrogen peroxide(H_(2)O_(2)),methylglyoxal(MG),proline(Pro)as well as an impaired antioxidant defense system were observed in drought affected wheat plants.On the contrary,K supplementation resulted in improvement of biochemical and physiological parameters that worked behind in improving growth and development of the wheat plants.In addition,enzymes of ascorbateglutathione(AsA-GSH)cycle were also enhanced by supplemented K that accelerated the ROS detoxification process in plant.Although glyoxalse system did not performed well till MG was detoxified might following another short stepped pathways.Our results revealed that drought stressed plants showed better performances in terms of biochemical and physiological attributes,antioxidant defense and glyoxalase system,as well as ROS detoxification due to K supplementation with better performance at 12 mM K added in 50%FC growing condition.

Environmental Occurrence of Selenium in Waters and Related Health Significance

Appreciable amounts of selenium in spring and well waters can be found due to geological occurrence. Concentrations of as much as 400 9000 μg/l have been reported in U. S. waters.These levels are 8 to 180 times the current EPA drinking water standard and approximate dietary exposures of 4900μg in selenosis regions of China. Reviews of health significance of the elevated drinking water exposures to U. S. populations revealed elevated concentrations of selenium in urine and blood. A decrease in glutathione peroxidase activity in such instances was noted. However noticeable symptoms and signs seem absent in studies reviewed. A comparison of intake levels (diet or drinking water) to urinary excretion for residents of China and the U. S. produced a correlation coefficient, r = 0. 82 (P < 0. 01 ) for the three research studies available

Biomass and water partitioning in two age-related Caragana korshinskii plantations in desert steppe,northern China

Understanding of biomass and water allocation in plant populations will provide useful information on their growth pattern and resource allocation dynamics. By direct measurement, the biomass and water content partitioning were compared at the aboveground, belowground and whole-plant levels for artificial Caragana korshinskii populations between 6- and 25-year-old sites in desert steppe, northern China. The biomass was mainly allocated to third-srade branches at the aboveground level, and to firstand second-grade roots at the belowground level, and to aboveground parts at the whole-plant vegetative level. Those plant parts mentioned above became the major component of biomass pool of these shrub populations. Biomass pattern changed significantly at aboveground and/or whole-plant levels （P 〈0.05）, but not at belowground level （P 〉0.05） at 25-year-old site in comparison to 6-year-old site. Also, the water relations between dif- ferent plant parts changed considerably at all three levels from 6- to 25-year-old sites. These results imply that biomass pattern and relative water content of plant parts are correlated with the process of plantation development. The ratio of belowground to aboveground, though below 1, increased from 6- to 25-year-old site. These results suggest that these shrub populations can adjust biomass partition and relative water content of different compartments to alter their ecological adaptive strategies during stand development in desertified regions.

Using Ambient Noise to Study the Seismic Velocity Changes Caused by the Rise and Fall of the Water Level in the Zipingpu Reservoir Region

We study the feature of media changes beneath the Zipingpu reservoir and discuss the process of permeation with the water level rise and fall of the reservoir from January 2005 to January 2008 from ambient noise cross correlation by using continuous seismic data recorded by the stations of Zipingpu seismic network and YZP station. A moving-window cross-spectrum technique has been used to calculate the relative seismic velocity changes between station pairs. Results revealed an obvious relationship between relative seismic velocity, and the water level changes with a time delay that may be caused by permeation during three main impoundments and two large scale disemboguements. Impoundment generates a fast and large impact on the superficial layer, and the changes of seismic velocity is the result of increased pressure and permeation during the impoundment. At the first impoundment, the main effect factor is pressure. During the next two process of impoundment, permeation becomes the main effect factor, affecting the fault at a depth of about 8kin.

PV技术的计算机处理及其在树木水分关系研究中的应用

ＰＶ技术的计算机处理及其在树木水分关系研究中的应用刘建伟，刘雅荣，王世绩（中国林业科学研究院林业研究所，北京１０００９１）ＣｏｍｐｕｔｅｒＰｒｏｃｅｓｓｉｎｇｏｆＰＶＣｕｒｖｅＡｎａｌｙｓｉｓａｎｄＩｔｓＡｐｐｌｉｃａｔｉｏｎｉｎｔｈｅＲｅｓｅａｒｃ...

Responses of Dobera glabra and Eight Co-Occurring Species to Drought and Salinity Stress at a Savanna-Scrub Ecotone:Implications in the Face of Climate Change

To quantify the resistance of different co-occurring species to drought and osmotic stress (salinity stress), plant water (Ψ) and osmotic (Ψp) potentials were measured during the dry season. We applied a pressure chamber and cryoscopy to measure Ψ and Ψp, respectively. The species revealed a wide range of responses to water stress (-0.83 to -5.8 MPa) and osmotic stress (-1.3 to -3.2 MPa) and not all plants fit closely into one or the other category. Evergreen species tended to have lower Ψ than deciduous species. Notably, Dobera glabra, well known as drought indicator tree in the region, showed the lowest Ψ (up to -5.8 MPa) and Ψp (-3.2 MPa). This indicates its outstanding drought and osmotic stress tolerance and explains its ability to thrive in drought prone areas and years. The recent expansion of A. oerfota and A. mellifera in the study area could be related to their tolerance of osmotic stress, which may imply a trend of soil salinization. The division of plant responses into categories or strategies can be valuable aid to understanding long-term plant survival and distribution, monitor site condition and predict the direction of future changes.

Biochar Application Improves the Drought Tolerance in Maize Seedlings

Application of biochar to agricultural soils is mostly used to improve soil fertility.Experimental treatments were comprised of two factors:i)drought at two level,i.e.,80%and 40%water holding capacity(WHC)which was maintained on gravimetric basis ii)three levels of biochar i.e.,control,2 t ha^(-1) and 4 t ha^(-1) added to soil.Experimentation was done to examine potential of biochar application to enhance the growth attributes,water relations,photosynthetic pigments and antioxidants activities in maize(Zea mays L.)seedlings.Results of study revealed that biochar application increased the growth qualities(total seedlings biomass,dry weight of shoot and root,shoot length and root length).In addition;contents of photosynthetic pigments(chlorophyll a,b,a+b and a/b),water relation(relative water contents,turgor potential,osmotic potential and water potential)were improved significantly due to addition of biochar.Addition of 4 t ha^(-1) biochar led to significant rise activity of enzymatic antioxidant catalase(CAT),superoxide dismutase(SOD)and peroxidase(POD)in leaf of maize seedling sunder drought as well as well watered circumstances.However,biochar applied at the rate 4 t ha^(-1) improved the all the physiological and biochemical attributes in maize seedlings under drought.From the results it was concluded that biochar application is an efficient way to alleviate adverse effect of drought stress on maize.In drought prone areas,long term impacts of biochar on production of maize and properties of soil could be recommended as upcoming shove.