Distal to proximal: a continuum of drivers shaping tree growth and carbon partitioning

2025/09/04 by Antoine Cabon · 1 voice · 7 citations
Environmental Science · #Biology #Carbon sink #Climate change #Computer science #Ecology #Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies #Environmental science #Forest ecology and management #Geography #Plant Water Relations and Carbon Dynamics #Sink (geography)

paper · pdf · doi:10.1111/nph.70516

published in New Phytologist 249(2), 729-735 (Wiley)

openalex publication_date 2025/09/04 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/23

Abstract

The relationship between tree carbon (C) assimilation and growth is central to understanding tree functioning and forecasting forest C sequestration, yet remains unresolved. The long-standing debate over C source vs sink limits to growth has yielded invaluable insight, but rests on a false dichotomy. Reframing this issue in terms of distal-to-proximal processes driving sink activity and placing it within a broader understanding of C partitioning offers new insights. Building on transport-resistance theory, I outline a framework where plant resource economies shape spatial gradients of resource availability along the leaf-to-root axis, thereby regulating local sink activity. This spatially explicit, trait-informed perspective aligns with optimality theory and provides a mechanistic link between C partitioning and the plant functional trait spectrum. By moving beyond binary limitations and emphasizing integrated physiological processes, this approach can improve understanding of tree function and biomass increment under climate change.

Citations

• Growth decline in European beech associated with temperature-driven increase in reproductive allocation
• Source vs sink limitations on tree growth: from physiological mechanisms to evolutionary constraints and terrestrial carbon cycle implications
• Beyond source and sink control – toward an integrated approach to understand the carbon balance in plants
• Resource Limitation in Plants-An Economic Analogy

Cited by

• Optimal carbon partitioning drives sink potential dynamics in large‐scale pine reforestation under climate change
• Decoupled carbon assimilation and growth responses to aridity in temperate deciduous oaks
• Shaping future forests: how can ecophysiology support climate‐smart forest management?
• Shaping future forests: how can ecophysiology support climate-smart forest management? [europepmc]
• Decoupled carbon assimilation and growth responses to aridity in temperate deciduous oaks. [europepmc]
• (In)determinacy in Woody Plants: Limits and Opportunities for Timing Growth in a Changing Climate. [europepmc]

Discussions

• ✨ Paper spotlight ✨ (🧵 1/5) Distal to proximal: a continuum of drivers shaping tree growth and carbon partitioning doi.org/10.1111/nph.... [bsky, 21 points, 1 comments]

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• Source vs sink limitations on tree growth: from physiological mechanisms to evolutionary constraints and terrestrial carbon cycle implications
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• Optimal carbon partitioning drives sink potential dynamics in large‐scale pine reforestation under climate change