Are trees able to grow in periods of stem shrinkage?

2016/05/18 by Roman Zweifel, Matthias Haeni, Nina Buchmann +1 · 293 citations
Earth and Planetary Sciences · Environmental Science · Mathematics · #Biology #Botany #Deciduous #Evergreen #Forest ecology and management #Growth rate #Horticulture #Mathematics #Plant Water Relations and Carbon Dynamics #Shrinkage #Statistics #Tree-ring climate responses

paper · pdf · doi:10.1111/nph.13995

published in New Phytologist 211(3), 839-849 (Wiley)

openalex publication_date 2016/05/18 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/06

Abstract

Separating continuously measured stem radius (SR) fluctuations into growth-induced irreversible stem expansion (GRO) and tree water deficit-induced reversible stem shrinkage (TWD) requires a conceptualization of potential growth processes that may occur during periods of shrinking and expanding SR below a precedent maximum. Here, we investigated two physiological concepts: the linear growth (LG) concept, assuming linear growth, versus the zero growth (ZG) concept, assuming no growth during periods of stem shrinkage. We evaluated the physiological mechanisms underlying these two concepts and assessed their respective plausibilities using SR data obtained from 15 deciduous and evergreen trees. The application of the LG concept produced steady growth rates, whereas growth rates varied strongly under the ZG concept, more in accordance with mechanistic expectations. Further, growth increased for a maximum of 120 min after periods of stem shrinkage, indicating limited growth activity during those periods. However, this extra growth was found to be a small fraction of total growth only. Furthermore, TWD under the ZG concept was better explained by a hydraulic plant model than TWD under the LG concept. We conclude that periods of stem shrinkage allow for very little growth in the four tree species investigated. However, further studies should focus on obtaining independent growth data to ultimately validate these findings.

Cited by

• Why trees grow at night
• Daytime stomatal regulation in mature temperate trees prioritizes stem rehydration at night
• Diel and seasonal stem growth responses to climatic variation are consistent across species in a subtropical tree community
• Dynamic Shifts in Radial Sap Flow of Two Temperate Tree Species in Response to the Dry Summer 2022
• Dendrometers challenge the ‘moon wood concept’ by elucidating the absence of lunar cycles in tree stem radius oscillation
• Isohydric Douglas fir shows earlier drought-induced declines in stem water status and growth than anisohydric beech
• From microscopic movements to forest-scale insights: the Nordic Dendrometer Meeting and the emergence of the Global Dendrometer Network
• Theoretical and Methodological Framework for Monitoring Feedback Mechanisms Among Soil Moisture Dynamics, Soil Organic Matter and Deadwood in Forests
• Mitigating drought stress in European beech and pedunculate oak: The role of competition reduction
• Legacies from early‐season hot drought: how growth cessation alters tree water dynamics and modifies stress responses in Scots pine
• Capturing drought stress signals: the potential of dendrometers for monitoring tree water status
• Decoupled carbon assimilation and growth responses to aridity in temperate deciduous oaks
• The Sequence of Drought‐Driven Stomatal Closure, Stem Xylem Embolism, Dehydration, and Aquaporin Gene Expression Differs Among Species
• Challenges and Limitations in Comparing Satellite Microwave Vegetation Optical Depth (VOD) Against in-Situ Tree Hydraulics in the Canadian Boreal Forest
• High vapour pressure deficit enhances turgor limitation of stem growth in an Asian tropical rainforest tree
• An empirical method that separates irreversible stem radial growth from bark water content changes in trees: theory and case studies. [europepmc]
• Water stress limits transpiration and growth of European larch up to the lower subalpine belt in an inner-alpine dry valley. [europepmc]
• Tree Circumference Changes and Species-Specific Growth Recovery After Extreme Dry Events in a Montane Rainforest in Southern Ecuador. [europepmc]
• Determinants of legacy effects in pine trees - implications from an irrigation-stop experiment. [europepmc]
• Analysis of floodplain forest sensitivity to drought. [europepmc]
• Physiological response of Swiss ecosystems to 2018 drought across plant types and elevation. [europepmc]
• Why trees grow at night. [europepmc]
• Number of growth days and not length of the growth period determines radial stem growth of temperate trees. [europepmc]
• The 2018 European heatwave led to stem dehydration but not to consistent growth reductions in forests. [europepmc]
• Wood Formation Modeling - A Research Review and Future Perspectives. [europepmc]
• Alpine shrub growth follows bimodal seasonal patterns across biomes - unexpected environmental controls. [europepmc]
• Reconstructing radial stem size changes of trees with machine learning. [europepmc]
• The fall of the summer truffle: Recurring hot, dry summers result in declining fruitbody production of Tuber aestivum in Central Europe. [europepmc]
• Seasonal and Daily Xylem Radius Variations in Scots Pine Are Closely Linked to Environmental Factors Affecting Transpiration. [europepmc]
• Impact of extreme pre-monsoon drought on xylogenesis and intra-annual radial increments of two tree species in a tropical montane evergreen broad-leaved forest, southwest China. [europepmc]
• Local neighborhood affects stem rehydration under drought: evidence from mixtures of European beech with two different conifers. [europepmc]
• Capturing drought stress signals: the potential of dendrometers for monitoring tree water status. [europepmc]
• Linking sap flow and tree water deficit in an unmanaged, mixed beech forest during the summer drought 2022. [europepmc]
• Legacies from early-season hot drought: how growth cessation alters tree water dynamics and modifies stress responses in Scots pine. [europepmc]
• Intra-annual stem radius growth and cell formation of two diffuse-porous tree species in a subtropical forest in Southwest China. [europepmc]
• Stress dose explains drought recovery in Norway spruce. [europepmc]
• Tree Growth, Contraction and Recovery: Disentangling Soil and Atmospheric Drought Effects. [europepmc]
• Normalized tree water deficit: an automated dendrometer signal to quantify drought stress in trees. [europepmc]
• Drought-induced delays in stem hydraulic development shape gas exchange and growth recovery in Douglas fir. [europepmc]
• Decoupled carbon assimilation and growth responses to aridity in temperate deciduous oaks. [europepmc]

Related

• Diameter growth: can live trees decrease?
• Functional traits explain growth response to successive hotter droughts across a wide set of common and future tree species in Europe
• Evidence for “diminishing returns” from the scaling of stem diameter and specific leaf area
• CROWN RATIO INFLUENCES ALLOMETRIC SCALING IN TREES
• Stephenson et al.'s ecological fallacy