Major parts of anthropogenic and natural aerosols are hygroscopic and deliquesce at high humidity... more Major parts of anthropogenic and natural aerosols are hygroscopic and deliquesce at high humidity, particularly when depositing to leaf surfaces close to transpiring stomata. Deliquescence and subsequent salt creep may establish thin, extraordinary pathways into the stomata, which foster stomatal uptake of nutrients and water but may also cause stomatal liquid water loss by wicking. Such additional water loss is not accompanied by a wider stomatal aperture with a larger CO2 influx and hypothetically reduces water use efficiency (WUE). Here, the possible direct impacts of aerosols on physical and physiological parameters of camphor (Cinnamomum camphora) were studied (i) in a greenhouse experiment using aerosol exclusion and (ii) in a field study in Taiwan, comparing trees at two sites with different aerosol regimes. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images showed that leaves grown under aerosol exclusion in filtered air (FA) were lacking the amorphous, flat areas that were abundant ...
Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for all biota, but in excess behaves as a pollutant in the envi... more Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for all biota, but in excess behaves as a pollutant in the environment. The doubling of total reactive nitrogen (nitrogen not in the form of N2 gas) pools globally has resulted in many undesirable changes in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. The International Long-Term Ecological Research (ILTER) network, a global site and researcher network focused on long-term, site-based ecosystem and socio-ecological research, organized a nine-day international training course in Hokkaido, Japan to expose young researchers to state-of-the-art analysis of nitrogen cycling in ecosystems with a focus on key ecosystem processes and implications for environmental pollution. This training course was designed by the ILTER Nitrogen Initiative and yielded several important insights for both science and education. First is the realization that we are on the threshold of a new era of global scale science related to nitrogen from various perspectives. Our experience sugge...
Abstract The complete mitogenome of an endemic silkmoth in Taiwan, Antheraea formosana, was deter... more Abstract The complete mitogenome of an endemic silkmoth in Taiwan, Antheraea formosana, was determined using Illumina next-generation sequencing. The mitogenome is 15,318 bp in length and consists of 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), two rRNAs, 22 tRNAs, and one non-coding control region. The overall base composition of the mitogenome showed a high A + T bias, and the A + T content (80.2%) was significantly higher than the G + C content (19.8%). All PCGs use the typical ATN as the initiation codon, with the exception of cox2, which begins with GTG, respectively. The complete mitogenome was used to reconstruct a phylogenetic tree, indicating that A. formosana is more closely related to Antheraea assamensis than other Antheraea species, with 93.19% nucleotide similarity.
Background/Question/Methods The 3-ha Lanjenchi forest dynamic plot was located in a tropical lowl... more Background/Question/Methods The 3-ha Lanjenchi forest dynamic plot was located in a tropical lowland rainforest which was greatly influenced by winds of the winter monsoon and typhoons. All free-standing trees with diameter at breast height (DBH)≥ 1 cm in this plot were identified, measured, and mapped in 1990, 1997, 2005, and 2013. Results/Conclusions In the last 24 years, changes of species composition were few. Stem density decreased monotonically, from 12,147 ha-1 to 10,067 ha-1. In spite of the decrease in stem density, the basal area increased from 40.84 m2 ha-1 to 44.60 m2 ha-1. Annual recruitment rates (1.74 %– 2.05 %) were constantly lower than annual mortality rates (2.10 %– 2.28 %). The re-sprouting rate (7 %) of damaged individuals in this plot was much higher than that (1%) in an adjacent site located in a valley (less affected by winds), indicating that re-sprouting might be a strategy to cope with the strong winds of monsoons and typhoons. Most of the 36 species (42.4...
Chloroplasts are the sites for photosynthesis, and two Golden2-like factors act as transcriptiona... more Chloroplasts are the sites for photosynthesis, and two Golden2-like factors act as transcriptional activators of chloroplast development in rice (Oryza sativa L.) and maize (Zea mays L.). Rice OsGLK1 and OsGLK2 are orthologous to maize ZmGLK1 (ZmG1) and ZmGLK2 (ZmG2), respectively. However, while rice OsGLK1 and OsGLK2 act redundantly to regulate chloroplast development in mesophyll cells, maize ZmG1 and ZmG2 are functionally specialized and expressed in different cell-specific manners. To boost rice chloroplast development and photosynthesis, we generated transgenic rice plants overexpressing ZmG1 and ZmG2, individually or simultaneously, with constitutive promoters (pZmUbi::ZmG1 and p35S::ZmG2) or maize promoters (pZmG1::ZmG1, pZmG2::ZmG2, and pZmG1::ZmG1/pZmG2::ZmG2). Both ZmG1 and ZmG2 genes were highly expressed in transgenic rice leaves. Moreover, ZmG1 and ZmG2 showed coordinated expression in pZmG1::ZmG1/pZmG2::ZmG2 plants. All Golden2-like (GLK) transgenic plants had higher ...
In spite of high population density of Taiwan and rapid economic development, the evergr@n broad-... more In spite of high population density of Taiwan and rapid economic development, the evergr@n broad-leaved forests continue to cover abolt 32Vo of the Taiwan Island. The forests occur from sea level to about 2,500 m, and support a diverse flora and a spectrum of four major forest types. The forest flora at all 779 sampling sites contains 569 woody species in 234 generu and 82 families. The most dominant families are Lauraceae, Fagaceae, Theaceae, Rubiaceae, and Euphorbiaceae. They also account for the greatest number of species. The purpose of the present account is to compare and interpret the forest complexes for the four major types of the evergreen broad-leaved forests in Taiwan. The second aim ofthis paper is !o review the forest management and conservation status for the past three centuries.
Yellow cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa (Siebold & Zucc.) Endl. var. formosana (Hayata) Rehder) is t... more Yellow cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa (Siebold & Zucc.) Endl. var. formosana (Hayata) Rehder) is the predominant tree species of Taiwan's nutrient-poor, mountain fog forests. Little is known about the potential contribution of solute uptake from fog to the overall nutrition of these trees. Shoots of yellow cypress seedlings were misted with artificial fog containing the tracer rubidium (Rb) in laboratory and field experiments to determine if there is solute uptake from the fog. After misting shoots for six weeks, substantial amounts of tracer were detected in unexposed roots by inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy bulk analysis. Possible routes of entry were examined by element imaging with energy dispersive X-ray analysis. Direct uptake of the tracer into leaves across the cuticle and epidermis was small, excluding this as the major uptake path. Accumulations of Rb were found on leaf surfaces along the edges of the leaves. The almost daily changes in fog coverage and air humidity may enhance the accumulation of fog solutes at leaf edges. Accumulation of Rb was also found in narrow clefts between opposite leaves and between the outermost and underlying alternating stacked leaves. The clefts provide a direct passage from the leaf surface to the space beneath the imbricate leaves and the underlying alternate leaves, possibly facilitating solute uptake from fog, which in turn may contribute to the nutrition of yellow cypress.
Subtropical montane peatland is among several rare ecosystems that continue to receive insufficie... more Subtropical montane peatland is among several rare ecosystems that continue to receive insufficient scientific exploration. We analyzed the vegetation types and soil bacterial composition, as well as surface carbon dioxide and methane fluxes along a successional peatland-to-upland-forest series in one such ecosystem in Taiwan. The Yuanyang Lake (YYL) study site is characterized by low temperature, high precipitation, prevailing fog, and acidic soil, which are typical conditions for the surrounding dominant Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana forest. Bacterial communities were dominated by Acidobacteriota and Proteobacteria. Along the bog-to-forest gradient, Proteobacteria decreased and Acidobacteriota increased while CO2 fluxes increased and CH4 fluxes decreased. Principal coordinate analysis allowed separating samples into four clusters, which correspond to samples from the bog, marsh, forest, and forest outside of the watershed. The majority of bacterial genera were found in all p...
The fog meteorology, fog chemistry and fog deposition on epiphytic bryophytes were investigated f... more The fog meteorology, fog chemistry and fog deposition on epiphytic bryophytes were investigated from July 2000 to June 2001 in the Yuanyang Lake forest ecosystem. The elevation of the site ranges from 1650 to 2420 m, at which the high frequency of fog occurrence throughout the year has been thought to be of benefit to the establishment of the primary Taiwan yellow cypress forest [Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana (Hayata) Rehder] and to the extensive growth of the epiphytic bryophytes. A weather station including a visibility sensor and an active fog collector was installed for fog meteorological and chemical study. The fog deposition rate on epiphytic bryophytes was estimated by measuring the increase rate in plant weight when exposed to fog. Average fog duration of 4.7 and 11.0 h per day was measured in summer months (June to August) and the rest of the year, respectively. November 2000 was the foggiest month in which the average fog duration reached 14.9 h per day. The ionic composition of fog water revealed that the area was less polluted than expected from literature data. The in situ exposure experiments done with the dominant epiphytic bryophytes showed an average fog deposition rate of 0.63 g H 2 O g À 1 d. w. h À 1 , which approximated 0.17 mm h À 1 at the stand scale. The nutrient fluxes estimated for February 2001 showed that for all ions, more than 50% of the ecosystem input was through fog deposition. These results demonstrate the importance of epiphytic bryophytes and fog deposition in nutrient cycling of this subtropical montane forest ecosystem. The incorporation of fog study in the long-term ecosystem research projects is necessary in this area.
The integral defense responses of plants triggered by the small molecules of plant pathogens are ... more The integral defense responses of plants triggered by the small molecules of plant pathogens are regarded as plant immunity. The pathogen-associated molecular pattern-triggered immunity (PTI) occurs on the recognition of a pathogen by receptors on plant cell surfaces as an infection begins. During the activation of PTI, the effectiveness of a plant’s photosynthetic system may be altered. In this study, chlorophyll fluorescence was used to assay the dynamic changes of PTI. When we used flg22Pst as an elicitor, we found that the photosynthetic electron transport rate (ETR) of Arabidopsis thaliana Col-0 was significantly decreased at 2, 4, and 24 h on treatment with a PTI-intensifying protein, plant ferredoxin-like protein (PFLP). In addition, this reduction in the photosynthetic ETR was also carried out with a PTI-intensifying Bacillus amyloliquefaciens strain, PMB05, on the induction of flg22Pst. The disease resistance against bacterial soft rot caused by Pectobacterium carotovorum s...
Begonia montaniformis × Begonia ningmingensis var. bella hybrids have high ornamental potential. ... more Begonia montaniformis × Begonia ningmingensis var. bella hybrids have high ornamental potential. Hence, the aim of this study was to determine the optimal conditions for the micropropagation of a Begonia montaniformis × Begonia ningmingensis var. bella F1 progeny by using various concentrations of plant growth regulators (PGRs) and varying light spectra in half-strength Murashige and Skoog (1/2 MS) medium. The results showed that the explant regeneration was optimal when the lamina was incubated in a medium supplemented with 2.0 μM N6-benzylaminopurine and 0.8 μM α-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA). Under such conditions, 98% of the explants regenerated adventitious shoots after 8 weeks, and 41 buds were produced per explant on average. The mean shoot length was 9.6 mm, and on average, 4.5 shoots per explant were more than 2 mm long. Subsequently, the induced adventitious shoots were transferred into rooting medium consisting of 1/2 MS and various NAA concentrations. After 4 weeks, the s...
To better understand the climatic characteristics in a subtropical mountainous cloud forest at th... more To better understand the climatic characteristics in a subtropical mountainous cloud forest at the Yuanyang Lake long-term ecological research site, weather data collected from January 1994 to December 2004 were analyzed in the present study. The obvious seasonal changes in climatic factors were observed at this site. The annual mean air temperature was 12.7°C. The lowest temperature was recorded in February (monthly mean 5.9°C), and the highest one was taken in July (monthly mean 18.1°C). Winter featured light rain with a prolonged occurrence of fog, resulting in a large reduction of radiation. In summer, fog occurred once in the early morning and the other time from afternoon to evening. The latter one was associated with the wind direction changes and usually accompanied with short moderate to heavy convective rain. Consequently the photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) was high in the morning but reduced drastically in the afternoon. Typhoons occurred in the summer had contr...
In this study two crop species, winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) and sugar beet (Beta vulgaris), ... more In this study two crop species, winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) and sugar beet (Beta vulgaris), were monitored over the course of five days during the entire season. We investigated the link of the main physiological leaf-level mechanisms, stomatal conductance and efficiency of photosynthetic energy conversion on canopy transpiration and photosynthetic CO 2 uptake. The physiological status of 900 leaves of different plants in a natural canopy was characterized on the leaf level using chlorophyll fluorescence. Gas exchange measurements were performed at leaves of 12 individual plants of each species. Eddy covariance flux measurements provided information on CO 2 , water and energy fluxes on the field scale. The diurnal pattern of stomatal resistance on the leaf level was especially for sugar beet similar to the canopy resistance, which indicates that stomatal resistance may have a large impact on the bulk canopy resistance. The diurnal changes in canopy resistance appeared to have less effect on the evapotranspiration, which was mainly dependent on the amount of incoming radiation. The similar diurnal pattern of water use efficiency on the leaf level and on the canopy level during the day, underline the influence of physiological mechanisms of leaves on the canopy. The greatest difference between water use efficiency on leaf and canopy occurred in the morning, mainly due to an increase of stomatal resistance. Limitation of CO 2 uptake occurred in the afternoon when water vapor pressure deficit increased. Maxima of net ecosystem productivity corresponded to the highest values of photosynthetic capacity of single leaves, which occurred before solar noon. Within the course of a few hours, photosynthetic efficiency and stomatal resistance of leaves varied and these variations were the reason for diurnal variations in the carbon fluxes of the whole field. During the seasonal development, the leaf area index was the main factor driving carbon and water exchange, when both crops were still growing. During senescence of winter wheat these structural parameters did not account for changes in canopy fluxes and remaining high green leaf material of sugar beet did not present the reduction in canopy fluxes due to beginning dormancy. We thus hypothesize that the 7133 Discussion Paper | Discussion Paper | Discussion Paper | Discussion Paper | functional status of plants is also important to correctly predict carbon and water fluxes throughout the season. We propose to additionally include the physiological status of plants in carbon flux models in order to improve the quality of the simulation of diurnal patterns of carbon fluxes.
Major parts of anthropogenic and natural aerosols are hygroscopic and deliquesce at high humidity... more Major parts of anthropogenic and natural aerosols are hygroscopic and deliquesce at high humidity, particularly when depositing to leaf surfaces close to transpiring stomata. Deliquescence and subsequent salt creep may establish thin, extraordinary pathways into the stomata, which foster stomatal uptake of nutrients and water but may also cause stomatal liquid water loss by wicking. Such additional water loss is not accompanied by a wider stomatal aperture with a larger CO2 influx and hypothetically reduces water use efficiency (WUE). Here, the possible direct impacts of aerosols on physical and physiological parameters of camphor (Cinnamomum camphora) were studied (i) in a greenhouse experiment using aerosol exclusion and (ii) in a field study in Taiwan, comparing trees at two sites with different aerosol regimes. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images showed that leaves grown under aerosol exclusion in filtered air (FA) were lacking the amorphous, flat areas that were abundant ...
Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for all biota, but in excess behaves as a pollutant in the envi... more Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for all biota, but in excess behaves as a pollutant in the environment. The doubling of total reactive nitrogen (nitrogen not in the form of N2 gas) pools globally has resulted in many undesirable changes in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. The International Long-Term Ecological Research (ILTER) network, a global site and researcher network focused on long-term, site-based ecosystem and socio-ecological research, organized a nine-day international training course in Hokkaido, Japan to expose young researchers to state-of-the-art analysis of nitrogen cycling in ecosystems with a focus on key ecosystem processes and implications for environmental pollution. This training course was designed by the ILTER Nitrogen Initiative and yielded several important insights for both science and education. First is the realization that we are on the threshold of a new era of global scale science related to nitrogen from various perspectives. Our experience sugge...
Abstract The complete mitogenome of an endemic silkmoth in Taiwan, Antheraea formosana, was deter... more Abstract The complete mitogenome of an endemic silkmoth in Taiwan, Antheraea formosana, was determined using Illumina next-generation sequencing. The mitogenome is 15,318 bp in length and consists of 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), two rRNAs, 22 tRNAs, and one non-coding control region. The overall base composition of the mitogenome showed a high A + T bias, and the A + T content (80.2%) was significantly higher than the G + C content (19.8%). All PCGs use the typical ATN as the initiation codon, with the exception of cox2, which begins with GTG, respectively. The complete mitogenome was used to reconstruct a phylogenetic tree, indicating that A. formosana is more closely related to Antheraea assamensis than other Antheraea species, with 93.19% nucleotide similarity.
Background/Question/Methods The 3-ha Lanjenchi forest dynamic plot was located in a tropical lowl... more Background/Question/Methods The 3-ha Lanjenchi forest dynamic plot was located in a tropical lowland rainforest which was greatly influenced by winds of the winter monsoon and typhoons. All free-standing trees with diameter at breast height (DBH)≥ 1 cm in this plot were identified, measured, and mapped in 1990, 1997, 2005, and 2013. Results/Conclusions In the last 24 years, changes of species composition were few. Stem density decreased monotonically, from 12,147 ha-1 to 10,067 ha-1. In spite of the decrease in stem density, the basal area increased from 40.84 m2 ha-1 to 44.60 m2 ha-1. Annual recruitment rates (1.74 %– 2.05 %) were constantly lower than annual mortality rates (2.10 %– 2.28 %). The re-sprouting rate (7 %) of damaged individuals in this plot was much higher than that (1%) in an adjacent site located in a valley (less affected by winds), indicating that re-sprouting might be a strategy to cope with the strong winds of monsoons and typhoons. Most of the 36 species (42.4...
Chloroplasts are the sites for photosynthesis, and two Golden2-like factors act as transcriptiona... more Chloroplasts are the sites for photosynthesis, and two Golden2-like factors act as transcriptional activators of chloroplast development in rice (Oryza sativa L.) and maize (Zea mays L.). Rice OsGLK1 and OsGLK2 are orthologous to maize ZmGLK1 (ZmG1) and ZmGLK2 (ZmG2), respectively. However, while rice OsGLK1 and OsGLK2 act redundantly to regulate chloroplast development in mesophyll cells, maize ZmG1 and ZmG2 are functionally specialized and expressed in different cell-specific manners. To boost rice chloroplast development and photosynthesis, we generated transgenic rice plants overexpressing ZmG1 and ZmG2, individually or simultaneously, with constitutive promoters (pZmUbi::ZmG1 and p35S::ZmG2) or maize promoters (pZmG1::ZmG1, pZmG2::ZmG2, and pZmG1::ZmG1/pZmG2::ZmG2). Both ZmG1 and ZmG2 genes were highly expressed in transgenic rice leaves. Moreover, ZmG1 and ZmG2 showed coordinated expression in pZmG1::ZmG1/pZmG2::ZmG2 plants. All Golden2-like (GLK) transgenic plants had higher ...
In spite of high population density of Taiwan and rapid economic development, the evergr@n broad-... more In spite of high population density of Taiwan and rapid economic development, the evergr@n broad-leaved forests continue to cover abolt 32Vo of the Taiwan Island. The forests occur from sea level to about 2,500 m, and support a diverse flora and a spectrum of four major forest types. The forest flora at all 779 sampling sites contains 569 woody species in 234 generu and 82 families. The most dominant families are Lauraceae, Fagaceae, Theaceae, Rubiaceae, and Euphorbiaceae. They also account for the greatest number of species. The purpose of the present account is to compare and interpret the forest complexes for the four major types of the evergreen broad-leaved forests in Taiwan. The second aim ofthis paper is !o review the forest management and conservation status for the past three centuries.
Yellow cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa (Siebold & Zucc.) Endl. var. formosana (Hayata) Rehder) is t... more Yellow cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa (Siebold & Zucc.) Endl. var. formosana (Hayata) Rehder) is the predominant tree species of Taiwan's nutrient-poor, mountain fog forests. Little is known about the potential contribution of solute uptake from fog to the overall nutrition of these trees. Shoots of yellow cypress seedlings were misted with artificial fog containing the tracer rubidium (Rb) in laboratory and field experiments to determine if there is solute uptake from the fog. After misting shoots for six weeks, substantial amounts of tracer were detected in unexposed roots by inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy bulk analysis. Possible routes of entry were examined by element imaging with energy dispersive X-ray analysis. Direct uptake of the tracer into leaves across the cuticle and epidermis was small, excluding this as the major uptake path. Accumulations of Rb were found on leaf surfaces along the edges of the leaves. The almost daily changes in fog coverage and air humidity may enhance the accumulation of fog solutes at leaf edges. Accumulation of Rb was also found in narrow clefts between opposite leaves and between the outermost and underlying alternating stacked leaves. The clefts provide a direct passage from the leaf surface to the space beneath the imbricate leaves and the underlying alternate leaves, possibly facilitating solute uptake from fog, which in turn may contribute to the nutrition of yellow cypress.
Subtropical montane peatland is among several rare ecosystems that continue to receive insufficie... more Subtropical montane peatland is among several rare ecosystems that continue to receive insufficient scientific exploration. We analyzed the vegetation types and soil bacterial composition, as well as surface carbon dioxide and methane fluxes along a successional peatland-to-upland-forest series in one such ecosystem in Taiwan. The Yuanyang Lake (YYL) study site is characterized by low temperature, high precipitation, prevailing fog, and acidic soil, which are typical conditions for the surrounding dominant Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana forest. Bacterial communities were dominated by Acidobacteriota and Proteobacteria. Along the bog-to-forest gradient, Proteobacteria decreased and Acidobacteriota increased while CO2 fluxes increased and CH4 fluxes decreased. Principal coordinate analysis allowed separating samples into four clusters, which correspond to samples from the bog, marsh, forest, and forest outside of the watershed. The majority of bacterial genera were found in all p...
The fog meteorology, fog chemistry and fog deposition on epiphytic bryophytes were investigated f... more The fog meteorology, fog chemistry and fog deposition on epiphytic bryophytes were investigated from July 2000 to June 2001 in the Yuanyang Lake forest ecosystem. The elevation of the site ranges from 1650 to 2420 m, at which the high frequency of fog occurrence throughout the year has been thought to be of benefit to the establishment of the primary Taiwan yellow cypress forest [Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana (Hayata) Rehder] and to the extensive growth of the epiphytic bryophytes. A weather station including a visibility sensor and an active fog collector was installed for fog meteorological and chemical study. The fog deposition rate on epiphytic bryophytes was estimated by measuring the increase rate in plant weight when exposed to fog. Average fog duration of 4.7 and 11.0 h per day was measured in summer months (June to August) and the rest of the year, respectively. November 2000 was the foggiest month in which the average fog duration reached 14.9 h per day. The ionic composition of fog water revealed that the area was less polluted than expected from literature data. The in situ exposure experiments done with the dominant epiphytic bryophytes showed an average fog deposition rate of 0.63 g H 2 O g À 1 d. w. h À 1 , which approximated 0.17 mm h À 1 at the stand scale. The nutrient fluxes estimated for February 2001 showed that for all ions, more than 50% of the ecosystem input was through fog deposition. These results demonstrate the importance of epiphytic bryophytes and fog deposition in nutrient cycling of this subtropical montane forest ecosystem. The incorporation of fog study in the long-term ecosystem research projects is necessary in this area.
The integral defense responses of plants triggered by the small molecules of plant pathogens are ... more The integral defense responses of plants triggered by the small molecules of plant pathogens are regarded as plant immunity. The pathogen-associated molecular pattern-triggered immunity (PTI) occurs on the recognition of a pathogen by receptors on plant cell surfaces as an infection begins. During the activation of PTI, the effectiveness of a plant’s photosynthetic system may be altered. In this study, chlorophyll fluorescence was used to assay the dynamic changes of PTI. When we used flg22Pst as an elicitor, we found that the photosynthetic electron transport rate (ETR) of Arabidopsis thaliana Col-0 was significantly decreased at 2, 4, and 24 h on treatment with a PTI-intensifying protein, plant ferredoxin-like protein (PFLP). In addition, this reduction in the photosynthetic ETR was also carried out with a PTI-intensifying Bacillus amyloliquefaciens strain, PMB05, on the induction of flg22Pst. The disease resistance against bacterial soft rot caused by Pectobacterium carotovorum s...
Begonia montaniformis × Begonia ningmingensis var. bella hybrids have high ornamental potential. ... more Begonia montaniformis × Begonia ningmingensis var. bella hybrids have high ornamental potential. Hence, the aim of this study was to determine the optimal conditions for the micropropagation of a Begonia montaniformis × Begonia ningmingensis var. bella F1 progeny by using various concentrations of plant growth regulators (PGRs) and varying light spectra in half-strength Murashige and Skoog (1/2 MS) medium. The results showed that the explant regeneration was optimal when the lamina was incubated in a medium supplemented with 2.0 μM N6-benzylaminopurine and 0.8 μM α-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA). Under such conditions, 98% of the explants regenerated adventitious shoots after 8 weeks, and 41 buds were produced per explant on average. The mean shoot length was 9.6 mm, and on average, 4.5 shoots per explant were more than 2 mm long. Subsequently, the induced adventitious shoots were transferred into rooting medium consisting of 1/2 MS and various NAA concentrations. After 4 weeks, the s...
To better understand the climatic characteristics in a subtropical mountainous cloud forest at th... more To better understand the climatic characteristics in a subtropical mountainous cloud forest at the Yuanyang Lake long-term ecological research site, weather data collected from January 1994 to December 2004 were analyzed in the present study. The obvious seasonal changes in climatic factors were observed at this site. The annual mean air temperature was 12.7°C. The lowest temperature was recorded in February (monthly mean 5.9°C), and the highest one was taken in July (monthly mean 18.1°C). Winter featured light rain with a prolonged occurrence of fog, resulting in a large reduction of radiation. In summer, fog occurred once in the early morning and the other time from afternoon to evening. The latter one was associated with the wind direction changes and usually accompanied with short moderate to heavy convective rain. Consequently the photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) was high in the morning but reduced drastically in the afternoon. Typhoons occurred in the summer had contr...
In this study two crop species, winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) and sugar beet (Beta vulgaris), ... more In this study two crop species, winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) and sugar beet (Beta vulgaris), were monitored over the course of five days during the entire season. We investigated the link of the main physiological leaf-level mechanisms, stomatal conductance and efficiency of photosynthetic energy conversion on canopy transpiration and photosynthetic CO 2 uptake. The physiological status of 900 leaves of different plants in a natural canopy was characterized on the leaf level using chlorophyll fluorescence. Gas exchange measurements were performed at leaves of 12 individual plants of each species. Eddy covariance flux measurements provided information on CO 2 , water and energy fluxes on the field scale. The diurnal pattern of stomatal resistance on the leaf level was especially for sugar beet similar to the canopy resistance, which indicates that stomatal resistance may have a large impact on the bulk canopy resistance. The diurnal changes in canopy resistance appeared to have less effect on the evapotranspiration, which was mainly dependent on the amount of incoming radiation. The similar diurnal pattern of water use efficiency on the leaf level and on the canopy level during the day, underline the influence of physiological mechanisms of leaves on the canopy. The greatest difference between water use efficiency on leaf and canopy occurred in the morning, mainly due to an increase of stomatal resistance. Limitation of CO 2 uptake occurred in the afternoon when water vapor pressure deficit increased. Maxima of net ecosystem productivity corresponded to the highest values of photosynthetic capacity of single leaves, which occurred before solar noon. Within the course of a few hours, photosynthetic efficiency and stomatal resistance of leaves varied and these variations were the reason for diurnal variations in the carbon fluxes of the whole field. During the seasonal development, the leaf area index was the main factor driving carbon and water exchange, when both crops were still growing. During senescence of winter wheat these structural parameters did not account for changes in canopy fluxes and remaining high green leaf material of sugar beet did not present the reduction in canopy fluxes due to beginning dormancy. We thus hypothesize that the 7133 Discussion Paper | Discussion Paper | Discussion Paper | Discussion Paper | functional status of plants is also important to correctly predict carbon and water fluxes throughout the season. We propose to additionally include the physiological status of plants in carbon flux models in order to improve the quality of the simulation of diurnal patterns of carbon fluxes.
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