Oren, Ram
- Department of Forest Ecology and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Abstract
Warmer climates induced by elevated atmospheric CO2 (eCO(2)) are expected to increase damaging bark beetle activity in pine forests, yet the effect of eCO(2) on resin production-the tree's primary defense against beetle attack-remains largely unknown. Following growth-differentiation balance theory, if extra carbohydrates produced under eCO(2) are not consumed by respiration or growth, resin production could increase. Here, the effect of eCO(2) on resin production of mature pines is assessed. As predicted, eCO(2) enhanced resin flow by an average of 140% (P = 0.03) in canopy dominants growing in low-nitrogen soils, but did not affect resin flow in faster-growing fertilized canopy dominants or in carbohydrate-limited suppressed individuals. Thus, pine trees may become increasingly protected from bark beetle attacks in an eCO(2) climate, except where they are fertilized or are allowed to become overcrowded.
Keywords
bark beetles; carbon allocation; Free Air CO2 Enrichment; Pinus taeda; resin flow; resistance
Published in
Tree Physiology
2012, volume: 32, number: 6, pages: 752-763
Publisher: OXFORD UNIV PRESS
SLU Authors
Global goals (SDG)
UKÄ Subject classification
Forest Science
Publication identifier
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/treephys/tpr133
Permanent link to this page (URI)
https://res.slu.se/id/publ/41095