The space-time continuum: the effects of elevated CO2 and temperature on trees and the importance of scaling

Abstract

To predict how forests will respond to rising temperatures and atmospheric CO2 concentrations, we need to understand how trees respond to both of these environmental factors. In this review, we discuss the importance of scaling, moving from leaf-level responses to those of the canopy, and from short-term to long-term responses of vegetation to climate change. While our knowledge of leaf-level, instantaneous responses of photosynthesis, respiration, stomatal conductance, transpiration and water-use efficiency to elevated CO2 and temperature is quite good, our ability to scale these responses up to larger spatial and temporal scales is less developed. We highlight which physiological processes are least understood at various levels of study, and discuss how ignoring differences in the spatial or temporal scale of a physiological process impedes our ability to predict how forest carbon and water fluxes forests will be altered in the future. We also synthesize data from the literature to show that light respiration follows a generalized temperature response across studies, and that the light compensation point of photosynthesis is reduced by elevated growth CO2. Lastly, we emphasize the need to move beyond single factorial experiments whenever possible, and to combine both CO2 and temperature treatments in studies of tree performance.

Keywords

heat; photosynthesis: carbon reactions; respiration; temperature

Published in

Plant, Cell and Environment
2015, volume: 38, number: 6, pages: 991-1007
Publisher: WILEY-BLACKWELL

SLU Authors

• Oren, Ram

  • Department of Forest Ecology and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

Global goals (SDG)

SDG13 Climate action

UKÄ Subject classification

Forest Science

Publication identifier

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/pce.12527

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/68509