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The Hydraulic Architecture of Conifers

  • Chapter
Functional and Ecological Xylem Anatomy

Abstract

The water-conducting cells in the xylem of conifers are tracheids. Despite the fact that these conduits are limited in diameter and length, the tracheid-based xylem structure of conifers supports the largest and tallest trees. This is explicable in the light of highly conductive pits and the fact that a large fraction of conifer wood is occupied by conduits owing to the double role of tracheids in transport and mechanical support. In habitats where conduit diameter is constrained by freezing and/or drought stress, tracheid- and vessel-based xylem may exhibit similar xylem area-specific conductivities, and this may help conifers compete with angiosperms. Timberline conifers are exposed to many freeze–thaw cycles during winter; these frost cycles in combination with low water potentials reduce hydraulic conductivity. Conifer stems can often recover hydraulic conductivity in late winter and early spring, even when soils remain frozen. Water for recovery may be taken up via the needles. Conifer needles are marvels in terms of tissue complexity and longevity, and recent studies have explored needle hydraulics and aquaporin function. Picea and Pinus species exhibited considerable potential for acclimating to different environments. However, recent reports of piñon mortality indicate that there are genetically determined limits to drought tolerance. While water loss can be regulated in the short term, the potential of xylem to become more resistant to drought-induced cavitation during development appears to be rather limited. Progress has been made in linking differences in cavitation resistance with pit properties, and future work will likely lead to a better understanding of the cavitation mechanism(s) in conifer xylem. As we learn more about conifer xylem, we come to appreciate both its simplicity and its elegance.

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Acknowledgments

Thanks to Sabine Rosner for sharing her data on Norway spruce. Thanks also to Peter Schmid for providing dye staining pictures. U. Hacke gratefully acknowledges support from the Canada Research Chair Program, NSERC, and the Canada Foundation for Innovation. J.-C. Domec was supported by NSF-IOS (award 2011-46746) and by the USDA-AFRI (awards 2011-68002 and 2012-00857). S. Mayr was supported by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), project I826-B25.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Renewable Resources, University of Alberta, 442 Earth Sciences Building, Edmonton, AB, Canada, T6G 2E3

    Uwe G. Hacke

  2. Department of Wood Science and Engineering, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, 97331, USA

    Barbara Lachenbruch

  3. Department of Forest Ecosystems & Society, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA

    Barbara Lachenbruch

  4. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA

    Jarmila Pittermann

  5. Department of Botany, University of Innsbruck, Sternwartestr. 15, Innsbruck, 6020, Austria

    Stefan Mayr

  6. Bordeaux Sciences Agro—INRA, UMR ISPA, 1 cours du Général de Gaulle, Gradignan, 33175, France

    Jean-Christophe Domec

  7. Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC, 27708, USA

    Jean-Christophe Domec

  8. School of Life Sciences, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV, 89154-4004, USA

    Paul J. Schulte

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  1. Uwe G. Hacke
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  2. Barbara Lachenbruch
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  4. Stefan Mayr
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  5. Jean-Christophe Domec
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  6. Paul J. Schulte
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Correspondence to Uwe G. Hacke .

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  1. Department of Renewable Resources, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

    Uwe Hacke

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Hacke, U.G., Lachenbruch, B., Pittermann, J., Mayr, S., Domec, JC., Schulte, P.J. (2015). The Hydraulic Architecture of Conifers. In: Hacke, U. (eds) Functional and Ecological Xylem Anatomy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15783-2_2

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