Intra-specific variation in carbohydrate reserves and sprouting ability in Eucalyptus obliqua seedlings
Judi R. Walters A , Tina L. Bell A C and Steve Read BA School of Forest and Ecosystem Science, Water Street, Creswick, Vic. 3363, Australia.
B Forest and Research Development, Forestry Tasmania, 79 Melville Street, Hobart, Tas. 7000, Australia.
C Corresponding author. Email: tlbell@unimelb.edu.au
Australian Journal of Botany 53(3) 195-203 https://doi.org/10.1071/BT04016
Submitted: 5 February 2004 Accepted: 14 December 2004 Published: 26 May 2005
Abstract
Seedlings of 13 provenances of Eucalyptus obliqua L’Hér. grown under favourable moisture and nutrient conditions in a glasshouse for 9 months showed significant differences in seedling height, lignotuber size and carbohydrate reserve pools in roots and lignotubers. Lignotuber size was strongly and inversely correlated with mean annual rainfall of the source provenance, and larger E. obliqua lignotubers had higher concentrations and pools of carbohydrate reserves than smaller lignotubers. When seedling stems were clipped just above the lignotuber to simulate grazing or damage by fire, clipped seedlings showed significantly different responses to disturbance; seedlings with large carbohydrate reserve pools produced more sprouts of greater dry weight than seedlings with small carbohydrate reserve pools. The sprouting ability of lignotubers was related to carbohydrate reserves, such that plants with larger reserves in the lignotubers and roots supported production of a greater number of sprouts of greater total biomass than plants with smaller reserves. These results suggest that the sprouting mechanism provided by lignotubers is more important for seedling survival in areas of lower rainfall.
Acknowledgments
This work was conducted while the J.R. Walters was in receipt of the Nancy Millis PhD scholarship from the Department of Sustainability and Environment, Victoria, at the School of Forest and Ecosystem Science.
Anderson CA, Ladiges PY
(1982) Lime-chlorosis and the effect of fire on the growth of three seedling populations of Eucalyptus obliqua L’Herit. Australian Journal of Botany 30, 47–66.
Arya S,
Toky OP,
Bisht RP,
Tomar R, Harris PJC
(1995) Provenance variation in seed germination and seedling growth of Prosopis cineraria (L.) Druce in arid India. Silvae Genetica 44, 55.
Asante KS,
Brophy JJ,
Doran JC,
Goldsack RJ,
Hibbert DB, Larmour JS
(2001) A comparative study of the seedling leaf oils of the spotted gums: species of the Corymbia (Myrtaceae), section Politaria. Australian Journal of Botany 49, 55–66.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Ashton DH
(1981) The ecology of the boundary between Eucalyptus regnans F.Muell. and E. obliqua L’Herit. in Victoria. Proceedings of the Ecological Society of Australia 11, 75–94.
Ashton DH
(1984) Artificial hybrids produced by the pollination of Eucalyptus regnans F.Muell. by E. obliqua L’Herit. and E. baxteri (Benth.) Maiden & Blakely at Foster North, Victoria. Victorian Naturalist 101, 193–198.
Ashton DH, Frankenberg J
(1976) Ecological studies of Acmena smithii (Poir.) Merrill & Perry with special reference to Wilson’s Promontory. Australian Journal of Botany 24, 453–487.
Ashton DH, Sandiford EM
(1988) Natural hybridisation between Eucalyptus regnans F.Muell. and E. macrorhyncha F.Muell. in the Cathedral Range, Victoria. Australian Journal of Botany 36, 1–22.
Auld TD
(1990) The survival of juvenile plants of the resprouting shrub Angophora hispida (Myrtaceae) after a simulated low-intensity fire. Australian Journal of Botany 38, 255–260.
Bell TL, Pate JS
(1996) Growth and fire response of selected Epacridaceae of south-western Australia. Australian Journal of Botany 44, 509–526.
Bellingham PJ, Sparrow AD
(2000) Resprouting as a life history strategy in woody plant communities. Oikos 89, 409–416.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Blakely, WF (1934).
Boland, DJ ,
Brooker, MIH ,
Chippendale, GM ,
Hall, N ,
Hyland, BPM ,
Johnston, RD ,
Kleinig, DA ,
and
Turner, JD (1992).
Brown AG,
Eldridge KG,
Green JW, Matheson AC
(1976) Genetic variation of Eucalyptus obliqua in field trials. New Phytologist 77, 193–203.
Buckmaster J
(2001) Development and ecology of lignotuberous seedlings in mixed species dry sclerophyll forests in south eastern Queensland. MSc Thesis
(The University of Queensland:
St Lucia, Qld.)
Buysse J, Merckx R
(1993) An improved colorimetric method to quantify sugar content of plant tissue. Journal of Experimental Botany 44, 1627–1629.
Canadell J, Lopez-Soria L
(1998) Lignotuber reserves support regrowth following clipping of two Mediterranean shrubs. Functional Ecology 12, 31–38.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Canham CD,
Kobe RK,
Latty EF, Chazdon RL
(1999) Interspecific and intraspecific variation in tree seedling survival: effects of allocation to roots versus carbohydrate reserves. Oecologia 121, 1–11.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Chamshama SAO,
Mugasha AG, Wate PA
(1999) Variation in performance of Eucalyptus tereticornis provenances at Michafutene, Mozambique. Silvae Genetica 48, 261–266.
Cruz A,
Perez B, Moreno JM
(2003) Resprouting of the Mediterranean-type shrub Erica australis with modified lignotuber carbohydrate content. Journal of Ecology 91, 348–356.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Davidson NJ, Reid JB
(1980) Comparison of the early growth characteristics of the Eucalyptus subgenera Monocalyptus and Symphyomyrtus. Australian Journal of Botany 28, 453–461.
Davidson NJ, Reid JB
(1987) The influence of hardening and waterlogging on the frost resistance of subalpine eucalypts. Australian Journal of Botany 35, 91–101.
Dubois M,
Gilles KA,
Hamilton JK,
Rebers PA, Smith F
(1956) Colorimetric method for determination of sugars and related substances. Analytical Chemistry 28, 350–356.
| Crossref |
Duff GA,
Reid JB, Jackson WD
(1983) The occurrence of mixed stands of the Eucalyptus subgenera Monocalyptus and Symphyomyrtus in south-eastern Tasmania. Australian Journal of Ecology 8, 405–414.
Fensham RJ, Bowman DMJS
(1992) Stand structure and the influence of overwood on regeneration in tropical eucalypt forest on Melville Island. Australian Journal of Botany 40, 335–352.
Florence, RG (1996).
Forestry Commission of New South Wales (1985).
Furrer BJ
(1971) Management and silviculture in the spotted gum forests on the south coast of New South Wales. MSc Thesis.
(Australian National University:
Canberra, ACT.)
Gill AM
(1966) The ecology of mixed-species forests of Eucalyptus in central Victoria, Australia. PhD Thesis
(The University of Melbourne:
Parkville, Vic.)
Gill, AM (1997). Eucalypts and fires: interdependent or independent? In ‘Eucalypt ecology: individuals to ecosystems’. pp. 151–167. (Cambridge University Press: Melbourne)
Green JW
(1971) Variation in Eucalyptus obliqua L’Herit. The New Phytologist 70, 897–909.
Griffin AR,
Moran GF, Fripp YJ
(1987) Preferential outcrossing in Eucalyptus regnans F.Muell. Australian Journal of Botany 35, 465–475.
Harwood CE, Williams ER
(1991) Review of provenance variation in growth of Acacia magium Willd. Forest Genetic Resources 19, 9–19.
Henry, NB (1961). Complete protection versus prescribed burning in the Maryborough hardwoods. Queensland Forestry Service Research Note No. 13.
Hogg EH, Lieffers VJ
(1991) Seasonal changes in shoot regrowth potential in Calamagrostis canadensis. Oecologia 85, 596–602.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Jacobs, MR (1955).
Karschon R
(1971) Lignotuber occurrence in Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehn. and its phylogenetic significance. Flora 160, 495–510.
Khurana E, Singh JS
(2001) Ecology of seed and seedling growth for conservation and restoration of tropical dry forest: a review. Environmental Conservation 28, 39–52.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Lacey CJ
(1983) Development of large plate-like lignotubers in Eucalyptus botryoides Sm. in relation to environmental factors. Australian Journal of Botany 31, 105–118.
Ladiges PY, Ashton DH
(1974) Variation in some central Victorian populations of Eucalyptus viminalis Labill. Australian Journal of Botany 22, 81–102.
Larmour JS,
Whitfeld SJ,
Harwood CE, Owen JV
(2000) Variation in frost tolerance and seedling morphology of the spotted gums Corymbia maculata, C. variegata, C. henryi and C. citriodora. Australian Journal of Botany 48, 445–453.
Li C
(1998) Some aspects of leaf water relations in four provenances of Eucalyptus microtheca seedlings. Forest Ecology and Management 111, 303–308.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Li C,
Berninger F,
Koskela J, Sonninen E
(2000) Drought responses of Eucalyptus microtheca provenances depend on seasonality of rainfall in the place of origin. Australian Journal of Plant Physiology 27, 231–238.
Mahmood K,
Marcar NE,
Naqvi MH,
Arnold RJ,
Crawford DF,
Iqbal S, Aken KM
(2003) Genetic variation in Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh. for growth and stem straightness in a provenance–family trial on saltland in Pakistan. Forest Ecology and Management 176, 405–416.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Moreno JM, Oechel WC
(1991) Fire intensity and herbivory effects on postfire resprouting of Adenostoma fasciculatum in southern California chaparral. Oecologia 85, 429–433.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Noble IR
(1984) Mortality of lignotuberous seedlings of Eucalyptus species after an intense fire in montane forest. Australian Journal of Ecology 9, 47–50.
Noble JC
(2001) Lignotubers and meristem dependence in mallee (Eucalyptus spp.) coppicing after fire. Australian Journal of Botany 49, 31–41.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
O’Brien, TP ,
and
McCully, ME (1981).
Pryor LD
(1957) The inheritance of some characters in Eucalyptus. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 82, 147–155.
Pryor, LD ,
and
Johnson, LAS (1981). Eucalyptus, the universal Australian. In ‘Ecological biogeography of Australia’. pp. 499–536. (Dr W Junk: The Hague, The Netherlands)
Sagisaka S
(1995) Dependance of wintering higher plants on basal metabolic rates and threshold concentrations of hexose for survival and regrowth. Soil Science and Plant Nutrition 41, 807–812.
Walker J,
Thompson CH, Lacey CJ
(1987) Morphological differences in lignotubers of Eucalyptus intermedia R.T.Bak. and E. signata F.Muell. associated with different stages of podzol development on Coastal Dunes, Cooloola, Queensland. Australian Journal of Botany 35, 301–311.
Wardell-Johnson, GW ,
Williams, JE ,
Hill, KD ,
and
Cumming, R (1997). Evolutionary biogeography and contemporary distribution of eucalypts. In ‘Eucalypt ecology’. pp. 92–128. (Cambridge University Press: Cambridge)
Whittock SP,
Apiolaza LA,
Kelly CM, Potts BM
(2003) Genetic control of coppice and lignotuber development in Eucalyptus globulus. Australian Journal of Botany 51, 57–67.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
