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The influence of temperature and genotype on the growth and stomatal morphology of southern beech, Nothofagus cunninghamii (Nothofagaceae)

journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-16, 13:05 authored by Mark HovendenMark Hovenden
Nothofagus cunninghamii (Hook.) Oerst. clones of five different genotypes from Mt Field National Park, Tasmania, were grown in controlled environment cabinets at daytime temperatures of 23 and 18°C. These temperatures approximate summer conditions in Tasmania at sea level and at about 700 m a.s.l., respectively. There was a significant effect of both temperature and genotype on plant height, but there was no interaction of these terms. Temperature also had a significant influence on plant leaf area and biomass. Plants grown at 23°C were significantly larger and allocated more biomass to leaf tissue than did those grown at 18°C. Importantly, temperature had no impact on the size of leaves, whether expressed as average weight per leaf or area per leaf, but these variables were strongly affected by genotype. Specific leaf area, stomatal density and stomatal index did not vary with either temperature or genotype. These results have implications for our understanding of altitudinal impacts on plant morphology and also for the interpretation of the fossil record, since temperature has little impact on leaf characters in this species.

History

Publication title

Australian Journal of Botany

Volume

49

Issue

4

Pagination

427-434

ISSN

0067-1924

Department/School

School of Natural Sciences

Publisher

CSIRO Publishing

Place of publication

Collingwood Australia

Repository Status

  • Restricted

Socio-economic Objectives

Expanding knowledge in the environmental sciences

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