Temperate and boreal forest tree phenology: from organ-scale processes to terrestrial ecosystem models

By N. Delpierre, Y. Vitasse, I. Chuine, J. Guillemot, S. Bazot, T. Rutishauser, C. Rathgeber. Annals of Forest Science, 2016

261 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Key messageWe demonstrate that, beyond leaf phenology, the phenological cycles of wood and fine roots present clear responses to environmental drivers in temperate and boreal trees. These drivers should be included in terrestrial ecosystem models.ContextIn temperate and boreal trees, a dormancy period prevents organ development during adverse climatic conditions. Whereas the phenology of leaves and flowers has received considerable attention, to date, little is known regarding the phenology of other tree organs such as wood, fine roots, fruits, and reserve compounds.AimsHere, we review both the role of environmental drivers in determining the phenology of tree organs and the models used to predict the phenology of tree organs in temperate and boreal forest trees.ResultsTemperature is a key driver of the resumption of tree activity in spring, although its specific effects vary among organs. There is no such clear dominant environmental cue involved in the cessation of tree activity in autumn and in the onset of dormancy, but temperature, photoperiod, and water stress appear as prominent factors. The phenology of a given organ is, to a certain extent, influenced by processes in distant organs.ConclusionInferring past trends and predicting future trends of tree phenology in a changing climate requires specific phenological models developed for each organ to consider the phenological cycle as an ensemble in which the environmental cues that trigger each phase are also indirectly involved in the subsequent phases. Incorporating such models into terrestrial ecosystem models (TEMs) would likely improve the accuracy of their predictions. The extent to which the coordination of the phenologies of tree organs will be affected in a changing climate deserves further research.

Subfields: Atmospheric Science, Global and Planetary Change, Plant Science

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/2442f70eb807806f7f8998c4c399d719948844fb

How researchers see this paper

The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.

In Atmospheric Science

1. C. Körner
2. G. Hoch
3. Y. Vitasse
4. C. Randin
5. Armando Lenz
6. C. Kollas
7. D. Basler
8. N. E. Zimmermann

In Global and Planetary Change

1. C. Körner
2. G. Hoch
3. Y. Vitasse
4. C. Randin
5. C. Kollas
6. Armando Lenz
7. D. Basler
8. N. E. Zimmermann

In Plant Science

1. G. Hoch
2. Y. Vitasse
3. C. Randin
4. C. Körner
5. D. Basler
6. Shilong Piao
7. N. E. Zimmermann
8. C. Kollas

Citations in the corpus

• From xylogenesis to tree rings: wood traits to investigate tree response to environmental changes (2019, background): “In extra-tropical environments, the onset and duration of the different phases of xylogenesis have been thoroughly studied in conifer species showing a dormant cambium in winter and an active cambium in spring-summer (Delpierre et al. 2015; Rathgeber et al. 2016).”
• Where, why and how? Explaining the low‐temperature range limits of temperate tree species (2016, background): “Because the time required for new cell formation increases nonlinearly with decreasing temperatures (K€orner 2003a,b, 2006), a longer season at low temperatures will only produce few additional cell rows, whereas a longer season at high temperatures can produce many more cell rows, particularly when”
• Plant phenology and global climate change: Current progresses and challenges (2019, background): “First, low tempera‐ ture (chilling) activates plant stress responses and stimulates plant endodormancy (Cooke, Eriksson, & Junttila, 2012; Delpierre et al., 2016), the first stage of plant dormancy (Lang, 1987).”