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Modelling the impact of heterogeneous rootzone water distribution on the regulation of transpiration by hormone transport and/or hydraulic pressures

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Abstract

Aims

A simulation model to demonstrate that soil water potential can regulate transpiration, by influencing leaf water potential and/or inducing root production of chemical signals that are transported to the leaves.

Methods

Signalling impacts on the relationship between soil water potential and transpiration were simulated by coupling a 3D model for water flow in soil, into and through roots (Javaux et al. 2008) with a model for xylem transport of chemicals (produced as a function of local root water potential). Stomatal conductance was regulated by simulated leaf water potential (H) and/or foliar chemical signal concentrations (C; H + C). Split-root experiments were simulated by varying transpiration demands and irrigation placement.

Results

While regulation of stomatal conductance by chemical transport was unstable and oscillatory, simulated transpiration over time and root water uptake from the two soil compartments were similar for both H and H + C regulation. Increased stomatal sensitivity more strongly decreased transpiration, and decreased threshold root water potential (below which a chemical signal is produced) delayed transpiration reduction.

Conclusions

Although simulations with H + C regulation qualitatively reproduced transpiration of plants exposed to partial rootzone drying (PRD), long-term effects seemed negligible. Moreover, most transpiration responses to PRD could be explained by hydraulic signalling alone.

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Acknowledgments

This work is a contribution of the Transregio Collaborative Research Centre 32. Patterns in Soil-Vegetation-Atmosphere Systems: Monitoring, Modelling and Data Assimilation, which is funded by the German research association, DFG. ICD thanks the EU project SIRRIMED (FP7- KBBE-2009-3-245159) for continued support of work on PRD.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Bio- and Geosciences: Agrosphere (IBG 3), Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, 52425, Jülich, Germany

    Katrin Huber, Jan Vanderborght, Mathieu Javaux, Natalie Schröder & Harry Vereecken

  2. Earth and Life Institute, Université catholique de Louvain, Croix du Sud, 2, L7.05.02, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium

    Mathieu Javaux

  3. Department of Hydromechanics and Modelling of Hydrosystems, University of Stuttgart, Pfaffenwaldring 61, 70569, Stuttgart, Germany

    Natalie Schröder

  4. Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4YQ, UK

    Ian C. Dodd

Authors
  1. Katrin Huber
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  2. Jan Vanderborght
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  3. Mathieu Javaux
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  4. Natalie Schröder
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  5. Ian C. Dodd
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  6. Harry Vereecken
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Correspondence to Katrin Huber.

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Responsible Editor: Rafael S. Oliveira.

Appendix

Appendix

Influence of shoot volume (buffer size) on transpiration reduction

When shoot volume was smaller than 0.5*VRoot, multi-frequency oscillations in simulated transpiration occurred (Fig. 10) for all scenarios which included chemical signalling. When averaged over time, the trend of transpiration and the signal concentrations (data not shown), were independent of buffer size. Oscillations in stomatal conductance have been observed in several plant species (Buckley 2005), including cotton (with frequencies ranging from 1.3 to 1.8 h−1) (Farquhar and Cowan 1974; Marenco et al. 2006; Passioura and Tanner 1985) and citrus trees when exposed to high vapour pressure deficits (mandarin tree, frequency ca. 1.8 h−1) (Dzikiti et al. 2010). Regardless of the physiological explanation (and site) of this buffer, simulations revealed that, stomatal conductance can oscillate due to a chemical signal arriving from the roots.

Fig. 10
figure 10

Influence of buffer size: Oscillations in transpiration rates are related to buffer size. A buffer size of 1*VRoot corresponds to an average residence time of 0.1 days and a root:shoot ratio of 1

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Huber, K., Vanderborght, J., Javaux, M. et al. Modelling the impact of heterogeneous rootzone water distribution on the regulation of transpiration by hormone transport and/or hydraulic pressures. Plant Soil 384, 93–112 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-014-2188-4

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