Allocation of Nutrients and Leaf Turnover Rate in Poplar under Ambient and Enriched Ozone Exposure and Soil Nutrient...

An excess of ozone (O₃) is currently stressing plant ecosystems and may negatively affect the nutrient use of plants. Plants may modify leaf turnover rates and nutrient allocation at the organ level to counteract O₃ damage. We investigated leaf turnover rate and allocation of primary (C, N, P, K) and secondary macronutrients (Ca, S, Mg) under various O₃ treatments (ambient concentration, AA, with a daily hourly average of 35 ppb; 1.5 × AA; 2.0 × AA) and fertilization levels (N: 0 and 80 kg N ha^-1 y^-1; P: 0 and 80 kg N ha^-1 y^-1) in an O₃-sensitive poplar clone (Oxford: Populus maximowiczii Henry × P. berolinensis Dippel) in a Free-Air Controlled Exposure (FACE) experiment. The results indicated that both fertilization and O₃ had a significant impact on the nutrient content. Specifically, fertilization and O₃ increased foliar C and N contents (+5.8% and +34.2%, respectively) and root Ca and Mg contents (+46.3% and +70.2%, respectively). Plants are known to increase the content of certain elements to mitigate the damage caused by high levels of O₃. The leaf turnover rate was accelerated as a result of increased O₃ exposure, indicating that O₃ plays a main role in influencing this physiological parameter. A PCA result showed that O₃ fumigation affected the overall allocation of primary and secondary elements depending on the organ (leaves, stems, roots). As a conclusion, such different patterns of element allocation in plant leaves in response to elevated O₃ levels can have significant ecological implications.