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Updated: Jun 15, 2026

A Telemetric, Gravimetric Platform for Real-Time Physiological Phenotyping of Plant–Environment Interactions
Published on: August 5, 2020
Nonlinear autumn phenology responses to compound drought and heatwave events: results from a manipulative experiment
Shuxin Wang1, Yufeng Gong1, Zhaofei Wu1
1College of Water Sciences, Beijing Normal University, No. 19th Xinjiekouwai St., Haidian District, Beijing 100085, China.
Abstract:
Climate change-induced shifts in plant phenology have substantially impacted terrestrial ecosystem structure and function. While the effects of drought and heatwaves on leaf senescence have been studied, the response of leaf senescence to compound drought and heatwave events remains poorly understood, especially due to a lack of experimental evidence. In this study, we investigated the responses of leaf senescence to varying durations (13, 28 and 43 days) of compound drought and heatwave stress in saplings of three temperate deciduous tree species. We found that prolonged drought and heatwave conditions delayed leaf senescence by 20.2 days in Koelreuteria paniculata Laxm. and 22.4 days in Hibiscus syriacus L., respectively, potentially as a compensation for stress-induced reductions in growth. However, leaf senescence in the low-tolerance Acer palmatum Thunb. shifted from delayed to advanced, indicating a nonlinear response. Total photosynthesis, relative height increment and basal diameter growth decreased in all three species, with the strongest reductions in A. palmatum, followed by H. syriacus and K. paniculata. Our findings demonstrate delayed effects of environmental stress on leaf senescence and highlight species-specific variation in response to compound drought-heatwave events, providing insights into how plants respond to climate change.
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