Radial growth of Tamarix ramosissima responds to changes in the water regime in an extremely arid region of northwestern China |
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Authors: | Shengchun Xiao Honglang Xiao |
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Institution: | (1) Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Donggang West Road, 320, 730000 Lanzhou, China |
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Abstract: | The response of radial growth of tamarisk (Tamarix ramosissima) growing on the shore of West-Juyan Lake, on the Heihe River in northwestern China, to changes in the lake’s water regime
was studied using tree-ring chronologies, principal components (PC) analysis, and classical correlation analysis. The first
PC accounted for 53.3% of the total variance and reflected a common growth response at different sites. Correlation analysis
indicated that fluctuations in the lake’s water level during the growing season (May–August) was primarily responsible for
variations in the radial growth of tamarisk and explained more of the variance at low-lying sites than at higher sites. The
second PC accounted for 30.7% of the total variance and revealed distinct differences in growth response between low-lying
sites and those on higher ground. Total annual precipitation played an important role in radial growth of tamarisk at the
higher sites. The spatial pattern in the tree-ring chronologies for different sites was performed in the temporal pattern
of the tree-ring chronology at the same site. Other factors such as microtopography, soil salinity, sand activity, and browsing
by herbivores also affected the radial growth of tamarisk. The diversity in responses to the maximum water table depth for
tamarisk in the study area appears to have been caused by local variations in precipitation, which can compensate to some
degree for the inability of a plant’s roots to reach the water table. |
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Keywords: | Ecological response Dendrohydrology Water regime changes Tamarisk Water table fluctuation |
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