Whole-plant Carbon Dioxide Exchange Responses of Angelonia angustifolia to Temperature and Irradiance

Abstract

Light and temperature responses of whole-plant CO2 exchange were determined for two cultivars of Angelonia angustifolia Benth., `AngelMist Purple Stripe' and `AngelMist Deep Plum'. Whole crop net photosynthesis (Pnet) of `AngelMist Purple Stripe' and `AngelMist Deep Plum' were measured at eight temperatures, ranging from 17 to 42 °C. Pnet for both cultivars increased from 17 to ≈20 °C, and then decreased as temperature increased further. Optimal temperatures for Pnet of `AngelMist Purple Stripe' and `AngelMist Deep Plum' were 20.8 and 19.8 °C, respectively. There was no significant difference between the two cultivars, irrespective of temperature. The Q10 (the relative increase with a 10 °C increase in temperature) for Pnet of both cultivars decreased over the entire temperature range. Dark respiration (Rdark) of both cultivars showed a similar linear increase as temperature increased. As photosynthetic photon flux (PPF) increased from 0 to 600 μmol·m-2·s-1, Pnet of both cultivars increased. Light saturation was not yet reached at 600 μmol·m-2·s-1. The light compensation point occurred at 69 μmol·m-2·s-1 for `AngelMist Purple Stripe' and at 89 μmol·m-2·s-1 for `AngelMist Deep Plum'. The lower light saturation point of `AngelMist Purple Stripe' was the result of a higher quantum yield (0.037 mol·mol-1 for `AngelMist Purple Stripe' and 0.026 mol·mol-1 for `AngelMist Deep Plum'). The difference in quantum yield between the two cultivars may explain the faster growth habit of `AngelMist Purple Stripe'.