Visible Foliar Injury and Ecophysiological Responses to Ozone and Drought in Oak Seedlings

Abstract

To verify the responses of visible foliar injury (VFI), we exposed seedlings of three oak species for 4.5 months in an open air facility, using differing ozone (O3) and drought treatments: O3 (three levels from ambient to ×1.4 ambient), and drought (three levels of irrigation from 40% to 100% field capacity). We related the accumulated phytotoxic O3 dose (POD1) and cumulative drought index (CDI) to the O3 and drought VFI and assessed growth increment (height, diameter, leaf number), biomass (of all organs), and physiological parameters: net photosynthesis per plant (Pn), photosynthetic nitrogen (PNUE) and phosphorus use efficiency (PPUE)). The results indicated that an increase in POD1 promoted O3 VFI in Quercus robur and Quercus pubescens, while Quercus ilex was asymptomatic. The POD1-based critical level at the onset of O3 VFI was lower for Q. robur than for Q. pubescens (12.2 vs. 15.6 mmol m−2 POD1). Interestingly, drought reduced O3 VFI in Q. robur but increased it in Q. pubescens. Both O3 and drought were detrimental to the plant biomass. However, Q. robur and Q. pubescens invested more in shoots than in roots, while Q. ilex invested more in roots, which might be related to a hormetic mechanism. Pn, PNUE and PPUE decreased in all species under drought, and only in the sensitive Q. robur (PPUE) and Q. pubescens (PNUE) under O3. This study confirms that POD1 is a good indicator to explain the development of O3 VFI and helps a differential diagnosis of co-occurring drought and O3 VFI in oak forests.