How does root exudate concentration and composition change with increasing drought severity?
We exposed blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis) to control, mild, and severe drought treatments and monitored physiological and root exudate responses. With increasing drought severity, root exudate total C and organic C increased concurrently with declining predawn leaf water potential and photosynthesis. Root exudate composition (including compounds that are known to alter plant drought responses and the rhizosphere microbiome) mirrored the physiological gradient of drought severity treatments. Despite reducing C uptake, these plants actively allocated C to root exudates with increasing drought severity. Ulrich et al. (2022) Scientific Reports |
How do plants allocate C under stress?
NSCs are products of photosynthesis that include glucose, fructose, sucrose, and starch. Plants allocate NSCs to growth, metabolism, defense, and storage which impacts terrestrial C fluxes. We monitor the effects of climate change-type stresses like drought and heat waves (varying duration and intensity) on plant C allocation and recovery from stress via NSCs. Marias et al. (2017) Ecology and Evolution Marias et al. (2016) Tree Physiology |