EFFECT OF SOIL MOISTURE ON THE RATE OF GROWTH OF LONGLEAF AND SLASH PINE SEEDLINGS
Open Access
- 1 January 1938
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Oxford University Press (OUP) in Plant Physiology
- Vol. 13 (1) , 179-189
- https://doi.org/10.1104/pp.13.1.179
Abstract
Longleaf (Pinus palustris) and slash pine (Pinus caribaea) seedlings were grown for 1 growing season in soils of various water contents. These seedlings developed best in soils where the moisture content fluctuated around 25% of the air dry weight of the soil, but the slash pine also grew well in soils where the moisture fluctuated between 15 and 25%. Seedlings of both spp. endured extremely dry (5% soil moisture) and wet (saturated) soils, but under such conditions poor growth resulted. The rate of transpiration for both spp. was similar, and in both it varied with the moisture content of the soil. The slash pine seedlings generally required more moisture to build a unit of dry matter than did the longleaf pine seedlings.Keywords
This publication has 1 reference indexed in Scilit: