Response of two populations of holm oak (Quercus rotundifolia Lam.) to sulfur dioxide.

TitleResponse of two populations of holm oak (Quercus rotundifolia Lam.) to sulfur dioxide.
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication1998
AuthorsGarcía, D., Rodríguez J., Sanz J. M., & Merino J.
JournalEcotoxicology and environmental safety
Volume40
Pagination42-48
Accession Number9626534
KeywordsAdaptation, Air Pollutants, Air Pollutants: adverse effects, air pollution, biomass, Environment, GROWTH RATE, photosynthesis, Photosynthesis: physiology, Physiological, Plant physiology, Pollutants, Quercus rotundifolia, Sulfur Dioxide, Sulfur Dioxide: adverse effects, Sulphur dioxide, Trees, Trees: drug effects, Trees: genetics, Trees: physiology
Abstract

Experiments were carried out with seedlings of Quercus rotundifolia Lam., an evergreen schlerophyllous tree typical of the Spanish Mediterranean climate environments. Fruits were collected in two distant (800 km) populations located in the center (southern Spain) and northern border (northern Spain) of the area of distribution of the species. One-month-old potted plants were grown for 130 days in an enriched atmosphere of SO2 (0.23 ppm, 14 h/day) in controlled (growth chamber) conditions. Both northern and southern plants underwent a significant decrease in growth rate as a consequence of the treatment. Even so, plants appear to be quite resistant to SO2 compared with either more temperate or more productive species. The southern population was more sensitive to the treatment, as reflected by the bigger decrease in both growth and photosynthetic rates. Differences in resistance appear to be related to the biogeographic origin of the populations studied, which underlines the importance of biogeographic aspects in studies of resistance to air pollutants.