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Temporal and spatial variation of fine roots in a northern Australian Eucalyptus tetrodonta savanna

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 March 2008

David P. Janos ,
John Scott  and
David M. J. S. Bowman
David P. Janos*
Affiliation:
Cooperative Research Centre for Tropical Savannas, Parks and Wildlife Commission of the Northern Territory, PO Box 496 Palmerston, Northern Territory 0831Australia
John Scott
Affiliation:
Cooperative Research Centre for Tropical Savannas, Parks and Wildlife Commission of the Northern Territory, PO Box 496 Palmerston, Northern Territory 0831Australia
David M. J. S. Bowman
Affiliation:
Cooperative Research Centre for Tropical Savannas, Parks and Wildlife Commission of the Northern Territory, PO Box 496 Palmerston, Northern Territory 0831Australia
*
1Corresponding author: Department of Biology, University of Miami, P.O. Box 249118, Coral Gables, Florida 33124-0421, USA; email: [email protected]
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Abstract:

Six rhizotrons in an Eucalyptus tetrodonta savanna revealed seasonal changes in the abundance of fine roots (≤ 5 mm diameter). Fine roots were almost completely absent from the upper 1 m of soil during the dry season, but proliferated after the onset of wet-season rains. At peak abundance of 3.9 kg m−2 soil surface, fine roots were distributed relatively uniformly throughout 1 m depth, in contrast with many tropical savannas and tropical dry forests in which fine roots are most abundant near the soil surface. After 98% of cumulative annual rainfall had been received, fine roots began to disappear rapidly, such that 76 d later, less than 5.8% of peak abundance remained. The scarcity of fine roots in the upper 1 m of soil early in the dry season suggests that evergreen trees may be able to extract water from below 1 m throughout the dry season. Persistent deep roots together with abundant fine roots in the upper 1 m of soil during the wet season constitute a ‘dual’ root system. Deep roots might buffer atmospheric CO2 against increase by sequestering carbon at depth in the soil.

Keywords

open forestrhizotronroot depth profileroot-length densityroot phenologysavanna woodlandsmall rootstraced root abundance
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Tropical Ecology , Volume 24 , Issue 2 , March 2008 , pp. 177 - 188
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2008

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References

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