The Unstable Relationship Between Drought Status and Leaf Water Content Complicates the Remote Sensing of Tree Drought Stress.

ABSTRACT: Remote sensing holds promise for ecosystem-level monitoring of plant drought stress but is limited by uncertain linkages between physiological stress and remotely sensed metrics of water content. Here, we investigate the stability of relationships between water potential (Ψ) and water content (measured in situ and via repeat airborne VSWIR imaging) over diel, seasonal, and spatial variation in two xeric oak tree species. We also compare these field-based relationships with ones established in laboratory settings that might be used as calibration. Due to confounding physiological processes related to growth, both in situ and remotely sensed metrics lacked consistent relationships with stress when measured across space or through time. Relationships between water content and physiological dr

SUBMITTER: Boving I 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12007071 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature