Xylem growth cessation in stems and branches of European beech and silver birch: influences of temperature and drought.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Assessing wood growth phenology over multiple years is essential for understanding the environmental drivers of forest growth and improving large-scale predictions of the carbon cycle. Xylogenesis methods facilitate the assessment of the timing and rate of xylem cell wall thickening, the primary sink of carbon in wood. In angiosperm trees, where wood anatomy is complex, significantly less is known about the factors controlling growth cessation in autumn due to indirect, sinteracting, and lag effects, in contrast to growth resumption in spring. Furthermore, both branch and stem growth must be considered to account for the total aboveground phenology.

Methods

In this study, we focused on European beech (Fagus sylvatica) and silver birch (Betula pendula</

SUBMITTER: Marchand LJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12418519 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature