Early Autumn: Drought Accelerates Leaf Senescence in Temperate Tree Species.

ABSTRACT: Climate warming has led to an increase of drought events with consequences on physiological processes in trees and implications for carbon sequestration. Drought may lead to changes in the timing of autumn phenology and premature senescence. However, mechanisms linking physiological responses to drought stress and changes in phenological events in tree species remain poorly understood. We investigated how drought impacts autumn phenology and the timing of leaf senescence in three temperate tree species, along with the associated physiological responses. For this purpose, we designed a factorial field experiment with the evergreen species white pine, and two deciduous species, red maple and white oak, and used rainout structures to reduce ~50% of precipitation in drought-stressed plots comp

SUBMITTER: Wang S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12720066 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov-Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature