Adaptive mechanisms and genomic plasticity for drought tolerance identified in European black poplar (Populus nigra L.).

ABSTRACT: Summer droughts are likely to increase in frequency and intensity across Europe, yet long-lived trees may have a limited ability to tolerate drought. It is therefore critical that we improve our understanding of phenotypic plasticity to drought in natural populations for ecologically and economically important trees such as Populus nigra L. A common garden experiment was conducted using ∼500 wild P. nigra trees, collected from 11 river populations across Europe. Phenotypic variation was found across the collection, with southern genotypes from Spain and France characterized by small leaves and limited biomass production. To examine the relationship between phenotypic variation and drought tolerance, six genotypes with contrasting leaf morphologies were subjected to a water deficit experime

SUBMITTER: Viger M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4969554 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature