A doubling of atmospheric CO2 mitigates the effects of severe drought on maize through the preservation of soil water.

ABSTRACT:

Background and aims

Drought limits maize production in many regions of the world, and this is likely to intensify in future. Elevated atmospheric CO2 (eCO2) can mitigate this by reducing stomatal conductance and water loss without reducing yield. The magnitude of this effect depends on the interaction of eCO2 and drought severity, but scarce data collected under severe drought conditions limit predictions of future maize production.

Methods

We compared the severe drought × eCO2 responses of six maize genotypes from semi-arid and sub-humid growing regions.

Key results

Genotypic differences were apparent in growth, gas exchange, water relations, grain quality, and biomass at maturity, but the response to eCO2 was consistent. Plants under drought and eCO2 had similar bio

SUBMITTER: Ripley BS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9007090 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature