Articles
Assessing the photosynthetic activities of woody plants as a metric of adaptability to the urban environment in Budapest
Article number
1429_38
Pages
307 – 316
Language
English
Abstract
Urban woody plants are experiencing multiple stressors, specifically drought, soil salinity, and air pollution.
Urban environments change leaf light absorption and radiation reflection, affecting plant photosynthetic activity.
Hence, studies made at the level of individual leaves provide valuable insights into the productivity of ecosystems since photosynthesis acts as the fundamental process for carbon uptake and the overall functioning of the ecosystem.
We conducted a study in Budapest to evaluate the impact of urban conditions on the photosynthetic activities of three common woody plants: Acer platanoides, Fraxinus excelsior, and Tilia tomentosa. We analysed their photosynthetic activity parameters during their vegetative phase from different locations, including net photosynthesis rate, transpiration rate, internal CO2 concentration, water use efficiency, stomatal conductance, surface temperature, and photosynthetically active radiation.
Our findings indicate that T. tomentosa exhibited higher net photosynthesis compared to the other two species during the spring and summer.
This difference was also found in Budai Arborétum and Normafa when comparing locations.
Stomatal conductance is the most significant parameter which accounted 84% of the prediction of net photosynthesis.
This suggests that drought is the primary factor affecting all species’ growth, and the level of drought conditions in Budapest is moderate.
The optimal stomatal conductance model better fits A. platanoides and T. tomentosa, suggesting their more effective adaptation to Budapest’s urban conditions compared to F. excelsior.
Urban environments change leaf light absorption and radiation reflection, affecting plant photosynthetic activity.
Hence, studies made at the level of individual leaves provide valuable insights into the productivity of ecosystems since photosynthesis acts as the fundamental process for carbon uptake and the overall functioning of the ecosystem.
We conducted a study in Budapest to evaluate the impact of urban conditions on the photosynthetic activities of three common woody plants: Acer platanoides, Fraxinus excelsior, and Tilia tomentosa. We analysed their photosynthetic activity parameters during their vegetative phase from different locations, including net photosynthesis rate, transpiration rate, internal CO2 concentration, water use efficiency, stomatal conductance, surface temperature, and photosynthetically active radiation.
Our findings indicate that T. tomentosa exhibited higher net photosynthesis compared to the other two species during the spring and summer.
This difference was also found in Budai Arborétum and Normafa when comparing locations.
Stomatal conductance is the most significant parameter which accounted 84% of the prediction of net photosynthesis.
This suggests that drought is the primary factor affecting all species’ growth, and the level of drought conditions in Budapest is moderate.
The optimal stomatal conductance model better fits A. platanoides and T. tomentosa, suggesting their more effective adaptation to Budapest’s urban conditions compared to F. excelsior.
Authors
H. Chen, L. Kardos, K. Flórián, V. Szabó
Keywords
urban environment, woody plants, photosynthetic activities, stomatal conductance
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