Strategy by latitude? Higher photosynthetic capacity and root mass fraction in northern than southern silver birch (Betula pendula Roth) in uniform growing conditions.

Growth of northern trees is limited by short growing seasons. In multi-year trials, northern trees usually grow less than southern ones but can have higher gas exchange, whereas differences in biomass allocation and its relation to photosynthesis are less known. We characterized silver birch (Betula pendula Roth) provenances from southern (latitude 61°) and northern (latitude 67°) Finland in uniform chamber conditions.