Ontogenetic changes in root and shoot respiration, fresh mass and surface area of Fagus crenata.

Background And Aims: To date, studies on terrestrial plant ecology and evolution have focused primarily on the trade-off patterns in the allocation of metabolic production to roots and shoots in individual plants and the scaling of whole-plant respiration. However, few empirical studies have investigated the root : shoot ratio by considering scaling whole-plant respiration at various sizes throughout ontogeny.

Methods: Here, using a whole-plant chamber system, we measured the respiration rates, fresh mass and surface area of entire roots and shoots from 377 Fagus crenata individuals, from germinating seeds to mature trees, collected from five different Japanese provenances.

Zn tolerance in the evergreen shrub, Aucuba japonica, naturally growing at a mine site: Cell wall immobilization, aucubin production, and Zn adsorption on fungal mycelia.

Aucuba japonica Thunb. is an evergreen understory shrub that grows naturally at a mine site. The mine soil contains high concentrations of heavy metals, and A.

Consistent scaling of whole-shoot respiration between Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys pubescens) and trees.

Both Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys pubescens) and tree forests have a large biomass; they are considered to play an important role in ecosystem carbon budgets. The scaling relationship between individual whole-shoot (i.e.

The contribution of seed dispersers to tree species diversity in tropical rainforests.

Tropical rainforests are known for their extreme biodiversity, posing a challenging problem in tropical ecology. Many hypotheses have been proposed to explain the diversity of tree species, yet our understanding of this phenomenon remains incomplete. Here, we consider the contribution of animal seed dispersers to the species diversity of trees.

Microhabitat locality allows multi-species coexistence in terrestrial plant communities.

Most terrestrial plant communities exhibit relatively high species diversity and many competitive species are ubiquitous. Many theoretical studies have been carried out to investigate the coexistence of a few competitive species and in most cases they suggest competitive exclusion. Theoretical studies have revealed that coexistence of even three or four species can be extremely difficult.

Mixed-power scaling of whole-plant respiration from seedlings to giant trees.

The scaling of respiratory metabolism with body mass is one of the most pervasive phenomena in biology. Using a single allometric equation to characterize empirical scaling relationships and to evaluate alternative hypotheses about mechanisms has been controversial. We developed a method to directly measure respiration of 271 whole plants, spanning nine orders of magnitude in body mass, from small seedlings to large trees, and from tropical to boreal ecosystems.

The antifungal compound totarol of Thujopsis dolabrata var. hondai seeds selects for fungi on seedling root surfaces.

Hinoki-asunaro (Thujopsis dolabrata Sieb. et Zucc. var.

Organic acids and water-soluble phenolics produced by Paxillus sp. 60/92 together show antifungal activity against Pythium vexans under acidic culture conditions.

Ectomycorrhizal fungi can produce antifungal compounds in vitro as well as in symbiosis with the host plant that can reduce root diseases. The objective of this study was to isolate antifungal compounds from culture filtrate of Paxillus sp. 60/92, which can form mycorrhizas with Picea glehnii seedlings.

Variations in leaf βC along a vertical profile of irradiance in a temperate Japanese forest.

The vertical profile of stable carbon isotope ratios (δC) of leaves was analyzed for 13 tree species in a cool-temperate deciduous forest in Japan. The vertical distribution of long-term averaged δC in atmospheric CO (δ) was estimated from δC of dry matter from NADP-malic enzyme type C plant (Zea mays L. var.