Linkages between phenology, pollination, photosynthesis, and reproduction in deciduous forest understory plants.

Light availability in the understory of deciduous forests changes drastically within the growing season due to the foliage dynamics of canopy trees. Because flowering phenology, photosynthetic characteristics, and fruiting success respond to such strong seasonality in light availability, we hypothesized that understory plants in such ecosystems should describe distinct phenological groups or syndromes where "syndrome" is defined only as a set of characteristics that co-occur. To identify these phenological syndromes, we studied the flowering phenology, fruit or seed set, and photosynthetic characteristics for 18 perennial understory herbaceous species that differed in reproductive strategy over eight years in a deciduous forest in northern Japan.

Overwintering leaves of a forest-floor fern, Dryopteris crassirhizoma (Dryopteridaceae): a small contribution to the resource storage and photosynthetic carbon gain.

Background And Aims: Dryopteris crassirhizoma is a semi-evergreen fern growing on the floor of deciduous forests. The present study aimed to clarify the photosynthetic and storage functions of overwintering leaves in this species.

Methods: A 2-year experiment with defoliation and shading of overwintering leaves was conducted.