CARE

Carbon Allocation from the canopy the the soil/root system in Response to Environmental stress

Aim

The project aims to quantify the allocation patterns of recently-fixed carbon from the canopy to the soil in response to environmental stress, to identify whether canopy-soil interactions are sink- or source-driven, and to assess the sensitivity of belowground carbon allocation and soil respiration to environmental change. Results of this research, based on stable carbon isotope applications to trace the fate of recently-fixed carbon and CO₂ fluxes, will not only increase our understanding of biosphere-atmosphere CO₂ fluxes and ecosystem functioning, but also help us to identify critical ecosystem responses to future environmental change, such as drought or combined climatic stressors. Such information is highly relevant for developing adaptation strategies for production systems in agriculture and forestry in Switzerland, Europe and elsewhere.

Publications

Blessing CH, Barthel M, Gentsch L, Buchmann N (2016) Strong coupling of shoot assimilation and soil respiration during drought and recovery periods in beech as indicated by natural abundance δ¹³C measurements. Frontiers in Plant Science 7. external pagedoi: 10.3389/fpls.2016.01710call_made

Blessing CH, Barthel M, Buchmann N (2015) Bias in estimated online leaf carbon discrimination due to woody tissues. Isotopes in Environmental and Health Studies 51(1): 109-23 doi:external page10.1080/10256016.2015.1007050call_made

Blessing CH, Werner RA, Siegwolf R, Buchmann N (2015) Allocation dynamics of recently fixed carbon in beech saplings in response to increased temperatures and drought. Tree Physiology 35: 585-98 doi:external page10.1093/treephys/tpv024call_made

Brüggemann N, Gessler A, Kayler Z, Keel SG, Badeck F, Barthel M, Boeckx P, Buchmann N, Brugnoli E, Esperschütz J, Gavrichkova O, Ghashghaie J, Gomez-Casanovas N, Keitel C, Knohl A, Kuptz D, Palacio S, Salmon Y, Uchida Y, Bahn M (2011) Carbon allocation and carbon isotope fluxes in the plant–soil–atmosphere continuum: a review. Biogeosciences Discussion 8: 3619–3695

Brüggemann N, Gessler A, Kayler Z, Keel SG, Badeck F, Barthel M, Boeckx P, Buchmann N, Brugnoli E, Esperschütz J, Gavrichkova O, Ghashghaie J, Gomez-Casanovas N, Keitel C, Knohl A, Kuptz D, Palacio S, Salmon Y, Uchida Y, Bahn M (2011) Carbon allocation and carbon isotope fluxes in the plant–soil–atmosphere continuum: a review. Biogeosciences 8: 3457–3489

Epron D, Bahn M, Derrien D, Lattanzi F, Pumpanen J, Gessler A, Hogberg A, Dannoura M, Gerant D, Maillard P, Buchmann N (2012). Pulse-labelling trees to study carbon allocation dynamics: a review of methods, current knowledge and future prospects. Tree Physiology 32: 776-798

Werner RA, Buchmann N, Siegwolf RTW, Kornexl BE, Gessler A (2011) Metabolic fluxes, carbon isotope fractionation and respiration – lessons to be learned from biochemistry. New Phytologist 191: 10-15