Abstract
To explore the roles of plasticity and genetic variation in the response to spatial and temporal climate variation, we established a common garden consisting of paired collections of native and introduced riparian trees sampled along a latitudinal gradient. The garden in Fort Collins, Colorado (latitude 40.6°N), included 681 native plains cottonwood (Populus deltoides subsp. monilifera) and introduced saltcedar (Tamarix ramosissima, T. chinensis and hybrids) collected from 15 sites at 29.2–47.6°N in the central United States. In the common garden both species showed latitudinal variation in fall, but not spring, leaf phenology, suggesting that the latitudinal gradient in fall phenology observed in the field results at least in part from inherited variation in the critical photoperiod, while the latitudinal gradient in spring phenology observed in the field is largely a plastic response to the temperature gradient. Populations from higher latitudes exhibited earlier bud set and leaf senescence. Cold hardiness varied latitudinally in both fall and spring for both species. For cottonwood, cold hardiness began earlier and ended later in northern than in southern populations. For saltcedar northern populations were hardier throughout the cold season than southern populations. Although cottonwood was hardier than saltcedar in midwinter, the reverse was true in late fall and early spring. The latitudinal variation in fall phenology and cold hardiness of saltcedar appears to have developed as a result of multiple introductions of genetically distinct populations, hybridization and natural selection in the 150 years since introduction.
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Acknowledgments
Funding was provided by the Global Change Research Program, the Fort Collins Science Center, and the Invasive Species Program of the U.S. Geological Survey. The Common Garden was housed by the Colorado State Forest Service Nursery in Fort Collins. Greenhouse work was carried out at Colorado State University in Fort Collins. J. Roth managed the common garden and collected much of the data. The authors thank G. Auble, L. Benson, and L. Perry and several anonymous referees for constructive reviews. Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.
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Online Resource 1
A table showing collection locations and number of individuals planted on 16 August 2005, for plains cottonwood and saltcedar grown in the common garden in Fort Collins, Colorado. (DOCX 13 kb)
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A figure showing variation in climate among collection locations. (DOCX 48 kb)
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A table showing mean values of phenological characters by latitude of origin. (DOCX 17 kb)
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A figure showing overwinter survival in the first year (2005–2006) for plains cottonwood and saltcedar in the common garden as a function of latitude of origin. (DOCX 32 kb)
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Friedman, J.M., Roelle, J.E. & Cade, B.S. Genetic and environmental influences on leaf phenology and cold hardiness of native and introduced riparian trees. Int J Biometeorol 55, 775–787 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00484-011-0494-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00484-011-0494-6