Comparisons among Species Composition, Leaf Area, and Water Relations in Three Shrub-Steppe Plant Communities

摘要

Observations were made on plant communities dominated by Bromus tectorum (cheatgrass site), Artemisia tridentata (sagebrush site), and Grayia spinosa (hopsage site). Leaf area on a ground area basis of sagebrush was nor significantly different between the sagebrush and hopsage sites; however, the leaf area of hopsage was one-quarter that of sagebrush at the hopsage site. Pre-dawn xylem water potential of sagebrush was -2.91 MPa, while that of hopsage was -4.79 MPa. Stomatal conductance and transpiration rate of sagebrush and hopsage were nearly the same. 11 refs., 4 figs., 2 tabs. (ERA citation 13:045743)