The temperature responses of photosynthesis (A) and growth were examined in rice and wheat grown hydroponically under day/night temperature regimes of 13/10, 19/16, 25/19, 30/24 and 37/31°C. Irrespective of growth temperature, the maximal rates of A were found to be at 30–35°C in rice and at 25–30°C in wheat. Below 25°C the rates were higher in wheat, while above 30°C they were higher in rice. However, in both species, A measured at the growth temperature remained almost constant irrespective of temperature. Biomass production and relative growth rate (RGR) were greatest in rice grown at 30/24°C and in wheat grown at 25/19°C. Although there was no difference between the species in the optimal temperature of the leaf area ratios (LARs), the net assimilation rate (NAR) in rice decreased at low temperature (19/16°C) while the NAR in wheat decreased at high temperature (37/31°C). For both species, the N-use efficiency (NUE) for growth rate (GR), estimated by dividing the NAR by leaf-N content, correlated with GR and with biomass production. Similarly, when NUE for A at growth temperature was estimated, the temperature response of NUE for A was similar to that of NUE for GR in both species. The results suggest that the difference between rice and wheat in the temperature response of biomass production depends on the difference in temperature dependence of NUE for A.
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