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Lignotubers

November 17th, 2015 Leave a comment Go to comments

Lignotubers are swollen woody structures located at the root-shoot transition zone of some plants; they contain numerous dormant buds and starch reserves [1]. They are ontogenetically programmed, that is, they are not the product of repeated disturbances; and thus they can be observed at very early stages of the plant development (other types of basal burls may be a response to multiple disturbances). Lignotubers enables the plant to resprout prolifically after severe disturbances that remove the aboveground biomass, thus they are considered adaptive in fire-prone ecosystems [2]. Lignotubers are not well-known in many floras because they are often below-ground (i.e., detected only after excavation) and because they are often confused by other non-ontogenetically determined basal burls; thus some reports of lignotubers in the literature are mistakes. In a recent review [1] we provide examples of species with a clear evidence of lignotubers in the Mediterranean basin, together with detailed morphological and anatomical description of lignotubers in saplings. The species with lignotuebers in the Mediterranean basin include many Erica species (e.g. E. arborea, E. scoparia, E. australis, E. lusitanica, E. multiflora), the two Arbutus species (A. unedo, A. andrachne), Rhododendron ponticum, Viburnum tinus, Phillyera angustifolia, Quercus suber (not obvious macroscopically!), Tetraclinis articulata and Juniperus oxycedrus (but not in all populations!). Please let me know (email address here) if you know of other Mediterranean basin species with lignotubers! Thanks

lignotubers
Figures: Examples of lignotubers for Mediterranean basin species. A Juniperus oxycedrus (resprouting after fire). B Viburnum tinus. C Arbutus unedo. D Quercus suber (not a clear basal swelling). E Olea europaea. F Phillyrea angustifolia (adult), G Phillyrea angustifolia (saplings). In many species (e.g., V. tinus, A. unedo and P. angustifolia) the lignotuber is only evident after excavating the root-shoot transition zone.

References

[1] Paula S., Naulin P.I., Arce C., Galaz C. & Pausas J.G. 2016. Lignotubers in Mediterranean basin plants. Plant Ecology  [doi | pdf | suppl.]

[2] Keeley J.E., Pausas J.G., Rundel P.W., Bond W.J., Bradstock R.A. 2011. Fire as an evolutionary pressure shaping plant traits. Trends Plant Sci. 16: 406-411.  [doi | sciencedirect | pdf | For managers]

 

  1. Contoh Majas Metafora
    August 26th, 2016 at 13:28 | #1

    thanks for the articles you share.. i am interested in this topic.. your post give me nice information :D.


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