Results from 16 free-air CO 2 enrichment (FACE) sites representing four different global vegetation types indicate that only some early predictions of the effects of increasing CO 2 concentration (elevated [CO 2 ]) on plant and ecosystem processes are well supported. Predictions for leaf CO 2 assimilation (A net ) generally fit our understanding of limitations to photosynthesis, and the FACE ex...

1. Numerous plant traits are known to influence aspects of individual performance, including rates of carbon uptake, tissue turnover, mortality and fecundity. These traits are bound to influence emergent properties of vegetation because quantities such as leaf-area cover, average height, primary productivity and density of standing biomass result from the collective behaviour of individuals. Ye...

The photosynthetic efficiency of C3 grasses declines with increasing temperature and C4 grasses are predicted to be advantaged at temperatures above 15 °C. We demonstrated an above-ground productivity difference in a commongarden experiment with Alloteropsis semialata and show that it is related more to differences in life-history than to photosynthesis. Frost caused leaf mortality in the C4 bu...

The design and function of leaf venation are important to plant performance, with key implications for the distribution and productivity of ecosystems, and applications in paleobiology, agriculture and technology. We synthesize classical concepts and the recent literature on a wide range of aspects of leaf venation. We describe 10 major structural features that contribute to multiple key functi...

Since leaves are essentially energy-gaining organs, the arrangement of leaves in time (leaf phenology) and in space (canopy architecture) in both seasonal and nonseasonal environments can be viewed as a central element in plant strategies for carbon gain. Interrelationships among leaf longevity, leaf habit, and leaf-emergence pattern together with shoot architecture affect plant productivity. L...

Forest production depends on CO2 assimilation, but is rarely solely a function of leaf-level photosynthesis. Crown characteristics may affect tree growth by altering light interception and photosynthesis at canopy level. Strong light gradients are present in forest canopies, which often result in parallel changes in leaf morphology and leaf nitrogen for efficient use of light in photosynthetic ...

What Is Productivity? In primary productivity of plants, solar energy is transformed to biomass. Using photosynthesis, green plants convert solar energy, carbon dioxide, and water to glucose and other carbon-based compounds and eventually to plant tissue. Gross primary productivity is the product of that photosynthetic fixation of carbon, whereas net primary productivity is the carbon that is a...

............................................................................................................................................................. 737 I. The Role of Photosynthesis in Ecological Research ..................................................................................... 738 II. Definition and Explanation of Fluorescence Parameters .....................................

In this paper we present survey on the various types of leaf diseases in plants and their identification process. An identification problem deals with associating a given input pattern with one of the distinct classes. Plant leaf disease identification is a technique where leaf spot disease is identified based on its different morphological features. There are various successful identification ...

Despite striking differences in climate, soils, and evolutionary history among diverse biomes ranging from tropical and temperate forests to alpine tundra and desert, we found similar interspecific relationships among leaf structure and function and plant growth in all biomes. Our results thus demonstrate convergent evolution and global generality in plant functioning, despite the enormous dive...