Frost-resistant trees have an advantage in climate change

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Tree species that recover quickly from frost damage may have an advantage in the future, WSL wrote in a statement Tuesday. The study, which appears in the journal “Functional Ecology,” shows that trees that survive frost well can sprout earlier in the year, despite the risk of frost.

According to the research, this ability is becoming increasingly important with climate change. Although it usually warms early in the year, the risk of late frosts should remain high for at least this time. In this way, frost-resistant species may outweigh frost-sensitive species in the future. This changes forests in Switzerland in the long run.

Finding the right time for leaves to sprout is a risky undertaking for deciduous trees. It’s too soon and the entire investment can fall victim to a single frost; Too late and scarce resources such as water, nutrients and light may already be consumed by competing neighboring plants.

How much risk a tree should take depends on its ability to survive frost. In the evolutionary process, the optimum time for leaf budding has been determined for each species.

For the study, the researchers allowed the potted trees to sprout in a heating chamber and then exposed them to frost in a cooling chamber.

According to research, wild cherry trees and oak trees have good strategies for surviving frost. Wild cherries form a new shoot from the very bottom, and oaks have plenty of spare buds.

In contrast, a third of the examined hornbeams could not withstand the frost. Red beeches were also more severely affected, they produced smaller leaves and had a sparse crown. (SDA)

Source : Blick