Experimental Assessment of Optimal Stomatal Control under Drought and Heat Stress [* Cross-Reference *]

However, it is unclear whether such results are due to model and measurement uncertainty or indeed contradict the theory of optimal stomatal control.After developing an experimental approach to measure λ directly at the leaf scale, we investigate how far λ is consistent between leaves of the same plant or even between plants, under unstressed, single-stress, and combined stress of heat and drought conditions.

By combining our measurements with classical leaf gas exchange modeling, we bridge the gap between experimental and theoretical studies of stomatal optimization. Additionally, we measure water use efficiency, photosynthetic capacity, and biomass to link stomatal control mechanisms to plant physiological functioning. Our results provide insights into how stomatal response to heat and drought stress influences water-carbon trade-offs at the leaf level.

Scaling up leaf-level behavior to the ecosystem, e.g. with the help of terrestrial biosphere models, opens new possibilities for predicting water resource dynamics, optimizing water resource management in agricultural systems, and improving ecosystem management strategies. Assessment of stomatal control strategies of different plants can also enhance our ability to select heat- and drought-resilient crop varieties for a changing environment. ***This entry has been automatically imported via OpenAlex by LIST harvest scripts.

Please refer to doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-15796 for the original and latest version of the publication***