Responses of Nitraria tangutorum to water and photosynthetic physiology in rain enrichment scenario

Under the global warming conditions, great attention has been paid to the effects of precipitation on ecophysiological characteristics in desert plants. Nitraria tangutorum is one of the dominant shrubs distributes in desert outside Minqin oasis, Gansu Province. The artificial simulated rainfall experiments were carried out in four consecutive years from 2008 to 2011, in an attempt to understand the mechanisms of the photosynthetic response in desert plant to the variation of future precipitation pattern. The water and photosynthetic physiological characteristics of leaves in N. tangutorum were examined from July 24 to 26 in 2011 under different simulated rainfall increase gradients (increased 0%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% of mean annual precipitation, respectively). We measured leaf traits that could reflect both leaf water status (e.g., leaf water content and leaf water potential) and photosynthetic physiology (e.g., maximum net photosynthetic rate). The results showed that leaf water content and leaf water potential of N. tangutorum increased with increasing rainfall. Leaf water content and leaf water potential of N. tangutorum in the 100% increased rainfall treatment were significantly greater by 8.51% and 12.07% than the control (0% increased rainfall treatment). But leaf dry matter content and specific leaf weight gradually decreased with increasing rainfall. Leaf dry matter content and specific leaf weight in the 100% increased rainfall treatment were significantly lower by 6.92% and 25.93% than the control. Leaf maximum net photosynthetic rate (Amax), apparent quantum yield (AQY) and light saturation point (LSP) increased with increasing rainfall, while light compensation point (LCP) gradually decreased with increasing rainfall. AQY in the 100% increased rainfall treatment was significantly greater by 70.00% than the control. However, there were no significant differences in LSP and LCP between different treatments. Amax, transpiration rate (Tr), stomatal conductance (Gs) in the 100% increased rainfall treatment were significantly greater by 81.91%, 166.07% and 110.47% than the control, respectively. On the contrary, water use efficiency (WUE) in the 100% increased rainfall treatment was significantly less 48.28% than the control. There were no significant differences in intercellular CO2 concentration (Ci) and stomatal limitation value (Ls) between different treatments. The correlation analysis showed that there were significantly positive correlations between leaf water content, leaf water potential, Tr and Gs. However, there were significantly negative correlations between leaf dry matter content, leaf specific mass and Tr, Gs, leaf water content and leaf water potential, suggesting that leaf gas exchanges were regulated by leaf water status. Therefore, N. tangutorum could adapt to the tendency of future increasing precipitation by the coordination of water physiology and photosynthesis.