Predawn disequilibrium between soil and plant water potentials in seedlings of two Mediterranean Oak Species (Quercus ilex and Quercus suber)

Increasing aridity and climate extremes are challenging the resilience of key Mediterranean species. Proxies that indicate plant water status, physiological condition and soil water availability are valuable tools for management planning. However, their reliability requires species-specific validati...

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Autores: Pruñanosa, Marc, Albó Timor, Dalmau, Meijer, Andreu, Pérez-Llorca, Marina, Colinas, C. (Carlos)
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2026
País:España
Institución:Universitat de Lleida (UdL)
Repositorio:Repositori Obert UdL
OAI Identifier:oai:dnet:.___________::72a477f53e09bb23450cebd740618295
Acceso en línea:https://doi.org/10.3390/f17010049
https://hdl.handle.net/10459.1/469914
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Predawn disequilibrium (PDD)
Soil water potential (ΨS)
Leaf water potential (ΨL)
Predawn water potential (ΨPD)
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spelling Predawn disequilibrium between soil and plant water potentials in seedlings of two Mediterranean Oak Species (Quercus ilex and Quercus suber)Pruñanosa, MarcAlbó Timor, DalmauMeijer, AndreuPérez-Llorca, MarinaColinas, C. (Carlos)Predawn disequilibrium (PDD)Soil water potential (ΨS)Leaf water potential (ΨL)Predawn water potential (ΨPD)Increasing aridity and climate extremes are challenging the resilience of key Mediterranean species. Proxies that indicate plant water status, physiological condition and soil water availability are valuable tools for management planning. However, their reliability requires species-specific validation under dynamic environmental conditions. This study examined the relationship between predawn leaf water potential (ΨPD) and soil water potential (ΨS) in potted seedlings of two co-occurring Mediterranean evergreen oaks, Q. ilex and Q. suber, subjected to imposed soil drying under greenhouse conditions. We further quantified the occurrence and magnitude of predawn disequilibrium (PDD)—the mismatch between ΨPD and ΨS—and evaluated its association with soil water availability, plant water-status indicators, environmental factors, and physiological variables. In parallel, we assessed stomatal closure dynamics during the desiccation phase and characterised species-specific mortality patterns under progressive drought. Linear Mixed-Effects Models (LMMs), with pot identity included as a random factor, were fitted to assess the relationship between ΨPD and ΨS, as well as the occurrence of PDD and its potential drivers for each species. Stomatal conductance (gs) responses to ΨS were evaluated using a paired t-test and an additional LMM. Finally, Generalised Linear Mixed-Effects Models (GLMMs) were used to analyse interspecific differences in mortality. We confirmed a tight relationship between ΨPD and ΨS, followed by a consistent PDD in both species, with magnitudes of 0.53 MPa for Q. ilex and 0.98 MPa for Q. suber, which increased significantly with drought severity. Our findings suggest that PDD under the studied conditions is primarily driven by soil water depletion and plant desiccation, as indicated by its negative correlation with water status parameters, as well as by its increase with progressive drought. Both oaks exhibited a water-saving strategy, with stomatal closure initiated around ΨS = −0.31 MPa (Q. ilex) and −0.42 MPa (Q. suber). Despite their physiological similarities, Q. suber showed higher mortality under imposed drought. These results encourage modelling the relationship between ΨPD and ΨS to accurately interpret plant and soil water needs in Mediterranean oaks, especially under soil water scarcity, and highlight species-specific responses critical for forest management and restoration under climate change.Dalmau Albó was partially supported by a FI-SDUR Pre-Doctoral Fellowship (reference: BDNS 771000) co-funded by the Generalitat de Catalunya, Departament de Recerca i Universitats and the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+).MDPI2026info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionhttps://doi.org/10.3390/f17010049https://hdl.handle.net/10459.1/469914reponame:Repositori Obert UdL instname:Universitat de Lleida (UdL)InglésReproducció del document publicat a https://doi.org/10.3390/f17010049Forests, 2026, vol.17, núm. 1, p. 1-20https://doi.org/10.34810/data2687cc-by (c) Pruñanosa et al., 2026Attribution 4.0 Internationalinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccesshttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/oai:dnet:.___________::72a477f53e09bb23450cebd7406182952026-06-24T12:42:17Z
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Predawn disequilibrium between soil and plant water potentials in seedlings of two Mediterranean Oak Species (Quercus ilex and Quercus suber)
title Predawn disequilibrium between soil and plant water potentials in seedlings of two Mediterranean Oak Species (Quercus ilex and Quercus suber)
spellingShingle Predawn disequilibrium between soil and plant water potentials in seedlings of two Mediterranean Oak Species (Quercus ilex and Quercus suber)
Pruñanosa, Marc
Predawn disequilibrium (PDD)
Soil water potential (ΨS)
Leaf water potential (ΨL)
Predawn water potential (ΨPD)
title_short Predawn disequilibrium between soil and plant water potentials in seedlings of two Mediterranean Oak Species (Quercus ilex and Quercus suber)
title_full Predawn disequilibrium between soil and plant water potentials in seedlings of two Mediterranean Oak Species (Quercus ilex and Quercus suber)
title_fullStr Predawn disequilibrium between soil and plant water potentials in seedlings of two Mediterranean Oak Species (Quercus ilex and Quercus suber)
title_full_unstemmed Predawn disequilibrium between soil and plant water potentials in seedlings of two Mediterranean Oak Species (Quercus ilex and Quercus suber)
title_sort Predawn disequilibrium between soil and plant water potentials in seedlings of two Mediterranean Oak Species (Quercus ilex and Quercus suber)
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Pruñanosa, Marc
Albó Timor, Dalmau
Meijer, Andreu
Pérez-Llorca, Marina
Colinas, C. (Carlos)
author Pruñanosa, Marc
author_facet Pruñanosa, Marc
Albó Timor, Dalmau
Meijer, Andreu
Pérez-Llorca, Marina
Colinas, C. (Carlos)
author_role author
author2 Albó Timor, Dalmau
Meijer, Andreu
Pérez-Llorca, Marina
Colinas, C. (Carlos)
author2_role author
author
author
author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Predawn disequilibrium (PDD)
Soil water potential (ΨS)
Leaf water potential (ΨL)
Predawn water potential (ΨPD)
topic Predawn disequilibrium (PDD)
Soil water potential (ΨS)
Leaf water potential (ΨL)
Predawn water potential (ΨPD)
description Increasing aridity and climate extremes are challenging the resilience of key Mediterranean species. Proxies that indicate plant water status, physiological condition and soil water availability are valuable tools for management planning. However, their reliability requires species-specific validation under dynamic environmental conditions. This study examined the relationship between predawn leaf water potential (ΨPD) and soil water potential (ΨS) in potted seedlings of two co-occurring Mediterranean evergreen oaks, Q. ilex and Q. suber, subjected to imposed soil drying under greenhouse conditions. We further quantified the occurrence and magnitude of predawn disequilibrium (PDD)—the mismatch between ΨPD and ΨS—and evaluated its association with soil water availability, plant water-status indicators, environmental factors, and physiological variables. In parallel, we assessed stomatal closure dynamics during the desiccation phase and characterised species-specific mortality patterns under progressive drought. Linear Mixed-Effects Models (LMMs), with pot identity included as a random factor, were fitted to assess the relationship between ΨPD and ΨS, as well as the occurrence of PDD and its potential drivers for each species. Stomatal conductance (gs) responses to ΨS were evaluated using a paired t-test and an additional LMM. Finally, Generalised Linear Mixed-Effects Models (GLMMs) were used to analyse interspecific differences in mortality. We confirmed a tight relationship between ΨPD and ΨS, followed by a consistent PDD in both species, with magnitudes of 0.53 MPa for Q. ilex and 0.98 MPa for Q. suber, which increased significantly with drought severity. Our findings suggest that PDD under the studied conditions is primarily driven by soil water depletion and plant desiccation, as indicated by its negative correlation with water status parameters, as well as by its increase with progressive drought. Both oaks exhibited a water-saving strategy, with stomatal closure initiated around ΨS = −0.31 MPa (Q. ilex) and −0.42 MPa (Q. suber). Despite their physiological similarities, Q. suber showed higher mortality under imposed drought. These results encourage modelling the relationship between ΨPD and ΨS to accurately interpret plant and soil water needs in Mediterranean oaks, especially under soil water scarcity, and highlight species-specific responses critical for forest management and restoration under climate change.
publishDate 2026
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2026
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv https://doi.org/10.3390/f17010049
https://hdl.handle.net/10459.1/469914
url https://doi.org/10.3390/f17010049
https://hdl.handle.net/10459.1/469914
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv Inglés
language_invalid_str_mv Inglés
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv Reproducció del document publicat a https://doi.org/10.3390/f17010049
Forests, 2026, vol.17, núm. 1, p. 1-20
https://doi.org/10.34810/data2687
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv cc-by (c) Pruñanosa et al., 2026
Attribution 4.0 International
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
rights_invalid_str_mv cc-by (c) Pruñanosa et al., 2026
Attribution 4.0 International
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv MDPI
publisher.none.fl_str_mv MDPI
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv reponame:Repositori Obert UdL
instname:Universitat de Lleida (UdL)
instname_str Universitat de Lleida (UdL)
reponame_str Repositori Obert UdL
collection Repositori Obert UdL
repository.name.fl_str_mv
repository.mail.fl_str_mv
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