The relationship between leaf composition and morphology at elevated CO2 concentrations

Abstract

The composition and morphology of leaves exposed to elevated [CO2] usually change so that the leaf nitrogen (N) per unit dry mass decreases and the leaf dry mass per unit area increases. However, at ambient [CO2], leaves with a high leaf dry mass per unit area usually have low leaf N per unit dry mass. Whether the changes in leaf properties induced by elevated [CO2] follow the same overall pattern as that at ambient [CO2] has not previously been addressed. Here we address this issue by using leaf measurements made at ambient [CO2] to develop an empirical model of the composition and morphology of leaves. Predictions from that model are then compared with a global database of leaf measurements made at ambient [CO2]. Those predictions are also compared with measurements showing the impact of elevated [CO2]. In the empirical model both the leaf dry mass and liquid mass per unit area are positively correlated with leaf thickness, whereas the mass of C per unit dry mass and the mass of N per unit liquid mass are constant. Consequently, both the N:C ratio and the surface area:volume ratio of leaves are positively correlated with the liquid content. Predictions from that model were consistent with measurements of leaf properties made at ambient [CO2] from around the world. The changes induced by elevated [CO2] follow the same overall trajectory. It is concluded that elevated [CO2] enhances the rate at which dry matter is accumulated but the overall trajectory of leaf development is conserved.