Plant water relations

Douglas R. Cobos, Ph.D.

Decagon Devices and Washington State
University

Plants fundamental dilemma

Biochemistry requires a
highly hydrated
environment (> -3 MPa)
Atmospheric
environment provides
CO2 and light but is dry
(-100 MPa)

Water potential

Describes how tightly

water is bound in the soil

Describes the availability

of water for biological
processes

Defines the flow of water

in all systems (including
SPAC)

Water flow in the Soil Plant

Atmosphere Continuum (SPAC)
Low water potential
Boundary layer conductance
to water vapor flow

Stomatal conductance to
water vapor flow

Root conductance to liquid

water flow
High water potential

Indicators of plant water

stress
Leaf stomatal conductance

Leaf water potential

Soil water potential

Indicator #1: Leaf water

potential
is potential of water in leaf outside of cells
leaf

(only matric potential)

The water outside cells is in equilibrium with the
water inside the cell, so, cell = leaf

Leaf water potential

Turgid leaf: leaf = cell = turgor pressure (p) +

osmotic potential (o) of water inside cell
Flaccid leaf: leaf = cell = o (no positive pressure
component)

Measuring leaf water

potential
There is no direct way to measure leaf
water potential
Equilibrium methods used exclusively
Liquid equilibration methods - Create
equilibrium between sample and area of known water
potential across semi-permeable barrier
Pressure chamber

Vapor equilibration methods air in vapor equilibrium with sample

Thermocouple psychrometer
Dew point potentiameter

Measure humidity

Liquid equilibration: pressure

chamber
Used to measure leaf water
potential (leaf)
Equilibrate pressure inside
chamber with suction inside leaf

Sever petiole of leaf

Cover with wet paper towel
Seal in chamber
Pressurize chamber until moment
sap flows from petiole

Range: 0 to -6 MPa

leaf PPressure Chamber

Two commercial pressure

chambers

Vapor equilibration: chilled mirror

dewpoint hygrometer

Lab instrument
Measures both soil and plant water potential in
the dry range
Can measure leaf

Insert leaf disc into sample chamber

Measurement accelerated by
abrading leaf surface with
sandpaper

Range: -0.1 MPa to -300 MPa

Pressure chamber in situ

comparison

Vapor equilibration: in situ leaf

water potential

Field instrument
Measures leaf
Clip on to leaf (must have good seal)
Must carefully shade clip
Range: -0.1 to -5 MPa

Leaf water potential as an

indicator of plant water status
Can be an indicator of water stress in
perennial crops
Maximize crop production (table grapes)
Schedule deficit irrigation (wine grapes)

Many annual plants will shed leaves rather

than allow leaf water potential to change
past a lower threshold
Non-irrigated potatoes

Most plants will regulate stomatal

conductance before allowing leaf water
potential to change below threshold

Case study #1 Washington

State University apples
Researchers used pressure chamber to
monitor leaf water potential of apple trees
One set well-watered
One set kept under water stress

Results

as much vegetative growth less pruning

Same amount of fruit production
Higher fruit quality
Saved irrigation water

Indicator #2: Stomatal

conductance
Describes gas diffusion
through plant stomata
Plants regulate stomatal
aperture in response to
environmental conditions

Described as either a
conductance or resistance
Conductance is reciprocal of
resistance
1/resistance

Stomatal conductance
Can be good indicator of plant water status
Many plants regulate water loss through stomatal
conductance

Fick's Law for gas diffusion

C L Ca
E
RL Ra
E
C
R
L
a

Evaporation (mol m-2 s-1)

Concentration (mol mol-1)
Resistance (m2 s mol-1)
leaf
air

Cvt
r

stomatal resistance of the leaf

vs

Cvs
r
va

Boundary layer resistance

of the leaf

Cva

Do stomata control leaf water

loss?
Still air: boundary
layer resistance
controls
Moving air: stomatal
resistance controls

Bange (1953)

Obtaining resistances (or

conductances)
Boundary layer conductance depends
on wind speed, leaf size and diffusing
gas
Stomatal conductance is measured
with a leaf porometer

Measuring stomatal
conductance
2 types of leaf porometer

Dynamic - rate of change of vapor

pressure in chamber attached to
leaf
Steady state - measure the vapor
flux and gradient near a leaf

Dynamic porometer
Seal small chamber to leaf surface
Use pump and desiccant to dry air in chamber
Measure the time required for the chamber
humidity to rise some preset amount

Cv
t

Stomatal conductance is proportional to:

Cv = change in water vapor concentration

t = change in time

Delta T dynamic diffusion porometer

Steady state porometer

Clamp a chamber with a fixed diffusion path to

the leaf surface

Measure the vapor pressure at two locations in

the diffusion path

Compute stomatal conductance from the vapor

pressure measurements and the known
conductance of the diffusion path

No pumps or desiccants

Steady state porometer

leaf

CvL Cv1 Cv1 Cv 2

Rvs R1
R2

h1

R1
R2

sensors

h2

1 h1
Rvs
R2 R1
h2 h1

Teflon
filter
atmosphere

Rvs = stomatal resistance to vapor flow

Decagon steady state

porometer

Environmental effects on stomatal

conductance: Light

Stomata normally close in the dark

The leaf clip of the porometer darkens

the leaf, so stomata tend to close

Leaves in shadow or shade normally

have lower conductances than leaves in
the sun

Overcast days may have lower

conductance than sunny days

Environmental effects on
stomatal conductance:
Temperature
High and low temperature affects
photosynthesis and therefore
conductance

Temperature differences between

sensor and leaf affect all diffusion
porometer readings. All can be
compensated if leaf and sensor
temperatures are known

Environmental effects on stomatal

conductance: Humidity

Stomatal conductance increases with humidity at

the leaf surface

Porometers that dry the air can decrease

conductance

Porometers that allow surface humidity to

increase can increase conductance.

Environmental effects on stomatal

conductance: CO2
Increasing carbon dioxide concentration at
the leaf surface decreases stomatal
conductance.
Photosynthesis cuvettes could alter
conductance, but porometers likely would
not
Operator CO2 could affect readings

What can I do with a

porometer?
Water use and water balance

Use conductance with Ficks law to determine crop

transpiration rate
Develop crop cultivars for dry climates/salt affected
soils

Determine plant water stress in annual and

perennial species
Study effects of environmental conditions
Schedule irrigation

Optimize herbicide uptake

Study uptake of ozone and other pollutants

Case study #2 Washington

State University wheat

Researchers using steady state

porometer to create drought
resistant wheat cultivars
Evaluating physiological response to
drought stress (stomatal closing)
Selecting individuals with optimal
response

Case study #3 Chitosan

study
Evaluation of effects of
Chitosan on plant water use
efficiency

Chitosan induces stomatal closure

Leaf porometer used to evaluate
effectiveness
26 43% less water used while
maintaining biomass production

Case Study 4: Stress in wine grapes

Indicator #3: Soil water potential

Defines the supply part of the
supply/demand function of water
stress
field capacity = -0.03 MPa
permanent wilting point -1.5 MPa
We discussed how to measure soil water
potential earlier

Applications of soil water potential

Irrigation management
Deficit irrigation
Lower yield but higher quality fruit
Wine grapes
Fruit trees

No water stress optimal yield

Appendix: Lower limit water potentials

Agronomic Crops

Summary
Leaf water potential, stomatal
conductance, and soil water potential can
all be powerful tools to assess plant water
status
Knowledge of how plants are affected by
water stress are important
Ecosystem health
Crop yield
Produce quality

Appendix: Water potential measurement

technique matrix
Method

Measures

Principle

Range (MPa)
+0.1 to -0.085

Precautions

Tensiometer
(liquid equilibration)

soil matric potential

internal suction balanced

against matric potential
through porous cup

cavitates and must be refilled if

minimum range is exceeded

Pressure chamber
(liquid equilibration)

water potential of plant

tissue (leaves)

external pressure balanced

against leaf water potential

0 to -6

sometimes difficult to see endpoint;

must have fresh from leaf;

in situ soil psychrometer

(vapor equilibration)

matric plus osmotic

potential in soil

same as sample changer

psychrometer

0 to -5

same as sample changer psychrometer

in situ leaf
psychrometer
(vapor equilibration)

water potential of plant

tissue (leaves)

same as sample changer

psychrometer

0 to -5

same as sample changer; should be

shaded from direct sun; must have
good seal to leaf

Dewpoint hygrometer
(vapor equilibration)

matric plus osmotic

potential of soils, leaves,
solutions, other
materials

measures hr of vapor
equilibrated with sample.
Uses Kelvin equation to get
water potential

-0.1 to -300

laboratory instrument. Sensitive to

changes in ambient room temperature.

Heat dissipation
(solid equilibration)

matric potential of soil

ceramic thermal properties

empirically related to matric
potential

-0.01 to -30

Needs individual calibration

Electrical properties
(solid equilibration)

matric potential of soil

ceramic electrical properties

empirically related to matric
potential

-0.01 to -0.5

Gypsum sensors dissolve with time.

EC type sensors have large errors in
salty soils