Selecting trees by water use for hot and dry conditions

Prolonged and more frequent hot and dry weather is a threat to many tree species; understanding the response of species to these conditions through the measurement of plant water use is a powerful tool for species selection.

Applications where species selection are include Phytoremediation (where trees are used to manage environmental pollutants) or long term requires careful species selection

Unlike many applications, the aim is to select trees that have a high demand for water. This ensures pollutants are removed in a manner that is beneficial for the environment.

The selection of tree species is key issue for planning any long term installation of trees in either a remediation or general application. Native tree species exhibit different responses to hot and dry environmental conditions.

Sap Flow was correlated with the changes in VPD and temperature, representing the dry environment and hotness. This allowed the measurement of the species that reacted best to these environmental conditions and thus continued to use water.

The native species used (Eucalyptus cladocalyx (Sugar Gum), Eucalyptus melliodora (Yellow Box), and Eucalyptus polybractea (Blue-leaved Mallee)) all exhibited different responses to the same environmental conditions.

With the purpose of remediation, through the growth of trees, the optimum was to find a species that exhibited strong growth, as well as resilience to the varying environmental conditions. The resilience was measured through the trees ability to continue to utilise water.

When a tree is drought affected, the rate of transpiration slows to near zero. This can be measured using the SFM1 Sap Flow Meter.