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Forests
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Water Use Efficiency of Forest Trees
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Water Use Efficiency of Forest Trees

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Ecophysiology and Biology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2026 | Viewed by 2150

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Sergio Espinoza Meza

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias y Forestales, Universidad Católica del Maule, Av. San Miguel, Talca 3605, Chile
Interests: forest eco-physiology; drought stress; forest rehabilitation; tree breeding
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Rafael A. Rubilar

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Facultad de Ciencias Forestales, Universidad de Concepción, Victoria 683, Concepción, Chile
Interests: forest soils and nutrition; forest ecophysiology; forest productivity
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Water use efficiency (WUE) indicates the water use strategy among different species or at different life stages of plants. WUE provides an integrated indicator for quantifying CO2 assimilation via photosynthesis to water use through transpiration. WUE varies greatly with forest type (e.g., plantations or natural forests), species (e.g., sclerophyllous, evergreen, or temperate), age (e.g., seedlings, saplings, or adults), and environmental conditions (e.g., drought and heatwaves), among others. However, our understanding of how WUE operates from ‘gene to landscape’ is still incomplete. This Special Issue aims to gather original manuscripts that explore the latest advancements in the WUE of trees in forests in the context of climate change. Manuscripts spanning various geographical regions, forest types, and species in the open field or under controlled conditions are welcome.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • The impacts of climate on WUE in forest trees;
  • The molecular, morphological, and physiological responses in the WUE of different species;
  • The molecular, morphological, and physiological responses in WUE at the leaf, plant, and forest level;
  • The adaptations and strategies of different species to face water scarcity in arid environments and those moving to aridization;
  • The improvement of WUE in fast-growing species;
  • The use remote sensing to assess WUE at the landscape level.

Dr. Sergio Espinoza Meza
Dr. Rafael A. Rubilar
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • water use efficiency
  • adaptations to drought
  • climate change
  • aridization
  • carbon isotope discrimination
  • plant water productivity
  • water balance
  • productivity

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

26 pages, 8853 KB  
Article
Leaf Functional Traits and Water-Use Strategies of Two Riparian Tree Species in an Urban Environment
by Erna Vastag, Lazar Kesić, Claudia Cocozza, Velisav Karaklić, Vladimir Višacki, Marko Ilić and Srđan Stojnić
Forests 2026, 17(3), 339; https://doi.org/10.3390/f17030339 - 9 Mar 2026
Viewed by 856
Abstract
Urban roadside environments are characterized by altered microclimate and soil conditions that impose recurrent drought stress on trees, affecting their physiological performance and adaptive capacity. Understanding species-specific physiological and structural responses to drought stress is crucial for selecting tree species that are suitable [...] Read more.
Urban roadside environments are characterized by altered microclimate and soil conditions that impose recurrent drought stress on trees, affecting their physiological performance and adaptive capacity. Understanding species-specific physiological and structural responses to drought stress is crucial for selecting tree species that are suitable for urban environments. In the present study, we investigated the species-specific and temporal (monthly) patterns of the in situ leaf physiological status and structural traits of two riparian tree species, Quercus robur L. and Carpinus betulus L., cultivated as urban roadside trees in Novi Sad, Serbia, throughout the growing season (from June to September). This was achieved by assessing leaf gas exchange and rapid light curves of chlorophyll a fluorescence together with leaf structural traits. Under drought stress, Q. robur exhibited sustained photosynthetic activity and transpiration rates due to reduced stomatal sensitivity, indicative of a more anisohydric behavior with respect to its water relations strategy. In contrast, C. betulus exhibited tighter stomatal regulation and showed lower assimilation rates accompanied by reduced cooling capacity, indicating stricter, more conservative water-balance management indicative of isohydric species. Fluorescence indices revealed contrasting behavior: C. betulus showed enhanced NPQ values accompanied by a decline in photosynthetic efficiency, while Q. robur exhibited lower NPQ, suggesting better maintenance of photosynthetic performance and electron transport in PSII under the observed drought stress. These patterns were further supported by higher stomatal density combined with smaller stomatal size, indicating faster stomatal response rates in C. betulus compared to Q. robur. Overall, these results suggest that C. betulus is a more promising riparian tree species for urban landscapes, particularly under drought-prone conditions and predicted climate changes, in comparison to Q. robur. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Use Efficiency of Forest Trees)
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15 pages, 1019 KB  
Article
Genotypic Variability in Growth and Leaf-Level Physiological Performance of Highly Improved Genotypes of Pinus radiata D. Don Across Different Sites in Central Chile
by Sergio Espinoza, Marco Yáñez, Carlos Magni, Eduardo Martínez-Herrera, Karen Peña-Rojas, Sergio Donoso, Marcos Carrasco-Benavides and Samuel Ortega-Farias
Forests 2025, 16(7), 1108; https://doi.org/10.3390/f16071108 - 4 Jul 2025
Viewed by 772
Abstract
Pinus radiata D. Don is planted in South Central Chile on a wide range of sites using genetically improved genotypes for timber production. As drought events are expected to increase with ongoing climatic change, the variability in gas exchange, which could impact growth [...] Read more.
Pinus radiata D. Don is planted in South Central Chile on a wide range of sites using genetically improved genotypes for timber production. As drought events are expected to increase with ongoing climatic change, the variability in gas exchange, which could impact growth and water use, needs to be evaluated. In this study, we assessed the genotypic variability of leaf-level light-saturated photosynthesis (Asat), stomatal conductance (gs), transpiration (E), intrinsic water use efficiency (iWUE), and Chlorophyll a fluorescence (OJIP-test parameters) among 30 P. radiata genotypes (i.e., full-sib families) from third-cycle parents at age 6 years on three sites in Central Chile. We also evaluated tree height (HT), diameter at breast height (DBH), and stem index volume (VOL). Families were ranked for HT as top-15 and bottom-15. In the OJIP-test parameters we observed differences at the family level for the maximum quantum yield of primary PSII photochemistry (Fv/Fm), the probability that a photon trapped by the PSII reaction center enters the electron transport chain (ψEo), and the potential for energy conservation from photons captured by PSII to the reduction in intersystem electron acceptors (PIABS). Fv/Fm, PIABS, and ψEo ranged from 0.82 to 0.87, 45 to 95, and 0.57 to 0.64, respectively. Differences among families for growth and not for leaf-level physiology were detected. DBT, H, and VOL were higher in the top-15 families (12.6 cm, 8.4 m, and 0.10 m3, respectively) whereas Asat, gs, E, and iWUE were similar in both the top-15 and bottom-15 families (4.0 μmol m−2 s−1, 0.023 mol m−2 s−1, 0.36 mmol m−2 s−1, and 185 μmol mol m−2 s−1, respectively). However, no family by site interaction was detected for growth and leaf-level physiology. The results of this study suggest that highly improved genotypes of P. radiata have uniformity in leaf-level physiological rates, which could imply uniform water use at the stand-level. The family variation found in PIABS suggests that this parameter could be incorporated to select genotypes tolerant to environmentally stressful conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Use Efficiency of Forest Trees)
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