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Peer-reviewedCC BYGlobal change biology

Conservative Spruce Outperforms Acquisitive Larch Under Warming and CO₂.

  • Yanjun Song1
  • Alexandria Pivovaroff2
  • Mahmuda Islam1,3
  • Martin P Girardin4
  • Alana Chin5
  • Hervé Cochard6
  • José M Torres-Ruiz7
  • José A Medina-Vega8
  • Sylvain Delzon9
  • Xiaohan Yin10
  • Xiao Jing Guo4
  • Mirindi E Dusenge11
8 more authors
  • Jeffrey M Warren12
  • Paul J Hanson12
  • Peter B Reich13,14,15
  • Andrew D Richardson16,17
  • Lingcheng Li18
  • Avni Malhotra19
  • Verity G Salmon12
  • Nate G McDowell1,18
19 affiliations
  1. 1School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA.
  2. 2Biology Department, Occidental College, Los Angeles, California, USA.
  3. 3Department of Forestry & Environmental Science, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet, Bangladesh.
  4. 4Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service, Laurentian Forestry Centre, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
  5. 5Department of Biological Sciences, Cal Poly Humboldt, Arcata, California, USA.
  6. 6Université Clermont Auvergne, INRAE, PIAF, Clermont-Ferrand, France.
  7. 7Instituto de Recursos Naturales y Agrobiología de Sevilla (IRNAS), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientıficas (CSIC), Seville, Spain.
  8. 8Forest Global Earth Observatory, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Washington, DC, USA.
  9. 9INRAE, Univ. Bordeaux, UMR BIOGECO, Pessac, France.
  10. 10Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Umeå universitet, Umeå, Sweden.
  11. 11ANU Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia.
  12. 12Climate Change Science Institute and Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, USA.
  13. 13Institute for Global Change Biology, and School for Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.
  14. 14Department of Forest Resources, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA.
  15. 15Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Penrith, Australia.
  16. 16Center for Ecosystem Science and Society, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona, USA.
  17. 17Of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona, USA.
  18. 18Atmospheric Sciences and Global Change Division, Pacific Northwest National Lab, Richland, Washington, USA.
  19. 19Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington, USA.
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Abstract

Predicting boreal forest growth is hindered by limited experimental tests on the compounding effects of climate change and atmospheric CO₂. We integrated regional tree-ring data with a peatland warming and CO₂ manipulation experiment, including 45 trait measurements, to assess growth responses of two widespread boreal conifers, Larix laricina and Picea mariana, to temperature, vapor pressure deficit (VPD), soil moisture, and elevated CO₂. L. laricina growth was consistently more climate-sensitive than P. mariana, increasing strongly with soil moisture and declining slightly with VPD at the regional scale, but responding positively to VPD and temperature-not soil moisture or CO₂-at the experimental peatland. L. laricina's acquisitive strategy enhanced water and nutrient uptake, sustaining growth but reducing hydraulic safety. By contrast, P. mariana's conservative strategy maintained water-use efficiency and hydraulic resilience without compromising growth. Our results challenge projections of widespread CO₂ fertilization in boreal forests and highlight conservative conifers as potential winners under warming and drying, sustaining growth while maintaining low mortality risk. This dynamic could reshape projections of the boreal carbon sink and its role in global climate feedback.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{song2026conservative,
  title = {{Conservative Spruce Outperforms Acquisitive Larch Under Warming and CO₂.}},
  author = {Yanjun Song and Alexandria Pivovaroff and Mahmuda Islam and Martin P Girardin and Alana Chin and Hervé Cochard and José M Torres-Ruiz and José A Medina-Vega and Sylvain Delzon and Xiaohan Yin and Xiao Jing Guo and Mirindi E Dusenge and Jeffrey M Warren and Paul J Hanson and Peter B Reich and Andrew D Richardson and Lingcheng Li and Avni Malhotra and Verity G Salmon and Nate G McDowell},
  journal = {Global change biology},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1111/gcb.71157},
  url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42920355},
  note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Conservative Spruce Outperforms Acquisitive Larch Under Warming and CO₂.
AU  - Yanjun Song
AU  - Alexandria Pivovaroff
AU  - Mahmuda Islam
AU  - Martin P Girardin
AU  - Alana Chin
AU  - Hervé Cochard
AU  - José M Torres-Ruiz
AU  - José A Medina-Vega
AU  - Sylvain Delzon
AU  - Xiaohan Yin
AU  - Xiao Jing Guo
AU  - Mirindi E Dusenge
AU  - Jeffrey M Warren
AU  - Paul J Hanson
AU  - Peter B Reich
AU  - Andrew D Richardson
AU  - Lingcheng Li
AU  - Avni Malhotra
AU  - Verity G Salmon
AU  - Nate G McDowell
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/01
JO  - Global change biology
DO  - 10.1111/gcb.71157
UR  - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42920355
AB  - Predicting boreal forest growth is hindered by limited experimental tests on the compounding effects of climate change and atmospheric CO₂. We integrated regional tree-ring data with a peatland warming and CO₂ manipulation experiment, including 45 trait measurements, to assess growth responses of two widespread boreal conifers, Larix laricina and Picea mariana, to temperature, vapor pressure deficit (VPD), soil moisture, and elevated CO₂. L. laricina growth was consistently more climate-sensitive than P. mariana, increasing strongly with soil moisture and declining slightly with VPD at the regional scale, but responding positively to VPD and temperature-not soil moisture or CO₂-at the experimental peatland. L. laricina's acquisitive strategy enhanced water and nutrient uptake, sustaining growth but reducing hydraulic safety. By contrast, P. mariana's conservative strategy maintained water-use efficiency and hydraulic resilience without compromising growth. Our results challenge projections of widespread CO₂ fertilization in boreal forests and highlight conservative conifers as potential winners under warming and drying, sustaining growth while maintaining low mortality risk. This dynamic could reshape projections of the boreal carbon sink and its role in global climate feedback.
SN  - 1354-1013
SN  - 1365-2486
ER  -