Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Savage VM
PROVIDER: S-EPMC3012458 | biostudies-other | 2010 Dec
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other
Savage V M VM Bentley L P LP Enquist B J BJ Sperry J S JS Smith D D DD Reich P B PB von Allmen E I EI
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 20101213 52
Plant vascular networks are central to botanical form, function, and diversity. Here, we develop a theory for plant network scaling that is based on optimal space filling by the vascular system along with trade-offs between hydraulic safety and efficiency. Including these evolutionary drivers leads to predictions for sap flow, the taper of the radii of xylem conduits from trunk to terminal twig, and how the frequency of xylem conduits varies with conduit radius. To test our predictions, we use c ...[more]