
%0 Journal Article
%A Equiza, María A. 
%A Tognetti, Jorge A. 
%T Morphological plasticity of spring and winter wheats in response to changing temperatures
%J Functional Plant Biology
%D 2002/12/16
%V 29
%N 12
%P 1427-1436
%K 
%R https://doi.org/10.1071/FP02066
%U https://www.publish.csiro.au/paper/FP02066 
%X Temperature change induces morpho-physiological responses, whose significance for plant function under this modified environmental condition is mostly unclear. Plastic responses to temperature changes from optimal (25&#176;C) to chilling (5&#176;C) conditions or vice versa, as compared with constant temperature treatments, were studied in spring and winter wheat. Plants grown at 5&#176;C had smaller leaves, less stomata and larger root systems than their counterparts grown at 25&#176;C. Plants at 5&#176;C therefore had larger effective root : shoot ratio, defined as the ratio between total area of roots and stomata. Spring and winter cultivars differed in root growth, leaf growth and stomatal frequency following a shift in temperature. Nevertheless, both cultivar types reached similar effective root : shoot ratios, which were typical for each temperature. We also found changes in leaf thickness, transverse vascular bundle area and xylem : phloem ratios. Shifting temperature triggered rapid changes in leaf and root carbohydrate content and osmotic potential. Our results suggest that temperature-induced plasticity may play a role in ameliorating possible water deficits caused by large soil&#8211;air temperature differentials in natural environments. 
