Pacific Southwest Research Station

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Title: Winter-Deciduous versus Evergreen Habit in Mediterranean Regions: A Model

Author: Blumler, Mark A.

Date: 1991

Source: In: Standiford, Richard B., tech. coord. 1991. Proceedings of the symposium on oak woodlands and hardwood rangeland management; October 31 - November 2, 1990; Davis, California. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-126. Berkeley, CA: Pacific Southwest Research Station, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; p. 194-197

Station ID: GTR-PSW-126

Description: Although winter-deciduous species are presumed to be "out-of-phase" with the mediterranean climate regime, distributional evidence suggests some taxa may be more tolerant of summer drought than evergreen sclerophylls. Deciduous species possess several features that confer advantage in extreme summer dry regions: drought-deciduousness, an efficient response to severe seasonal drought; high photosynthetic rates especially during the optimum late spring period; and a phenology similar to evergreens (but with more rapid growth) during the critical first year. I present a preliminary model of the relative importance of deciduous and evergreen plants in relation to climate, soils, and biotic influences.

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Blumler, Mark A.   1991.  Winter-Deciduous versus Evergreen Habit in Mediterranean Regions: A Model  In: Standiford, Richard B., tech. coord. 1991. Proceedings of the symposium on oak woodlands and hardwood rangeland management; October 31 - November 2, 1990; Davis, California. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-126. Berkeley, CA: Pacific Southwest Research Station, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; p. 194-197.