Increasing Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide: Tree Ring Evidence for Growth Enhancement in Natural Vegetation
LaMarche VC, Graybill DA, Fritts HC, Rose MR. 1984. Increasing Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide: Tree Ring Evidence for Growth Enhancement in Natural Vegetation. Science. 225(4666):1019-1021
A response of plant growth to increased atmospheric carbon dioxide, which has been anticipated from laboratory data, may now have been detected in the annual rings of subalpine conifers growing in the western United States. Experimental evidence shows that carbon dioxide can be an important limiting factor inthe growth of plants in this high-altitude environment. The greatly incresased tree growth rates observed since the mid 19th century exceed those expected from climatic trends but are consistent in magnitide with global trends in carbon dioxide, especially in recent decades. If correctly interpreted, these findings have importatnt implicaitons for climate studies involving tree ring observatiosna nd for models of the global carbon dioxide budget.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- LaMarche, Valmore; Graybill, Donald; Fritts, Harold; Rose, Marting
- Units
- DEVA , SAGU
- Keywords
- Air, Air Pollution, Atmosphere, Carbon Dioxide, Pollution, Vegetation