The photosynthetic response of a high-altitude spruce forest to nitrogen amendments with implications for gross primary productivity

Characterizing the capacity of the terrestrial biome to absorb CO₂ is one of the most pressing topics in climate science. One of the key players in this arena is also one of the most poorly understood: the role of nitrogen deposition. While N deposition seems to fertilize some forests, in others it has been blamed for forest decline and tree mortality. In order to further understand the role of N deposition in forest primary productivity, an in situ N-amendment study was conducted in a relatively high N deposition region of the CO Rocky Mountains over 3 yr.

Chlorophyll fluorometry is a non-invasive technique that allows for the characterization of photosynthetic efficiency and photoinhibition in plants. Analysis of chlorophyll fluorometry data showed that in this tree line forest, moderate amounts of additional N significantly lower the photosynthetic efficiency of individual branches when compared to control branches, while significantly improving the non-photochemical dissipation of excess absorbed energy. This suggests that in high-altitude spruce forests receiving relatively high N inputs, GPP may be impaired by continued chronic additions of N. One potential cause of this is an increase in the light harvesting capacity of N amended branches without a concurrent increase in photosynthesis.