Regarding the isssue discussed below about carbon metabolism in
Welwitschia:
According to Ting writing in the 1985 Annual Review of Plant
Physiology, Welwitschia is a "variable CAM" plant which shows both
C3 and (under conditions of drought) CAM activity.There was no
mention that this plant might be a C4 tree.
__________________________________________________________
To: plant-ed at net.bio.net
From: snow at uofport.edu (Mike Snow)
Subject: Re: C-4 trees
Date: 14 Nov 1996 10:55:35 -0800
John-
I believe that Welwitschia (the unusual gymnosperm from S.
Africa) is a C-4. I haven't got a reference, but someone on the net may
have one.
Mike Snow
Dept. of Biology
University of Portland
On Fri, 8 Nov 1996, John Penny wrote:
>dhaas at CHI1.UNCFSU.EDU (david haas) wrote:
>> >Dear Plant Edders,
>> >Does anyone know the names of any C-4 woody plants? I would think there
> >should be some but I'm not familiar with any. A student brought up this
> >question in class today. Thought it would be a good one for this group.
>> >Thanx
>> >D. Haas
>> Given that C4 plants tend to be monocotyledons (e.g sugar cane, maize,
> Spartina anglica) and require anatomical changes to leaf structure
> (i.e. Kranz anatomy), I suppose the "trees" you are thinking about
> must be bamboo species.
>> John Penny
>>>
Dr. John S. Choinski, Jr.
Professor of Biology
Dept. of Biology
University of Central Arkansas
Conway, AR 72035
johnc at cc1.uca.edu
