Henri Cuny, a post-doc in the D-Clim group at WSL, received word recently that an article of his had been accepted in Nature Plants.  His paper is based on his PhD research at INRA Nancy quantifying the intra-annual dynamics of carbon allocation in tree stems. This work was subsequently extended to include Northern Hemisphere analysis, and has clearly demonstrated significant and widespread differences between increases in wood tissue size and mass. This finding poses significant consequences with regard to our understanding of the global carbon cycle, in particular its quantification using external tree measurements.

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Trees may grow and put on weight — but not necessarily at the same time

An international consortium led by scientists of the French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA), in collaboration with AgroParisTech, has shown that mechanisms involved in tree growth are in action at different times. First, the tree gets bigger due to the production and enlargement of woody cells; then the cell walls are reinforced, which increases the tree’s mass. These results, published in Nature Plants on 26 October 2015, suggest that the effects of climate change may alter the second phase and in turn modify carbon sequestration in wood, a climate change issue.

Follow this link to read more —  the full INRA press release