Life Sciences Commons^™

Effect Of Drought On Resin Production In Woody Stems Of Rhus Ovata, Sydney T. Adams, Melody Young, Moriah Hall

Seaver College Research And Scholarly Achievement Symposium

Resin production in stems of woody plants is generated from resin canal secretions and is thought to play a significant role in protection from fungal infection and spread. This may be one of several factors associated with fungal infection and fungal induced dieback in plants during severe water stress or drought. We set out to determine if reduction in resin production in a chaparral shrub, Sugar Bush (Rhus ovata), was associated with severe drought in southern California. We hypothesized that dehydrated R. ovata would produce less resin than hydrated plants. Our null hypothesis was that there is no …