@article{Xu:2026:10.1111/nph.70916,
author = {Xu, H and Wang, H and Prentice, IC and Harrison, SP and Rowland, L and Mencuccini, M and Sanchez-Martinez, P and He, P and Wright, IJ and Sitch, S and Li, M and Ye, Q},
doi = {10.1111/nph.70916},
journal = {New Phytologist},
pages = {181--193},
title = {Global variation in the ratio of sapwood to leaf area explained by optimality principles},
url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/nph.70916},
volume = {250},
year = {2026}
}

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TY  - JOUR
AB  - • The sapwood area supporting a given leaf area (Huber value, vH) reflects the coupling between carbon uptake and water transport and loss at a whole-plant level. Geographic variation in vH presumably reflect plant strategic adaptations but the lack of a general explanation for such variation hinders its representation in vegetation models and assessment of how its impact on the global carbon and water cycles. • Here we develop a simple hydraulic trait model to predict optimal vH by matching stem water supply and leaf water loss, and test its performance against two extensive plant hydraulic datasets. • We show that our eco-evolutionary optimality-based model explains nearly 60% of global vH variation in response to light, vapour pressure deficit, temperature and sapwood conductivity. Enhanced hydraulic efficiency with warmer temperatures reduces the sapwood area required to support a given leaf area, whereas high irradiance (supporting increased photosynthetic capacity) and drier air increase it. • This study thus provides a route to modelling variation in functional traits through the coordination of carbon uptake and water transport processes.
AU  - Xu,H
AU  - Wang,H
AU  - Prentice,IC
AU  - Harrison,SP
AU  - Rowland,L
AU  - Mencuccini,M
AU  - Sanchez-Martinez,P
AU  - He,P
AU  - Wright,IJ
AU  - Sitch,S
AU  - Li,M
AU  - Ye,Q
DO  - 10.1111/nph.70916
EP  - 193
PY  - 2026///
SN  - 0028-646X
SP  - 181
TI  - Global variation in the ratio of sapwood to leaf area explained by optimality principles
T2  - New Phytologist
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/nph.70916
UR  - https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.70916?casa_token=4gaC0beKC20AAAAA%3ALe_N1EHON6hsaE8cBfntza3F7pR9CC73yP9drz9PaNq4SE3yOGUBi1-xYSdRHV9VqyIG2xGL6zWyOpBxLg
VL  - 250
ER  - 

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