Alterations in biomass allocation indicate the adaptation of submersed macrophytes to low-light stress

The decline in submersed macrophytes induced by low-light stress is ubiquitous in mid-lower Yangtze lakes in China. However, the trade-offs among the adaptation mechanisms used by submersed macrophytes to low-light stress remain unclear. Moreover, the experimental period used in most previous studies was relatively short, and plant traits were not monitored multiple throughout the experimental period. In the present study, we examined the growth of a representative submersed macrophyte, Potamogeton maackianus, under four light regimes (2.8%, 7.1%, 17.1% and 39.5% of ambient light) over a course of 12 months and assessed various plant traits at monthly and quarterly intervals. The results showed that P. maackianus exhibited a lower leaf moisture content and a higher stem moisture content under decreased light conditions. Under the lowest light regime, P. maackianus had low soluble carbohydrate (SC) contents in the leaves and low starch contents in the stems at all the seasons. P. maackianus showed different allometric relationships among different treatments reflected different adaption strategies resulting from different light environment. P. maackianus exhibited a relatively stable biomass allocation pattern characterized by a continual increase in the stem mass fraction of total biomass under relatively high light transmittance (17.1% and 39.5%), which is a response of P. maackianus that can ensure a high initial biomass in the next spring season. However, under low light transmittance, the biomass allocation pattern fluctuated early in the experiment, and the amplitude increased with decreases in the light transmittance (2.8% and 7.1%). P. maackianus exhibited trade-offs between the stem (plant height) and leaf mass (leaf area) fractions of the total biomass, which help improve the adaptation of the macrophyte to a low-light environment. Our results can be useful for estimating light-use conditions of P. maackianus according to regression relationships between the leaf/stem mass fractions of the total biomass and time.