Asset Details
Do you wish to reserve the book?
Trees Enhance Rock Moisture Storage: A Major Pool in Karst Drylands and Crucial During Droughts
Hey, we have placed the reservation for you!
By the way, why not check out events that you can attend while you pick your title.
Oops! Something went wrong.
Looks like we were not able to place the reservation. Kindly try again later.
Are you sure you want to remove the book from the shelf?
Trees Enhance Rock Moisture Storage: A Major Pool in Karst Drylands and Crucial During Droughts
Do you wish to request the book?
Trees Enhance Rock Moisture Storage: A Major Pool in Karst Drylands and Crucial During Droughts
Please be aware that the book you have requested cannot be checked out. If you would like to checkout this book, you can reserve another copy
We have requested the book for you!
Your request is successful and it will be processed during the Library working hours. Please check the status of your request in My Requests.
Oops! Something went wrong.
Looks like we were not able to place your request. Kindly try again later.
Journal Article
Trees Enhance Rock Moisture Storage: A Major Pool in Karst Drylands and Crucial During Droughts
2025
Overview
Woody plant encroachment is a global phenomenon, observed in many of the world's drylands. In those with shallow soils overlying karst geology, rock moisture can be an important source of water for woody plants. This source can be particularly important for trees to maintain basic physiological functions during extended droughts, which are becoming more frequent and intense owing to climate change. However, our understanding of rock moisture dynamics in karst drylands undergoing woody plant encroachment is still limited because of the scarcity of direct measurements. In this study, we evaluated soil and rock moisture dynamics at a semiarid site in the Edwards Plateau region of Texas. Our measurements over the course of 3 years showed that in shallow upslope terrain, the dynamic water storage in bedrock was roughly twice that found in soil, whereas in downslope terrain, the dynamic storage was largely restricted to the soil layer. Most of the bedrock storage gains occurred during the first year, after two major storm events of approximately 95 mm, and that storage was gradually depleted during the following 2 years, when precipitation was below average. Importantly, in upslope terrain we found greater rock water storage under woody plants, suggesting that expanding woody vegetation not only has more access to rock moisture, but may also play a role in enhancing bedrock storage capacity. These interconnected abilities can help woody plants survive extended droughts—a factor crucial for understanding their persistence and proliferation in the shallow soils of the Edwards Plateau and similar karst regions.
