Water Uptake, Diameter Change, and Nonlinear Diffusion in Tree Stems

A diffusion model for phloem swelling and contraction is proposed in which the rate of water movement changes markedly with moisture content. Good agreement between the actual swelling of the phloem of cotton stems and that predicted by the model was obtained. This result implies that water moves more readily into the phloem when it becomes wetter. This model also explains the lag of shrinkage of pine stems behind the water potential of the foliage and predicts that the lag is related to the thickness of the phloem.