Respiration rates of apple trees, estimated by CO2‐efflux measurements

Measurements of the efflux of CO2 from 5–6 year old container grown apple trees, in the dark at a range of temperatures (T), indicated that respiration rate (R) can be described by the equation R = SL e kT. The temperature coefficient k, was the same at all times of the year and for all components of the trees, but the values of a varied. At the same temperature respiration rates were low when the trees were dormant, rose rapidly to a peak in spring (before full bloom) and then declined steadily through the season. When respiration was expressed as a flux density, rates for different components of the tree were usually similar. Differences were sometimes statistically significant but no clear pattern emerged. The results obtained are similar to those published for other plants and the equation can be used in the calculation of the carbon balance of apple trees.