Resource investments in reproductive growth proportionately limit investments in whole-tree vegetative growth in young olive trees with varying crop loads

It has long been debated whether tree growth is source limited, or whether photosynthesis is adjusted to the actual sink demand, directly regulated by internal and environmental factors. Many studies support both possibilities, but no studies have provided quantitative data at the whole-tree level, across different cultivars and fruit load treatments. This study investigated the effect of different levels of reproductive growth on whole-tree biomass growth across two olive cultivars with different growth rates (i.e., Arbequina, slow-growing and Frantoio, fast-growing), over 2 years. Young trees of both cultivars were completely deflowered either in 2014, 2015, both years or never, providing a range of levels of cumulated reproductive growth over the 2 years. Total vegetative dry matter growth over the 2 years was assessed by destructive sampling (whole tree). Vegetative growth increased significantly less in fruiting trees, however, the total of vegetative and reproductive growth did not differ significantly for any treatment or cultivar. Vegetative growth over the 2 years was closely (R2 = 0.89) and inversely related to reproductive growth across all treatments and cultivars. When using data from 2015 only, the regression improved further (i.e., R2 = 0.99). When biomass was converted into grams of glucose equivalents, based on the chemical composition of the different parts, the results indicated that for every gram of glucose equivalent invested in reproductive growth, vegetative growth was reduced by 0.73–0.78 g of glucose equivalent. This indicates that competition for resources played a major role in determining tree growth, but also that photosynthesis was probably also enhanced at increasing fruit load (or downregulated at decreasing fruit load). The leaf area per unit of trunk cross sectional area increased with deflowering (i.e., decreased with reproductive growth), suggesting that water relations might have limited photosynthesis in deflowered plants, which had much greater canopies. Net assimilation rate (NAR) increased with reproductive growth and decreased with plant size. Net assimilation rate was also negatively correlated with the leaf area per unit of trunk cross sectional area, suggesting that water relations might have contributed to decreasing NAR at increasing plant size.