Figure 5
Dynamics of the spatial efficiency of a photosynthetically heterogeneous plant ( W max ). (A) Illustration of the mixture parameters in the case of a bimodal distribution. W max is calculated as the proportional difference in the weighted bimodal separation of each mode (Smax and Smin) to the theoretical optimum of photosynthetic performance (0.87, with standard deviation = 0), such as: W max = (Smax × ρmax - Smin × ρmin) / Smax × ρmax. W max estimates the relative contribution of the most efficient/healthiest leaf regions to the whole-plant photosynthetic performance. (B) Dynamics of W max of plants under well-watered (WW) and severe water deficit (SWD; surviving and perishing) conditions as a function of days after four-leaves stage (beginning of SWD) until bolting. Data are means (± SE) of 13–29 plants.