Divergent water use efficiency trends among eastern North American temperate tree species.

In contrast, broadleaf deciduous iWUE increased linearly throughout the study period with no detectable breakpoint (standardized slope = 0.037 ± 0.004, p < 0.0001; Figure S2 ), suggesting that the linear model is more appropriate for broadleaf deciduous species. Notably, evergreen iWUE increased more than twice as fast as broadleaf deciduous iWUE prior to 2002 ( p < 0.0001), but that pattern reversed in more recent decades—after 2002, there was a negative trend in evergreen iWUE, while the rate of iWUE increase in broadleaf deciduous species remained unchanged (Figs. 3 and 4 ).

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