Spatio-temporal differences in leaf physiology are associated with fire, not drought, in a clonally integrated shrub

In highly disturbed environments, clonality facilitates plant survival via resprouting after disturbance, resource sharing among interconnected stems and vegetative reproduction. These traits likely contribute to the encroachment of deep-rooted clonal shrubs in tallgrass prairie. Clonal shrubs have access to deep soil water and are typically thought of as relatively insensitive to environmental variability. However, how leaf physiological traits...