Table II.

Asc levels, given per dry wt and as a percentage of that found in leaves, and ratio of dehydroascorbate (DHA) to total Asc (DHA/Asc_t) in chloroplasts of rosemary, sage and lemon balm at the onset of the experiment (well-watered [WW] plants) and after exposure to water deficit in the field (WS plants)

	Rosemary		Sage		Lemon Balm
	WW	WS	WW	WS	WW	WS
Asc (μmol g−1 dry wt)	0.21 ± 0.02	0.27 ± 0.01a	0.20 ± 0.01	0.47 ± 0.02a	2.46 ± 0.05	13.58 ± 0.42a
Asc (%)	1.29	2.61	1.43	7.13	1.82	33.60
DHA/Asct (mol mol−1)	0.92 ± 0.03	0.91 ± 0.02	0.95 ± 0.02	0.96 ± 0.03	0.72 ± 0.03	0.86 ± 0.04a

Data correspond to the mean ± se of four measurements made on chloroplasts isolated from leaves collected at predawn (1 h before sunrise). Chloroplasts were obtained from leaves as described in “Materials and Methods.” Asc, Reduced Asc in chloroplasts given per unit of dry wt of chloroplast and as a percentage of that found in leaves. This percentage was calculated as Asc (%) = 100 × A/B, where A is the Asc measured in chloroplasts and B is that found in leaves; both A and B are given as nmol Asc mol⁻¹ Chl.

^aStatistical difference (t test, P ≤ 0.05) between WS and WW plants.