Table 4. Spearman rank correlation between plasticity in functional traits and seedling performance of 10 Ghanaian tree species; their relative growth rate under optimal conditions (20% of full sunlight and nine weeks watering), plasticity in relative growth rate, survival under stress conditions (no watering for 9 weeks in 20% of sunlight), plasticity in stress survival, and mean plasticity across four treatment combinations (5% of sunlight and no watering, 20% of sunlight and no watering, 5% of sunlight and watered, and 20% of sunlight and watered).
| Plasticity trait | RGR (optimum) | Plasticity RGR | Stress survival (%) | Plasticity survival |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leaf mass fraction | 0.19 | 0.13 | 0.74* | -0.71* |
| Stem mass fraction | -0.08 | 0.08 | -0.45 | 0.61 |
| Root mass fraction | 0.81** | 0.54 | 0.32 | -0.32 |
| Specific leaf area | -0.07 | -0.15 | -0.52 | 0.46 |
| Specific stem length | 0.13 | 0.16 | 0.01 | -0.20 |
| Specific root length | 0.59 | -0.14 | 0.56 | -0.43 |
| Leaf area ratio | 0.07 | -0.16 | 0.02 | -0.07 |
| Stem length per unit plant mass | 0.62 | 0.19 | 0.35 | -0.37 |
| Root length per unit plant mass | 0.58 | -0.02 | 0.53 | -0.49 |
| Overall mean plasticity | 0.47 | -0.03 | 0.43 | -0.38 |
n = 10 species. Significance levels of the correlation are shown.
*: p ≤ 0.05
***: P ≤ 0.001
RGR = Relative Growth Rate.