TY  - JOUR
AU  - Haleem, Abdul
AU  - Gul, Hamza
AU  - Rahman, Sajjad Ur
AU  - Wahab, Atta Ul
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/07/05
TI  - Physiological and Morphological Divergence between Wild Olive (Olea ferruginea) and Grafted Commercial Cultivars: Implications for Drought Resilience and Ecosystem Services in Pakistan
JO  - Plant Innovation Journal
T2  - Plant Innovation Journal
JF  - Plant Innovation Journal
VL  - 1
IS  - 2
SP  - 72
EP  - 87
DO  - 10.62762/PIJ.2026.658461
UR  - https://www.icck.org/article/abs/PIJ.2026.658461
KW  - Olea ferruginea
KW  - drought tolerance
KW  - water-use efficiency
KW  - stomatal morphology
KW  - leaf water potential
KW  - soil moisture
KW  - ecosystem services
KW  - grafting physiology
KW  - climate resilience
KW  - Pakistan
KW  - agroforestry
AB  - Pakistan's `50 Million Olive Tree Tsunami' targets ~10 million acres of olive expansion by grafting commercial cultivars onto wild Olea ferruginea rootstocks, but physiological/ecological impacts are unknown. This 2023--2025 field study sampled 450 trees across three Balochistan sites (wild: \( n = 150 \); Arbequina, Coratina, Picual: \( n = 100 \) each) with \( n = 1{,}240 \) leaf measurements. Wild leaves were 56--63% smaller (\( 9.8 \) vs. \( 22.4 \)--\( 26.8 \, \text{cm}^2 \); \( P < 0.001 \); \( \eta^2 = 0.926 \)), but had 83--118% higher stomatal density (\( 285 \) vs. \( 131 \)--\( 156 \, \text{mm}^{-2} \); \( \eta^2 = 0.934 \)) and 36--40% smaller stomata. This strategy reduced transpiration 56--64% (\( 2.1 \) vs. \( 4.8 \)--\( 5.8 \, \text{mmol H}_2\text{O·m}^{-2}\text{·s}^{-1} \)) and improved WUE 51--69% (\( 5.9 \) vs. \( 3.5 \)--\( 3.9 \, \mu\text{mol CO}_2\,\text{mmol}^{-1}\,\text{H}_2\text{O} \); \( \eta^2 = 0.918 \)); leaf area explained 85% of WUE variance (\( r = -0.92 \), \( P < 0.001 \)). Pressure-bomb data showed wild olives had less negative \( \Psi_{pd} \) (\( -0.41 \) vs. \( -0.76 \) to \( -0.91 \, \text{MPa} \); \( \eta^2 = 0.959 \)) and midday \( \Psi_{leaf} \) (\( -1.48 \) vs. \( -2.34 \) to \( -2.78 \, \text{MPa} \)), with TDR soil VWC 52--72% higher under wild canopies in August. Rainfed projections indicate grafted systems exhaust soil moisture 18--22 days earlier than wild stands. Wild ecosystems supported 2.6× greater bird richness (87 vs. 34; Mayfield nesting: \( 68.4 \pm 3.1% \) vs. \( 24.7 \pm 4.2% \)) and better livestock retention (94% vs. 68%; mortality: 2% vs. 10%). ANOVA confirmed significant effects for all 12 variables (\( P < 0.001 \); \( \eta^2 = 0.207 \)--\( 0.983 \)). Grafting decouples below-ground adaptation from above-ground demand, urging integrated conservation with sustainable irrigation.
SN  - 3142-7596
PB  - Institute of Central Computation and Knowledge
LA  - English
ER  - 

@article{Haleem2026Physiologi,
  author = {Abdul Haleem and Hamza Gul and Sajjad Ur Rahman and Atta Ul Wahab},
  title = {Physiological and Morphological Divergence between Wild Olive (Olea ferruginea) and Grafted Commercial Cultivars: Implications for Drought Resilience and Ecosystem Services in Pakistan},
  journal = {Plant Innovation Journal},
  year = {2026},
  volume = {1},
  number = {2},
  pages = {72-87},
  doi = {10.62762/PIJ.2026.658461},
  url = {https://www.icck.org/article/abs/PIJ.2026.658461},
  abstract = {Pakistan's `50 Million Olive Tree Tsunami' targets ~10 million acres of olive expansion by grafting commercial cultivars onto wild Olea ferruginea rootstocks, but physiological/ecological impacts are unknown. This 2023--2025 field study sampled 450 trees across three Balochistan sites (wild: \( n = 150 \); Arbequina, Coratina, Picual: \( n = 100 \) each) with \( n = 1{,}240 \) leaf measurements. Wild leaves were 56--63\% smaller (\( 9.8 \) vs. \( 22.4 \)--\( 26.8 \, \text{cm}^2 \); \( P < 0.001 \); \( \eta^2 = 0.926 \)), but had 83--118\% higher stomatal density (\( 285 \) vs. \( 131 \)--\( 156 \, \text{mm}^{-2} \); \( \eta^2 = 0.934 \)) and 36--40\% smaller stomata. This strategy reduced transpiration 56--64\% (\( 2.1 \) vs. \( 4.8 \)--\( 5.8 \, \text{mmol H}\_2\text{O·m}^{-2}\text{·s}^{-1} \)) and improved WUE 51--69\% (\( 5.9 \) vs. \( 3.5 \)--\( 3.9 \, \mu\text{mol CO}\_2\,\text{mmol}^{-1}\,\text{H}\_2\text{O} \); \( \eta^2 = 0.918 \)); leaf area explained 85\% of WUE variance (\( r = -0.92 \), \( P < 0.001 \)). Pressure-bomb data showed wild olives had less negative \( \Psi\_{pd} \) (\( -0.41 \) vs. \( -0.76 \) to \( -0.91 \, \text{MPa} \); \( \eta^2 = 0.959 \)) and midday \( \Psi\_{leaf} \) (\( -1.48 \) vs. \( -2.34 \) to \( -2.78 \, \text{MPa} \)), with TDR soil VWC 52--72\% higher under wild canopies in August. Rainfed projections indicate grafted systems exhaust soil moisture 18--22 days earlier than wild stands. Wild ecosystems supported 2.6× greater bird richness (87 vs. 34; Mayfield nesting: \( 68.4 \pm 3.1\% \) vs. \( 24.7 \pm 4.2\% \)) and better livestock retention (94\% vs. 68\%; mortality: 2\% vs. 10\%). ANOVA confirmed significant effects for all 12 variables (\( P < 0.001 \); \( \eta^2 = 0.207 \)--\( 0.983 \)). Grafting decouples below-ground adaptation from above-ground demand, urging integrated conservation with sustainable irrigation.},
  keywords = {Olea ferruginea, drought tolerance, water-use efficiency, stomatal morphology, leaf water potential, soil moisture, ecosystem services, grafting physiology, climate resilience, Pakistan, agroforestry},
  issn = {3142-7596},
  publisher = {Institute of Central Computation and Knowledge}
}