Plasticity: Environmental Contribution (E)
The proportion of NSC that trees put into starch vs. sugar is a plastic trait by both metrics of plasticity, RDPI and S (Table 2, RDPIproportion = 0.50, Sproportion = 0.75). This plastic variation is largely attributable to the effect of garden, which explains 97% of total plasticity (equation 7; Table 2, Figure 3). On average, Corvallis has higher sugar concentrations and lower starch concentrations, while Clatskanie has higher starch concentrations and lower sugar concentrations (Figures 3B & S2, Table 1). This pattern is reflected in the proportion of NSC stores in starch, where the proportion of starch to total stores in Corvallis is 50% more than in Clatskanie (Figure 3B). Thus, there is a clear difference in the degree to which total stores are partitioned between sugar and starch within each garden.
In contrast, total NSC stores are only considered environmentally plastic by one metric (RDPITNC = 0.03, STNC = 0.43). Only 54% of the plastic variation (S ) measured is explained by environment, while the rest is attributed to GxE effects. Thus, we find high genetic variation in TNC across the gardens, but low plasticity and almost no difference between the two gardens in average total NSC concentrations (Δgarden = 0.5 mg•g-1, Table 1, Figure 3A).