Editorial: Combined Abiotic Interactions in Woody Plants

Combined abiotic stress interactions, such as the simultaneous occurrence of drought and high temperatures, significantly impact plants’ physiology, growth, and survival. The occurrence of multiple stressors often exacerbates the effects of each other, leading to compounded challenges for plants (Zandalinas and Mittler, 2022). Additionally, the energy expenditure required to combat multiple stresses can deplete the plant’s reserves, hindering its growth and reproductive capabilities (Maurya et al.). Over time, such compounded stresses can lead to reduced ecosystem productivity, altered species composition, and potentially increased plant mortality rates. Understanding stress interaction effects is essential due to the complexity of climate change, which is increasing both the frequency and severity of droughts and heatwaves across the globe (Tripathy et al., 2023). The impact of these two stressors can have devastating effects on sites already affected by other abiotic stressors such as higher soil salinity, heavy metals or other ecotoxic chemicals. Moreover, the land use legacy can also amplify negative impact on trees, especially in urban ecosystems (Cui et al.). The articles in this Research Topics explored the effects of drought and heat stress, light availability and heavy metal stress on the growth and physiology of trees.