Carbon reserves rise where Southern Hemisphere conifers outgrow native ranges

In 2026, researchers publishing in Nature reported that conifers planted in the Southern Hemisphere can grow up to four times faster, and with greater drought resistance, than those in their native ranges. The work tied that pairing of speed and stress tolerance to higher concentrations of carbohydrates, such as sugars and starches, that can store energy through stressful seasons. The comparison spanned 192 sites across four continents. The University of Mississippi described the collaboration in an account dated Nov. 1, 2026.

Stephen Brewer, a University of Mississippi ecologist and Ole Miss professor of biology, was among more than two dozen researchers across multiple continents who compared the growth of pines, spruces, firs, cedars and other conifers in native and nonnative habitats. The collaboration also mapped the geographical and biome distribution of conifer species in those ranges.

Northern Hemisphere conifers planted in the Southern Hemisphere showed those elevated carbohydrate reserves. Alex Fajardo, a researcher at the Institute of Ecology and Biodiversity and a professor at the University of Talca, framed the study’s report of skipping the usual growth-stress tolerance trade-off as central to the work, and said the team pursued the physiological path behind it: an increase in carbon reserves needed for drought tolerance.

Brewer called that pairing surprising under ecological theory, which predicts a trade-off between how fast a plant can grow and how well it tolerates stress. With elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide contributing to climate change, he noted a push for afforestation—planting trees where none stood before—as carbon sinks, and said that approach needs trees that grow quickly and do not die in droughts. Rapid growth and resilience could make conifers strong candidates for carbon storage, the University of Mississippi account said, while planting trees outside their home turf may bring drawbacks.

Although the findings position conifers as well suited for afforestation, the researchers cautioned that more factors are involved. Fajardo said the easy answer is to advocate for plantations with nonnative conifers that can both grow quickly and tolerate drought. That neat carbon-sink story would fail if those drawbacks prove decisive—and the record, as presented, leaves that judgment open.