Deciduous trees lose photosynthetic equipment yet survive?

Hi
I hope someone can help.
I am studying horticulture and this seems like an easy question, but I cant seem to find a simplified answer?
true or false. In dropping all its leaves a deciduous tree loses its photosynthetic equipment, yet it survives the winter.

I guess it stores in its roots enzymes and nutrients to get it through the winter?
Also The co2 levels are higher in spring but why is this?

Any help wpuld be really appreciated.
Thanks

They go dormant in the winter, so their need for nutrients and things are greatly decreased. Sort of like how a bear can stuff itself with food in the fall, then hibernate all winter without eating, and come out in the spring still alive.

the levels of co2 are higher come spring because the tree starts into growth after it's winter dormancy, it shuts down almost everything over winter including it' intake of food and water as it cant use this up because there is no leaves or new growth, once spring arrives and the temp gets warmer, then it starts to require all the nutrients, air, water to help it to produce the leaves, the colour and if a flowering/fruiting one, it needs a huge amount of this for energy to produce, grow and flourish all summer, they will store some moisture at the spring summer months, but wont be able to take in more than it will need for a short time, too much moisture and the trunk would burst open, letting in disease, I wish I could help you further but there must be a better forum to ask all the technical questions that you would need, I would try get in touch with perhaps a Botanical Garden OR city parks department who do sometimes have lots of this info for students who are interested, even children who want to do nature. Good luck, hope all goes well for your studies. WeeNel.

From what I remember, from college hort. classes, we were taught that Carbon Dioxide levels were actually LOWER in the spring than in the fall and winter...at least in the northern hemisphere, because it has more decidious plant life than the southern...due to the number of trees that lose their leavers in the fall, which drop and give off CO2 as they decompose... and are not taking IN as much due to dormancy. Then, in the spring, when they leaf out again, they need the CO2 to support new growth and so the levels drop.

Maybe this has be de-bunked by now...I don't know for sure.

You could be so right about that, we live in UK where we have such a wide variety of trees and foliage that I never gave a thought to your point, but I was generalising about trees that drop their leaves in the Autumn, so now I'm confused, he he he, not hard for me to get confused eh, a good reason to get in touch with tree growers, Botanical Gardens or the parks department, I remember buying my Grand kids a book about the life of a tree in simplified terms so maybe the book store could help or the library. good luck anyway. WeeNel.

Hi, I found your question and answers helpful, as I'm pretty sure I'm doing the same course as you, and the place same workbook at the moment! I'm going to talk about the the tree working all spring and summer to store nutients such as storage of starch, and the fact that photosynthesis stops during the winter months and the tree drops it's leaves to conserve water. I found the CO2 question a bit more tricky, as I could find little simple explanation over the web, but the statement seems to be true, in that carbon is stored in huge carbon sinks in the ocean, which warms during the summer, releasing the carbon, but this is counter-acted by the amount of photosynthsis going on and CO2 stored in plants. By the end of summer, there is slightly less available CO2 in the atmosphere. Hope this helps.
I might ask you for help if I get stuck.....good luck!

I thought the co2 levels were related to how often people drive, or at least some would lead us to believe. So that would seem to make more sense that co2 would rise near the holidays? --or at least how much pollution mankind was emitting at the moment. booming economy, higher co2 levels, recession, less co2 levels. just a thought.

I think you're getting carbon DIoxide mixed up with carbon MONoxide.

maybe so! http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/campaigns/global-warming-and-energy/science/co2-emissions

I don't wish to turn this political, it's just that the link i put on was one that i googled about co2 emissions. I don't agree or disagree in whatever the politics is necessarily of greenpeace just an example of all the co2 emissions that exist. I drive an 18 wheeler and hear all the regulations and changes to diesel fuel and engines etc. to lower the co2 levels. And since nothing ever operates in a vacuum and everything seems to be inter-related to the overall picture and understanding of things. I hope this is helpful, or at least leads to other questions perhaps.
jasper, you did cause me to question whether it might be monoxide as i only half listen to the news and regulatory topics. lol!

so i suppose as kind of a happy note about co2 emissions is that the plants will have plenty of "air" to breathe, and that should help plants be more vigorous and healthy, and for us, well, if the cows and the garden is happy, at least we'll be well fed!lol!