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Arundo donax exhibits rapid growth and requires little nutrient input, making it an ideal perennial biomass crop species. However, this growth is accompanied by high rates of water use, potentially restricting the use of A. donax in rain‐fed marginal lands. Here, we investigated the physiological and morphological responses to drought in two ecotypes of A. donax from contrasting habitats: one from an arid environment in Morocco, and the second from a warm humid sub‐Mediterranean climate in central Italy. Prolonged drought resulted in identical reductions in leaf‐level photosynthesis (P_N) and stomatal conductance (G_s) in the two ecotypes. However, water deficit induced an increase in xylem vessel diameter in the Moroccan plants, improving the movement of water along the stem, but also likely reducing the resistance to embolism. In contrast, the Italian ecotype reduced xylem vessel area, thus increasing …