scholarly journals Do soil features condition seed germination of gypsum plants? An analysis of the effect of different natural soils

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathaniel Heiden ◽  
Andreu Cera ◽  
Sara Palacio
Keyword(s):  
Seed Germination ◽  
Chihuahuan Desert ◽  
Alkaline Soils ◽  
Semiarid Environments ◽  
Soil Features ◽  
Gypsum Content ◽  
Field Soils ◽  
Species Specific ◽  
Helianthemum Squamatum ◽  
Arid And Semiarid

Gypseous soils are widespread across arid and semiarid environments worldwide. They present remarkable challenges to plants and host a unique flora. We aimed to assess up to what point the specificity and distribution of species on gypsum might be driven by species-specific germination responses to soil gypsum availability. We analyzed the germination of six gypsum specialists and four closely related generalist plant species from the Iberian Peninsula and the Chihuahuan Desert in four different field soils with contrasting concentrations of gypsum, pH and soil texture. Plant restriction to gypsum was unrelated to the germinating ability of seeds on different substrates. Irrespective of their affinity for gypsum, most species germinated better on mixed gypsum-calcareous soil and worse in the acidic soil treatment. Our data suggest soil pH was the main soil feature driving seed germination, while the effect of gypsum content was generally not significant. The main exception was the Iberian gypsum specialist Helianthemum squamatum (L.) Dum. Cours., which showed increased germination on gypseous soils and higher germination in response to increased soil gypsum content. Except for this species, our findings indicate alkaline soils favor the germination of most of the species analyzed, irrespectively of their gypsum content.

scholarly journals Effect of NaCl on seed germination in some Centaurium Hill. Species (Gentianaceae)

2007 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 227-231 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Zivkovic ◽  
M. Devic ◽  
B. Filipovic ◽  
Z. Giba ◽  
D. Grubisic
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Salt Tolerance ◽  
Seed Germination ◽  
Gibberellic Acid ◽  
White Light ◽  
The Other ◽  
Distilled Water ◽  
Nacl Concentration ◽  
History Of ◽  
Species Specific

The influence of high NaCl concentrations on seed germination in both light and darkness was examined in the species Centaurium pulchellum, C. erythraea, C. littorale, C. spicatum, and C. tenuiflorum. Salt tolerance was found to depend on the life history of the seeds. To be specific, seeds of all five species failed to complete germination when exposed to continuous white light if kept all the time in the presence of 100-200 mM and greater NaCl concentrations. However, when after two weeks NaCl was rinsed from the seeds and the seeds were left in distilled water under white light for an additional two weeks, all species completed germination to a certain extent. The percent of germination not only depended on NaCl concentration in the prior medium, but was also species specific. Thus, seeds of C. pulchellum, C. erythraea, and C. littorale completed germination well almost irrespective of the salt concentration previously experienced. On the other hand, seeds of C. tenuiflorum completed germination poorly if NaCl concentrations in the prior media were greater than 200 mM. When seeds after washing were transferred to darkness for an additional 14 days, they failed to complete germination if previously imbibed on media containing NaCl concentrations greater than 400 mM. However, the seeds of all species, even if previously imbibed at 800 mM NaCl, could be induced to complete germination in darkness by 1 mM gibberellic acid. .

scholarly journals La paradoja de mezquites (Prosopis spp.): La invasión de especies o potenciadores de la biodiversidad?

2017 ◽  
pp. 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jordan Golubov ◽  
María C. Mandujano ◽  
Luis E. Eguiarte
Keyword(s):  
Keystone Species ◽  
Arid Environments ◽  
Perennial Species ◽  
Semiarid Environments ◽  
High Species Diversity ◽  
Ecological Importance ◽  
Associated Species ◽  
Semi Arid ◽  
Arid And Semiarid

Arid and semi-arid environments contain relatively high species diversity and are subject to intense use, in particular extensive cattle grazing. The expansion of perennial species in to the grasslands decreases the value of the rangeland, because it makes necessary to control the shrubs, which is not practical in the long term. This paper is a bibliographic review of the ecological importance of the Prosopis (mequite) genus. We compiled information on all the species associated to mesquite (ca. 208 genera and 600 species from different taxa) and we propase that it is important to conserve the mesquites in order to maintain the diversity of the other associated species. We also stress the importance of mesquite as a keystone species in the balance of nitrogen and carbon in the arid and semiarid environments soils. We conclude that the conservation of the mesquites is very relevant, in particular in areas where people want to remove them and convert the environment to grasslands.

Seed germination of Southern Chihuahuan Desert plants in response to elevated temperatures

2011 ◽  
Vol 75 (10) ◽  
pp. 978-980 ◽  
Author(s):  
R.M. Pérez-Sánchez ◽  
E. Jurado ◽  
L. Chapa-Vargas ◽  
J. Flores
Keyword(s):  
Seed Germination ◽  
Elevated Temperatures ◽  
Chihuahuan Desert ◽  
Desert Plants

scholarly journals Classification methods for detecting and evaluating changes in desertification-related features in arid and semiarid environments

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriela-Mihaela Afrasinei ◽  
Maria Teresa Melis ◽  
Cristina Buttau ◽  
Claudio Arras ◽  
Marco Pistis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Classification Methods ◽  
Semiarid Environments ◽  
Arid And Semiarid

Sensitivity of riparian ecosystems in arid and semiarid environments to moisture pulses

2006 ◽  
Vol 20 (15) ◽  
pp. 3191-3205 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. G. Williams ◽  
R. L. Scott ◽  
T. E. Huxman ◽  
D. C. Goodrich ◽  
G. Lin
Keyword(s):  
Riparian Ecosystems ◽  
Semiarid Environments ◽  
Arid And Semiarid

The stream reach concept and the macro-scale study of riverine agriculture in arid and semiarid environments

2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 724-761 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fred L. Nials ◽  
David A. Gregory ◽  
J. Brett Hill
Keyword(s):  
Semiarid Environments ◽  
Macro Scale ◽  
Arid And Semiarid

scholarly journals Allelopathy in two species of Chenopodium -inhibition of germination and seedling growth of certain weeds

2014 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 257-270 ◽  
Author(s):  
Subhash C. Datta ◽  
Kaasi N. Ghosh
Keyword(s):  
Seed Germination ◽  
Oxalic Acid ◽  
Seedling Growth ◽  
The Other ◽  
Allelopathic Effect ◽  
Chenopodium Ambrosioides ◽  
Hypocotyl Growth ◽  
Test Species ◽  
Plant Parts ◽  
Field Soils

The activity of washed leaf and inflorescence material of <em>Chenopodium ambrosioides</em> and <em>C. murale</em>, decaying leaves and inflorescences, and field soils collected beneath <em>Chenopodium</em> plants were examined in terms of the inhibition of seed germination and seedling growth of five weeds, viz. <em>Abutilon indicum, Cassia sophera</em> var. <em>purpurea, C. tora, Evolvulus numularius</em> and <em>Tephrosia hamiltonii</em>. The allelopathic pattern varied in each of the two test species and this depended on the type of test matter. However, the germination as well as the root and hypocotyl growth of <em>A. indicum</em> and <em>E. nummularius</em> were more hampered by phytotoxins or inhibitors from <em>Chenopodium</em> than were the other weeds. Since the leaf and inflorescence of Chenopodium formed the source of inhibitors, the respective plant-parts from the two species were chemically analysed and the presence of three terpenes (p-cymene, ascaridole and aritazone) from <em>C. ambrosioides</em> and an organic acid (oxalic acid) from <em>C. murale</em> were implicated in the allelopathic effect.

scholarly journals Factors affecting germination and establishment success of an endemic cactus of the Chihuahuan Desert

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eder Ortiz-Martínez ◽  
Jordan Golubov ◽  
María C. Mandujano ◽  
Gabriel Arroyo-Cosultchi
Keyword(s):  
Seed Germination ◽  
Seed Bank ◽  
Developmental Stages ◽  
Seedling Recruitment ◽  
Chihuahuan Desert ◽  
Exclusion Experiment ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Nurse Plants ◽  
Predator Exclusion ◽  
Storage Times

AbstractSeed and seedling are the most critical stages of cacti life cycle. From the thousands of seeds produced in a reproductive season, only a small fraction gets to germinate, the rest gets lost due to predation or gets potentially buried in the seed bank. These early stages depend on facilitation by nurse plants for germination and seedling recruitment. In this paper, we aim to describe some aspects of the recruitment of Cephalocereus polylophus. We tested the viability of seeds with different storage times as an indicator of their potential to form a short-term seed bank. Through the analysis of seed germination and seedlings survival under the canopy of two nurse plant species and open areas, we aimed to assess the importance of facilitation for recruitment. A predator exclusion experiment was used to evaluate the intensity of herbivory on seeds and seedlings of different developmental stages. Seeds had germination rates above 90%, even after two years of storage. Seed germination was only registered under one of the two nurses. After two years, up to 19% of the seedlings planted under both nurse plants survived. Protection against herbivores increased survival chances from 30 to 52 % for all age-group seedlings. Considering that facilitation is a crucial interaction for C. polylophus, future conservation programs should include the protection of plant communities.

scholarly journals The influence of soil water potential on the growth and survival of alfalfa rhizobia in the soil

2014 ◽  
Vol 66 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-59
Author(s):  
Mohammad Athar ◽  
Douglas A. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Water Potential ◽  
Water Level ◽  
Rhizobium Meliloti ◽  
Soil Water Potential ◽  
Sterile Soil ◽  
Growth And Survival ◽  
Semiarid Environments ◽  
Cell Counts ◽  
Main Effects ◽  
Arid And Semiarid

Growth and survival of alfalfa rhizobia (<em>Rhizobium meliloti</em> Dang.) from Pakistan and Nepal were studied in vials filled with sterile soil maintained at -0.03, -1.0, and -1.5 MPa. The main effects of water level, rhizobial strains and length of exposure to desiccation and their interactions showed a highly significant (P S 0.001) effect on the number of rhizobia g<sup>-1</sup> of soil. Growth and survival of rhizobia were highest in soil at -0.03 MPa followed by soil at -1.0 and -1.5 MPa. Highest cell counts were observed for strain UL 136 followed by strain UL 222 and the lowest was for strain UL 61. Two rhizobial strains (UL 136 and UL 222) were most tolerant to desiccation and showed highest growth and survival under low water potential. These two strains probably could be used as inoculants for alfalfa production under arid and semiarid environments.

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