GERMINATION RESPONSE OF FORAGE GRASSES TO CONSTANT AND ALTERNATING TEMPERATURES

Daily germination counts were made on 11 forage grass species germinated at four constant and four alternating regimes for 20 days. The 2C/12h/13C/12h regime had a drastic effect on mean total germination. Altai wild ryegrass (Elymus angustus Trin.), Russian wild ryegrass (E. junceus Fisch.), reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.), and bromegrass (Bromus inermis Leyss.) reacted strongly to this regime. The alternating temperature regimes generally initiated germination more rapidly than the comparable constant regimes; however, after day 6 the comparable alternating and constant regimes had similar rates of germination. The rates of germination differed between some species with intermediate wheatgrass (Agropyron intermedium (Host.) Beauv.) germinating the most rapidly and Altai wild ryegrass the most slowly. The data indicate that low alternating seedbed temperatures can reduce total germination to an unsatisfactory level for good stand establishment. The low temperature of seedbeds can also delay germination rate so that the earlier plantings do not emerge as soon as later plantings in warmer soil.

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Transcriptome characterization and differentially expressed genes under flooding and drought stress in the biomass grasses Phalaris arundinacea and Dactylis glomerata

Annals of Botany ◽

10.1093/aob/mcz074 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 124 (4) ◽

pp. 717-730 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Manfred Klaas ◽

Niina Haiminen ◽

Jim Grant ◽

Paul Cormican ◽

John Finnan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gene Expression ◽

Drought Stress ◽

Differential Gene Expression ◽

Dactylis Glomerata ◽

Phalaris Arundinacea ◽

Differentially Expressed ◽

Grass Species ◽

Reed Canary Grass ◽

Canary Grass ◽

Differential Gene

Abstract Background and Aims Perennial grasses are a global resource as forage, and for alternative uses in bioenergy and as raw materials for the processing industry. Marginal lands can be valuable for perennial biomass grass production, if perennial biomass grasses can cope with adverse abiotic environmental stresses such as drought and waterlogging. Methods In this study, two perennial grass species, reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea) and cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata) were subjected to drought and waterlogging stress to study their responses for insights to improving environmental stress tolerance. Physiological responses were recorded, reference transcriptomes established and differential gene expression investigated between control and stress conditions. We applied a robust non-parametric method, RoDEO, based on rank ordering of transcripts to investigate differential gene expression. Furthermore, we extended and validated vRoDEO for comparing samples with varying sequencing depths. Key Results This allowed us to identify expressed genes under drought and waterlogging whilst using only a limited number of RNA sequencing experiments. Validating the methodology, several differentially expressed candidate genes involved in the stage 3 step-wise scheme in detoxification and degradation of xenobiotics were recovered, while several novel stress-related genes classified as of unknown function were discovered. Conclusions Reed canary grass is a species coping particularly well with flooding conditions, but this study adds novel information on how its transcriptome reacts under drought stress. We built extensive transcriptomes for the two investigated C3 species cocksfoot and reed canary grass under both extremes of water stress to provide a clear comparison amongst the two species to broaden our horizon for comparative studies, but further confirmation of the data would be ideal to obtain a more detailed picture.

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NUTRITIONAL QUALITY OF FORAGE CROPS ADAPTED TO SOUTHWESTERN SASKATCHEWAN AS DETERMINED BY THEIR DIGESTIBILITY AND DRY MATTER INTAKE WHEN FED TO SHEEP

Canadian Journal of Plant Science ◽

10.4141/cjps59-058 ◽

1959 ◽

Vol 39 (4) ◽

pp. 417-430 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

J. E. Troelsen ◽

J. B. Campbell

Keyword(s):

Nutrient Intake ◽

Crude Protein ◽

Dry Matter ◽

Reed Canary Grass ◽

Forage Crops ◽

Protein Nitrogen ◽

Intermediate Wheatgrass ◽

Tall Wheatgrass ◽

Nitrogen Free Extract ◽

Canary Grass

Hays from stands top-dressed with 150 pounds of ammonium nitrate (33.5 per cent nitrogen) per acre and unfertilized stands of crested wheat-grass, Agropyron cristatum (L.) Gaertn., intermediate wheatgrass, A. intermedium (Host.) Beauv., streambank wheatgrass, A. riparium Scribn. and Smith, and Russian wild ryegrass, Elymus junceus Fisch., as well as hay from unfertilized stands of tall wheatgrass, A. elongatum (Host.) B. P., reed canary grass, Phalaris arundinacea L., and Ladak alfalfa, Medicago media Pers., were fed to 70-pound wethers in digestion stalls in a randomized incomplete-block experiment.Chemical analyses of the hays indicated differences in percentage organic matter, crude protein, and nitrogen-free extract, while feed-feces ratios showed differences in the percentage digestibility of crude protein, nitrogen-free extract, and crude fibre. Despite these results no differences were established in nutritive values as estimated by digestible dry matter, total digestible nutrients, digestible energy or starch equivalents.Calculations demonstrated that the nutrient intake of crested wheatgrass, streambank wheatgrass, Russian wild ryegrass, and Ladak alfalfa were sufficient to provide at least a maintenance ration, but that the voluntary nutrient intake of intermediate wheatgrass, tall wheatgrass, and reed canary grass did not do so.Top-dressing did not increase the digestibility nor the apparent palatability of any feed; apparently consumption was determined by species characteristics rather than fertilizer treatment.

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THE EFFECT OF FOURTEEN ROOT EXTRACTS UPON GERMINATION AND SEEDLING LENGTH OF FIFTEEN PLANT SPECIES

Canadian Journal of Plant Science ◽

10.4141/cjps62-045 ◽

1962 ◽

Vol 42 (2) ◽

pp. 308-313 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

T. Lawrence ◽

M. R. Kilcher

Keyword(s):

Wild Barley ◽

Root Extract ◽

Reed Canary Grass ◽

Sweet Clover ◽

Inhibitory Effects ◽

Couch Grass ◽

Crested Wheatgrass ◽

Intermediate Wheatgrass ◽

Seedling Length ◽

Canary Grass

Root extract solutions of crested wheatgrass, Russian wild ryegrass, intermediate wheatgrass, couch grass, bromegrass, Altai wild ryegrass, wild barley, poverty weed, alfalfa, sweet clover, reed canary grass, timothy, sorghum grass, and dandelion on quartz sand were used as germinating and growing media for seeds of 12 of these species as well as for wheat, oats, and barley.Root extracts from Russian wild ryegrass, crested wheatgrass, intermediate wheatgrass, brome, timothy, reed canary, and wild barley had little or no effect on the germination of the seed of most species. Those from Russian wild ryegrass and brome had little effect on seedling length. On the other hand, extracts made from the roots of alfalfa, dandelion, sorghum grass, sweet clover, poverty weed, and couch grass showed the greatest inhibitory effects on both the germination and seedling growth.

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Seed production characters and germination performance of reed canary grass in Finland

Agricultural and Food Science ◽

10.23986/afsci.5665 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 9 (3) ◽

pp. 239-251 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

M. SAHRAMAA ◽

L. HÖMMÖ

Keyword(s):

Seed Germination ◽

Seed Production ◽

Seed Yield ◽

Seed Weight ◽

Storage Temperature ◽

Germination Rate ◽

Reed Canary Grass ◽

Harvest Time ◽

Canary Grass ◽

Thousand Seed Weight

Production of reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) seed in Finland may be of interest in the near future. Seed production characters of cultivars Palaton and Venture were studied between 1995 and 1998 at Jokioinen. Effects of harvest time on seed yield, thousand seed weight and seed germination were evaluated for 'Palaton'. Seed yield varied from 2 to 432 kg ha-1, being only 100 kg ha-1 on average. In the years of highest seed yields the optimum harvest time was 15 days after complete anthesis. At that time high seed yield was associated with a low proportion of shattered seeds and high thousand seed weight and good seed germination. In an additional experiment, the effect of storage temperature and storage time on seed germination were investigated for 'Venture'. Storage temperature had no significant influence on final germination, but warmer storage significantly speeded up germination rate as recorded after 7 days of germination. After 7 days the percentage of germinated seeds was also significantly higher for seeds stored for >10 months than with seeds stored for

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Genetic composition and morphological variation among populations of the invasive grass, Phalaris arundinacea

Canadian Journal of Botany ◽

10.1139/b02-063 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 80 (7) ◽

pp. 779-785 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Amy LS Gifford ◽

Jean-Baptiste Ferdy ◽

Jane Molofsky

Keyword(s):

Genetic Variance ◽

Phalaris Arundinacea ◽

Cultivated Plants ◽

Grass Species ◽

Reed Canary Grass ◽

Genetic Composition ◽

Invasive Grass ◽

Forage Crop ◽

Canary Grass ◽

Genetic Bottlenecks

Species that become invasive after being introduced into a new range often experience genetic bottlenecks and strong selection to adapt to their new environment. We looked for evidence of such processes in unmanaged populations of invasive reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.). This grass species is planted as a forage crop in North America but has also invaded wetland areas. We compared isozyme variation in pasture and wetland populations of this species. We did not find any indication of a genetic bottleneck: wetland populations comprised as much diversity as pasture populations and both had as much diversity as the two cultivated varieties of reed canary grass that we sampled. We also cultivated plants from wetland and pasture populations and estimated genetic variance for several morphological traits. We did not find any significant differentiation to suggest differential selection between populations from the two habitats. In fact, we found the highest amount of genetic diversity, both isozymic and quantitative, within populations. We also found strong evidence that reed canary grass reproduces primarily clonally. The implications of these observations in terms of the origin of invasive populations of reed canary grass are discussed.Key words: invasive species, Phalaris arundinacea, reed canary grass.

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UPTAKE OF RADIOISOTOPES BY VEGETATION GROWING ON URANIUM TAILINGS

Canadian Journal of Soil Science ◽

10.4141/cjss77-047 ◽

1977 ◽

Vol 57 (4) ◽

pp. 417-424 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

D. MOFFETT ◽

M. TELLIER

Keyword(s):

Plant Tissue ◽

Phalaris Arundinacea ◽

Grass Species ◽

Festuca Rubra ◽

Reed Canary Grass ◽

Red Fescue ◽

Canary Grass ◽

Lead 210 ◽

Uranium Tailings ◽

Field Plots

An investigation was carried out on the uptake of several long-lived radioisotopes by grasses growing on uranium tailings. Field plots of creeping red fescue (Festuca rubra L.), reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.), redtop (Agrostis alba L.) and climax timothy (Phleum pratensis L.) which have been growing for 4 yr were sampled in this study. The tailings and the plant tissue were analyzed for uranium, thorium, radium-226, lead-210 and polonium-210. Sedimentation within the tailings area gave two zones: one of sands and one of slimes. The slimes contained significantly more radium-226, lead-210 and polonium-210 than the sands. There was no difference in uptake behavior by grasses growing in the sands and those growing in the slimes. Creeping red fescue (Festuca rubra L.) showed an anomalous uptake of lead-210, but other than this, all four grass species showed similar uptake behavior. Only uranium and radium-226 were significantly higher in the grasses from the tailings than the control.

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Germination of mucilaginous seeds of Plantago albicans (Plantaginaceae): effects of temperature, light, pre-sowing treatments, osmotic stress and salinity

Australian Journal of Botany ◽

10.1071/bt14034 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 62 (2) ◽

pp. 141 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

L. Veiga-Barbosa ◽

F. Pérez-García

Keyword(s):

Osmotic Stress ◽

Germination Rate ◽

Germination Percentage ◽

Herbaceous Plant ◽

Distilled Water ◽

Perennial Herbaceous Plant ◽

Temperature Regimes ◽

Mean Germination Time ◽

Effects Of Temperature ◽

Alternating Temperature

Plantago albicans L. (Plantaginaceae) is a perennial herbaceous plant widely distributed throughout the Mediterranean region. The germination requirements (under different controlled conditions of light and temperature, and after two pre-sowing treatments) and tolerance to osmotic stress (polyethylene glycol, PEG 6000) and salinity (NaCl) of P. albicans seeds were studied. Seeds were germinated under constant temperatures (5°C, 10°C, 15°C, 20°C, 25°C and 30°C) and alternating temperature regimes of 20/10°C and 25/15°C with a 16 h/8 h light/dark photoperiod. The outer layer of seeds become mucilaginous when wetted and the presence of mucilage on seeds significantly increased germination percentages at all temperatures tested. P. albicans seeds were non-dormant and temperature significantly affected germination percentages and germination rate (germination velocity expressed as mean germination time, MGT). The final germination percentages ranged from 34% to 89% for intact seeds (seeds with mucilage) and from 9% to 62% for demucilaged seeds, depending on the temperature. Temperatures of 25°C and 25/15°C gave the highest germination percentages. Light did not affect seed germination at both temperature regimes assayed (25°C and 25/15°C). Germination percentages of seeds soaked for 24 h in distilled water or in a gibberellic acid (GA3) solution were not significantly higher than that of untreated seeds. In general, both the final germination percentage and germination rate were reduced by increasing salinity and PEG concentration. Seeds germinated in up to 35% PEG and 300 mmol·L–1 NaCl. Recovery of germination for seeds when transferred to distilled water after being in PEG or salinity treatments for 15 days was quite high, suggesting that P. albicans seeds are tolerant to osmotic and salt stresses.

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