Population ecology of Cirsium pitcheri on Lake Huron sand dunes. III. Mechanisms of seed dormancy

1998 ◽  
Vol 76 (4) ◽  
pp. 575-586 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hua Chen ◽  
M A Maun

Growth chamber studies were conducted to examine seed dormancy and germination requirements of Pitcher's thistle (Cirsium pitcheri (Torr. ex Eaton) Torr. & Gray), a threatened species endemic to the shoreline sand dunes of the Great Lakes. We determined the effects of different environmental regimes on breaking seed dormancy of this monocarpic perennial. The data showed that seeds of C. pitcheri possessed innate dormancy that was caused by a hard seed coat as well as inhibitory compounds within the seed. Seed germination requirements were very specific. Exposure of seeds to different temperatures and photoperiods in a growth chamber had little effect on breaking seed dormancy unless the seeds had been pretreated. Pretreatment of seeds by cold stratification and its duration, scarification by sand paper or sulphuric acid, and application of gibberellic acid were also not very effective for breaking dormancy of C. pitcheri. High germination was obtained only when seeds were pretreated either by surgically removing the seed coat or by nicking the seed on the radicle or cotyledonary end. After this pretreatment seeds germinated over a temperature range of 15-30°C, but the highest proportion of seeds germinated when temperatures were above 20°C. Under natural conditions, germination of C. pitcheri seeds occurs in spring after they have overwintered and experienced the pretreatment of stratification and scarification through freezing and thawing of the substrate. Aqueous extract of C. pitcheri seeds had a strong inhibitory effect on germination of Oenothera biennis L. seeds indicating an allelopathic chemical in the seed. There was no relationship between the seed size of C. pitcheri and the germinability of seeds.Key words: Cirsium pitcheri, threatened species, seed dormancy, seed germination, scarification, stratification, nicking of seeds.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qing Jin ◽  
Jinfeng Tong ◽  
Wenwu Zhang ◽  
Long Xia ◽  
Xiaoyun Zhu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: The seeds of Polygonatum cyrtonema Hua have dormancy phenomenon. Previous studies have shown that sand storage factors effects of the seed dormancy of P. cyrtonema Hua seeds and enhance the seed germination process. Subsequently, metabolic activities and different changes during the sand storage and germination process of P. cyrtonema Hua seed has not been heavily researched.Results: In this study the changes in the metabolites of P. cyrtonema Hua seeds at different sand storage times and germination stages, we used untargeted metabolomics to determine them. Most of the sugar and glycoside contents in seed coat increased after 30 d on the other hand, in peeled seeds increased at 30 d and decreased at 60 d after sand storage treatment. The content of proline and benzoic acid decreased in the seed coat after sand storage. PCA, OPLS-DA and HCA showed that the contents of most metabolites increased after 7 d and decreased after 14 d of seed germination. The process of 7 d to 14 d was the key stage of seed germination of P. cyrtonema Hua. Differential metabolic pathway analysis showed that seed germination was controlled by multiple metabolic pathways. Metabolic correlation revealed the interdependence between seed germination metabolites and metabolic pathways. Conclusion: Sand storage can significantly increase the rate of seed germination and play a vital role in seed dormancy of P. cyrtonema Hua. There was inherent differences in metabolites during different storage time and germination stages in P. cyrtonema Hua. Our work provides a first glimpse of the metabolome in seed germination of P. cyrtonema Hua, and provides a valuable informations for revealing the mechanism of breaking seed dormancy.


Author(s):  
M. Anwar Maun

For the transformation of a seed to a seedling complex physical and biochemical changes occur within a seed before germination can proceed. Germination is controlled by diverse seed dormancy mechanisms in plant species that delays germination until the conditions are most favourable for seed germination and seedling establishment (Thompson 1970). Baskin and Baskin (1998) identified four benefits for the evolution of seed dormancy in plants: (i) persistence in risky environments as seed banks, (ii) decreased intraspecific competition, (iii) improved chances of seedling establishment and (iv) increased fitness (seed production) of the individual and the species as a whole. They showed that seed dormancy may be caused by any one of physiological, morphological, physical, chemical and mechanical constraints or by a combination of more than one of these factors. For instance, seeds may possess an embryo with a physiological inhibiting mechanism, immature embryo, impermeable seed coat or may contain chemical inhibitors and hard woody fruit walls. In all of these cases seed dormancy is eventually broken by one or more of the following treatments: after ripening, heat treatment, cold temperature stratification, prolonged exposure to high temperatures, exposure to light, softening of seed coat by microbes or physical scarification, leaching of inhibiting chemicals, ageing of seeds and other subtle changes in the habitat. In temperate North America with snow cover during winter months the seeds of a large majority of sand dune species—Cakile edentula, Ammophila breviligulata, Calamovilfa longifolia, Iva imbricata, Croton punctatus, Uniola paniculata—and others require cold stratification at <4°C for 4–6 weeks to break their dormancy requirements. Seeds of some species such as A. breviligulata and U. paniculata that require cold stratification at the northern end of their range lose this requirement in the south (Seneca 1972). At southern locations exposure to high temperatures may be required to fulfil the dormancy requirements. Winter annuals, Vulpia ciliata, Cerastium atrovirens, Mibora minima and Saxifraga tridactylites, that grow and mature their seeds in early summer on sand dunes at Aberffraw, North Wales, require exposure to high soil temperatures to overcome a state of dormancy in a certain proportion of seeds at the time of dispersal (Carey and Watkinson 1993; Pemadasa and Lovell 1975).


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wenwu Zhang ◽  
Jinfeng Tong ◽  
Long Xia ◽  
Xiaoyun Zhu ◽  
Rui Ran ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The seeds of Polygonatum cyrtonema Hua have dormancy phenomenon. Previous studies have shown that sand storage factors effects of the seed dormancy of P. cyrtonema Hua seeds and enhance the seed germination process. Subsequently, metabolic activities and different changes during the sand storage and germination process of P. cyrtonema Hua seed has not been heavily researched. Results In this study the changes in the metabolites of P. cyrtonema Hua seeds at different sand storage times and germination stages, we used untargeted metabolomics to determine them. Most of the sugar and glycoside contents in seed coat increased after 30 d on the other hand, in peeled seeds increased at 30 d and decreased at 60 d after sand storage treatment. The content of proline and benzoic acid decreased in the seed coat after sand storage. PCA, OPLS-DA and HCA showed that the contents of most metabolites increased after 7 d and decreased after 14 d of seed germination. The process of 7 d to 14 d was the key stage of seed germination of P. cyrtonema Hua. Differential metabolic pathway analysis showed that seed germination was controlled by multiple metabolic pathways. Metabolic correlation revealed the interdependence between seed germination metabolites and metabolic pathways. Conclusion Sand storage can significantly increase the rate of seed germination and play a vital role in seed dormancy of P. cyrtonema Hua. There was inherent differences in metabolites during different storage time and germination stages in P. cyrtonema Hua. Our work provides a first glimpse of the metabolome in seed germination of P. cyrtonema Hua, and provides a valuable informations for revealing the mechanism of breaking seed dormancy.


Agronomy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 1765
Author(s):  
Wei Zhang ◽  
Lian-Wei Qu ◽  
Jun Zhao ◽  
Li Xue ◽  
Han-Ping Dai ◽  
...  

The innate physiological dormancy of Tulipa thianschanica seeds ensures its survival and regeneration in the natural environment. However, the low percentage of germination restricts the establishment of its population and commercial breeding. To develop effective ways to break dormancy and improve germination, some important factors of seed germination of T. thianschanica were tested, including temperature, gibberellin (GA3) and/or kinetin (KT), cold stratification and sowing depth. The percentage of germination was as high as 80.7% at a constant temperature of 4 °C, followed by 55.6% at a fluctuating temperature of 4/16 °C, and almost no seeds germinated at 16 °C, 20 °C and 16/20 °C. Treatment with exogenous GA3 significantly improved the germination of seeds, but KT had a slight effect on the germination of T. thianschanica seeds. The combined treatment of GA3 and KT was more effective at enhancing seed germination than any individual treatment, and the optimal hormone concentration for the germination of T. thianschanica seeds was 100 mg/L GA3 + 10 mg/L KT. In addition, it took at least 20 days of cold stratification to break the seed dormancy of T. thianschanica. The emergence of T. thianschanica seedlings was the highest with 82.4% at a sowing depth of 1.5 cm, and it decreased significantly at a depth of >3.0 cm. This study provides information on methods to break dormancy and promote the germination of T. thianschanica seeds.


Horticulturae ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (11) ◽  
pp. 490
Author(s):  
Saeng Geul Baek ◽  
Jin Hyun Im ◽  
Myeong Ja Kwak ◽  
Cho Hee Park ◽  
Mi Hyun Lee ◽  
...  

This study aimed to determine the type of seed dormancy and to identify a suitable method of dormancy-breaking for an efficient seed viability test of Lysimachia coreana Nakai. To confirm the effect of gibberellic acid (GA3) on seed germination at different temperatures, germination tests were conducted at 5, 15, 20, 25, 20/10, and 25/15 °C (12/12 h, light/dark), using 1% agar with 100, 250, and 500 mg·L−1 GA3. Seeds were also stratified at 5 and 25/15 °C for 6 and 9 weeks, respectively, and then germinated at the same temperature. Seeds treated with GA3 demonstrated an increased germination rate (GR) at all temperatures except 5 °C. The highest GR was 82.0% at 25/15 °C and 250 mg·L−1 GA3 (4.8 times higher than the control (14.0%)). Additionally, GR increased after cold stratification, whereas seeds did not germinate after warm stratification at all temperatures. After cold stratification, the highest GR was 56.0% at 25/15 °C, which was lower than the GR observed after GA3 treatment. We hypothesized that L. coreana seeds have a non-deep physiological dormancy and concluded that 250 mg·L−1 GA3 treatment is more effective than cold stratification (9 weeks) for L. coreana seed-dormancy-breaking.


2013 ◽  
Vol 850-851 ◽  
pp. 1295-1302
Author(s):  
Li Li Qian ◽  
Shan Wang ◽  
Kai Ye ◽  
Cheng Fang

Zoysia (Zoysia japonica Steud.) is a warm-season turf grass, which possess seed coat-imposed dormancy that hampers germination. The objective of the present study was to determine the most effective methods in breaking the seed dormancy of zoysia. This experiment was used to find the right concentration and treatment time. KOH, NaOH, C3H6O, and H2SO4solutions are the four kinds of chemical agents used which were evaluated and sixty four treatments were conducted. The results indicated that all chemical agents investigated can successfully remove glumes and promote seed germination of zoysia under certain concentrations and treatment times. The best method for seed dormancy breaking in zoysia was 20% KOH solution for 30 min.


2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Vincent Ishola Esa ◽  
Taiwo Ayanniyin Ayanbamiji ◽  
Ayobami Daniel Abo

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thalita Neves Marostega ◽  
Petterson Baptista Da Luz ◽  
Armando Reis Tavares ◽  
Leonarda Grillo Neves ◽  
Severino De Paiva Sobrinho

The Passiflora L. genus covers a diversity of wild species with ornamental potential, especially due to the intrinsic beauty of its exotic flowers, flowering more than once a year and the lush foliage. However, Passiflora seeds present dormancy complicating seed germination and the establishment of commercial plant production with species with high ornamental potential. This study was conducted to determine the best pre-germination treatments to overcome seed dormancy for Passiflora quadrangularis, P. nitida, P. foetida, P. eichleriana, P. alata, P. cincinnata, P. mucronata, P. micropetala, P. suberosa, P. morifolia and P. tenuifila. The experimental design was completely randomized, with five treatments and four replicates, with 25 seeds per plot. Pre-germination treatments were: seeds soaked in 1,000 mg L- 1 GA3 (gibberellic acid) for 6 hours, seeds soaked in 0.2 % KNO3 (potassium nitrate) for 24 hours, seeds soaked in 1 % KNO3 for 24 hours, partial seedcoat scarification with sandpaper number 120 and control (seeds untreated). Percentage of germination, germination velocity index and radicle length were evaluated for all species. The results showed that GA3 was effective to overcome seed dormancy in P. suberosa (86%), P. morifolia (68 %) and P. tenuifila (54%). KNO3 1% had significant effect on overcoming dormancy in seeds of P. eichleriana (66%) and scarification with sandpaper increased seed germination of P. micropetala (38%).


HortScience ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 40 (6) ◽  
pp. 1843-1845 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luping Qu ◽  
Xiping Wang ◽  
Ying Chen ◽  
Richard Scalzo ◽  
Mark P. Widrlechner ◽  
...  

Seed germination patterns were studied in Echinacea purpurea (L.) Moench grouped by seed source, one group of seven lots from commercially cultivated populations and a second group of nine lots regenerated from ex situ conserved wild populations. Germination tests were conducted in a growth chamber in light (40 μmol·m–2·s–1) or darkness at 25 °C for 20 days after soaking the seeds in water for 10 minutes. Except for two seed lots from wild populations, better germination was observed for commercially cultivated populations in light (90% mean among seed lots, ranging from 82% to 95%) and in darkness (88% mean among seed lots, ranging from 82% to 97%) than for wild populations in light (56% mean among seed lots, ranging from 9% to 92%) or in darkness (37% mean among seed lots, ranging from 4% to 78%). No germination difference was measured between treatments in light and darkness in the commercially cultivated populations, but significant differences were noted for treatments among wild populations. These results suggest that repeated cycles of sowing seeds during cultivation without treatments for dormancy release resulted in reduced seed dormancy in E. purpurea.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document