Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-v9fdk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T05:24:21.250Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Germination biology of dimorphic seeds of the annual halophyte common seepweed (Suaeda glauca)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 December 2019

Hongfei Wang
Affiliation:
Lecturer, School of Life Science, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
Lin Kong
Affiliation:
Undergraduate Student, School of Life Science, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
Rui Gao
Affiliation:
Research Officer, Dandong Forestry and Grassland Development Service Center, Dandong, China
Buhailiqiemu Abudureheman
Affiliation:
Associate Professor, Aksu Campus, Xinjiang University Institute of Science and Technology, Aksu, China
Xinyang Li
Affiliation:
Graduate Student, School of Life Science, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
Qiuli Li*
Affiliation:
Professor, School of Life Science, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
*
Author for correspondence: Qiuli Li, Professor, School of Life Science, Liaoning Normal University, No. 850 Huanghe Road Shahekou District, Dalian, China. (E-mail: skyliqiuli@163.com)

Abstract

Common seepweed [Suaeda glauca (Bunge) Bunge] is a common salt-tolerant weed species distributed across the agricultural regions of northern China. It produces dimorphic seeds with different phenotypic characteristics and seed sizes. However, there is no information regarding the germination biology of these dimorphic seeds. Studies were conducted to evaluate the effects of ecological factors such as temperature, light, pH, osmotic stress, salt concentration, and planting depth on seed germination and seedling emergence. The results showed that brown seeds were nondormant, whereas black seeds had an intermediate physiological dormancy. The germination percentage of brown seeds was more than 80% at all temperature regimes and light conditions, but the optimum germination occurred at the cold thermoperiod of 20/10 C. In contrast, less than 6% of black seeds germinated at all temperature regimes and light conditions. Eight weeks of cold stratification did not break the dormancy of black seeds, whereas low concentrations of gibberellic acid (0.1 and 1.0 mM) significantly increased seed germination. Removal of the testa of black seeds also promoted germination and produced normal seedlings. Brown seeds showed moderate tolerance to salt stress, with 16% germination percentage at a salt concentration of 600 mM NaCl. The germination of brown seeds was 38% at an osmotic potential stress of −0.8 MPa; above that, no germination was obtained. Brown seeds germinated well in a wide pH range (4 to 10), with a germination percentage higher than 95%. Seedling emergence percentage was higher than 90% at burial depths of 0 to 2 cm, while germination percentage severely decreased for brown seeds with burial depths >2 cm, indicating that shallow tillage could be an effective measure to minimize seed germination. Information gathered from this study will help to develop an effective protocols for controlling S. glauca.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© Weed Science Society of America, 2019

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Footnotes

Associate Editor Name & Institution: Hilary A. Sandler, University of Massachusetts

References

Ahmed, MZ, Khan, MA (2010) Tolerance and recovery responses of playa halophytes to light, salinity and temperature stresses during seed germination. Flora 205:764771CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Awan, TH, Chauhan, BS, Cruz, PCS (2014) Influence of environmental factors on the germination of Urena lobata L. and its response to herbicides. PLoS ONE 9:e90305CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Baskin, CC, Baskin, JM (1998) Seeds: Ecology, Biogeography, and Evolution of Dormancy and Germination. 2nd ed. Tokyo: Elsevier. 666 pGoogle Scholar
Baskin, CC, Baskin, JM (2014) Seeds: Ecology, Biogeography, and Evolution of Dormancy and Germination. San Diego: Academic/Elsevier. Pp 526CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cao, DC, Baskin, CC, Baskin, JM, Yang, F, Huang, ZY (2012) Comparison of germination and seed bank dynamics of dimorphic seeds of the cold desert halophyte Suaeda corniculata subsp. mongolica. Ann Bot 110:15451558CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chachalis, D, Reddy, KN (2000) Factors affecting Campsis radicans seed germination and seedling emergence. Weed Sci 48:212216CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chauhan, BS (2016) Germination biology of Hibiscus tridactylites in Australia and the implications for weed management. Sci Rep 6:26006CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chauhan, BS, Gill, G, Preston, C (2006a) Factors affecting seed germination of annual sowthistle (Sonchus oleraceus) in southern Australia. Weed Sci 4:854860CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chauhan, BS, Gill, G, Preston, C (2006b) Seedling recruitment pattern and depth of recruitment of 10 weed species in minimum tillage and no-till seeding systems. Weed Sci 54:658668CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chauhan, BS, Johnson, DE (2008a) Influence of environmental factors on seed germination and seedling emergence of eclipta (Eclipta prostrata) in a tropical environment. Weed Sci 56:383388CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chauhan, BS, Johnson, DE (2008b) Germination ecology of goosegrass (Eleusine indica): an important grass weed of rainfed rice. Weed Sci 56:699706.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chauhan, BS, Johnson, DE (2009) Germination ecology of spiny (Amaranthus spinosus) and slender amaranth (A. viridis): troublesome weeds of direct-seeded rice. Weed Sci 57:379385CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Elsey-Quirk, T, Middleton, BA, Proffitt, CE (2009) Seed flotation and germination of salt marsh plants: the effects of stratification, salinity, and/or inundation regime. Aquat Bot 9:4046CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eslami, SV (2011) Comparative germination and emergence ecology of two populations of common lambsquarters (Chenopodium album) from Iran and Denmark. Weed Sci 59:9097CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fernando, N, Humphries, T, Florentine, SK, Chauhan, BS (2016) Factors affecting seed germination of feather fingergrass (Chloris virgata). Weed Sci 64:605612CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Galinato, MI, Van der Valk, AG (1986) Seed germination traits of annuals and emergents recruited during drawdowns in the Delta Marsh, Manitoba, Canada. Aquat Bot 26:89102CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ichizen, N, Han, Z, Wang, ZS, Takahashi, H, Matsumoto, S (1998) Interference of Suaeda glauca with cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) in salt-affected soil in Hebei province in China. J Weed Sci Tech 43:138140. JapaneseCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ichizen, N, Kuramochi, H, Nishio, T, Sun, JY, Liu, XJ, Tadano, T (1999a) Interference of Suaeda glauca with spring wheat (Triticum aestivum) in salt-affected soil in Hebei province in China. J Weed Sci Tech 44:239241. JapaneseCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ichizen, N, Nishio, T, Kuramochi, H, Liu, MY, Lei, YP, Tadano, T (1999b) Interference of Suaeda glauca with sugar beet (Beta vulgaris) in salt-affected soil in Hebei province in China. J Weed Sci Tech 44:236238. JapaneseCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ichizen, N, Nishio, T, Sun, JY, Liu, XJ (2004) Relationship between wheat yield and Suaeda glauca coverage on fields with different soil Na concentrations in China. Weed Biol Manag 4:168170CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Javaid, M, Tanveer, A (2014) Germination ecology of Emex spinosa and Emex australis, invasive weeds of winter crops. Weed Res 54:565575CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Khan, MA (1999) Comparative influence of salinity and temperature on the germination of subtropical perennial halophytes. Pages 7788in Hamdy, A, Lieth, H, Todorovis, M, eds. Halophyte Uses in Different Climates 1. Ecological and Physiological Studies. Leiden: BackhuysGoogle Scholar
Khan, MA, Gul, B, Weber, DJ (2001) Germination of dimorphic seeds of Suaeda moquinii under high salinity stress. J Aust Bot 49:185192CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Khan, MA, Ungar, IA (1997) Germination responses of the subtropical annual halophyte Zygophyllum simplex. Seed Sci Technol 25:8391Google Scholar
Kleemann, SGL, Gill, GS (2018) Seed germination and seedling recruitment behavior of winged sea lavender (Limonium lobatum) in southern Australia. Weed Sci 66:485493.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Liu, SE, ed (1959) Flora of Northeast Herbaceous Plants. Volume 2. Beijing: Science Press. Pp 7071. ChineseGoogle Scholar
Ma, HY, Liang, ZW, Lu, BS, Yang, HY, Wang, SH (2012) Advances in research on the seed bank of a saline-alkali meadow in the Songnen plain. Acta Ecol Sin 32:42614269. ChineseGoogle Scholar
Michel, B, Kaufmann, MR (1973) The osmotic potential of polyethylene glycol 6000. Plant Physiol 51:914916CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nosratti, I, Amiri, S, Bagheri, A, Chauhan, BS (2018) Environmental factors affecting seed germination and seedling emergence of foxtail sophora (Sophora alopecuroides). Weed Sci 66:7177CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nurse, RE, Reynolds, WD, Doucet, C, Weaver, SE (2008) Germination characteristics of the dimorphic seeds of spreading orach (Atriplex patula). Weed Sci 56:216223CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rao, N, Dong, LY, Li, J, Zhang, HJ (2008) Influence of environmental factors on seed germination and seedling emergence of American sloughgrass (Beckmannia syzigachne). Weed Sci 56:529533CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schutte, B, Tomasek, B, Davis, A, Andersson, L, Benoit, D, Cirujeda, A, Dekker, J, Forcella, F, Gonzalez-Andujar, J, Graziani, F (2014) An investigation to enhance understanding of the stimulation of weed seedling emergence by soil disturbance. Weed Res 54:112CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Song, J, Fan, H, Zhao, YY, Jia, YH, Du, XH, Wang, BS (2008) Effect of salinity on germination, seedling emergence, seedling growth and ion accumulation of a euhalophyte Suaeda salsa in an intertidal zone and on saline inland. Aquat Bot 88:331337CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Song, J, Shi, WW, Liu, RR, Xu, YG, Sun, N, Zhou, JC, Feng, G (2017) The role of the seed coat in adaptation of dimorphic seeds of the euhalophyte Suaeda salsa to salinity. Plant Species Biol 32:107114CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tang, W, Xu, XY, Shen, GQ, Chen, J (2015) Effect of environmental factors on germination and emergence of aryloxyphenoxy propanoate herbicide-resistant and -susceptible Asia minor bluegrass (Polypogon fugax). Weed Sci 63:669675CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ungar, IA (1995) Seed germination and seed-bank ecology of halophytes. Pages 599628in Seed Development and Germination. New York: Marcel DekkerGoogle Scholar
Ungar, IA (1996) Effect of salinity on seed germination, growth, and ion accumulation of Atriplex patula (Chenopodiaceae). Am J Bot 83:604607CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wang, FX, Xu, YG, Wang, S, Shi, WW, Liu, RR, Feng, G, Song, J (2015) Salinity affects production and salt tolerance of dimorphic seeds of Suaeda salsa. Plant Physiol Biochem 95:4148CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wang, HL, Wang, L, Tian, CY, Huang, ZY (2012) Germination dimorphism in Suaeda acuminata: a new combination of dormancy types for heteromorphic seeds. S Afr J Bot 78:270275CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wang, L, Huang, ZY, Baskin, CC, Baskin, JM (2008) Germination of dimorphic seeds of the desert annual halophyte Suaeda aralocaspica (Chenopodiaceae), a C4 plant without Kranz anatomy. Ann Bot (Lond) 102:757769CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wilcut, JW, Burke, IC, Thomas, WE, Spears, JF (2003) Influence of environmental factors on broadleaf signalgrass (Brachiaria platyphylla) germination. Weed Sci 51:683689Google Scholar
Yang, C, Shi, D, Wang, D (2008) Comparative effects of salt and alkali stresses on growth, osmotic adjustment and ionic balance of an alkali-resistant halophyte Suaeda glauca (Bge.). Plant Growth Reg 56:179190CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Yang, F, Baskin, JM, Baskin, CC, Yang, XJ, Cao, DC, Huang, ZY (2015) Effects of germination time on seed morph ratio in a seed-dimorphic species and possible ecological significance. Ann Bot (Lond) 115:137145CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zhang, Y, Chen, HH, Zhang, HP (2010) Population dynamic and eco-niches of major weeds in watermelon fields in arid area of central Ningxia. Acta Agric Boreali-Occidentalis Sinica 19:7881. ChineseGoogle Scholar
Zhao, N, Li, Q, Guo, WL, Zhang, LL, Ge, LA, Wang, JX (2018) Effect of environmental factors on germination and emergence of shortawn foxtail (Alopecurus aequalis). Weed Sci 66:4756CrossRefGoogle Scholar