It is important to understand the effects of dew events on non-mucilaginous seed germination of annual desert plant species during dry seasons, which is critical to maintaining long-term soil seed banks in a harsh des...It is important to understand the effects of dew events on non-mucilaginous seed germination of annual desert plant species during dry seasons, which is critical to maintaining long-term soil seed banks in a harsh desert environment. We hypothesize that dew deposition also assists in the non-mucilaginous seed germination of annual desert species. A common field dew treatment experiment was conducted in the Linze Inland River Basin Research Station to investigate the effects of dew deposition on the seed germination of four annual species, including Agriophyllum squarrosum, Corispermum mongoficum, Bassia dasyphylla and Halogeton arachnoideus. The results showed that the presence of dew significantly increased seed germination percentages and decreased the nonviable seed percentages of B. dasyphylla and H. arachnoideus, whereas there was no such trend for the seeds of C. mongolicum and A. squarrosum. The ecological effects of dew on the seed germination and viability of the annual desert plants were species specific. Although dew wetting is insufficient to cause seed germination, it may help in priming the seeds.展开更多
基金funded by the National Basic Research Program of China(2013CB429903)the West Light Program for Talent Cultivation of Chinese Academy of Sciencesthe National Natural Science Foundation of China(41301604)
文摘It is important to understand the effects of dew events on non-mucilaginous seed germination of annual desert plant species during dry seasons, which is critical to maintaining long-term soil seed banks in a harsh desert environment. We hypothesize that dew deposition also assists in the non-mucilaginous seed germination of annual desert species. A common field dew treatment experiment was conducted in the Linze Inland River Basin Research Station to investigate the effects of dew deposition on the seed germination of four annual species, including Agriophyllum squarrosum, Corispermum mongoficum, Bassia dasyphylla and Halogeton arachnoideus. The results showed that the presence of dew significantly increased seed germination percentages and decreased the nonviable seed percentages of B. dasyphylla and H. arachnoideus, whereas there was no such trend for the seeds of C. mongolicum and A. squarrosum. The ecological effects of dew on the seed germination and viability of the annual desert plants were species specific. Although dew wetting is insufficient to cause seed germination, it may help in priming the seeds.
