Two common Potamogeton species, Potamogeton pectinatus L. and Potamogeton crispus L., were collected in 2016 and 2017 from a lowland, sandy bed in the Wilga River in Poland to investigate the ability of the plants to adapt to changing hydrological conditions. Measurements included biomechanical properties as well as the morphological characteristics of their stems. Specifically, experiments included three-point bending and tension tests as well as stem diameter and cross-sectional morphology at various periods in the plants' life cycles. Detailed information about the seasonal changes in biomechanical traits and the similarities between the two investigated plants are presented. The data show significant differences in the three-point bending and tension parameters. The flexural rigidity proved to be the most sensitive parameter to changes in hydrological conditions during the season. The maximum forces in the three-point bending tests needed to complete the fracture of P. crispus were much higher, reaching values up to 0.097 N, than those for P. pectinatus (0.035 N), due to P. crispus having thicker shoots, which resulted in greater resistance to elastic deformity. Moreover, the modulus of elasticity values shows that P. pectinatus is much more prone to return to its original shape after the removal of the acting forces. For instance, the maximum Young's modulus for P. pectinatus was 116.23 MPa, whereas for P. crispus, the highest value was four times lower (26.60 MPa). The present study supplements an aquatic plant biomechanics database that has been created in recent years.
Four aquatic plants (i.e., Potamogeton pectinatus L., Potamogeton crispus L., Myriophyllum spicatum L., and Ceratophyllum demersum L.) that commonly grow in European lowland rivers and lakes and exhibit a variety of morphologies and differences in the internal structures of their stem cross sections were selected to investigate the influence of initial conditions on biomechanical tests. A new method of sample testing in wet conditions is proposed and employed using a bench‐top testing machine. The obtained biomechanical characteristics, such as breaking strain, force, and stress; Young's modulus; flexural strain; flexural rigidity; and flexural modulus are presented and discussed. Even when fresh specimens were kept in water before testing in air, their biomechanical parameters were sensitive to fast drying. If the turgor pressure was not maintained in dry tests, specimen stiffness was not preserved and the measured biomechanical properties deviated from those observed in wet conditions. Approximately 43% of the three‐point bending tests and 20% of the tension tests showed significant differences between dry and wet conditions in all considered plant species. Bending tests for both conditions performed on P. pectinatus L. and P. crispus L. showed the highest differences in flexural rigidity values, reflecting the adaptation of these plants to changing hydraulic conditions. Stem resistance to tension forces in terms of Young's modulus was found to be different for wet and dry conditions only for P. pectinatus L. Overall, it was revealed that plants constantly submerged in water tend to be stiffer than plants exposed to dry conditions.
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