Floral and reproductive biology of Vaccinium meridionale (Ericaceae) in the Eastern Andes of Colombia.

Abstract

Floral and reproductive biology of Vaccinium meridionale (Ericaceae) in the Eastern Andes of Colombia. Vaccinium meridionale is a wild plant producing edible fruits in the mountain areas of Northern South America. However, the fruits of this species has been under an unsustainable extraction and there is a growing interest of establishing this species as a crop; nevertheless, the information about its breeding system is scarce, which is essential for its sustainable management and conservation. This research aimed to study the floral and reproductive biology of V. meridionale in natural conditions, and to analyze the importance of pollinators on its reproduction, in two wild populations of V. meridionale in the states of Cundinamarca and Boyacá, in the Oriental Cordillera of Colombia. For this, we have made different observations and experiments to describe its flower morphology, floral phenology, pollen viability, stigma receptivity, pollen-ovule ratio and nectar production. To study its reproductive system, we performed experiments of flower emasculation, pollinator exclusion and hand pollination (self-and cross-pollination). We found that although the flowers have poricidal anthers, the release of pollen could occur easily without vibration. V. meridionale shows a large floral display, long floral longevity and has female-biased nectar production. The pollen-ovule ratio was of 571±133, which classified the species as facultative xenogamy. This result agreed with the pollination experiments because the plants produced fruits by agamospermy, selfing and outcrossing. However, we registered a strong inbreeding depression, observed in high rates of fruit abortions, after self-pollination. Unlike of self-pollinating fruits, the plant retains those produced by cross-pollination since its formation. The floral traits showed by this species are mechanisms to favor a more diverse guild of floral visitors than only insects able to buzz-pollination. In addition, these floral traits may enhance the pollination probability, and reduce geitonogamy. Moreover, the inbreeding depression suggests that V. meridionale promotes outcrossing as its main reproductive strategy. Therefore, pollinators, particularly bees, are essential for this species reproduction and conservation, and are critical in the maintenance of its genetic variability and fruits production. Rev. Biol. Trop. 63 (4): 1197-1212. Epub 2015 December 01.

Vacciniumspp.: Karyotypic and phylogenetic characteristics, nutritional composition, edaphoclimatic conditions, biotic factors and beneficial microorganisms in the rhizosphere

“…Las especies cultivadas de Vaccinium (arándanos) se desarrollan en zonas climáticas con una temperatura media del aire entre 7 y 33 °C (Ormazábal et al, 2020) una precipitación anual entre 900 y 1300 mm y un régimen de un periodo lluvioso y un seco (Chamorro & Nates, 2015). Para el desarrollo de estas especies, el suelo debe tener un pH entre 4 y 5, de textura arenosa, arcillosa o franco-arenosa (Lambí et al, 2012;Muñoz-Vega et al, 2017;Ormazábal et al, 2020).…”

“…El género Vaccinium es un frutal perenne de la familia de las Ericáceas que comprenden 450 especies (Llerena et al, 2014;Hurkova et al, 2019). Las especies cultivadas de Vaccinium son originarias del hemisferio Norte (USDA, 2002;Gonzáles et al, 2017), mientras que las especies silvestre de Vaccinium se encuentran en el neotrópico y distribuidas entra en los páramos de los Andes de América del Sur (Coba-Santamaría et al, 2012, Chamorro & Nates, 2015. Estas especies crecen y desarrollan entre los 1500 y 4700 m.s.n.m., en temperaturas que oscila entre 3 y 17 °C, suelos ácidos con un pH entre 4 y 5, y la presencia de microorganismos benéficos que permiten la buena adaptación de los cultivos (Camacho, 2013;Cobo et al, 2016;Ormazábal et al, 2020).…”

Phenological scale for the mortiño or agraz (Vaccinium meridionale Swartz) in the high Colombian Andean area

“…In other Vaccinium, it has been expressed that the periods of flowering and ripening of fruits may vary according to the year and the location (Antunes et al, 2008). In the zone of San Miguel de Sema (Boyacá), there are two periods of flowering, the first from February to April and the second from July to September; likewise, the individuals that bloom in each period are different (Chamorro, 2014). In V. corymbosum a swollen bud that will give rise to the flowers was described as the beginning of the inflorescence formation (Meyer and Prinsloo, 2003).…”

“…Regarding the reproductive phase of this plant (FD and BD), Chamorro and Nates-Parra (2015), in Guachetá (Cundinamarca) and San Miguel de Sema (Boyacá), found that a bud develops completely when its flowers bloom, 18 days after beginning its formation and six days later the senescence of this organ occurs. However, Chamorro (2014) stated that the flowers' duration was only six to ten days, which it is considered a long floral longevity characteristic of the Ericaceae family (Primack, 1985), and these are mechanisms to increase the attraction of pollinators. Rathcke (2003), Torres-Díaz et al (2011), Chamorro (2014) and Chamorro and Nates-Parra (2015) found that the species produces a high quantity of flowers and low fruit production, which has been evidenced by selective abortion of self-pollinated fruits.…”

Aplicación de un diseño factorial 23 en la extracción asistida por microondas y evaluación de la actividad antioxidante de los compuestos presentes en frutos de Vaccinium meridionale

“…Este fruto crece en altitudes de (2200-3400 m s.n.m.) [5,6] y se puede considerar como una fruta rica en compuestos interesantes, antocianinas y flavonoides, los cuales contienen compuestos antioxidantes [7], con estructuras químicas que presentan algunas características que los hacen idóneos para estabilizar o desactivar radicales libres en el cuerpo humano [2].…”