Growth and survival patterns of Cardiocrinum cordatum var. glehnii (Liliaceae) based on a 13-year monitoring study: Life history characteristics of a monocarpic perennial herb

Abstract

Based on 13 years of monitoring, the fates of individuals and contributions of size and age to demography through the life-history from seedling to flower were investigated in a monocarpic perennial herb, Cardiocrinum cordatum (Thunb.) Makino var. glehnii (F. Schmidt) H. Hara. Of 6155 seedlings, 5264 (85.5%) and 852 (13.8%) plants died at the seedling and one-leaf stage during the 13 years, respectively. Twelve individuals (0.40%) at the three- to seven-leaf stage reproduced after vegetative growth for 7–11 years, and all of them always showed constant positive growth patterns. Significant differences of sizes were detected between surviving and non-surviving individuals in earlier years at the one- and two-leaf stages. Logistic regression models showed that the survival and stage-increase probabilities increased until 5-years-old but decreased over 6-years-old, suggesting the significance of aging effects. At the four-leaf stage, the flowering probability increased with size, while it increased with leaf-stage but not size at greater stages. Individual growth models then suggested that many plants grew moderately: not only slow-growing but also rapidly-growing individuals tended to die within 7 years. Our study clarified three aspects of the life-history of C. cordatum: longevity of about a decade, constantly positive growth to flowering, and aging effects on growth and survival.

The Complete Chloroplast Genomes of Three Cardiocrinum (Liliaceae) Species: Comparative Genomic and Phylogenetic Analyses

“…The former is scattered in isolated patches across the Himalaya—Hengduan Mountains (including Bhutan, northeast India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sikkim), Southwest, and Central China (Phartyal et al, 2012), whereas C. cathayanum mainly occurs in isolated stands of montane deciduous forests in Southeast China. By contrast, C. cordatum is native to Japan and certain islands in the Russian Far East (Sakhalin, Kuriles; Araki et al, 2010). All three species of Cardiocrinum have self-compatible, visually showy flowers, and are insect (many bumblebee species) pollinated flowers that mature into capsules containing several 100 seeds with thin filmy wings (Ohara et al, 2006).…”

Variation in reproductive modes and population genetic structures of a monocarpic perennial herb, Cardiocrinum cordatum, in relation to habitat fragmentation

“…Unfortunately, information about the population structure of monocarpic perennials is rare (Araki et al . ). It was reported that the age structure of Heracleum mantegazzianum (Apiaceae) varied according to the habitat (Pergl et al .…”

“…However, the mortality of seedlings and small one‐leaf sterile individuals appeared to be very high (Araki et al . ), and very few plants reached maturity from seed. On the other hand, mature plants normally produced one or two vegetative offshoots per plant (Ohara et al .…”

“…Cardiocrinum cordatum is an interesting plant species in which to study the interactions between demographic and reproductive systems (Araki et al . ; Koyama et al . ; Cao & Worley ), and the variations in spatiotemporal population genetic structure, because C. cordatum is a monocarpic perennial plant and depends on both sexual reproduction via seeds and vegetative reproduction via the formation of bulblets (Ohara et al .…”

The role of sexual and vegetative reproduction in the population maintenance of a monocarpic perennial herb,Cardiocrinum cordatumvar.glehnii

“…The survival rate of seedlings is extremely low, and it takes many years for juveniles to reach the flowering stage. Thus, individuals recruited by bulblet formation can bypass crucial small juvenile stages with high mortality and therefore there is a higher probability that they may survive (Ohara et al ; Araki et al ).…”