Influence of maternal environment in developing different levels of physical dormancy and its ecological significance

Jaganathan, Ganesh K.

doi:10.1007/s11258-015-0560-y

Cited by 55 publications

(70 citation statements)

References 62 publications

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“…Th e impermeable nature of the seed/fruit coats is due to the palisade layer present in the seed coat preventing water reaching internal structures (Baskin et al 2000). Numerous studies on seed development have shown that the transition from a permeable to impermeable seed coat coincides with the decline in moisture content during the maturation drying phase of seed development (Jaganathan 2016). Indeed, it has been observed in a few species that the seed coat becomes impermeable only when the moisture content of the seeds falls to a specifi c threshold level (Hyde 1954;Gladstones 1958;Egley 1979;Chinnasamy & Bal 2003;Hay et al 2010;Gama-Arachchige et al 2011;Gresta et al 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Relationship between seed moisture content and acquisition of impermeability in Nelumbo nucifera (Nelumbonaceae)

et al. 2017

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Seeds of Nelumbo nucifera do not imbibe water, and thus have physical dormancy (PY). However, a proportion of seeds are permeable to water, and so we hypothesized that variation in moisture content is a reason for the development of both permeable and impermeable seeds. Th e permeable proportion of seeds present in a lot collected from Suzhou, China, was separated using an imbibition test. Th e permeable proportion had an average moisture content of 15.6 %, compared with 8.5 % for impermeable seeds. Drying permeable seeds above silica gel to 10 % and 8 % f. wb., resulted in 77 and 100 % impermeable seeds, respectively, compared with no impermeable seeds at 15 % moisture content. Dried to 10 % moisture content, and incubated above water in an airtight container, 46 % of the seeds reverse impermeability. Permeable seeds with 15 % moisture content maintained above LiCl 2 (RH=70 %) did not develop impermeability after three months of storage. Th e seeds dried to 6 % moisture content and stored above water in an airtight container showed no increase in moisture. Based on these results, we conclude that there is a strong relationship between moisture content and the onset of impermeability in this species.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Relationship between seed moisture content and acquisition of impermeability in Nelumbo nucifera (Nelumbonaceae)

et al. 2017

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“…Natural gradients (e.g., precipitation, temperature, altitude) offer great opportunities for evaluating inter-population variability and might provide information about how species may cope with environmental variability (Ooi et al 2012;Fernández-Pascual et al 2013). Variation along precipitation gradients might be highly important for seed traits such as dormancy, because changes in humidity during seed development are related to the degree of seed dormancy (Jaganathan 2016). Within species, a review of studies comparing populations in sites with different precipitations found that low rainfall during seed development favours the occurrence of PY (Hudson et al 2015 and reference therein).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Recent reviews (Hudson et al 2015;Jaganathan 2016) expressed the need for jointly evaluating inter and intrapopulation variability in PY. Determining the extent of PY variation may help us to fully understand how species cope with environmental heterogeneity, ensuring that at least some seedling emergence, and potentially recruitment, will occur (Ooi et al 2014;Liyanage & Ooi 2015).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…The trend toward higher imbibition (lower PY) at the most humid extreme of the gradient could be related to the fact that in that portion of the gradient it would be favourable to have always an amount of seeds that could rapidly germinate and take advantages of the rainy events. In this sense, Jaganathan (2016) suggested that when in the maternal environment the relative humidity and rainfall are high, seeds could develop a seed coat permeable to water. However, although the lack of significant differences found in our study could be due to the extent of our precipitation gradient, previous studies obtaining the expected pattern in seed with PY were performed in narrower or similar precipitations gradients (Norman et al 2006;Gresta et al 2007).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Inter- and intra-population variability in physical dormancy along a precipitation gradient

2017

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Physical dormancy enables plants that occur in temporally stochastic and harsh environments to survive; thus, within the distribution area of a species, the percentage of seeds with physical dormancy is expected to increase towards more arid and unpredictable areas. Th ere have been no previous studies evaluating both inter and intra-population variability in physical dormancy along a precipitation gradient. Th e aim of this study was to determine the interand intra-population variability in physical dormancy of seeds of Vachellia aroma (Fabaceae) along a precipitation gradient. We collected mature fruits from four localities along a precipitation gradient in central Argentina for an imbibition experiment using controlled germination chambers. Changes in physical dormancy were not found along the precipitation gradient; however, a trend toward higher percentage of seed imbibition (lower PY) at the most humid extreme of the gradient was observed. On the contrary, we did observed intra-population variability in three of the four populations, suggesting that most of the populations of V. aroma might have the ability to deal with the environmental variability encountered at local scale. Th is study highlights the importance of studying both interand intra-population variability in physical dormancy.

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“…There is clear evidence to show that seeds matured in one microsite may have different physiology compared with other microsites and year [60,61]. Seeds of arctic-alpine species maturing under warmer conditions are likely to have different physiological characteristics including changes in dormancy status and seed size, than seeds matured under current conditions [50,58,[62][63][64].…”

Section: Seed Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Inconclusive Predictions and Contradictions: A Lack of Consensus on Seed Germination Response to Climate Change at High Altitude and High Latitude

Jaganathan

Dalrymple

2016

Journal of Botany

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Climate change directly affects arctic-alpine plants and acute responses to increased temperatures may be seen in their reproductive fitness and germination ability. However, uncertainties prevail in predicting whether a future warmer climate favors or hampers seed germination in high latitude and high altitude soils and seed germination research in such systems has not been able to provide generalizable patterns of response. The available literature on this subject has been conducted at various locations contributing to difficulties in predicting the response of arctic-alpine seeds to climate change. Here, we show that discrepancies in seed collection, dormancy breaking treatments, and germination conditions found in the published literature are possible reasons for our inability to draw large scale conclusions. We explore how these factors influence the results and highlight the fact that many of the previous investigations have reported the effects of warmer temperature, rather than a warmer climate and all the associated complex environmental interactions, on seed germination. We recommend that long-term monitoring of seed response to treatments that mimic the present and future alpine climate is likely to produce more ecologically meaningful insights and suggest several practical steps that researchers can take that would facilitate greater coherence between studies.

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Influence of maternal environment in developing different levels of physical dormancy and its ecological significance

Cited by 55 publications

References 62 publications

Relationship between seed moisture content and acquisition of impermeability in Nelumbo nucifera (Nelumbonaceae)

Relationship between seed moisture content and acquisition of impermeability in Nelumbo nucifera (Nelumbonaceae)

Inter- and intra-population variability in physical dormancy along a precipitation gradient

Inconclusive Predictions and Contradictions: A Lack of Consensus on Seed Germination Response to Climate Change at High Altitude and High Latitude

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